K-drama enthusiasts have no trouble in admitting that their eyes are peeled for the long-delayed and desperately awaited Park Ji Hoon-starrer Weak Hero Class 2. Just a few more days remain before the action-packed saga’s sequel makes mainstream debut on Netflix on Friday, April 25.
We haven’t even touched the half-year mark and 2025 has already stood tall on its praise-worthy promises to deliver unforgettable K-drama hits like Study Group, When Life Gives You Tangerines, Undercover High School, Love Scout, Karma and Buried Hearts, to name a few. While many shows adhered to years-old classic K-drama tropes, others embarked on the ambitious endeavour to shatter stereotypes and carve new paths altogether. But that wasn’t always enough to keep viewers coming back for more.
April K-drama releases
Crushology 101
Streaming on: Prime Video India’s Channel K, Viki
Among the handful K-drama premieres to unlock new stories in April, Crushology 101 has particularly dealt out possibly the most humiliating results for South Korean network MBC. Since its April 11 release, ratings for the Friday-Saturday drama — that hoped to present a fresh take on the Boys Over Flowers trope — have even sunk as low as the 0% range.
Featuring nearly all rookie actors, including the leads Roh Jeong Eui, Lee Chae Min, Cho Joon Young, Kim Hyun Jin and Hon Min Gi, the series suffers a bleak fate despite following in after its timeslot predecessor, the much-loved Undercover High School, which successfully engaged audiences. Meanwhile, SBS TV’s Buried Hearts starring Park Hyung Sik clinched an early victory all thanks to its star power.
According to Nielsen Korea, Crushology 101 started off its modest audience ratings in the 1% range. With the very next episode, the show slumped to its shocking low 0.9% average nationwide TV viewership ratings. The romance drama’s latest episode dropped on April 19, securing 1.1% rating. Meanwhile, its highest ratings yet, too, stand as low as 1.5%, inspiring no hope for its future TV run.
The Haunted Palace
Streaming on: Viki
The brand-new SBS rom-com fantasy, starring K-pop idols-turned-actors Yook Sung Jae (of BTOB) and Kim Ji Yeon (WJSN’s Bona), hit TV screens on April 18. The Friday-Saturday drama slot secured an impressive jumpstart with significantly high TV viewership rating of 9.2%.
The grand opening now reportedly marks the highest first episode rating scored by any SBS drama this year. Evidently, the show has proved to be a worthy successor of Park Hyung Sik’s Buried Hearts, which wrapped up last week with its personal-best rating of 15.4%. Contrary to The Haunted Palace’s high-flying rating opener, the February revenge drama opened with an average nationwide viewership rating of 6.1%. Sungjae and Bona’s drama premiere not only led dramas in the same time slot, it was also the most-watched miniseries of the entire week.
Resident Playbook
Streaming on: Netflix
The Hospital Playlist spinoff led by Go Youn Jung, Shin Si Ah, Kang You Seok, Han Ye Ji and Jung Joon Won started airing on April 12. While its Netflix streaming rights have helped it acquire mainstream focus among global audiences, Resident Playbook’s domestic tvN broadcasts have modestly witnessed a ratings-growth over the three episodes released so far. Nonetheless, its nowhere close to touching the grand premiere of The Haunted Palace – at least not yet anyway.
Thanks to its third episode – dated April 19, the medical drama rose to its highest ratings yet with a nationwide average of 4.5%. Its journey initially picked up with Episode 1 garnering a 3.68% rating.
Heavenly Ever After
Streaming on: Netflix
With veteran actress Kim Hye Ja and beloved heartthrob Son Suk Ku as leads, JTBC’s new drama delivered a promising beginning with an average nationwide rating of 5.8%. The Saturday-Sunday romantic fantasy maps out the ups and downs of a loving couple. Despite being separated by death, they are ultimately reunited in heaven — only to find out one is in their 30s, while the other in their 80s.
Anticipation for Weak Hero Class 2 blowing through the roof
For worse or for better, these four April K-dramas have stuck out above the rest. Weak Hero Class 2 is poised to trump them all as Park Ji Hoon returns as the model student Yeon Si Eun. While there’s no official word on Choi Hyun Wook‘s potential cameo, the sequel is already packed with considerable star power Ryeoun (Twinkling Watermelon), Choi Min Young (XO, Kitty), Bae Na Ra (DP Season 2), Lee Jun Young (When Life Gives You Tangerines) and more.
Before the new season arrives on Netflix on April 25, Weak Hero Class 1 also finally dropped on the streaming platform after its original lowkey availability on Wavve in 2022. Despite the lack of its global availability, the action thriller amassed a cult following even ahead of the March 25 Netflix premiere — all credits to Park Ji Hoon, Choi Hyun Wook and Hong Kyun’s formidable chemistry. The coming-of-age title’s popularity has since soared again as it claimed the 15th spot on Top 20 April drama brand reputation rankings.