Fans of “One Dollar Lawyer” pointed out that the drama would have performed better if it hadn’t been for SBS’s wrong decisions.
This drama was definitely popular and its final episode even ended with the highest viewer rating record, but it still leaves great regret in viewers. It is because the drama was sure to receive more love than that. This is the case of “One Dollar Lawyer”, which was forced to end quickly due to issues, such as frequent broadcasting cancellations, suspicions of discord, and early wrap-up.
SBS’s Friday-Saturday drama “One Dollar Lawyer” (written by Choi Soo Jin/ directed by Kim Jae Hyun) depicts the story of Chun Ji Hoon, who becomes the most reliable lawyer for his clients who have to pay only 1000 won (1 dollar) in attorney fees. In the final episode, which aired on November 11th, not only Chun Ji Hoon (Nam Goong Min), Baek Ma Ri (Kim Ji Eun) and Sa Ma Jang (Park Jin Woo), but Baek Hyun Moo (Lee Deok Hwa), Seo Min Hyuk (Choi Dae Hoon) and Na Ye Jin (Gong Min Jung) also joined forces to reveal Choi Ki Seok (Ju Seok Tae)’s brutal actions. Returning to his lawyer’s office afterward, Chun Ji Hoon said, “Not only in 2022 but even in 2222, I will also receive only 1000 won. I’m 1000 won lawyer”, showing his determination to be on the side of the weak as a lawyer who charges only 1,000 won.
Amid the forced happy ending, episode 12 of “One Dollar Lawyer” still wrapped up successfully by recording the highest nationwide viewer rating of 15.2%.
However, the drama still leaves great regret. Looking back on the early rise of “One Dollar Lawyer”, it was even stronger than the performance during “Hot Stove League” craze. Considering the drama’s popularity in its first half, achieving a 20% viewer rating was not a dream. In fact, “Hot Stove League” recorded double-digit ratings in the 4th episode and exceeded 15% in episode 9, but “A Thousand Won Lawyer” already surpassed double-digit ratings and the 15% milestone in its 3rd and 8th episodes, respectively.
However, the unreasonable cancellations of broadcasts hindered the further success of “One Dollar Lawyer”. The episode on the 21st of last month was canceled without a reason and replaced by “One Dollar Lawyer – Intermission”, which allowed viewers to rewatch highlight scenes from episodes 1 to 8, as an alternative. On the 28th, the drama continued to be canceled for the broadcast of a professional baseball postseason.
Subsequently, fans of “One Dollar Lawyer” was once again disappointed to know that their favorite drama had to be postponed due to SBS’s Social Park Knowledge Sharing project “2022 D Forum” on November 4th. Due to the viewers’ complaints, SBS canceled “2022 D Forum” but made them even angrier by keeping the drama cancelation plan and aired “Ji Sun’s Cinema Mind”. At that time, TV Daily asked SBS, “Is it because the editing process has not been done yet?”. In response, SBS said, “The editing process has been completed. The decision to cancel the broadcast this time was our strategy”.
There is another thing that made the viewers rage. Unlike its plan to air 14 episodes, SBS announced that the drama production had been reduced to 12 episodes. The production team explained, “We decided to make it a 12-episode drama to have a high-quality ending”. However, this reason was not persuasive to the viewers since hot dramas are normally extended, not reduced.
While the viewer rating of “One Dollar Lawyer” was gradually falling due to these incomprehensible decisions, an incident that fueled controversies broke out. Suspicions of discord between the production company Studio S and the writer were raised. While being criticized for such allegations, the production company asked for the insertion of more PPL scenes and the revision of the script due to the growing popularity of the drama, but the writer opposed it, causing a war of nerves to arise. In this regard, SBS denied that “the rumor of discord is groundless”, but “One Dollar Lawyer” did not convince viewers due to PPL scenes that appeared out of the blue in the middle of the drama broadcasts.
“One Dollar Lawyer” clearly recorded explosive hot topics and ratings, but the way it ended made viewers feel somewhat uncomfortable. Since this is not the first time SBS had problems with broadcast cancellations, viewers’ complaints are also growing. In the case of the follow-up series “The First Responders”, which will be on air at the same time as the World Cup season, drama fans are hoping it to be completed without any noisy issues.
Source: daum
