Fantasy elements in contract marriage stories are becoming a new trend
 |
| poster The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract and My Demon (dok. MBC | dok. SBS) |
Recently, many Korean dramas have offered viewers stories about contract marriages. Even in the second half of this year, there are three competing series focusing on contract marriages, including Perfect Marriage Revenge to My Demon.
Korean dramas that tell stories about contract marriages will reportedly continue until next year, you know. So, why do screen series dominated by stories about contract marriages continue to emerge? Let’s see the full review below!
1. A fresh take on the contract marriage story
 |
| poster The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract and My Demon (dok. MBC | dok. SBS) |
Contract marriage is actually known as one of the clichéd themes in several Korean dramas in the past, but it is currently being reproduced as a new genre with added fantasy elements and is becoming a trend, such as My Demon and The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract.
Released simultaneously on November 24, both My Demon and The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract were also developed based on the “marriage contract” story. My Demon is a fantasy romantic comedy drama about a chaebol heiress who contracts marriage with a demon.
Meanwhile, The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract is similar to My Demon in that it also focuses on the story of contract marriage. The series tells the story of the contract marriage of a 19th century Joseon Confucian woman and a 21st century third generation chaebol.
However, all of these works add fantasy elements to the traditional clichés, presenting a fresher and more interesting contract marriage story to watch. Therefore, Korean dramas with similar stories will still appear next year.
2. Relate to society about marriage
 |
| poster The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract and My Demon (dok. MBC | dok. SBS) |
So, what is the reason why Korean drama producers are currently making more works that emphasize ‘marriage first, dating later’ and the increasing popularity of contract marriage content among viewers as reflected in My Demon?
Critic Jo Sung Kyung explains that the changing social perception of marriage has been reflected in Korean dramas. Although some choose not to get married, many people still believe that marriage is a major life event.
Therefore, the concept of contract marriage seems to have been considered as a subject of creating events in dramas. Especially in romantic series, marriage is often used as the ultimate goal, even if it only starts with a contract.
“Marriage used to be portrayed as the goal of successful love, but recently it has become a device in drama storylines as an event. Based on this background, even viewers who think they will not get married will still feel curious about the story,” said critic Jo Sung Kyung as reported by Daum.
3. Contract marriage stories will continue to emerge
 |
| portrait of Shin Min Ah and Kim Young Dae (instagram.com/illusominainstagram.com/youngdae0302) |
Korean dramas that tell the story of marriage contracts have actually managed to score impressive ratings recently. In the premiere episode, The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract scored a national average of 5.6 percent, while My Demon scored 4.5 percent.
In fact, the dominance of Korean dramas about contract marriages is expected to continue into next year with the announcement of a series that will also tell the story of Shin Min Ah and Kim Young Dae’s fake marriage in Because I Want No Loss.
Because I Want No Loss will tell the story of a romance between a woman who organizes a fake wedding because she doesn’t want to lose money. While the man becomes a fake bride because he doesn’t want to avoid it.
With so many Korean dramas featuring contract marriages, what do you think, yeorobun? Are you interested in watching it or skip it?