“The Legend of the Blue Sea” scored 309.1 points on the Content Power Index (CPI) during the week of Nov. 14-20 following the broadcast of its first two episodes on SBS TV.
The index, developed by entertainment company CJ E&M and media ratings company Nielsen Korea, aggregates the number of views of related news stories, keyword searches and mentions on social media.
The drama, now four episodes in, is off to a strong start thanks in part to the star power of its cast. Jun Ji-hyun, a “hallyu” star who last played an actress in the hit series “My Love from the Star,” takes on the role of the mermaid Shim Chung. Lee Min-ho, another icon of “hallyu,” or the global spread of Korean pop culture, stars opposite her as a genius conman.
Screenwriter Park Ji-eun has added to the series’ appeal. Before taking on the new series, she also wrote “My Love from the Star.”
MBC series “Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joo” came in at a distant second with 251.5 points. The drama is a coming-of-age story featuring young college students majoring in various sports from weightlifting to swimming. It premiered the same day as “The Legend of the Blue Sea” and airs in the same time slot.
“Oh My Geum-bi,” another Wednesday-Thursday series that opened the same week, collected 216.4 points to rank eighth. The KBS 2TV series follows the transformation of a father (Oh Ji-ho) faced with the challenge of raising a daughter suffering from childhood Alzheimer’s.
Other programs in the top 10 included all-time favorite MBC variety show “Infinite Challenge” (third), SBS variety show “Running Man” (fourth) and MBC talk show “Radio Star” (fifth).
SBS medical series “Dr. Romantic” dropped six places to seventh after opening at No. 1 the previous week. The drama has gained strong viewership ratings and positive reviews for its story about doctors’ struggles against the medical establishment and the solid performance of its cast.–Yonhap News
