'Graduation' Jung Ryeo Won X Wei Ha Joon, Yoo Jong Mi with 8.1% Peak Viewership
According to Nielsen Korea, the ratings for the final episode of tvN's Saturday drama "Graduation," which aired the day before, were 7.4% up to 8.1% in the metropolitan area, the highest in the country, and 6.6% up to 7.3% in the metropolitan area and up to 7.6% nationwide, ranking first in the same time slot including cable and print.
In the final episode, the happy ending of Seo Hye Jin (Jung Ryeo Won) and Lee Joon Ho (Woo Ha Joon), who graduated and became real adults in the classroom where they met for the first time, provided heartwarming excitement and emotion. The scene of Seo Hye Jin embarking on a new journey toward her unfulfilled dreams and Lee Joon Ho promising her a lifetime by handing her a ring left a lasting impression.
'Melo Craftsman' director Ahn Pan-seok's direction also shone this time. He received favorable reviews for realistically capturing the daily life of Daechi-dong, the No. 1 private education district, and the people who live there. Director Ahn's delicate direction and writer Park Kyung-hwa's solid writing have created another melodramatic masterpiece with a different depth of emotion. In addition, music director Lee Nam-yeon added excitement and immersion by filling every corner of the film, and cinematographer Yoon Seok-jo showed a different detail.
The chemistry between Jung Ryeowon and Woo Ha-joon, a 'mutual love couple' who perfectly depicted the exciting deviation of a teacher and a pupil from the path of the teacher, was a realistic romance. Jung Rye-won's performance as Seo Hye-jin, who is both firm as an instructor and incomplete as an adult, was truly endearing. Praise was also heaped on Woo Ha Joon for his flexible portrayal of the worldly Lee Joon Ho as he changes through his first love. The actors who filled the dynamic Daechi-dong hagwon scenery were also special. So Joo-yeon, Kim Jong-tae, Kim Jung-young, Seo Jung-yeon, Gil Hae-yeon, Kim Song-il, Jang Ji-yeon, Yang Jo-ah, Lee Si-hoon, Jang In-seob, Lee Kyu-sung, and Shin Joo-hyup. The synergy created by the realistic characters was a point that multiplied the fun of the drama.
On this day, Seo Hye Jin and Lee Joon Ho struggled to save the Daechi Chess. It was Choi Min Ji (Han Nuri), a teaching assistant, who awakened Seo Hye Jin who was in despair. Woo Seung-hee (Kim Jung-young) wanted him to become Choi Hyung-sun's (Seo Jung-yeon) assistant and spy on her. But Choi Min-ji couldn't bring himself to betray Seo Hye-jin, so he told Seo Hye-jin and Lee Joon-ho. With even the longtime instructors fleeing the Daechi Chess, the trust shown by a mere college student's assistant awakened Seo Hye-jin for a moment. Meanwhile, Lee Joon-ho came up with a plan to turn the tables. Earlier, Lee Joon-ho had heard from Pyo Sang-sub (Kim Song-il) that Choi Hyung-sun doesn't discuss the management of the academy even with the vice director. Realizing that Seo Hye Jin and Choi Hyung Sun's relationship wasn't as strong as they thought, Seo Hye Jin and Lee Joon Ho deliberately visited Choi to set up a lion's share of the confrontation. Sensing each other's distrust and the betrayal that had begun, Choi Hyung-sun and Woo Seung-hee soon engaged in a sharp battle of nerves, which soon escalated into a physical fight. It was the self-destruction of two partners in desire.
But Seo Hye-jin knew that she would never be able to return to her original position. Instead, she decided to revisit her past dreams. The trigger was Lee Joon-ho's proposal. The unimaginable future with Lee forced her to look back at the past. Looking at her old law school books, Seo Hye-jin realized why she was trying to make money. She decided to start studying again, and instead of answering the proposal, she said, "When I achieve something, you can give it to me. In response, Lee Joon-ho said, "Whatever you do, do it with my backing. I'll wait for your answer."
The Chase met an unexpected relief pitcher. Kim Hyo-im (Gil Hae-yeon), the head of counseling, decided to invest in Daechi Chase for her 'prospective daughter-in-law' Nam Cheong-mi (So Joo-yeon). Thanks to Kim's aggressive aggression, Nam Cheong-mi becomes the head instructor, allowing Seo Hye-jin to leave the academy in peace. On the final day of the upcoming Daechi Chase, Lee Junho knelt down in front of her and proposed with a ring. This time, Seo Hye Jin gladly accepted. As they looked forward to their future with each other, it was an exciting ending to their graduation, showing the new beginnings they had achieved.
