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Drama viewership ratings for the week of May 15-21, 2023

This week, Stealer: The Treasure Keeper and Joseon Attorney quietly end along with The Secret Romantic Guesthouse, which saw a gentle rise for its finale.

Meanwhile, our winners continue to win, with Doctor Cha hitting a new high of 18.5%. Will it hit 20% before the finale?

Drama viewership ratings for the week of May 15-21, 2023

Ep. # Station Rating
Monday, May 15
Queen of the Mask 7 Channel A 2.6%
Oh! Young-shim 1 ENA 0.6%
My Perfect Stranger 5 KBS 3.8%
The Secret Romantic Guesthouse 17 SBS 4.1%
Family: The Unbreakable Bond 9 tvN 3.1%
Tuesday, May 16
Queen of the Mask 8 Channel A 2.9%
Oh! Young-shim 2 ENA 0.4%
My Perfect Stranger 6 KBS 4.0%
The Secret Romantic Guesthouse 18 SBS 5.0%
Family: The Unbreakable Bond 10 tvN 3.1%
Wednesday, May 17
Bora! Deborah 11 ENA 0.7%
The Good Bad Mother 7 JTBC 7.5%
Stealer: The Treasure Keeper 11 tvN 1.9%
Thursday, May 18
Bora! Deborah 12 ENA 0.9%
The Good Bad Mother 8 JTBC 8.4%
Stealer: The Treasure Keeper 12 tvN 2.3%
Friday, May 19
Joseon Attorney 15 MBC 3.0%
Romantic Doctor Teacher Kim 3 7 SBS 13.8%
Saturday, May 20
Doctor Cha 11 JTBC 16.2%
The Real Has Come 17 KBS 17.4%
Joseon Attorney 16 MBC 2.9%
Romantic Doctor Teacher Kim 3 8 SBS 12.9%
Tale of the Nine Tailed 1938 5 tvN 5.5%
Sunday, May 21
Doctor Cha 12 JTBC 18.5%
The Real Has Come 18 KBS 19.8%
Tale of the Nine Tailed 1938 6 tvN 6.9%

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I wonder if “ Doctor Cha” will surpass “Crash Landing” with 4 episodes to go?

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Is Dr Cha that good?

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Yes, it is.

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Definitely. It's also, from my understanding, hugely groundbreaking for Korea

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Oh, interesting, in what way(s)?

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It shows that a woman over 40 has value, not only in terms of her career but even attracting men (the second male lead, who is very attractive and popular with women, is falling in love with her). It also is VERY likely that she is going to end up divorcing her jerk husband instead of forgiving him, which hasn't been the case in past dramas. At the very least, it's questioning the idea that women should stay in a horrible marriage just for the sake of her children, as well as the harm forcing marriage on people can be (she and her husband only got married because he got her pregnant, and the drama is VERY clear that everyone would have been happier if they had felt that not marrying was an option). It also shows how traditional views of marriage can be very stifling for women, as was the case of this very educated and accomplished doctor being turned into essentially into a servant.

From what I've read, it's doing so well in Korea in part because it's an important story that hasn't been told there yet, that's resonating with a lot of people.

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Thanks, @vienibenmio, for this explanation. None of the promos grabbed me, and I read the first couple of weecaps and wasn't really sure what to think, so it's been interesting to see the ratings climb this high. I think at this point I'm going to wait for it to finish (hate a botched ending) before I give it a go, but your comment has caused me to add it to my watchlist. At the very least, I'm interested to see what all the hype was about.

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@vienibenmio thanks very much for the details!

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I'm not a big fan of this drama, so I've been ff through it, and it feels like I'm not missing much. However, I can see how it would appeal to local viewers.
It's really great to see women in their 40s and 50s still killing it in the entertainment industry. I'll always have a soft spot for Uhm Jung-hwa.

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I predict that Doctor Cha will surpass Crash Landing. The post asks, "Will it hit 20% before the finale?" and I definitely think that it'll hit over 21.683% by the finale.

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It is very possible

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It will, and it can...as the top 3 dramas have veteran stars that are able to deliver an amazing performance....Anyway, JTBC has another gem at its hands (aside from Agency and Divorce Attorney Shin) that resonates with Koreans.

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#in

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Dr. Cha is doing well.

For a weekender THE REAL HAS COME is actually struggling. A substitute Chairman did not help but I cannot wonder if maybe confronting Korean society with the reasons for a low birthrate might not have made the show more topical and controversial than some could stand. Question- now that the second male lead is returning will this change the dynamic of the show?

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Why do you say it’s struggling? I am seeing the highest percentage for the real has come

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Weekenders are a different breed from other K-dramas - hey automatically draw bigger numbers. High numbers for a weekender are 30% - in its final episodes the recent YOUNG LADY AND GENTLEMAN actually hit that or close to it even though dramatically the show was a total mess (including not one but two amnesia arcs- yeesh)- proof that great performances by the lead actors can triumph over a flawed script.

With the return of the second lead character, we may see an uptick in the ratings but in fact, compared not to other dramas but rather to past weekenders this show is struggling.

Some people have mistakenly seen this as a "Lets solve our low birthrate problem by having more babies" show but actually the writer is providing a very healthy and topical response to that by showing the viewers many of the reasons why that is not happening. I suspect that viewers are finding having a mirror held up to them collectively to be quite uncomfortable. This is not really a case where we simply see a few bad people that we can hate. The underlying problems reflect biases and assumptions that are shared by most of the viewers. In that sense this show may be the best weekender of all time in that it accomplishes one of the highest purposes of drama: To help people look honestly at themselves, the ideas that they hold and how they live their lives. The problem for ratings is that your audience will not love you for making them uncomfortable. But I for one have to applaud the writer for having the guts to write such a timely drama and likewise KBS for airing it.

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Ahhh. I didn’t realize. Thank you for sharing.

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You just successfully sold The Real Deal Has Come to me.

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As usual, Dr. Cha does maintain its repertoire.

I kinda agree with Oh! Youngshim's rating but I feel really bad for ENA and for Bora! Deborah. I can't believe Bora! had a dip after last week's rating and this week's fun.

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The good bad mother ratings are climbing, at this rate it could be at double digits for the finale as it still as three weeks to go. It’s all to play for with the romance to kick in, the reveal of the father of the twins, the death of the mum, Kangho’s complete recovery and the conclusion of the revenge plot.

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