'Agent Kim Reactivated' Cracks 20% Ratings as Violence Debate Grows Around SBS Hit

SBS drama "Agent Kim Reactivated" has crossed a 20% national rating, giving Korean primetime television a rare jolt of energy. Driven by So Ji-sub's hard-hitting action and a fast-moving plot, the show is now one of the biggest hits on air. But as the story grows darker, its increasingly graphic violence is splitting viewers.

Episode 4 of the SBS Friday-Saturday drama, which aired on the 4th, drew a national average rating of 21.6%, with a peak of 25.1%, according to Nielsen Korea. It is the first SBS drama to pass the 20% mark in only four episodes since "The Penthouse 2: War in Life" in 2021. Even as it dominates the ratings race, the show is also drawing steady criticism over how far it pushes on-screen violence.

"Agent Kim Reactivated" leaned into brutal action from its very first episode. Fight scenes tied to punishing school bullies and taking on criminal organizations have been a constant. As a vigilante-style action drama, that tone felt built into the genre. Early on, viewers largely embraced the show's cathartic beatdowns of clear-cut villains as its main strength.

The mood shifted with episodes 3 and 4. Once Kim Bujang, played by So Ji-sub, goes into full force to save his daughter, the action scales up and so does the violence. Weapons are driven into bodies, characters are beaten without mercy, and one scene shows a portion of a scalp being torn away. Some viewers who had enjoyed the earlier action as genre fun say the show is starting to feel harder to watch.

The most controversial scenes involve Ju Gang-chan, played by Joo Sang-wook. He tortures a character nicknamed Geumibbal, played by Jo Bok-rae, by pulling out his teeth and forcing hot potatoes into his mouth. The sadistic staging left many viewers uneasy. Other moments include the killing of an elderly man and a hammer attack to the head. Shadow work and cut editing soften the images somewhat, but the cruelty comes through even in the indirect framing.

Reaction to the violence has been sharply divided. Some viewers praise the show for delivering the kind of cathartic action the genre promises. Others argue the level of graphic content is too high for a drama rated for viewers 15 and older. The complaint is less about the action itself than about how the violence is shown.

This is not the first time an SBS drama has faced this kind of backlash. Hits including "Taxi Driver," "The Fiery Priest" and "The Penthouse: War in Life" have made intense subject matter and satisfying revenge arcs something close to an SBS formula. Stronger villains and the pleasure of watching them get punished have translated into ratings, but the trade-off has often been criticism over how graphic those shows are willing to get.

Season 1 of "Taxi Driver" is the clearest example. Its first episode showed a woman with a disability being subjected to waterboarding, confinement, sexual assault, and a suicide attempt in explicit detail. Even though that episode was rated for viewers 19 and older, critics said it displayed violence in a way that felt exploitative.

Violence is a real tool in action storytelling. It creates tension and delivers catharsis. But strong violence alone does not equal strong action. For a broadcast network drama, which is accessible to almost anyone with a TV, the level of on-screen brutality has to be weighed against the rating it carries. As "Agent Kim Reactivated" settles in as a genuine hit, the question of how to keep the genre thrills while thinking about a broader audience is now part of the show's next chapter.