Goodbye California, Hello Better Ratings For “The Heirs.”

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The Heirs
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Ratings for "The Heirs" started to improve as soon as the show left sunny Los Angeles behind. The opening episodes, which some fans felt featured stereotypical views of Americans and some bad acting from those playing the American roles, may have temporarily put a damper on the show's ratings. Despite the heated anticipation for the show's arrival and the star cast, the first episodes came in second place after the melodrama "Secrets."

While the scenery was gorgeous, focusing on long stretches of the Pacific Ocean and the luxurious lifestyles of the rich, some of the show's fans did not appreciate the show's interpretation of local culture.

Netizens made comments such as "I found the show entertaining and great, but I just don't like how they portray Americans. They made it look like once you come to U.S. you become corrupted."

"Another netizen said, "As an American I have to ask where did they find those actors."

One netizen wrote that she lived in California for 10 years and never saw local culture behave that badly.

So much for kdrama's debut at filming in California.

However, now that the show is headed back to Korea, the ratings are inching up.

The fourth episode achieved 11.5 percent in the Nielsen ratings, still trailing after "Secrets," which earned 15.3 percent in the ratings but stealing some percentage from "Medical Top Team" which remained in third place with ratings of 6.1 percent.

As "The Heirs" headed to Seoul, the drama also became more interesting as it sketched out the relationships between all the characters and placed them back in their proper setting. Maybe that's the message the first episodes wanted to convey. It's easier to forget about social and economic differences when you are somewhere else. But back in your hometown everyone knows who you are and where they think you belong.

However badly the U.S came off in the first episodes, the third episode almost made up for it with some funny lines.

When Lee Min Ho asks Park Shin Hye if he should like her. She says, no. When he asks why, she says because he's engaged. Such relationships only work in movies. He points out that they are in Hollywood after all.

Her character's love of horror movies is also amusing and results in some great lines. When their car breaks down and Lee Min Ho is about to go off for help, she reminds him that the one who stays behind in the horror movies always dies and she has to survive for the sequel.

Fortunately, fans will stick around for subsequent episodes to see how things develop in Korea and enjoy a few more funny lines.

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