'Grand Prize' Song Hye-kyo laughed, Kim Nam-gil cried, TVING's sluggish performance

《Taeyuna’s Listening Bodbo》
Reporter Tae Yu-na and Ten Asia will properly cover all aspects of the drama based on what she heard and saw on the spot. We will be the eyes and ears of readers in an age where dramas are flooding in on numerous channels.

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When Netflix laughed, Teabing cried. The performances of ‘Grand Prize Actors’ Song Hye-kyo and Kim Nam-gil were also mixed. While 'The Glory' has received positive reviews at home and abroad, expectations for Part 2 are growing, 'Island', which began to be released on the same day, recently ended Part 1 in a lonely way. 'Drinkers City Women Season 2' (hereinafter referred to as 'Drinkers City Women 2') also ended without gaining as much popularity as Season 1.

It's been about 20 days since the Netflix original 'The Glory' starring Song Hye-kyo was released, but interest and power toward the work are still hot. It ranked first for two consecutive weeks in the content rankings announced by Kinorights, an OTT integrated search and content recommendation platform. The cumulative viewing time around the world easily exceeded 100 million hours, and it ranked first in the non-English category of Netflix's Global Top 10 TV Shows just two weeks after its release.

'The Glory' is a work in which writers Kim Eun-sook and Song Hye-kyo reunite six years after KBS2's 'Descendants of the Sun'. As Song Hye-kyo won the grand prize at the '2016 KBS Drama Awards' for 'Descendants of the Sun', it was natural that the meeting between the two attracted attention. And Song Hye-kyo showed results that exceeded these expectations and went beyond imagination.

From the flawless performances of the actors, to the sensuous and sophisticated directing, to the solid script, the three elements of 'Jakgambae' were truly perfect. Beyond domestic media, overseas media also poured favorable reviews on ‘The Glory’.

Accordingly, expectations for ‘The Glory’ Part 2, which is scheduled to be released in March, are also growing. According to Netflix, there are already many inquiries about Part 2. There are also many opinions asking whether the release date can be brought forward.

Was it because Teabing’s expectations were too high? Neither ‘Ireland’, a blockbuster hit worth 20 billion won, nor ‘Drinking Woman,’ which returned for season 2 thanks to its explosive popularity, did not perform as well as expected. Within TVing, the response is that it was successful, ranking first and second in the ‘weekly number of paid subscription contributors’, but this is only a result within TVING. There was no mass popularity that could be felt.

In particular, 'Ireland' is a work that was expected to feature spectacular action scenes with Kim Nam-gil, who won two awards at the 'SBS Drama Awards', in the lead role. Although Seo Ye-ji left the show and Da-hee Lee was brought in due to controversy over her private life before filming, the visual collaboration with Cha Eun-woo was by far the best.

However, Part 1 ended on the 13th on the 13th, with the results falling short of the original, the plot being drawn out, and the disappointing CG holding it back. Part 2 will be released on February 24th after a 6-week break.

'Drinking Woman 2', which ended on the same day, is a full-fledged 'drinking woman' drama depicting the daily lives of three women whose belief in life is having a drink at the end of the day, and has gained explosive popularity since its release in 2021, leading to the production of Season 2. Work. However, unlike the previous season, Season 2 had mixed likes and dislikes from the first episode. As there is a solid 'Drinking Woman' fan base, it ranked first in the number of weekly paid subscribers on TV for 6 consecutive weeks, but did not show any significant results in terms of topicality.

Netflix is releasing a variety of anticipated works this year as well, including 'The Glory' Part 2, Korean works such as 'Gyeongseong Creature' and 'Sweet Home 2', as well as 'Level Moon' starring Bae Doo-na. TVING also plans to release more than 50 original contents, including ‘After School War Activities’, ‘Cruel Intern’, and ‘Secret Forest’ spin-off series. This is why attention is focused on whether TVING, which started 2023 without a smile, will be able to release a 'big hit' work, and whether Netflix will be able to continue the glory of 'The Glory'.

Taeyuna, Ten Asia Reporter youyou@tenasia.co.kr