KBS Drama 'The Night I Took the Male Lead's First Night' Revives Wednesday-Thursday Slot with Promising Ratings

Kim Se-ah's Insight
TenAsia's Kim Se-ah delves deeply into entertainment industry issues.

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The KBS Wednesday-Thursday drama 'The Night I Took the Male Lead's First Night,' starring actors Seohyun and Ok Taecyeon, has breathed new life into the struggling KBS drama slot with its meaningful ratings from the first episode. Despite the setback of a cultural heritage controversy, the sincere apologies from the actors and strategic targeting of the main audience seem to have paid off.

The drama, which premiered on November 11, started with a 3.3% viewership rating nationwide according to Nielsen Korea. Considering its predecessor '24-Hour Health Club' had plummeted to 0% ratings, a 3% rating is certainly a welcome figure. This result is significant for KBS, which has been facing the threat of discontinuing its Wednesday-Thursday dramas due to consistently poor ratings.

'The Night I Took the Male Lead's First Night' is a romance fantasy drama where the soul of an ordinary college student inhabits a minor character in a romance novel, spending a night with the novel's male protagonist. While the premise is typical of content enjoyed by the MZ generation, the setting follows the traditional historical drama format, making it relatable for the 50s and 60s demographic as well.

The casting of Ok Taecyeon and Seohyun was also crucial. Despite being former idols, their stable acting skills and widespread familiarity made them easily accepted by KBS's main audience of viewers in their 50s and 60s, while also appealing to younger audiences.

There was a crisis when it was revealed that the drama had damaged the World Heritage Site Byeongsan Seowon during filming. KBS apologized and announced they would discard the related footage, but faced criticism for damaging cultural heritage for a shoot. Ok Taecyeon and Seohyun offered sincere apologies at official events.

Earlier this year, KBS released several Wednesday-Thursday dramas like 'Suspicious Her,' 'Kick Kick Kick,' and '24-Hour Health Club,' but most recorded dismal ratings of 0-1%. Consequently, KBS decided to temporarily halt Wednesday-Thursday dramas after 'The Night I Took the Male Lead's First Night.'

In this context, the ratings for 'The Night I Took the Male Lead's First Night' are seen as an encouraging result within KBS. Although still low by overall network standards, it is a promising sign for the struggling Wednesday-Thursday drama lineup. All eyes are on whether 'The Night I Took the Male Lead's First Night' can maintain this positive momentum.

Kim Se-ah, TenAsia Reporter haesmik@tenasia.co.kr