According to Nielsen Korea, the first episode of "Reborn rookie" achieved a rating of 3.7%. In episode 2, this number increased to 5.2%, showing a remarkable growth momentum for the new film on JTBC's weekend slot.
The work revolves around Kang Yong Ho (Son Hyun Joo) - the powerful chairman of Choi Sung Group.
After an unexpected accident, his soul is swapped into the body of Hwang Jun Hyun (Lee Jun Young) - a former young football player who was once expected but lost his career after a serious accident.
Right from the first episodes, the film pushed the conflict to a higher level when Kang Yong Ho discovered that his two children, Kang Jae Gyeong (Jeon Hye Jin) and Kang Jae Seong (Jin Goo), were involved in an accident that caused Hwang Jun Hyun to lose his future.
An unexpected event then causes the souls of the two to swap, forcing the powerful president to face secrets and mistakes in his own family.
According to Korean media, the difference of "Pilot Chairman" lies in the fact that the film uses the spirit swapping motif as a catalyst for the inheritance battle in a tycoon family.
Instead of exploiting simple humorous situations, the work puts the main character on a journey to look back at past choices and face the ambitions of his own children.
This helps the story to be both fictional and retain the drama of a commercial film genre. Besides, letting Kang Yong Ho look back at life from the perspective of a young person also adds depth to the character.
Another noteworthy point is that the film's pace is quite fast. In just the first two episodes, the work has successively introduced the accident, the exchange of souls, the inheritance battle and the motives of the main characters.
The continuous storytelling that creates new knots is considered one of the factors that helps the film retain viewers in the early stages of broadcasting.
In addition, Lee Jun Young's transformation is also a plus point. The actor must simultaneously portray the image of a young man over 20 years old and the soul of the experienced president. Many viewers assessed that this is one of Lee Jun Young's most challenging roles to date.
Previously, Lee Jun Young said that he spent a lot of time chatting and observing Son Hyun Joo to build the character. Instead of trying to completely copy his senior, the actor chose to recreate the character through intonation, gestures and demeanor in the most natural way.
