A recent hit drama really surprised Uncle Yu's expectations.
The ratings of "Queen of Tears" have caught up with "Ghosts" and "Crash Landing on Love" all the way.
Broke the TVN TV ratings record and topped the list.
It became South Korea's first hit TV series this year.
The reason why I said it was unexpected was that Uncle Yu talked about this drama not long ago.
In terms of quality, it's really not a high-quality work.
In the early stage, the main focus was on the dilemma of sex to marriage, but unfortunately it quickly became a gimmick, and the reputation was not good.
The later plot directly returned to twenty years ago overnight, and collected a three-piece set of Korean dramas:
Car accidents, cancer, amnesia.
The result is magically, bringing the ratings back to life.
If you want to talk about the reason, the appearance of the two leading actors really stands up to half the sky.
But Uncle Yu also suddenly wondered if everyone's core demand for Korean dramas has never changed.
I still want to watch handsome men and beautiful women love to death, just like a large number of ancient classic Korean dramas.
But it seems that at some point, there are fewer and fewer romantic dramas.
Nowadays, when it comes to Korean dramas, the keywords have long become "revenge", "crazy criticism", "dare to shoot" and the like.
The success of "Queen of Tears" can be described as a kind of renaissance.
confirms that love is the core technology of Korean dramas.
yes, why don't you shoot it?
Uncle Yu just finished talking about the first generation of Hallyu "male gods" and "goddesses" that disappeared.
found that the ancient Korean dramas that made these beauties seem to be difficult to find.
It seems that this time I look back on the past, and there is still something to talk about-
I believe that many people's first impression of Korean dramas is a large number of classic Korean dramas introduced in the mainland around the turn of the millennium.
The work has successfully cultivated a group of mainland audiences for the Korean drama market.
The main force of siege is a romantic drama.
But falling in love was like being punished for a crime in Korean dramas at that time.
Picking up candy in glass slag, the main one is sadistic.
For example, what impressed Uncle Yu the most was "Stairway to Heaven".
Childhood sweethearts' Jingshu and Chengjun are a natural pair.
But if the two want to be together, it is as difficult as climbing to the sky.
Jingshu was abused by her stepmother when she was a child, and when she grew up, she was hit by a vicious second female car and lost her memory.
I met Seongjun again after all the hardships, but I didn't remember anything.
I finally remembered everything, and I got cancer again.
The operation had been successful, but the cancer cells spread again, and he finally died in Seongjun's arms.
This pair of unlucky male and female guests abused all the audience, including Uncle Yu, to the point of liver tremor.
But it was the culmination of Korean romantic dramas at that time, and the ratings broke a record and won the annual crown.
"Queen of Tears" has clearly inherited the mantle.
For example, the heroine Hae-in has a terminal illness at the beginning.
The husband, Hyun-woo, was originally living in hardship after marriage, and hoped to automatically dissolve the marriage contract and get the property after his wife's death.
But after the relationship warmed up, he collapsed because he was about to experience the pain of life and death.
not only searched for famous doctors for Hairen everywhere, but also made his wife live even if he hated herself.
As a result, the operation was successful, but the person lost his memory.
It is all about love that gives birth to medical miracles, and Hairen's memory is revived, and the two fall in love again.
The plot is sweet and sadistic for a while, and because of the sweetness, the sadomasochism escalates again.
For example, the two just regained their memories and recognized each other, and Hyunwoo had a car accident again.
Even if you break your ribs, you have to insist on saving your wife who is in danger.
desperately stood in front of Hairen, and took this shot, which was inexplicable but catalyzed the feelings of the male and female protagonists.
It's a familiar direction, a good look, and I feel like I've seen it 10,000 times nowhere.
But "Queen of Tears" can explode, not only because it reproduces the ancient ratings magic weapon of 20 years ago.
It also combines chaebol scandals, business wars and other highlights, as well as the popular configuration of strong women and weak men.
In other words, this drama has the public's first impression of Korean dramas.
It is also equipped with the classic routine of the second wave of Korean romantic dramas during the pandemic.
Bitter love Korean dramas around the turn of the millennium are gradually becoming obsolete, and a wave of romantic dramas in the form of light comedy is on the rise.
For example, "Full House of Romance", "My Girl", "Witch Youxi", ......
And most of these comedies are fairy tales of wealthy families with a huge disparity in the status and financial resources of the male and female protagonists.
Fortune is complemented by a romantic pink bubble, and power is accumulated until 2013.
This phenomenal Korean drama "The Inheritors", which tells the love between the second generation of chaebols and poor girls, appeared.
But in fact, Korean romantic dramas at that time were tired as a whole.
The story is old-fashioned, the plots are vulgar, and the routines can't catch up with the audience's needs.
Fortunately, it was quickly adjusted, and other highlights were added to pure love.
Several phenomenal Korean dramas that exploded in the 10s were all about falling in love and having new ideas.
For example, adding fantasy elements.
The love object has expanded from humans to aliens, ghosts, shadows, mermaids, and .......
2013 "My Love from the Stars"
2016 "Lonely and Brilliant God: Ghosts"
There are also real-life social topics.
In addition to the chaebol, there is also "Pinocchio", which explores journalistic justice while falling in love.
There is also "Healer", which tells the story of a journalist's growth in love.
Even, political elements.
When "Crash Landing on Love" exploded, some viewers lamented the imagination of Korean dramas:
"Korean screenwriters are really good at writing, if you give them a pen, I guess I can write Putin and Trump as a pair."
In terms of form, it is also constantly innovating.
For example, "W Two Worlds" is to fall in love through comics, and solve the case by the way.
It can be said that before 2016, Korean dramas continued to explode with the core technology of fancy love.
And at every turn, the whole people are chasing dramas, and the popularity is sweeping in a large area.
Beer fried chicken became a fixed combination, and the first snow and confession were also directly bound.
But I don't know when, Korean dramas don't seem to be in love.
In 2021, "Squid Game" exploded.
Then the suspenseful thriller battle royale-themed Korean dramas almost showed a blowout trend.
Immediately afterwards, there was another phenomenal "Dark Glory".
All kinds of revenge dramas emerge one after another, and when you open the drama, you can listen to the sound of "West Eight".
Chaebols, bullying, crime, the topic is getting heavier and heavier.
Wicked girls, crazy critics, and sociopathic protagonists are becoming more and more popular.
There are occasional romantic dramas, but most of them are manga or small cost.
The cast lineup and production level cannot be compared with before.
Korean version of "I Want to See You"
Another side evidence of the disappearance of Korean romantic dramas is that domestic entertainment sweet dramas have become popular overseas.
Originally, Korean dramas radiated to Southeast Asia, which is a loyal audience for traditional romantic dramas.
But because the scale of Korean romantic dramas has shrunk in a large area, he is hungry and thirsty to find alternatives.
Thus turning to the Xianxia, ancient puppets, and sweet dramas of domestic entertainment.
For example, "To Our Simple Little Beauty" and the domestic entertainment version of "Meteor Garden" made the starring Shen Yue's popularity soar outside.
There are also things that everyone may not imagine, the "Secretly Can't Hide" that caused the "pedophile" controversy last year is also the top stream on the Internet.
The short video website has 3.2 billion views, far exceeding "Dark Glory".
Yes, why doesn't South Korea make romantic dramas?
Is it that the audience doesn't want to watch it?
However, "Queen of Tears", which was ridiculed as "the script was ten years ago", set a ratings record.
Looking at the top 10 list of TVN's historical ratings, romantic dramas have also become an overwhelming proportion.
Even the audience of domestic entertainment has long begun to miss and call for the return of Korean romantic dramas.
It seems that the hungrier you get, the less you have to eat.
The reason behind it is indeed complex.
The most critical turning point is indeed the entry of Netflix in 2016 and the adjustment of the industry.
The fast-paced mindset of streaming production is somewhat different from that of traditional TV stations.
If you want an episode to reach the top of the popularity, the plot will be exciting, the plot will be wide open, and the scenes will be the best to hunt.
But romantic dramas need the foreshadowing of plot and emotion, and it takes time to produce results.
For example, the ratings of "Queen of Tears" are low and high, and it has been fermented for several weeks.
And comic dramas still have a share of love, partly because it saves time for script creation.
While ensuring high efficiency, the small cost also reduces the risk of profit.
The more they don't shoot, the more no one shoots, and because of the loss of talent or the discontinuation of generations, the creation of Korean romantic dramas has once again fallen into a bottleneck.
The story of "Queen of Tears" is old-fashioned, and it gives the creative thinking of dog blood dramas to hook the audience.
Screenwriter Park Ji-eun, whose previous works were hit hits such as "You from the Star" and "Crash Landing on Love".
But compared with 2016's "Star You", the latter two have almost become sweet and bloody dramas that rely on the cast, and they have not seen the progress of creativity.
The head creators are still like this, and the rest is even more difficult to explain.
For example, domestic entertainment audiences have discovered that today's Korean romantic dramas always have the ancient flavor of domestic online literature.
Occasional gimmicks can also be picked up for "plagiarism" in internal entertainment.
Korean flavor is in love, and it gradually becomes more flavorful.
In addition, there has been a change in the awareness of the audience, especially the female audience.
In addition to "Queen of Tears", let's watch the romantic dramas that have a little reputation in the past two years.
Not only does it always reveal depressive anxiety, but it also has a heaviness that is difficult to lighten.
It's no longer the same as twenty years ago.
My Liberation Diary
It is also across classes, and the fairy tale of love is replaced by a plan of revenge.
Marriage is no longer a symbol of victory, and there is little smile when draped in a white veil.
Anna
It seems that love and hate are too extravagant and tiring, and even dog blood makes people tired.
So you should "take a partner" instead of "love someone".
Be an "accomplice", not a "prince".
Life can't be easy, happiness is just an illusion.
In contrast, the truth and falsehood in "Queen of Tears" make people laugh and fantasize.
It's really a marital dilemma, and the fake is life and death.
Although it is difficult to believe in this dog's blood, the fake fantasy it brings seems to have made the audience look at the past when they were implanted with beautiful dreams in Korean romantic dramas.
At that time, all heartbreak will only remain in the play.
In reality, there are still innocent dreams to do.