“Jirisan,” the iQiyi Original Korean drama starring Jun Ji-hyun and Ju Ji-hoon, made its premiere on Oct. 23.
In South Korea, the drama’s first episode on Oct. 23 garnered nationwide Nielsen Korea rating of 9.097 percent (with a peak rating of 10.7 percent) and grabbed first place based on paid platforms including cable, IPTV and satellite.
This ranked third among ratings of the first episodes of tvN dramas and second among first episodes of tvN’s Saturday-Sunday dramas.
In the Seoul metropolitan area, “Jirisan” received a rating of 9.671 percent (with a peak rating of 11.5 percent) to also grab the top spot.
The first episode of “Jirisan” ranked first in its time slot among all channels including terrestrial channels nationwide and in the metropolitan area.
“Jirisan” tells the story of national park rangers who are responsible for search and rescue on Jirisan (Mount Jiri), the second tallest mountain in South Korea.
In episode 1, experienced ranger Seo Yi-kang (played by Jun Ji-hyun) and rookie ranger Kang Hyun-jo (played by Ju Ji-hoon) met for the first time.
Kang Hyun-jo, a former army officer out of the military academy, arrived at the Jirisan National Park as a new ranger and was immediately sent on a mission with park rangers without even having the time to change out of his formal wear.
“As the youngest among the park rangers, Kang Hyun-jo likes ‘people.’ He came from Seoul to Jirisan because of ‘people,’ he possesses greater perseverance and sense of responsibility to help those in need, than others,” Ju Ji-hoon described his role.
He added, “In my career to date, this is the role with the most unique character, job and setting. There are many firsts for me and it can be regarded as my ‘brand new look.’”
Besides Jun Jin-hyun and Ju Ji-hoon, other stars of “Jirisan” are Sung Dong-il (“Reply 1988”) who plays Jo Dae-jin, the head of the park’s Haedong branch office; Oh Jung-se (“When the Camellia Blooms” and “It's Okay to Not Be Okay’), who plays ranger Jung Goo-young; and Cho Han-cheol as ranger Park Il-hae.
Joo Min-kyung and Go Min-si are also part of the team. Joo plays Lee Yang-sun, an administrative employee supporting the rangers, while Go Min-si is also a rookie ranger who adds freshness to the team of seven protecting those in need on Jirisan. Jeon Seok-ho plays the role of police officer Kim Eung-soon while Lee Ga-sub plays park volunteer Kim Sol, both of whom work often with the rangers in search and rescue.
On the other hand, BTS member Jin will sing the main theme song of the “Jirisan” original soundtrack (OST).
“Jirisan” is exclusively simulcast with Korea from Oct 23 new episodes airing Saturdays and Sundays at 8 p.m. on iQiyi International app or iQ.com worldwide.