KBS 2TV's late night comedy series "Good Manager" has further widened the gap in the Wednesday-Thursday drama race with "Saimdang, Memoir of Colors," which saw an uptick but not enough to erase its increasingly stale reaction, data showed Friday.

Episode eight of "Good Manger," which aired Thursday night, recorded a 17.6 percent viewership, up 1.5 percentage points from the previous broadcast, according to Nielsen Korea.

SBS TV's "Saimdang" stood at 10.3 percent, up 0.6 percentage point from Wednesday, while MBC TV's "Missing 9" languished in the 4 percent range.
No one saw it coming, but in a head-to-head matchup with mega "hallyu" star Lee Young-ae, actor Namkoong Min and his show, "Good Manager," have pulled off one of the bigger upsets in recent Korean TV history.

The satirical comedy show stars Namkoong as Kim Sung-ryong, an accountant at the fictional TQ Group and a genius at embezzling corporate funds. An anti-hero, Kim ends up fighting for the rights of employees and against greater corruption within the workplace.

TV industry watchers and fans of the shows are betting ratings could go over 20 percent within the next few episodes.

Its competitor "Saimdang" made headlines for bringing Lee of the famed show "Daejanggeum" back to TV for the first time in 13 years. But it's received an underwhelming reception due to what viewers say is a slow and discombobulated plot.

To stop the bloodletting of viewers, SBS TV has scrambled to re-edit the entirety of the series for a much more engaging and impactful viewing experience. But whether it can ultimately salvage the show remains to be seen. (Yonhap)