InternJangThe World of the Married has officially become the highest-rated Korean drama in cable TV history after its 12th episode achieved a nationwide rating of 24.3 percent on Saturday night.
This figure is the highest rating of the series to date, beating the 22.9 percent rating of episode 10 that aired in the previous week. The series has recorded over 20 percent in ratings since its eighth episode and is poised to become the first-ever cable drama to achieve such a record more than five times.
As a result, SKY Castle, the previous title-holder, now has to settle for second place. The record-breaking series achieved a 23.8 percent rating for its final episode in February 2019 and crossed the 20 percent mark three times.
Crash Landing on You, Reply 1998, and Goblin round out the top 5 highest-rated dramas in terms of nationwide peak single-episode ratings.
The table below shows the 10 highest-rated cable Korean dramas of all time based on nationwide highest single-episode ratings. Click here to see the top 50.
| Rank | Drama | Peak Rating |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The World of the Married (JTBC) | 24.332% |
| 2 | SKY Castle (JTBC) | 23.779% |
| 3 | Crash Landing on You (tvN) | 21.683% |
| 4 | Reply 1988 (tvN) | 18.803% |
| 5 | Goblin (tvN) | 18.680% |
| 6 | Mr. Sunshine (tvN) | 18.129% |
| 7 | Itaewon Class (JTBC) | 16.548% |
| 8 | 100 Days My Prince (tvN) | 14.412% |
| 9 | Signal (tvN) | 12.544% |
| 10 | Hospital Playlist (tvN) | 12.077% |
The World of the Married is also no. 1 in terms of average ratings, followed by Mr. Sunshine and Goblin. So far, it has an average rating of 16.9%, which is expected to increase when the ratings of its last four episodes are included in the calculation.
The table below lists the 10 highest-rated cable Korean dramas of all time based on nationwide average ratings. Click here to see the top 20.
| Rank | Drama | Average Rating |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The World of the Married (JTBC) | 16.9% |
| 2 | Mr. Sunshine (tvN) | 13.0% |
| 3 | Goblin (tvN) | 12.9% |
| 4 | SKY Castle (JTBC) | 12.5% |
| 5 | Reply 1988 (tvN) | 12.4% |
| 6 | Crash Landing on You (tvN) | 12.2% |
| 7 | Itaewon Class (JTBC) | 11.8% |
| 8 | Hospital Playlist (tvN) | 9.9% |
| 9 | 100 Days My Prince (tvN) | 8.9% |
| 10 | Hotel del Luna (tvN) | 8.8% |
The only cable show with ratings higher than what The World of the Married achieved is TV Chosun’s audition program Mr. Trot, which recorded a peak rating of 35.7 percent in March.
Starring Kim Hee-ae and Park Hae-joon, The World of the Married is a psychological thriller about a successful doctor whose life is turned upside down by the betrayal of her husband.
Meanwhile, When My Love Blooms, a new tvN series starring Yoo Ji-tae, Lee Bo-young, Jin Young, and Jeon So-nee, obtained 5.4 percent for its third episode. Lee Min-ho and Kim Go-eun’s The King: Eternal Monarch pulled in 7.4 percent and 10.3 percent.
