Song Kang VS Cha Eun-woo VS Rowoon, Hidden Behind the Looks

Actors whose visuals lead to narratives is old. Gone are the times when good-looking actors went beyond genre with their perfect visuals, presenting 'good times' and now's a time when they can't please viewers with just their appearance.

Advertisement

Coincidentally, three main actors of the same age are the main characters. Cha Eun-woo, Song Kang, and Rowoon are currently taking over the main roles of the small screen in their mid to late 20s.

Cha Eun-woo with less than 2%

Cha Eun-woo, a member of the group ASTRO, has already starred in several dramas, adding to his successful steps as an actor. Since his debut, he has attracted attention for his perfect visuals, and soon began his acting career, showing various sides. Cha Eun-woo successfully led dramas by playing the male lead in "My ID is Gangnam Beauty" and "True Beauty", and in "Island - Drama", he also drew attention with his mature acting skills.

However, in MBC's Wednesday drama "A Good Day to be a Dog", he has been struggling for some reason. It is interesting to see that it is a fantasy romance based on an original popular webtoon, but the highest viewer rating is 2.8 percent of the second episode, which was aired on October 11th. The viewer rating has remained sluggish since then, with the 2% rating remaining around 1%. Visual alone does not seem to have been enough to attract viewers.

The low ratings of "A Good Day to be a Dog" also had programming issues. After broadcasting twice in a row in the first broadcast, it was organized once a week, and especially after the third broadcast, it was canceled twice for the live broadcast of fall baseball. Since then, it has been broadcast again 5 to 6 times in a row, but it wasn't easy to bring back viewers who had already left. Cha Eun-woo, who has garnered high expectations for his 100% synchronization rate as if he had torn out a webtoon, has hardly been able to show any strength.

Song Kang gains popularity with fantasy romance

Song Kang's fantasy romance that goes well with his visuals has raised expectations. Through SBS's Friday-Saturday drama "My Demon", he works with Kim You-jung and in a rom-com to raise interest. Although it is a rather childish setting, the drama had high expectations that Song Kang's visuals would convince viewers even before the show was aired.

However, "My Demon", is not considered a success in terms of viewership. After recording 4.5% on its first broadcast on April 24th, the eighth episode with 4.7% is the highest viewership so far. The rating is double that of "A Good Day to be a Dog", but it is halved compared to the 9.6% rating of its competitor MBC's Friday-Saturday drama "The Story of Park's Marriage Contract". It predicted a perfect cast with visuals that matched the narrative, but the report card fell short of expectations.

However, Song Kang's "My Demon" clearly achieved more than ratings. Although it lagged behind competitors in terms of ratings, Song Kang and Kim You-jung ranked first and second in the TV-OTT integrated drama popularity survey. It was a somewhat successful move, as there were more cases of using OTT to consume dramas.

Rowoon without a kick

Rowoon, a former member of the group SF9, is an acting idol who became the leading actor early on. He made his mark in the drama "Where Stars Land" and began to gain attention through "Extraordinary You". Since then, he has taken the lead roles in "She Would Never Know", "The King's Affection", "Tomorrow", "Destined With You" and "The Matchmakers". Not all of his works were successful, of course, but he gained good reviews and popularity for his role in "The King's Affection" in challenging historical dramas.

Another historical drama of Rowoon is KBS 2TV's Monday and Tuesday drama "The Matchmakers". It received 4.5% of viewership in its first episode in October and has been constantly receiving 3-4% of viewership. Although it is said to be No. 1 in a drama on a Monday and Tuesday, the response is so muted that the word 'first place' can be overshadowed.

Rowoon quickly became the leading actor in a relatively short time, as he performed both as an idol and as an actor. Watchers say Rowoon's performance in the drama is not bad. However, his recent performances do not necessarily mean that his performances are good. The drama "Destined With You", which was the very previous drama of "The Matchmakers", also had the highest viewer rating of 3.1%. This was a disappointment as the main actor.