Kdrama Ratings: Winners and Losers
The anticipated MBC drama, "Princess Aurora" scored a win on its first night, earning better viewer ratings than the first episode of the KBS show, "Ugly Alert."
"Princess Aurora," which began with Son Chang Min asking Lee Ah Hyun for a divorce, earned an 11 percent rating while "Ugly Alert" earned only seven percent.
Princess Aurora" benefited from the reputation of its writer, Im Seong Han, who also wrote "Miss Mermaid" and "Love in Heaven."
It also scored points by following "Oh Ja Ryeong is Coming," a drama which ended with a 20 percent rating.
On the other hand, "Ugly Alert" followed the drama, "The Birth of a Family" which ended with only an 6.8 percent rating.
The competition between "Gu Family Book" and the other shows in its time slot ceased to be a contest several weeks ago, with the story of a half-human, half-mythical creature being the clear winner. The MBC drama earned 14.8 percent of the viewer ratings this week with new developments in the plot.
In "Gu Family Book," Choi Jin Hyuk returned this week as the mountain spirit Gu Wol Ryong but he does not seem as friendly to humans as he initially did. Lee Seung Gi saw Suzy in a hanbok, traditional Korean women's clothing, and had to rethink his relationship with her. To his disappointment, his first love, Lee Bo Yi became a gisaeng.
"God of the Workplace," the story of a super temp who betters her office superiors, had a slight jump in ratings, reaching 14.4 percent. But it was not enough of a jump to beat the clear favorite, "Gu Family Book."
Despite lackluster beginnings, viewer ratings for "Jang Ok Jung" continue to escalate as the love story of Kim Tae Hee and Yoo In Ah heats up and his love for the royal concubine inspires jealousy among the other court women.
Kim Tae Hee's rival, Hong Soo Hyun, was found to be infertile and Yoo In Ah expressed his desire to have a child with Kim Tae Hee. After Kim Tae Hee interrupts Yoo In Ah's night with Hong Soo Hyun, the latter tells her a story. "Jang Ok Jung" achieved ratings of 9.6 percent this week.
As to variety shows, singer Jang Yoon Jung helped boost ratings on the SBS show, "Healing Camp," which reached 12.1 percent in viewer ratings. Nielsen ratings for the KBS show, "Hello" only reached 8.8 percent.
