Woman of Dignity ended its 20-episode run on August 19 with an impressive record that has never been seen before in the history of JTBC dramas. The series’ finale achieved a remarkable 12.065 % in nationwide viewership ratings according to Nielsen Korea, breaking the record previously held by Childless Comfort for over four years and becoming the highest-rated cable drama episode so far this year.

The melodrama starring Kim Hee-sun (Angry Mom) and Kim Sun-ah (Masked Prosecutor) now holds the record of having achieved the highest-rated series episode among JTBC dramas, beating Childress Comfort‘s all-time high rating of 10.715 %. It also surpassed the record of Strong Woman Do Bong Soon (9.668 %) by a 2.4-percentage point margin and although it lags behind this drama in terms of average ratings, it ranks first among all the cable dramas that have aired to date in 2017 as far as peak ratings are concerned. When compared to dramas in the previous years, Woman of Dignity‘s peak record of 12.065 % comes in fourth in the ranking, overthrowing Reply 1994’s 11.90 % and following Signal‘s 12.544 %, Goblin‘s 18.680 %, and Reply 1988‘s 18.803 %.

Below is the list of the top 10 Korean cable dramas, as of August 20, 2017, in terms of peak ratings based on data from Nielsen Korea. Woman of Dignity is fourth on the list, ranking ahead of widely popular dramas such as Oh Hae Young Again and Misaeng.

Reply 1988 – 18.803 %, Goblin – 18.680 % Signal – 12.544 % Woman of Dignity – 12.065 % Reply 1994 – 11.90 % Childless Comfort – 10.715 % Oh Hae Young Again – 9.991 % Strong Woman Do Bong Soon – 9.668 % Misaeng – 8.240 % Dear My Friends – 8.087 %

Woman of Dignity is on top of the ranking of 2017 completed cable dramas (as of August 20, 2017) in terms of peak ratings. The information presented below are also based on viewership data from Nielsen Korea.

Woman of Dignity – 12.065 %, final episode Strong Woman Do Bong Soon – 9.668 %, episode 10 Secret Forest – 6.568 %, final episode Tunnel – 6.490 %, final episode Voice – 5.406 %, episode 3

The recently completed series is a completely pre-produced drama that centers on elegant woman Woo Ah-jin, played by Kim Hee-sun, who is living a life of luxury and peace as a wife to a quasi-chaebol man. Her comfortable lifestyle is threatened by a poor woman named Park Bok-ja, played by Kim Sun-ah, who enters into her household with an ulterior motive to become part of her family and climb the social ladder. A culture critic called the series a “social drama” in which the confrontation of the two women symbolizes the power and class structure in society.

The achievement of Woman of Dignity is truly impressive considering that a double-digit rating is rarely achieved by a pay television program in Korea. Baek Mi-kyung, the drama’s screenwriter who also penned Strong Woman Do Bong Soon, is so grateful that many people are watching her drama. In a recent interview, she shared that she wrote the series with a targeted and small audience in mind and she did not expect it to perform so well in ratings. “I didn’t think the drama’s storyline would gather a wide audience, and I tried to write a drama that people who sell or buy at the luxury goods section of the department store can easily watch,” she said.

Age of Youth 2 will take over Woman of Dignity‘s time slot beginning August 25.