Lovers of the Red Sky Ends as a Fantasy Historical Drama With a Personal Best 10.4% Rating
Kim Yoo Jung and Ahn Hyo Seop’s fantasy historical romance Lovers of the Red Sky ended with a personal-best 10.4% nationwide rating, captivating viewers with its romance and stunning visuals.
A blind man who reads the stars and a woman painter blessed with heavenly talent. Their love, intertwined by the red thread of fate, captivated living rooms in the fall of 2021. Starring Kim Yoo Jung and Ahn Hyo Seop, SBS’s Monday-Tuesday drama Lovers of the Red Sky came to a successful conclusion, with its finale recording a personal-best viewership rating of 10.4%.
A Joseon Painter and the Red Thread of Fate
Lovers of the Red Sky revolves around a mystical painting imbued with divine power. Hong Cheon Gi, a female painter, picks up her brush with a talent bestowed by the heavens, while Ha Ram, who lost his eyesight as a child, survives by reading the stars. Their fateful connection becomes intertwined with the fantasy element of the Demon King’s seal, creating a unique world that blends historical drama, romance, and fantasy.
Kim Yoo Jung and Ahn Hyo Seop, a Heart-Fluttering Chemistry
From the beginning of its run, the chemistry between the two leads became a major talking point. By its fourth episode, the drama had already broken its own ratings record and climbed to No. 1 among Monday-Tuesday dramas. At the time, media outlets praised the heart-fluttering chemistry between Kim Yoo Jung, Ahn Hyo Seop, and Gong Myung as the story truly began to take off. Kim Yoo Jung, who had built extensive experience since her days as a child actress, firmly established her presence as an adult performer through this series. Around this time, the drama was also gaining momentum, reaching a peak minute-by-minute rating of 11.3%.
A Happy Ending for Both the Ratings and the Story, Finishing at 10.4%
The final episode, which aired in October 2021, ended with a nationwide rating of 10.4% according to Nielsen Korea, setting a new personal best for the series. Its peak minute-by-minute rating in the Seoul metropolitan area reached 11.8%. As Hong Cheon Gi and Ha Ram overcame their tragic fate and managed to protect their love, viewers remarked that both the ratings and the ending had achieved a happy ending.
Visuals That Were a Feast for the Eyes
Another star of Lovers of the Red Sky was the screen itself. From painting competitions between artists to breathtaking landscapes spanning the royal palace and mountains, along with the vibrant colors of the hanbok, every scene received praise for its meticulous production. True to its focus on painting, the drama was filled with carefully crafted visuals from beginning to end. It was also a production in which director Jang Tae Yoo’s signature mise-en-scène truly shone. Hong Cheon Gi’s appearances in her red attire were repeatedly singled out as some of the drama’s most memorable scenes throughout its run.
A Historical Drama Perfect for an Autumn Binge
With its poignant romance about two people bound by fate, fantasy action, and beautiful cinematography, Lovers of the Red Sky is also a great entry point for viewers who are new to historical dramas. If traditional, heavy historical dramas have felt intimidating, consider adding this series to your binge-watch list this fall and getting swept up in the story of the two painters. The increasingly deepening relationship between the two leads keeps viewers immersed as the episodes progress. It was also a highly talked-about hit that held the No. 1 spot among Monday-Tuesday dramas during its original run.
Sources: Daum