'Love War 2', which attracted 17,000 applicants, satisfaction levels

Netflix's 'Single but Want to Date Season 2' (hereafter 'Single Love 2') is showing an unrivaled presence. This season, which premiered on the 7th, is a makeover reality show capturing the first challenges of 'motae-solo' (people who have never dated) who have no dating experience but dream of love. As Season 1 recorded a mega-hit by ranking No. 1 in Netflix Korea's TOP 10 series, surpassing 'Squid Game 3', interest in this Season 2 is also intense.

Viewer preference is proven by numbers. In Consumer Insight's initial viewer evaluation for OTT K-original content, 'Single Love 1' recorded a satisfaction score of 71. This figure is more than 10 points ahead of 'Single's Inferno 4' (61 points) and 'EXchange: Another Beginning' (58 points). Driven by this popularity, approximately 17,000 applicants flocked to this Season 2.

Choosing 'Growth' and 'Detail' instead of provocative settings

Single Love 2 avoided the typical methods of existing dating variety shows, such as provocative settings or excessive dopamine-inducing tactics. Instead, it focused on inheriting the 'growth narrative of the participants' shown in Season 1. It delicately portrays the process where participants, who are unfamiliar with dating, change through makeovers and gradually build emotions while feeling attraction in an unfamiliar environment. The production team also prepared new devices to allow participants to express their emotions naturally. They eased the awkwardness of participants who are clumsy with first dates and first skinship by connecting the hands of male and female participants with couple rings during meal dates or arranging unique dates where they can get to know each other more deeply.

Seo In-guk, Kang Han-na, Lee Eun-ji, and Car, the Garden participate as 'some-makers' to add reactions to the participants' movements. This stands in contrast to the current atmosphere of the dating variety show market, where Channel A's 'Heart Signal 5' is struggling with ratings in the 0% range according to Nielsen Korea, and shows like SBS Plus/ENA's 'I Am SOLO', KBS2's 'Noona is a Woman to Me', and Netflix's 'Love Experiment' are facing fatigue due to repetitive developments and provocativeness.

The emergence of counseling variety shows sharing realistic concerns

The trend of dating reality is expanding beyond excitement to deeper themes. JTBC's 'Love War' presented a counseling variety show format by putting dating couples, rather than married couples, at the forefront. Lee Hyori, Seo Jang Hoon, and Kim Hee-chul appear to engage in fierce debates based on their direct speech, realistic perspectives, and their own dating experiences. They deal with realistic stories such as long-distance relationships or a 12-year age gap. As of the 3rd, JTBC's 'Love War' ranked No. 1 on Disney+ 'Today's TOP 10 Series in Korea'.

Stories of youth facing the finiteness of life

SBS's 'My Remaining Love', which will air for the first time on August 3rd in the afternoon, expands the horizons of dating variety shows. The protagonists are youths in their 20s and 30s who have been diagnosed with a terminal illness or have experienced fighting a disease that brought them to the threshold of death. They focus on present love while facing the traces left by past pain. PD Lee Eun-sol stated the production intention, "We wanted to sincerely capture the extraordinary and special sincerity of how these youths, who know the finiteness of life better than anyone, love passionately and brilliantly during the time they are given."