《Taeyuna’s Listening Bodbo》
2023 MBC Drama Awards with no makeup
'Lovers' predicted to sweep the trophy
Namgoong Min’s bridesmaid? The predicted ‘lover’ drive, tension-free MBC Drama Awards
Namgoong Min’s bridesmaid? The predicted ‘lover’ drive, tension-free MBC Drama Awards
《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 era where dramas are flooding in on numerous channels.
Although the drama 'Lovers' was a box office hit, it was at an embarrassing level for the year-end awards ceremony. There are only about 10 dramas broadcast this year, including daily dramas, and the only thing that can be touted as a box office hit is 'Lovers'. Namgoong Min is the only strong candidate for the grand prize. As the trophy for this year's Drama Awards is predicted to be dominated by 'lovers', there are concerns that it may become a festival only for 'lovers'.

The ‘2023 MBC Drama Awards’ is scheduled to air on December 30. Kim Seong-ju maintained her position as MC for five consecutive years, and actor Park Gyu-young takes on the role of MC for the first time since his debut, filling in next to Kim Seong-ju. The SBS Drama Awards and KBS Drama Awards will be held on the 29th and 31st, respectively.

MBC has the poorest number of works among the three terrestrial broadcasters. The only weekday drama is the Wednesday drama 'I Love You Today', and the Friday-Saturday dramas include 'Season of the Puppet', 'The Joseon Lawyer', 'Numbers: Watchers of the Building Forest', 'Lovers', and 'Yeolnyeo Park's Contract Marriage'. There are five. The two daily dramas released this year are ‘A Match Made in Heaven’ and ‘Third Marriage’.
Namgoong Min’s bridesmaid? The predicted ‘lover’ drive, tension-free MBC Drama Awards
Namgoong Min’s bridesmaid? The predicted ‘lover’ drive, tension-free MBC Drama Awards
The number of works was small, and the grades were also poor. Among all dramas this year, ‘Lovers’ is the only one to exceed 10% in viewership ratings. ‘Season of the Kokdu’, ‘The Joseon Lawyer’, and ‘Numbers: Watchers of the Building Forest’ had peak viewership ratings that did not exceed 5%. The performance of daily dramas is also in the 4-5% range, which is significantly lower than that of KBS daily dramas, which are over 10%. ‘Season of the Puppet’ and ‘I’m Lovely Dog Today’ also experienced the humiliation of recording the lowest viewer ratings of around 1%. Excluding 'Lovers', the only one that achieved above-average results was the currently airing 'Yeolnyeo Park's Contract Marriage'.

Last year, the MBC Drama Awards awarded awards in a total of 17 categories. Including joint awards and best couple awards, there were about 20 people holding trophies. It's almost like it was already predicted that the majority of trophies would go to 'Lovers'. It is certain that Namgoong Min and 'Lovers' will receive the Daesang Award and the Drama of the Year Award.
Namgoong Min’s bridesmaid? The predicted ‘lover’ drive, tension-free MBC Drama Awards
Namgoong Min’s bridesmaid? The predicted ‘lover’ drive, tension-free MBC Drama Awards
This reminds me of the 2021 MBC Drama Awards. Due to continued poor viewer ratings at the time, there were no box office hits except ‘Red Sleeves’ and ‘Black Sun’. Accordingly, out of 17 categories, 'Red Sleeves' won 7 awards, and 'Black Sun' won 5 awards, sweeping the trophies. At that time, the main character of the grand prize was Namgoong Min.

As a result, the industry consensus is that this year's awards ceremony will not be much different from the previous year's awards ceremony. The reality is that other drama actors have no choice but to be bridesmaids at the ‘lover’s’ party, including Namgoong Min. Of course, it is a natural result since 'Lovers' achieved a huge box office success this year, but it feels somewhat trivial that there is only one strong candidate and work at the terrestrial year-end awards ceremony.

The fun of the awards ceremony is who will receive the trophy. However, there is no tension even before the MBC Drama Awards begins. It seems that the only key issue will be how many trophies 'Lovers' will take home out of 17 categories.

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