Lee Min Ho's drama "Legend of the Blue Sea" premiered with strong ratings, however, many critics slammed the series over plagiarism claims. Despite the controversy, the SBS drama's viewership ratings continued its steady climb to the 20 percent mark.
"Legend of the Blue Sea" gave fans the chance to see their favorite South Korean celebrities Lee and Jun Ji Hyun back on the small screens. With a storyline about the mermaid Shim Chung (Jun) falling in love with the con man Joon Jae (Lee), several critics bashed the SBS drama for copying a few plot lines and filming styles from a Hollywood film and a British TV series.
The scenes that featured Joon Jae assessing details of another person's body part or clothing were similar to how the British TV series "Sherlock" depicted the iconic detective's keen observation skills, according to Korea Herald. Close up shots of a particular part of a body, item or clothing mixed with sequences that showed the protagonist observing its subject was a filming technique utilized in the said British series.
Jun's depiction of a mermaid learning how to act in a human world was also called out by critics who claimed that it was similar to the Hollywood film "Splash." Released in 1984, the said film featured a mermaid who saved a young man from drowning and was introduced to the world outside of the ocean.
The "Legend of the Blue Sea" scene that involved Shim Chung incorrectly eating a dish echoed a similar sequence in "Splash," as indicated in the same report. Critics also claimed that some of the ways that Shim Chung tried to acclimatize to her new environment were nearly the same as the Hollywood movie.
Despite the plagiarism controversy, Lee and Jun's drama posted strong viewership ratings. Its first episode registered nationwide TV ratings of 16.4 percent, according to Nielsen Korea, as cited by OSEN. However, the SBS drama's episode 2 ratings fell to 15.1 percent, while episode 3 ratings moved up to 15.7 percent.
Meanwhile, the SBS drama's premiere episode registered impressive ratings in Singapore and Malaysia. Released on the cable channel ONE, the first episode of "Legend of the Blue Sea" outperformed the drama "Scarlet Heart Ryeo," according to Rapid TV News. Viewership shares of Lee and Jun's drama were higher by 52 percent and 84 percent in Singapore and Malaysia, respectively.
"Legend of the Blue Sea" airs every Wednesday and Thursday on SBS. Watch the trailer below: