It has been a bumpy ride for "The Prime Minister and I," starring Lee Beom Soo and Girls Generation's Yoona. The ratings started out low at 5.9 percent but inched up to 8.9 percent by the end of last year.
Ratings rose slowly as the romance between Lee Beom Soo and Yoona heated up. Things got interesting when the characters had to decide if they were merely in a contract marriage or if they had real feelings for each other? And Yoon Shi Yoon's involvement in the love triangle added some interesting complication. But whether it was the awards ceremony that altered the viewing schedule or the news that Yoona was dating actor Lee Seung Gi in real life, this week's ratings have fallen slightly to 7.3 percent.
Many actors wait until a drama is over to profess their love or announce wedding plans. Last year Lee Bo Young waited until the end of her drama "I Hear Your Voice" to announce her wedding plans to longtime boyfriend Ji Sung. She wanted fans to focus on her onscreen romance with Lee Jong Suk.
It may now be much easier to imagine Yoona and Lee Seung Gi as a couple than Yoona and her drama co-star. Before "The Prime Minister and I" began there was already some controversy about whether the romance between the 43-year-old Lee Beom Soo and the 23-year-old Yoona was realistic.
These ratings landed "The Prime Minister and I" in third place.
In second place was "A Warm Word," starring Han Hye Jin, Ji Jin Hee, Lee Sang Woo and Kim Ji Soo. The subtle drama about the meaning of trust in a marriage decreased slightly to 8.6 percent. Han Hye Jin has finally confessed her infidelity to her husband and the truth threatens not only her marriage, but also the happiness of every member of her family. It especially threatens the happiness of her younger sister who has fallen for the half-brother of the woman Han Hye Jin wronged. Han Hye Jin plays a very convincing conflicted wife tortured by her past attempt at happiness.
Still in first place is "Empress Ki," starring Ha Ji Won, Joo Jin Mo and Lee Chang Wook. It's one of those dramas that viewers are so eager to see that they keep re-watching old episodes. Things are heating up at the palace with Joo Jin Mo taking Ha Ji Won away from her enforced servitude with the emperor and nursing her back to health after her prolonged torture. There's more poison, more plots and more counter-plots, keeping the pace moving quickly. The historical drama reached 17.9 percent in the ratings.
