[Edaily Starin Gim Ga Yeong Reporter] As ENA’s Monday-Tuesday drama “New Recruit 4: Sabotage” gains popularity, this momentum is leading to a resurgence in interest in previous seasons.

TVING announced on the 29th that, following the release of “Rookie 4: Sabotage”—an exclusive online video service (OTT) series and ENA’s Monday-Tuesday drama—the number of paid subscribers for previous seasons (“Rookie,” “Rookie 2,” “Rookie 3,” and the spin-off variety show) increased approximately fivefold year-over-year during the four weeks following its premiere. This resurgence is driven not only by new users attracted by the new season but also by existing fans who have begun rewatching the previous series.
“Rookie 4: Sabotage” has ranked No. 1 in weekly unique viewers (UV) on TVING for four consecutive weeks since its release. Meanwhile, “Rookie 3,” “Rookie,” and “Rookie 2” have successively made it into TVING’s top 10 weekly drama UV rankings, with the entire series dominating the upper reaches of the charts.
With each new season, the “Rookie” series demonstrates the ability to expand the intellectual property’s (IP) influence on its own. In the four weeks following the release of “Rookie 4: Sabotage,” the number of paid subscribers increased by 25% compared to the same period for the previous season, “Rookie 3,” proving the growth formula of a franchise IP that breaks its own record every time a new season is released.
The lock-in power of franchise IP has also been demonstrated by the TVING original series “Yumi’s Cells.” “Yumi’s Cells Season 3” dominated the No. 1 spot for weekly paid subscribers for four consecutive weeks following its release, while Seasons 1 and 2 also secured spots in TVING’s Top 10 Weekly Drama Viewers (UV) rankings for four consecutive weeks during the same period. The number of paid subscribers for the “Yumi’s Cells” series also followed an upward trajectory, with Season 3 seeing an 88% increase over Season 2, and Season 2 seeing a further 73% increase over Season 1, breaking records with each new season.
As evidenced by these two works, a virtuous cycle continues between the platform and IP, where the success of a new season drives a resurgence in viewership for previous seasons, which in turn leads to an influx of new subscribers for the platform as a whole.
In line with this trend and taking into account the characteristics of seasonal content, TVING has launched a customized “New Recruit 4: Sabotage” “IP Home.” This creates an environment where users can seamlessly binge-watch “Rookie 4: Sabotage” alongside previous seasons, the TVING original series “The Legend of the Mess Sergeant,” the drama “The Blue Tower,” and variety shows such as “Steel Battalion” and “Real Men”—all military-themed content—in one place.
A TVING representative stated, “The success of the ‘Rookie’ and ‘Yumi’s Cells’ series serves as a prime example of how a well-crafted franchise IP can maximize the vitality of the entire platform,” adding, “We will continue to strengthen our lineup of original and exclusive franchise IPs to provide users with ongoing enjoyment while continuously expanding the synergy between the platform and its content.”
Meanwhile, “Rookie” is a gritty, realistic drama that follows the chaos that ensues when a “privileged” recruit joins a unit filled with all sorts of characters. It is KT Studio Genie’s flagship IP, with Season 1—which aired in 2022—garnering immense popularity and leading to the production of four seasons. To mark the release of Season 4, the show has demonstrated the kind of expansion expected of a popular IP, such as operating a pop-up store. The final episode will air on the 29th.