Reporter Ryu Ye-ji, TenAsia, properly digs into the most attention-grabbing entertainment incidents and accidents.
Seo Hye-jin PD Pyo Sexless variety show MBN's 'Resting Couple' is suffering from ratings brutality. A situation that is close to entering the 0% range. MCs are showing an active attitude, such as sharing their marital relationship experiences, but there is no momentum for a rebound in ratings.
'Couple on Rest' is a program that presents the world's only marital relationship solution to Korean couples living sexless for social and personal reasons. The production crew of 'Couple on Rest' met a couple living sexless in Korea for six months. I tried to deal with the intimate parts of the couple, not simple everyday problems.
MCs also tried to raise the topic. Shin Dong-yeop and Han Chae-ah each brought out the story of their married life without hesitation. Shin Dong-yeop hotly mentioned the frequency of marital relations with his wife Seon Hye-yoon PD, and Han Chae-ah confessed to living in each room with her husband Cha Se-jji.
The production team, who had been thinking about it for a long time, and the spontaneous MCs were all ready. The problem was viewership. It started with 1.9% in the first episode and did not exceed the '2% of the devil', and it fell further with each episode. The second episode fell to 1.1% and the third to 1.0%.
The clips released through YouTube are also lukewarm, with less than 10,000 views, except for about 5 videos (as of the 4th). Even the video of Shin Dong-yeop's hot comment, 'the 19-year-old speaker', did not exceed 1,000 times.
As it is an entertainment program produced by PD Seo Hye-jin, who was responsible for topicality and viewership in the past, expectations were high for the 'Couple on Rest'. As a result, it is in a precarious situation with the 0% entry in front. It is also proof that there was no charm enough to hold the public in front of the TV, although the popular 'Cha Chu-hyung' and 'Cha Bum-geun's daughter-in-law' Chae-ah Han joined as MCs and succeeded in driving issues.
Several cast members, including comedians Chan-min Jeong and his wife, and YouTuber Moo-cheol and his wife, came out and confessed their personal sexual concerns, but in the end, it was nothing more or less than a personal life story. The MC corps can only present vague solutions within the borders of broadcasting deliberation. It was not possible to draw a clear line with the sensationalism controversy. In the case of specialists, they may have given an in-depth diagnosis, but it is possible that they were edited by the production team.
Since they were real couples and the stories came from their own experiences, there was sincerity. However, their story was close to excessive information at this point where dating and couple entertainment is pouring in. There is no difference except that it deals with a little more intimate part. The ability of the production team to bring out similar stories in various ways and edit them in an interesting way. It was a sincere and rare material, but it was meaningless in the 'resting couple'.
On the other hand, there is a possibility of a reversal as it is still in episode 3. Recently, as stimulating material such as 'Sexless' has been excessively consumed, it seems that a new direction for the program is also needed. As it is not a problem of the lack of ability of the cast themselves, the production team is expected to think about this part and come up with a new alternative. It remains to be seen how MBN Entertainment Headquarters will solve this crisis.
Reporter Ryu Ye-ji and Ten Asia ryuperstar@tenasia.co.kr