KBS's 'Love in Contract' Premieres to Surprisingly Low Ratings

Nationwide / Seoul Metropolitan Area
Episode 1: 2.6% / 2.1%

Translated comments from Korean netizens

1. Why isn't it on Netflix?ㅠㅠ
2. For a KBS weekend drama, the premiere ratings are too low.
3. All that promotion didn't help.

4. It airs on Saturdays and Sundays, but the ratings are still so low.
5. I watched the first episode yesterday, and I found it boring.
6. Ahn Eun-jin's (안은진) acting is good, though.

7. Wow, it was retweeted so much on Twitter, why is this happening?
8. They both look great individually, but they don't have chemistry together.
9. The plot doesn't seem like it would attract high ratings...

10. That has nothing to do with ratings... Male idols can appear on variety shows and get tons of retweets, but variety show ratings are still low because they lack mass appeal.
11. Ratings really need to capture the middle-aged and older demographic, so it's tough ㅜㅜ
12. You need to attract the middle-aged and older demographic for ratings, but the subject matter isn't suitable ㅠ This isn't the kind of drama my parents would fight over the remote for ㅠ

13. It's not good, and the acting is mediocre. I was a bit shocked by Seo Kang-joon's (서강준) acting in the breakup scene.
14. Just reading the synopsis made me lose interest.
15. No chemistry, they don't match, even their visuals don't match...

16. It was obvious it would fail.
17. Only Seo Kang-joon's face is good.
18. They included all the stimulating bed and kiss scenes, but it's still boring, and the acting is too.

19. Wow, his looks are unreal.
20. Seriously... I only saw Seo Kang-joon's face. The two have no chemistry.
21. Seo Kang-joon's face is certainly interesting, but romance dramas aren't my cup of tea ㅋㅋ But I'll probably keep watching anyway.

22. Seo Kang-joon's romantic acting here is particularly weak, and the content is truly speechless, a boring drama, and visually mediocre.
23. I think it's good. If it's aimed at a younger audience, it would probably do better on Netflix.
24. Seo Kang-joon's face is too dreamy ㅋㅋㅋ

25. It's truly limited to the online world.
26. I think it's good; as the story develops, I'm getting more curious about the ending.
27. Seo Kang-joon should stop acting in 'realistic' dramas and do more mass-produced romantic comedies or fantasy dramas... The actor himself has that style, but he keeps choosing realistic roles. In fact, his role in his previous work 'Undercover' suited him better.

28. It was better than I expected ㅋㅋㅋ It's certainly not a plot that adults would fight over the remote for, but it's not boring either ㅋㅋㅋ And it's funny how everyone keeps telling Seo Kang-joon to do more romance dramas while he's young, then they complain when he doesn't, and when he does, they say there's no chemistry. What do they want? ㅋㅋㅋ
29. I watched the rerun and found it interesting; I want to watch the premiere today.
30. Stop telling Seo Kang-joon to do other dramas; just watch the ones he's in.

31. Most of Seo Kang-joon's dramas are uninteresting.
32. Both of them performed worse than expected... This kind of realistic subject matter requires very grounded, realistic acting.
33. Maybe it was so boring that even Netflix didn't buy it.

34. I found it very enjoyable; the drama has a great atmosphere. The actors' performances, direction, music, visuals, and overall vibe are all excellent. It gets more interesting as the story progresses, so I really want to binge-watch it. This is my first time focusing on Seo Kang-joon's acting, and it's better than I expected, and wow... his eyes are truly captivating.
35. This drama had so much promotion, it felt like half of it was already promoted, but then it fell flat when it actually aired. Regardless, both are famous actors, yet the ratings are so low.
36. Everyone had high expectations, and I watched it yesterday with anticipation. Honestly, I was surprised by Seo Kang-joon's acting... The leads' romantic scenes were abundant, but their acting didn't mesh well. It felt too obvious that they were 'acting,' and their performances couldn't blend. The director seemed good, but I still gave up.

37. Huh??? I saw many comments before coming in and thought it was performing well... Usually, KBS weekend dramas that air at 9:30 PM start with 4-5% ratings for their premieres. Lee Young-ae (이영애), Namkoong Min (남궁민), Ma Dong-seok (마동석), etc., all did, but those were middle-aged actors. Compared to them, young actors might...
38. Emotional romance dramas don't do well on Netflix; romantic comedies are more popular there.
39. Most of Seo Kang-joon's dramas are like this; there's a lot of buzz before they air, but then no one watches them when they actually start.

40. It was my first time watching Seo Kang-joon act, and I was shocked.
41. Ahn Eun-jin is too mismatched.
42. It was uninteresting; I turned it off halfway through.

43. The content is indeed unappealing.
44. As expected, it's only popular on social media.
45. I originally wanted to endure watching it..., hmm.

46. Everyone keeps saying Seo Kang-joon should act, but then they don't watch his dramas?
47. It was my first time watching a Seo Kang-joon drama, and I realized his acting isn't that great.
48. I think chemistry between the male and female leads is crucial in romance dramas, but these two are too mismatched....

49. You really have to watch it to know...
50. Hasn't it started airing yet...? So many short videos are circulating, I thought it had already begun.
51. I already said the synopsis wasn't great, and they're still calling it social media-limited.

It's just that Seo Kang-joon's visuals are more popular.

52. The two really don't match, and Ahn Eun-jin's acting is also strange ㅠㅠ
53. Huh ㅠ I enjoyed watching it yesterday ㅎㅇㅌㅎㅇㅌ (fighting fighting)
54. The actor chemistry and entertainment value are both a mess... Seo Kang-joon really has no eye for choosing scripts.

55. Wow, it was actually good, but lower than expected ㅠ
56. Seo Kang-joon's romantic acting is not good... he performs too poorly.
57. Oh, it was only the first episode.

58. Seo Kang-joon doesn't seem to be acting well...
59. Cliched and boring.
60. I think it's good ㅠㅠ

61. It only became interesting towards the end, but it was more because the plot and emotions started to draw you in, rather than being profoundly interesting.
62. The content is a bit heavy for a weekend drama.
63. The ratings seem a bit low for a KBS weekend drama?

64. It's a weekend drama? The subject matter doesn't look like a weekend drama at all.
65. Watching a drama isn't just about looking at faces.
66. There's no chemistry at all.

67. It's a Seo Kang-joon drama, so I won't watch it.
68. Seo Kang-joon seems to have poor judgment in choosing projects.
69. Seo Kang-joon vs. Ahn Eun-jin's battle, it seems Seo Kang-joon won...