Park Ji-hoon‘s drama ‘Weak Hero Class 1’, which left the domestic OTT (online video service) service, was re-released on Netflix and immediately took over the top of the global charts with rave reviews, fully reaping the effects of the platform change.

‘Weak Hero Class 1’ rose straight to 3rd place on the series chart of FlixPatrol, a global OTT content ranking platform, immediately after its release on Netflix on the 25th. It followed the English-language dramas ‘Boy’s Time’ and ‘That‘s How It Became a Crime Scene’, and even beat out the hit ‘Fooled By Strangers’ (5th place) starring IU and Park Bo-gum.

It ranked 5th not only in Asia and South America, where K-dramas are traditionally preferred, such as Thailand, Malaysia, Argentina, and Brazil, but also in the United States, where English-language series are overwhelmingly popular.

‘Weak Hero Class 1’ is a school action drama based on a webtoon of the same name, about model student Yeon Si-eun (Park Ji-hoon) and her first friends, Su-ho (Choi Hyun-wook) and Beom-seok (Hong Kyung), who fight against violence. It was released in 2022 as a domestic OTT, ‘Wave Original’.

Even at the time, unfamiliar rookie actors Because he starred in the film, it didn’t receive much attention until it was released, but after it was released, it gained ‘explosive popularity’ through word of mouth. Not only did it rise to the top in terms of paid subscribers to Wave, but it also dominated various topicality indicators, earning it the nickname of ‘Rebellion of the Rookie’.

However, due to Wave‘s financial difficulties, the rights to Season 2 of ‘Weak Hero’ went to Netflix, and Netflix released ‘Weak Hero Class 1’ before Season 2, which led to unexpected global success.
‘Weak Hero Class 1’ has also been given new life through Netflix, and it seems to be a good example of ‘win-win synergy’.

Global viewers are unanimously praising the film for its explicit depiction of the level of violence, which makes it fun as an action film, while also delicately depicting the psychological changes and rifts in relationships among teenagers, rather than simply treating violence as entertainment or fun.

Praise is also pouring in for the acting skills of the main character Park Ji-hoon. On the movie drama rating platform IMDb, there were reviews such as “The pretty and small protagonist’s strong, powerful, and excellent strategy stood out” and “I was overwhelmed by the actor Park Ji-hoon.”

Thanks to this, expectations for season 2 (Weak Hero Class 2), scheduled to be released in April, have also increased. Season 2 depicts the desperate survival story of Yeon Si-eun (Park Ji-hoon), who transfers to a new school and faces greater violence. Ryeo-woon, Choi Min-young, Bae Na-ra, and Lee Jun-young have newly joined the cast.


Reporter Seungmi Lee smlee@donga.com

This article is automatically translated using Google AI. If you notice any inaccuracies, please let us know at allkstar@donga.com.