The Weight of the Robe and an Era’s Thirst... Asking Judges What Justice Is

MBC Friday-Saturday Drama "Judge Lee Hanyoung"
Ratings Climb from 4.5% to 13.5%
"Stern Rulings" That Comfort the Times

As a series of recent rulings on martial law that have shaken Korean society have come down, public perceptions of judges, who stand on the front lines of the rule of law, are changing. The desire to confirm that legal doctrine is a shield for citizens rather than a tool of power has extended into living-room television.

MBC's Friday-Saturday drama "Judge Lee Hanyoung" started with a 4.5% rating for its first episode and reached 13.5% by episode nine, becoming the talk of the town with a remarkable surge in viewership. Behind this lies a collective public psychology that seeks to heal real-world uncertainty through the justice of the law.

The judiciary has recently handed down a series of rulings in martial law-related cases that sternly rebuke the illegality of the exercise of state power. At this moment, the social consensus that the courts must fulfill their role as the "last bastion" even amid political turmoil has become stronger than ever.

This real-world backdrop has changed how the public consumes culture. Whereas past courtroom dramas focused on prosecutors' investigations or defense attorneys' arguments, the so-called "art of battle," today's viewers concentrate on judges' decisions themselves, which bring all disputes to a close. The psychological yearning for a fair arbiter who can clarify a chaotic reality through clear legal reasoning has been projected onto the character of Lee Hanyoung, the drama's protagonist.

In the drama, Judge Lee Hanyoung is a character who, by handing down unjust rulings, causes social confusion and hurts others, until he returns to the past, 10 years earlier. Only after going back does he realize that he has been walking down the wrong path and chooses a life different from before.

Provided by Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation: 'Judge Lee Hanyoung'

Director Lee Jaejin, who helmed the production, described the work as "a story about justice." He said, "Rather than portraying him as a completely corrupt judge, I focused on the process of a man who had compromised with reality seizing an opportunity for regret and self-reflection," adding, "I wanted to show hope in his efforts to overturn his own past wrongs and change the world." He went on, "Judge Lee Hanyoung will fulfill the wishes of those who want to see the anger and frustration of victims finally resolved."

The image of a judge who adheres to the principles of the law books even in the face of asymmetrical power serves as a kind of "social outlet" that relieves real-world frustration. The public is not only experiencing vicarious satisfaction but also culturally consuming its yearning for a "fair arbiter."

Actor Ji Sung, who plays the lead role of Judge Lee Hanyoung, described the character's journey as a "farewell to darkness." He said, "It is the process by which Lee Hanyoung, who once loved the darkness, comes to establish true justice in a new world through enlightenment," stressing that "it is a work that goes beyond a simple political or courtroom drama and allows viewers to think deeply about what is truly right."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.