{"id":4504,"date":"2026-01-21T09:34:23","date_gmt":"2026-01-21T00:34:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bongonakpop.com\/?p=4504"},"modified":"2026-01-21T09:40:52","modified_gmt":"2026-01-21T00:40:52","slug":"ji-sungs-new-drama-judge-lee-han-young-soars-past-10-viewership","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bongonakpop.com\/?p=4504","title":{"rendered":"Ji Sung&#8217;s New Drama &#8216;Judge Lee Han Young&#8217; Soars Past 10% Viewership"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Photo = MBC Friday-Saturday Drama 'Judge Lee Han Young' Poster\" height=\"785\" src=\"https:\/\/image.xportsnews.com\/contents\/images\/upload\/article\/2026\/0121\/1768953213365273.jpg\" width=\"550\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The MBC drama &#8216;Judge Lee Han Young&#8217; is solidifying its position as the top Friday-Saturday drama, garnering overwhelming support from viewers.<\/p>\n<p>The MBC drama &#8216;Judge Lee Han Young&#8217; has ascended to the top spot for Friday and Saturday nights, showcasing its unique appeal through sharp direction and a bold storyline.<\/p>\n<p>Since its first broadcast on the 2nd, &#8216;Judge Lee Han Young&#8217; has maintained a strong upward trend in ratings, supported by a well-structured story, intense direction, and outstanding performances by the actors.<\/p>\n<p>The debut week, which introduced Lee Han Young (played by Ji Sung)\u2014a judge at Haenalo Law Firm who routinely handled corrupt cases, died, and then returned 10 years into the past\u2014generated a fervent response across various online communities.<\/p>\n<p>Viewers praised the show saying, \u201cThe story is really solid and full of suspense,\u201d \u201cIt was so good I watched the first two episodes in one go. How can I wait for the next one?\u201d and \u201cI keep thinking about it because I&#8217;m so curious about the next episodes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Photo = MBC\" height=\"784\" src=\"https:\/\/image.xportsnews.com\/contents\/images\/upload\/article\/2026\/0121\/1768953231448255.jpg\" width=\"550\" \/><\/p>\n<p>In episodes 3 and 4, Ji Sung&#8217;s portrayal of a character intent on punishing villains provided viewers with intense catharsis. Responses poured in, reflecting the show&#8217;s impact: \u201cWhile my head says \u2018Where\u2019s a judge like him?\u2019, my heart says \u2018Why not have such a judge?\u2019\u201d, \u201cAs expected, someone who&#8217;s died once is different,\u201d \u201cLee Han Young offers more satisfaction than a refreshing drink!\u201d, \u201cJi Sung has great chemistry with all the actors,\u201d and \u201cThe drama&#8217;s swift resolution of cases resonates with the preferences of Korean viewers for quick developments, and I&#8217;m excited to see what happens next.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Propelled by the actors&#8217; enthusiastic performances and refreshing plot developments, &#8216;Judge Lee Han Young&#8217; garnered significant word-of-mouth, allowing it to surpass the double-digit ratings barrier in episodes 5 and 6 broadcast last week.<\/p>\n<p>The sixth episode, which aired on Saturday, the 17th, achieved a peak viewership of 13.9%. Nielsen Korea reported metropolitan household ratings of 11.4% and nationwide ratings of 11%, marking the highest figures ever for the show. Notably, the 2054 viewership rating\u2014a key indicator of channel competitiveness reflecting changes in media consumption\u2014recorded 4.8%. This placed it first among all programs broadcast that week, underscoring its overwhelming competitiveness.<\/p>\n<p>After the sixth episode, viewers expressed their excitement through various communities saying, \u201cI live for the fun of watching this drama,\u201d \u201cThere&#8217;s not a single weak spot in the acting; it&#8217;s so pleasing to watch,\u201d \u201cThe precise direction makes it easy to understand,\u201d and \u201cIts thrilling, dopamine-inducing ending makes me look forward to next week.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, episode 7 of &#8216;Judge Lee Han Young&#8217; is scheduled to air on Friday, the 23rd, at 9:50 PM.<\/p>\n<p>Image source: MBC<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The MBC drama &#8216;Judge Lee Han Young&#8217; is solidifying its position as the top Friday-Saturday drama, garnering overwhelming support from viewers. The MBC drama &#8216;Judge Lee Han Young&#8217; has ascended to the top spot for Friday and Saturday nights, showcasing its unique appeal through sharp direction and a bold storyline. Since its first broadcast on [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":4505,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[60],"tags":[492,416,822],"class_list":{"0":"post-4504","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tv-show-drama-movie","8":"tag-ji-sung","9":"tag-korean-drama","10":"tag-viewership-ratings"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/bongonakpop.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/image-187.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bongonakpop.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4504","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bongonakpop.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bongonakpop.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bongonakpop.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bongonakpop.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4504"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/bongonakpop.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4504\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4506,"href":"https:\/\/bongonakpop.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4504\/revisions\/4506"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bongonakpop.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4505"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bongonakpop.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4504"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bongonakpop.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4504"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bongonakpop.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4504"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}