Reporter Ryu Ye-ji and TenAsia sees the future of the entertainment industry and its impact.
The name value of Mnet, which was once a famous survival group, has become shabby. The response to the ambitious 'Queendom Puzzle' has been sluggish for a month. The syndrome that blew during Season 1 of 'Queendom' is nowhere to be found.
'Queendom Puzzle', which opened on the 13th of last month, is a program that introduces a new combination of girl groups by matching former and current girl group members or female artists like a puzzle. The news that Momoland's JooE, Lovelyz's Kei, AOA's Dohwa, and WJSN's Yeoreum, who created a number of hit songs, will appear, drew attention from K-pop fans. In addition, the members of Highkey, who brought the wind in reverse with 'Roses Blooming Between Buildings', also confirmed their appearances, and many other rising newcomers participated.
Just as Oh My Girl and (G)I-DLE successfully nurtured their fandom in season 1 of 'Queendom', the interest in 'Queendom Puzzle' was enormous in the beginning. However, contrary to the production team's intention to promote the program, the pre-release video created controversy. It was captured that the production team divided the cast into groups 1 to 4. After their debut, the production team arbitrarily placed each member in consideration of various conditions such as music performance, album sales, and annual leave.
There were also members who decided to get off after filming the first episode. Lee Chae-yeon and Laboum Hae-in from IZ*ONE were the main characters. The two suddenly notified of their departure, saying it was 'for personal reasons'. In addition, the news of the two getting off had already been reported before the first broadcast, further fueling the controversy.
In the end, the production team was busy explaining various controversies at the production presentation, which should be a place for publicity. Even though 26 performers and MC Taeyeon were also present at the event, it was CP Yoon Shin-hye and PD Lee Yeon-kyu who could not let go of the microphone.
Is it because of the lack of competence of the production team and noisy controversies on the cutting board? It has not rebounded from the 0.5% viewership rating for all three weeks. Among all series of Queendom 1, Queendom 2, and Queendom Puzzle, 'Queendom Puzzle' has the lowest ratings.
OTT is also not strong. While Friday-Saturday and Saturday-Sunday dramas are showing strength, the popularity of entertainment has recently withered. Even within OTT, Friday-Saturday drama 5-way matches occupy the top ranks. 'Queendom Puzzle' didn't even get word of mouth. Both TV and OTT are struggling.
Most of the cast members are not popular idols, so they may not be able to produce results. Another reason is that the format itself is not very different from other audition survival shows. In order to escape from the humiliation of 0% ratings, 'Queendom Puzzle' needs a differentiated strategy.
Reporter Ryu Ye-ji and Ten Asia ryuperstar@tenasia.co.kr