‘Squid Game 2’ Tops Charts, ‘Culinary Class Wars’ Revives Entertainment

Dec 30, 2024

'Squid Game' is back, and 'Black and White Cook' is hot.

In 2024, it is a difficult OTT market. Last year, Netflix 'The Glory' and Disney+ 'Moving' were certain box office hits, but this year it was quiet. Netflix, which was constantly producing masterpieces, also took a breather this year, and the growth of other platforms was slow.

The stimulating works burst out one after another, but disappeared without receiving attention.

Teving presented his anticipated work 'Queen Wu' this year, but it was less than expected. Except for Jeon Jong-seo's awkward acting skills and suspicions of school violence, many unnecessary exposure to low-class political affairs appeared and was criticized. Director Jeon Go-woon's 'LTNS' and Shin Min-ah's 'I Don't Want to lose money', which were co-produced with tvN, have attracted attention as progressive female narratives and achieved small success. Wave, which continues to be rumored to merge with TVing, has not released a single original series this year.

Disney+ introduced Kim Ha-neul and Jung Ji-hoon's 「Hua-in-law Scandal」 or Park Hoon-jung's four-part The Tyrant」, but it did not receive much attention. However, Kang Pul Universe laid the groundwork for a reversal. Writer Kang Pul and actor-director Kim Hee-won's work 'Light Shop' has been well received at home and abroad by word of mouth.

It is not wrong to say that this year Netflix gave everything to 'Queen of Tears'(tvN). Because 'Queen of Tears' received more attention than Netflix original content. The `Queen of Tears' also topped the list of Korean dramas serviced in 2024 (a cumulative 29.02 million views) based on Netflix's first half tally.

Netflix, which gave the top spot in the first half of the year to the `Queen of Tears,' countered with an ambitious lineup, but the audience response was frosty. 'Hardness Creature2'I'Sweet Home3', 'Hell2' and so on left in extreme favorability. Neither 'Mr. Planckton' nor 'Trunk', 'Shenshan', 'Chicken Gangjeong', etc. fell short of the name value.

However, the long-awaited success of 'Squid Game 2' seems to be in a good mood. 「Squid Game 2」, which was released on the 26th, maintained the top spot in Netflix's world TV show category on the OTT ranking aggregation site, FlixPatrol, as of the 29th. It has been No. 1 for three consecutive days since the 26th. In particular, it continued its syndrome by recording a perfect score of 'total points' based on the Flix Patrol ranking, given that it topped all 93 countries subject to aggregation. In Korea, there was a harsh criticism due to the casting of former Big Bang member Top or some alleged casting of personal connections, but it is a completely different reaction abroad. As Season 1 is a series that has been more popular overseas than domestic ones, there are opinions that long-term box office hits will be possible in the future. Therefore, there is also an optimistic view that 'Squid Game 2' will revitalize the domestic production market in 2025.

Among OTT entertainment shows, Netflix 'Black and White Cook' stood out. 'Black and White Chef' created a syndrome as a culinary survival entertainment show, showing unpredictable drama until the end. The program's originality was combined with the familiar format of cooking entertainment, which received a great response from viewers. in particular "It's easy to get used to."Judge Ahn Sung-jae's buzzword has been introduced to all walks of life, including the entertainment industry, raising the buzz. A number of topical performers appeared here, including Chef Choi Kang-rok, who left the buzzword "It's me, perilla oil".

'Black and White Cook' became the first Korean entertainment show to top Netflix's global top 10 non-English category for three consecutive weeks, and completely absorbed the domestic buzz in the second half of this year. Not only is the domestic restaurant industry booming, but the extinct cooking entertainment shows are making a comeback to revitalize the entertainment district. In the aftermath of the Black and White Chef, a number of entertainment shows have returned to their home turf, ranging from Les Miserables to Please Take Care of My Refrigerator.

lunamoon@sportschosun.com

‘Squid Game 2’ Tops Charts, ‘Culinary Class Wars’ Revives Entertainment

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