JTBC’s talent of making even an idol drama boring: 1st episode of “IDOL: The Coup” got 0% rating
JTBC’s new drama “IDOL: The Coup” struggled from its first broadcast.
According to Nielsen Korea, JTBC’s new Monday-Tuesday drama “IDOL: The Coup” (hereinafter referred to as “IDOL”) which aired its 1st episode on Nov 8th, recorded a 0.751% in rating (based on paid households nationwide).This is a far lower audience rating than “Reflection of You” which started in the 3% range, and “Koo Inspector” which started in the 2% range. “IDOL” depicts a story of youth growth that takes place as a flopped idol group is on the verge of disbanding. Ahn Hee-yeon, Kim Min-kyu, Solbin, and Exy were cast, raising high expectations even before the broadcast.
In the first episode, which aired on Nov 8th, the disastrous “flopped idol reality” of Cotton Candy, a girl group in its sixth year since its debut, was depicted. Fans are interested as there are many scenes full of realism and sensible directing as if they are looking at the real idol world. In particular, Ahn Hee-yeon, a member of EXID – the icon among girl groups who return from the bottom, showed her desperately trying to maintain the “flopped” girl group Cotton Candy in the drama, making viewers overly immersed in her acting.
However, even though many popular idols appeared and showed their strong acting skills, viewers’ reactions are cold. Although it is a youth drama that deals with the topic of “Idol“, which is a symbol of dreams, hopes, and wannabe stars, the audience said that it was too depressing and dark that they just wanted to change the channel. Viewers are showing disappointment on JTBC, which has depressed even an idol drama following “Lost” and “Reflection of You“. The too late broadcast time is also cited as a cause of the poor ratings. Although it deals with the “idol” material which is attractive for teenagers, it is burdensome for viewers of lower age groups to watch due to the late-time broadcasting of 11 p.m.
Internet users showed various reactions regarding the 1st episode of “IDOL”, saying, “It’s too minor. Even JTBC’s idol dramas are depressing,” “It’s a good drama for children to watch, but the airing time is too late,” “I’m sad because the drama is so realistic,” “I’m getting too immersed,” “The female idols are surprisingly good at acting.”
Attention is focusing on whether “IDOL“, which realistically expresses the conflict between young people with failed dreams, will be able to reverse the ratings and achieve a turnaround.
