Jo Bo-ah Ro-woon’s unexpected ambush for the small screen
It’s a rebellion of the “weakest’. Actors Jo Bo-ah and Ro-woon have emerged as an ambush for fierce competition in the small screen as they have gained unexpected global popularity with JTBC’s Wednesday-Thursday drama “This Love Is Force Majeure.” Unlike the lukewarm domestic response, the drama is drawing attention from overseas first.
They are portraying fantasy romance by playing the roles of public officials and legal advisors belonging to the city hall, respectively. Jo Bo-ah accidentally has a mysterious magic book and uses “affectionate magic” to make love out of curiosity, and Ro-woon, a rival, is enchanted and likes Jo Bo-ah. At the same time, Cho Bo-ah’s favorite policy adviser, Ha-joon, and Ro-woon’s ex-girlfriend, Yura, form a blind relationship.
The drama has been considered the weakest in the small screen as top stars such as Disney+ “Moving” and Netflix “Mask Girl” have recently poured out on OTT (Online Video Service). SBS’s Thursday drama “People’s Death Penalty Vote,” which airs at a similar time, has rarely shown its presence, hovering around the 2% range for the second week of broadcasting, preoccupying viewers’ attention.
However, it achieved results first on the global chart. This is due to the accumulation of overseas fandom through Netflix, which is released at the same time as the broadcast. Since its first broadcast on August 23, it has consistently ranked in the top 10 in the “Netflix Top Show” category of the OTT ranking website Flixpatrol, and was the only Korean drama to rank seventh on the 10th. In addition, Netflix ranked third in the “Global Top 10” non-English TV show category, which was announced by counting viewing hours from August 28 to September 3.
Overseas viewers are showing interest in Jo Bo-ah’s lovely charm and Rowoon’s comic transformation. This is because Ro-woon, who was possessed by witchcraft, made absurd confessions to Jo Bo-ah in a calm tone, such as “When I see you, I’m so happy,” and “Is a heart shooting from my eyes?” and Jo Bo-ah runs away with disgust.
Curiosity toward Jo Bo-ah and Ro-woon, who previously succeeded in global hits with tvN’s “Nine Tailed Fox” and KBS 2TV’s “Love,” respectively, also became the driving force behind their popularity. IMDb, a U.S. content review site, received favorable reviews for its main characters, such as “Ro Woon leads the mystery and comedy well about the curse of the family” and “The main characters are more lovely than expected.”
As such overseas performances became a hot topic among domestic viewers, it was an opportunity to raise the awareness of the drama. In the real-time comment box, there were also a series of comments from viewers, saying, “I started watching it because I was curious because there were many overseas fans.”