[HanCinema's News] A Wide Variety of New Streaming Content Arrives for the Weekend

A huge number of major streaming hits completed their runs this past week. Among these were "Thirty Nine" on March 31st, "Forecasting Love and Weather" and "Twenty Five Twenty One" on April 3rd, and "Business Proposal" on April 5th. But several new offerings make their premiere this week. Netflix is hopeful that this South Korean content can replicate the success of the previous properties, while Apple TV+ is eager for a second wind for its flagship South Korean drama.

"Yaksha: Ruthless Operations" made its premiere on Netflix worldwide on April 8th. The spy film stars Sol Kyung-gyu as a professional manhunter and Park Hae-soo as the special operative tasked with following him. Recent films from Netflix include the BDSM-themed romantic comedy "Love and Leashes" and the theatrically released "The Pirates: The Last Royal Treasure" which Netflix optioned for international distribution. Both had limited worldwide success.

"Our Blues"

"Green Mothers' Club"

Elsewhere in licensed content, "Green Mothers' Club" and "Our Blues" both start their worldwide broadcasts on Netflix this week alongside their television premieres. "Green Mothers' Club" started on April 6th, while "Our Blues" will begin on April 9th. Unlike their predecessors, neither drama is a high-concept genre romance. "Green Mothers' Club" deals with the idea of motherhood while "Our Blues" is a local slice of life drama about regular citizens of Jeju Island.

 

Lastly, "Pachinko" sees the premiere of its fifth episode on April 8th. The underperformance of "Pachinko" to date has been a surprise, given the strong cast featuring the likes of Youn Yuh-jung and Lee Min-ho in leading roles. But it has possibly been overshadowed by the more popular Netflix offerings, and also faces an uphill battle by being an Apple TV+ drama, a streaming platform with little exposure outside the United States.

Written by William Schwartz