The Fast-Paced "Empress Ki" Outpaces Other Dramas

"Empress Ki" broke the 20 percent ratings mark this week achieving 20.2 percent and there are quite a few episodes left to go. Despite being only a quarter of the way through the drama, the saeguk's pace has not slackened and every episode features some new intrigues and counter-intrigues. The love triangle between Ji Chang Wook as the emperor, Ha Ji Won as the future empress and Ju Jin Mo as the deposed Korean king is beginning to crystallize. History tells us that Ha Ji Won's character will eventually marry and become empress but it also tells us that the real Empress Ki mysteriously disappeared, so the ending and her ultimate choice remains a puzzle.

By this point in the 50-episode series, Ji Chang Wook realizes he loves Ha Ji Won but he knows that her affections are taken. Ha Ji Won is involved in court intrigues that could undermine the emperor and most players in the court have taken sides in the struggle for power.

Second and third place in this week's ratings were taken by two new series, the SBS drama "One Warm Word" and the KBS drama "The Prime Minister and I." Neither drama seems poised to take first place.

"Prime Minister and I," starring Lee Beom Soo and Yoona, began with a disappointing 5.9 percent of the viewers. In the first episode, reporter Yoona will do whatever it takes to get the scoop on the Prime Minister's love life, whether that includes going through his garbage or entering into a contract with him. That 5.9 percent is an increase from the 4.1 percent rating for the final episode of the previous SBS drama "Future's Choice."

Replacing "The Suspicious Housekeeper" on KBS is the drama "One Warm Word," which earned 6.8 percent of the viewers. The 20-episode drama tells the story of two married couples and how an affair could destroy both marriages. The couples are close friends whose lives could unravel in the face of the affair's betrayal. It has been described as the Korean melodrama version of the American series "Desperate Housewives." The show stars Ji Jin Hee, who appeared in "The Great Seer," Han Hye Jin, who appeared in "Syndrome," Kim Ji Soo of "Love Again," and Lee Sang Woo, who was last seen in "Goddess of Marriage."

On the variety show front, the KBS show "Hello Again" rated 7.6 percent of the viewers as opposed to the SBS show "Healing Camp," which earned 6.0 percent.