"The "Master's Sun" has been the master of its time slot for the past five weeks and the comedy continued to hold first place this week. Ratings picked up slightly with Nielsen Korea citing 17.3 percent.
The slight jump in ratings could be attributed to the romance between Tae Gong Sil, played by Gong Hyo Jin, and Joo Joong Won, played by So Ji Sub, finally heating up. But, in true kdrama fashion, the fact that the lead characters recognize their feelings for each other does not mean things will go smoothly.
If their relationship was not already complicated enough by the presence of terrifying ghostly visitations, it will now be further complicated by the possibility of ex-girlfriends being alive and a proposed marriage of convenience. Adding to the confusion is the secret mission being carried out by Seo In Guk and the mystery of Joo Joong Won's childhood kidnapping.
Before the show started, some critics wondered if the drama's new horror romcom genre would even resonate with viewers, but given the ratings viewers seem to have no complaints. Strong writing by the Hong Sisters screenwriting team adds unexpected elements to each new episode and keeps the plot moving nicely along. And the two main characters have undeniable chemistry.
The chief competition for the number one spot is the drama "Two Weeks," starring Lee Jun Ki as a man who thought his life meaningless until a short while ago. Learning he had a daughter and that he could save her life gave him a hitherto undreamed of purpose. But being chased by the police and gangsters may prevent him from fulfilling that purpose. Can he succeed despite the odds? Fans of the series say that it is are edge-of-the-seat exciting, which could be why it earned the healthy average of 9.7 percent in viewer ratings.
The lowest ratings among the three contenders went to the historical love and revenge drama, "The Blade and The Petal," which ended this week with ratings of around 5 percent.
"The Blade and the Petal" will be replaced next week by a two-episode drama called "Expect Dating," starring K-pop Star's BoA and actor Daniel Choi, who previously appeared in "School 2013," "The Musical" and "Phantom." The comedy tells the story of a girl who is bad at dating and the expert she consults but then falls for. The drama also stars ZE:A's Siwan.