JTBC’s weekend drama The Apartment Job delivered another major confrontation between Ji Sung and Park Byung Eun, but its ratings continued to struggle.
According to Nielsen Korea, episode 7 recorded a nationwide rating of 4.4 percent among paid television households. This was a decrease of 0.8 percentage points from the 5.2 percent recorded by episode 6.
The latest episode followed Park Hae Kang, played by Ji Sung, as he tried to prove that he was qualified to manage Lee Choong Won’s secret funds. Lee Choong Won, played by Park Byung Eun, challenged him by saying, “Try anything you can. I will only hand over the key if you impress me.”
Hae Kang then proposed doubling the apartment’s long-term repair fund and pushed the plan through a residents’ vote. After several elevators suddenly stopped working, residents agreed to replace them, allowing his proposal to pass.
Lee Choong Won praised Hae Kang’s performance and said, “It feels like an old car has left and a sleek sports car has arrived.” However, the episode later revealed that Hae Kang had secretly arranged the elevator problems as part of his strategy.
Lee Choong Won eventually gave him one final test involving 10 billion won. Hae Kang appeared ready to follow his instructions until he received serious news about Park Yong Man, played by Jung Jin Young.
The call forced Hae Kang to make a sudden decision. He turned his car around and declared, “I am bringing the 10 billion won now, so release my brother immediately.”
While the episode introduced an important shift in the conflict between Ji Sung and Park Byung Eun, The Apartment Job fell to 4.4 percent, leaving attention focused on whether the drama can recover its ratings during its remaining episodes.
