K-dramas with the subject of contract marriage have been continuously introduced
Known as a cliché theme in the past K-dramas, contract marriage is now reproduced as a new genre with the addition of fantasy elements and has become a trend.
Following MBN’s “Perfect Marriage Revenge”, SBS’s “My Demon”, MBC’s “The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract”, next year, tvN will release “Because I Want No Loss”, which also has content about a contract marriage.
First of all, “Perfect Marriage Revenge”, starring Sung Hoon and Jung Yu-min, was released on October 28th. It’s a revenge drama about a woman who returns to the past after being betrayed by her family and proposes a contract marriage for revenge.
Released on the same day (November 24th), “My Demon” and “The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract” are also developed based on “contract marriage” stories. “My Demon” is a fantasy romcom about a devilish chaebol heiress (Kim Yoo-jung) getting married to a demon (Song Kang), who temporarily loses his power, on a contract. In the meantime, “The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract” depicts the contract marriage of a 19th-century Joseon Confucian girl (Lee Se-young) and a 21st-century chaebol third generation (Bae In-hyuk).
All these works added fantasy elements to their traditional clichés to bring about a familiar taste yet approach viewers in a new and more attractive way.
In fact, the “contract marriage” craze is expected to continue next year with the fake wedding of Shin Min-ah and Kim Young-dae in “Because I Want No Loss”. This is a drama about the romance between a woman who has a fake wedding because she doesn’t want to lose money, and a man who becomes a fake groom because he doesn’t want to avoid her.
Then what is the reason why drama producers are making more dramas highlighting “marriage first, dating later” and the rising popularity of such content among viewers?
Drama critic Jo Sung-kyung explained that the change in social perception of marriage and attitudes towards marriage has been reflected in dramas. The critic said, “Although the overall atmosphere in society is leaning towards not getting married, many people still believe that marriage is a major life event. Therefore, the concept of contract marriage seems to have been considered as a subject to create events in dramas.”
Critic Jo continued, “Normal dramas captivate viewers by unfolding various events, but in romance dramas, marriage is often set as the ultimate goal. Marriage used to be portrayed as the goal of successful love, but it has recently become a device in the drama’s storyline as an event. Based on that background, even viewers who think they won’t get married will still feel curious about the story”.
Source: Daum
