[News] Royal Family gets an extension.

[News] Royal Family gets an extension.
Cr. - Hankok Ilbo

Royal Family, the Wednesday-Thursday series starring Ji Sung and Yeom Jung-ah, has been granted a two-episode extension, raising its total episode count from 16 to 18. I’ve been hearing positive things about the show, despite my own disinterest in it (sorry, I just couldn’t), so it’s good news for the show — two episodes isn’t too much of a burden, and with 12 episodes aired, they have a little time to work in the extension.

According to the drama’s CP, the production had also considered a four-episode extension before nixing that possibility. Ultimately they decided that with the drama’s fast pacing, four more hours would drag their narrative too much. (At least they recognized that, since lots of shows just take the money and say to hell with the narrative flow.)

The chaebol-centered drama has been the leader in the Wednesday-Thursday ratings race in recent weeks, but has actually been losing ground as its competitors close in. In earlier weeks, Royal Family had been described as the clear winner, but with this week’s ratings, its lead has been cut down to “an uneasy first place” and “a razor-thin margin.” Its numbers reveal an uneasy trend: After starting at 7.0%, the drama had steadily climbed to 15.7%, only to see its numbers fall to 14.9%, 14.0%, 13.7%, 12.9%, and now, 12.5%.

The latest ratings (Thursday’s) for the three shows were closer than they’ve been thus far: Royal Family‘s 12.5% was up against a 10.2% from KBS’s Thorn Birds, while SBS’s 49 Days rose to a 10.8%. (Yay! And good for them; it’s really starting to get good. So cute.)

To be honest, 12% ratings is a bit low for an extension (usually you’ll have to hit 20% for that, or in this current age of depressed ratings, at least upper teens), but it’s not a surprise that MBC is willing to keep even a modest hit going, given its unsteady track record in years past.

(I suspect MBC has been considering the extension for a while, because I’d noticed that its follow-up drama, the Hong sisters’ Best Love, hadn’t set a premiere date. It’ll have an extra week now, which puts its premiere in the first week of May or thereabouts.)