Core Insights - The long drama market is experiencing a new round of competition with the release of several series, but the summer season is not as "hot" as expected, indicating a cooling trend in the market [1][3][5] Group 1: Market Performance - The leading series in the summer season, "In the Name of the Law," has an average viewership of approximately 50 million, while "Ling Jiang Xian" and "Shu Juan Yi Meng" are performing lower in market influence [3][6] - The top three series in the first half of 2025 were "Da Feng Da Geng Ren," "Cang Hai Chuan," and "Guo Se Fang Hua," with the highest viewership at 1.93 billion, which ranks fifth in 2024 [3][4] - The overall performance of the long drama market is declining, with fewer standout hits compared to previous years [3][5] Group 2: Genre Trends - The summer season has seen a diverse range of genres, including youth ensemble, historical entrepreneurship, fantasy adventure, ancient romance, and judicial crime dramas, indicating a shift from the dominance of ancient dramas [5][6] - Judicial crime dramas, particularly "In the Name of the Law" and "Drug Storm," have gained significant popularity and critical acclaim, suggesting a potential shift in audience preferences [6][9] Group 3: Audience Reception - Despite some series achieving high viewership, their ratings on platforms like Douban are not as impressive, indicating a disconnect between popularity and quality [9][19] - The ancient drama genre still holds a significant market share, with several series like "Ling Jiang Xian" and "Shu Juan Yi Meng" performing well in terms of viewership, although they do not match the success of previous years [6][9] Group 4: Industry Dynamics - The market is witnessing a debate over the standards for what constitutes a "hit" series, with platforms like iQIYI emphasizing the importance of comprehensive metrics for evaluating content popularity [15][19] - The trend of releasing similar genre series in succession rather than direct competition is becoming more common among platforms, aiming to capitalize on existing viewer interest [12][13]