'Four Hands, Two Sonatas' Hits Record 7.3% Ratings with Major Twist, Tops its Time Slot
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ASTON OTONITY – The September 13 episode of tvN’s weekend drama “Four Hands, Two Sonatas,” written by Shin Yi Won and directed by Park Hyun Suk, ended with a shocking revelation. Kang Bi Oh (played by Song Kang), who spent nine years searching for Choi Jung Yo (played by Lee Jun Young) after his mysterious disappearance, unexpectedly spotted him participating in a conducting competition.
According to Nielsen Korea, the sixth episode recorded an average national viewership rating of 7.3%, peaking at 7.9%. In the Seoul metropolitan area, it averaged 7.4% and peaked at 8%. The episode marked the drama’s highest viewership rating to date.
It also ranked first among all channels, including free-to-air broadcasters, in both national and metropolitan viewership. Nationally, the series has held the top spot in its time slot among cable and general programming channels for six consecutive episodes.
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Among tvN’s target audience—viewers aged 20 to 49—“Four Hands, Two Sonatas” also ranked first in its time slot across all channels, including free-to-air networks, in both national and metropolitan viewership. The figures are based on paid platforms that combine cable TV, IPTV, and satellite services.
At age 27, Kang Bi Oh had established himself as a unique pianist whose concerts often sell out. However, even after nearly a decade, he remained tormented by Choi Jung Yo’s disappearance. Rumors casting suspicion on Bi Oh—who had once been Jung Yo’s greatest rival—continued to haunt him, while interviews inevitably brought up questions about his missing friend.
Bi Oh himself had never truly been able to come to terms with what had happened. Although he tried to carry on with his life as if nothing were wrong, he continued to secretly search for Jung Yo with the help of his contact abroad, Vogel (played by Go Chang Suk). Whenever he discovered even the slightest clue, he immediately followed it, determined to find out what had happened to Jung Yo nine years earlier.
Amid a barrage of misleading information, Bi Oh eventually discovered, through Vogel, that the suspect believed to have kidnapped Jung Yo had been released from prison after serving his sentence. Bi Oh finally confronted the key figure in the case.
After seeing a photo of Jung Yo, the suspect confessed that he had kidnapped him during the Harmonie International Competition. He claimed that he had planned to free Jung Yo after receiving money from someone, but Jung Yo resisted so fiercely that he ended up killing him.
The suspect then brazenly tried to exploit Bi Oh’s desperation, demanding a large sum of money in exchange for more information. Determined to uncover the whole truth, Bi Oh somehow managed to come up with the money and returned to meet with him.
However, before he could get the answers he had been seeking for nine years, the suspect was killed following a fight with someone else, abruptly cutting short what appeared to be the first concrete lead in the case.
Lee Jun Young effortlessly conveyed a wide range of emotions, from Jung Yo’s deep affection for Bi Oh and the competitive spirit of a talented pianist to the fear and survival instinct he experienced during the kidnapping.
His performance in the scenes set nine years later was particularly striking. Without a single line of dialogue, Lee Jun Young conveyed Jung Yo’s completely transformed presence solely through his eyes, facial expressions, and conducting gestures.
