With its highest viewership of 25.5%, the SBS Friday-Saturday drama 'Kim Bujang' has taken over the living-room audience and is raising tension by setting up a once-in-a-lifetime ordeal for the characters.
Breaks 25.5% for a peak, 'Kim Bujang' shocks viewers with So Ji-seop's North Korea abduction
In episode 7 of 'Kim Bujang,' which aired on the 17th, ratings came in at 22.6% in the Seoul metropolitan area and 21.9% nationwide. In particular, the peak per minute surged as high as 25.5%, solidifying the drama's position as the strongest among Friday-Saturday shows.
In that episode, viewers saw Kim Bujang (played by So Ji-seop) who was going on a rampage to save his daughter overpower Joo Juang-chan (played by Joo Sang-wook) and bring the situation to a close. However, Kim Bujang surrendered himself to the Special Mission Bureau, and his allies, Seong Han-su (played by Han Chul-max) and Park Jin-cheol (played by Yoon Kyung-ho), were also arrested, delivering a tragedy that brings the so-called 'Dad Universe' to the brink of collapse. Near the end of the broadcast, a twist ending unfolded in which Kim Bujang opens his eyes in a North Korean interrogation room, hitting viewers with a major shock.
Han Chul-max and Yoon Kyung-ho's crisis—gagged and bound, abandoned in the wasteland
Ahead of episode 8, which will air on the 18th, still cuts released by the production team preview an even more grim situation. They captured Seong Han-su and Park Jin-cheol, who were taken into custody, being abandoned in an uninhabited wasteland while bound with chains and handcuffs.
In the photo, Seong Han-su is tied from head to toe with chains while wearing a taekwondo uniform with dirt and dust all over it. In particular, he is also wearing a grotesque gag, showing an extreme situation. Park Jin-cheol, too, has a special restraint suit over his military uniform, with heavy chains on his feet. With his expression staring into empty space, his eyes seem to have lost focus, making the viewers feel the desperate crisis they are facing.
Even amid such a situation, Seong Han-su plans to launch a counterattack with his trademark no-nonsense attitude. As Kim Bujang is dragged to North Korea and the 'Dad Universe' falls into an air-disintegration crisis, global viewers are paying close attention to how this ordeal will be overcome. Episode 8 of SBS 'Kim Bujang,' which keeps the momentum with a spectacular plot, will air at 10 p.m. on the 18th.
