Domestic Fans Bet on Which C-Drama Explode in Popularity in 2024 and Which One Will Not

Usually, the peak season of C-drama viewing begins in spring (middle of March) to the tail end of summer (first week of September), so giant networks in mainland China will start releasing their big-budgeted series during this season. 

As the competition for drama releases gets tougher, we are expecting those popular titles, including the hyped series, to take center stage in the coming days. 

However, C-netizens have a different way of welcoming the drama peak season. As always 😄 They make a wager on which one will have an explosion in popularity this year and which one will be a disappointment despite the hype. 

Legend of Shen Li, the much-hyped reunion drama of Zhao Liying and Lin Gengxin 

Naturally, they will bet on dramas starred by liuliang or traffic stars as these celebrities have the biggest fan base. These fans are willing to go to the end of the world just to support the latest drama projects of their idols. 

But last year, fans failed to predict Cheng Yi's Mysterious Lotus Casebook to explode. They knew it would become popular because Cheng Yi is already popular in the costume genre, but no one ever predicted it would be both a critical and commercial success. 

It's because sometimes the result is unpredictable. You can't tell the outcome unless the drama is aired. There are highly-anticipated series that failed to deliver a satisfying output. 

In 2023, there are only three major explosions:

• The Knockout (iQIYI)
• Lost You Forever (Tencent)
• Mysterious Lotus Casebook (iQIYI)

So, let's take a look at the following series predicted by domestic fans to have an explosion this year and those who might not. And let's see if their instinct is right. 

Fox Spirit Matchmaker male leads 

C-Dramas this year which are predicted to have an explosion:

• Hero Legends (Cheng Yi) - Expectations are very high for Hero Legends to explode in popularity this year, first due to Cheng Yi's star power to carry a wuxia drama, second due to the extensive coverage of the two giant networks where Hero Legends will be simultaneously aired - CCTV and Tencent, and third due to the theme of Hero Legends - classic wuxia, which is the favorite genre of domestic fans. 
• Fox Spirit Matchmaker 1 (Yang Mi and Gong Jun) - This is a much-hyped series since they wrapped up filming in November 2022. It is based on a popular manhua which gained big followers in China and Taiwan.
• Fox Spirit Matchmaker 2 (Liu Shishi and Zhang Yunlong) - This is the second installment of the Fox Spirit Matchmaker, and Liu Shishi retains loyal fans in the mainland who are always waiting for her next costume drama. Cheng Yi's Fox Spirit Matchmaker 3 might be aired in 2025, the most. 
• Legend of Shen Li (Zhao Liying and Lin Gengxin) - This is another hyped series, a much-awaited second collaboration of Zhao Liying and Lin Gengxin after their successful first drama, Princess Agents. Legend of Shen Li is a xianxia drama, and based on the thriller released looked an exciting one to watch.
• Joy of Life season 2 (Zhang Ruoyun and Li Qin) - The first season was one of the most followed and most popular costume dramas in 2019 and gained a cult following in the mainland during its run. So the second season created so much hype and fans have anticipated its release this year.
• Lost You Forever 2 (Yang Zi, Zhang Wanyi, and Deng Wei) - The part one aired in the summer of 2023 was one of the most popular series from mainland China, so there's a high expectation from fans the second part will perform better.

Golden Journey stars Wang Yibo, Li Qin, and Wang Yang. This is a republican spy drama 

And the series that can't explode (according to domestic fans' prediction) despite the hype:

• A Moment But Forever (Tang Yan and Liu Xueyi) - According to drama fans in mainland China, Tiffany Tang's star power seems not enough to turn this one into a hot drama this year. But who knows? Everything is unpredictable until it's aired. 
• Dashing Youth (Neo Hou and He Yu) - The Blood of Youth did not explode in 2022, according to domestic fans, so they have doubts if Dashing Youth can beat the odds.
• Golden Journey (Wang Yibo and Li Qin) - Despite Wang Yibo's star power, Golden Journey might never attain the same success as The Untamed in 2019. It might reach some degree of popularity but won't peak above expectations. Republican spy drama is not a popular genre. Outsiders always look at it as nothing but a propaganda drama of the communist government.
• Guardian of the Dafeng (Dylan Wang and Tian Xiwei) - Domestic fans say this drama might reach the popularity peak index in the Tencent app but not the level of explosion. 
• Immortal Ascension (Yang Yang and Jin Chen) - They doubted if Yang Yang could create magic for this drama to reach the explosion level of popularity. But let's see.
• Legend of Rosy Clouds (Li Yitong, Joseph Zeng, and Deng Wei) - Although Li Yitong and Joseph Zeng starred in dramas that "exploded" in popularity in 2023, The Knockout for Li Yitong and Mysterious Lotus Casebook for Joseph Zeng, they did not respectively carry the drama alone. In fact, Li Yitong did not receive any recognition for her acting performance in The Knockout, it was Gao Ye, her co-star, who reaped awards for her acting performance. 
• Love Has Fireworks (Tan Jianci and Wang Churan) - No modern romance drama ever reach a popularity explosion so far in any streaming platforms. 
• Story of Joy (Yang Zi and Xu Kai) - the theme of this drama is not fascinating enough to pin viewers down to chase the episodes despite Yang Zi's celebrity status, according to domestic fans.
• Sword Rose (Dilraba Dilmurat and Jin Shijia) - This drama had no sense of explosion according to domestic fans. This is the first police drama that Dilraba will star so it's hard to predict the outcome.

Domestic fans say they've doubts if Dilraba's police drama can explode 

What can you say about this prediction of domestic fans? What's your own prediction on which one will explode this year? Most explosion happens in the summer releases. So let's wait until summertime to see which one will become ultra popular.

However, the theme of the story is a big factor. Based on previous records, the dramas that will likely explode and reach the hot list are those in the ancient costume (either wuxia or xianxia) and crime-thriller genres. So let's wait and see.