I don‘t know whether to laugh or cry. This is a tvN drama story.

tvN has released two new dramas in a row to welcome 2025. The tvN Saturday-Sunday drama ‘Ask the Stars’ (written by Seo Sook-hyang, directed by Park Shin-woo) that first aired on the 4th, and the tvN·TVING original drama ‘Wonkyung’ (written by Lee Young-mi, directed by Kim Sang-ho) that first aired on the 6th are exactly those two.

The problem is the evaluation of the works. ‘Ask the Stars’, which is called a 50 billion won blockbuster, was given the label of ‘No fun’ (meaning it is not fun) from the beginning. Despite being a work that was prepared for a long time, it is evaluated that the story composition lacks the power to attract viewers from the beginning. As expected, the viewership ratings are also low. ‘Ask the Stars’, which started with 3.32%, recorded 3.88% for the second episode. This is in contrast to the previous series, ‘Love on a Single-Log Bridge’ (written by Im Ye-jin and directed by Park Joon-hwa), which started at 3% and rose to 6% in just two episodes. Although the two series, which are of different genres, cannot be simply compared numerically, the first week ratings for ‘Ask the Stars’, which cost hundreds of billions of won, must have been disappointing.

On the other hand, ‘Wonkyung’ was released first on TVING and, despite the fact that there was a level adjustment for broadcast review, the first episode ratings were relatively high. ‘Wonkyung’’s first episode ratings were 4.87%. There are many factors that turn viewers off, such as the lack of a top star and the potential distortion of history, but the first episode ratings were quite high. However, there are also some points to be cautious about. These are the problems with historical dramas presented by tvN and TVING (affiliated with CJ ENM). The fact that ‘Empress’ is particularly popular, the parts that are suspected of historical distortion, and the sexually suggestive scenes are always pointed out. ‘Wonkyung’ also clearly states in the logline that it is a ‘new interpretation’, and since the possibility of historical distortion is packaged as ‘dramatic permission’, this issue may surface in the future as the drama unfolds.

Last year, tvN, which laughed out loud when it received high viewership ratings and good reviews, is preparing various works this year as well. The beginning is ‘Ask the Stars’ and ‘Wonkyung’. However, the evaluations for the first week of the broadcast are not all smiles. Even though the viewership ratings are not expected due to the current situation and the aftermath of the disaster, the reviews are not yet up to expectations. The evaluations and reactions may change as the drama unfolds, but ‘the initial rush’ is important for anything. The beginning is disappointing, and it is disappointing again. (Viewership ratings based on Nielsen Korea, nationwide households, and paid platforms)

Hong Se-young, Donga.com reporter, projecthong@donga.com