Globalization: what makes a show successful?

I am very familiar with watching foreign films or TV shows with subtitles. The scope of amazing film not made in English is growing wider everyday--just look at Parasite: despite being a film only in Korean, it swept the Oscars last year. An interesting facet of Telenovelas that we learned in the course was the adaptation of shows and changing the actors and language. It is very similar to simply watching something with subtitles, but brings a different level of depth when watching an adapted show. 

After all, telenovelas and melodramas in general are not only defined by the plot and dialogue. It is defined by the music, actors, time, political setting, and so much more. 

Take, for example, Cosita Rica. It had all the makings of a classic telenovela: beautiful protagonists, an enticing love story, and plenty of drama and hardships in between. However, these are not the only things that made the show so big and memorable: it also reflected the political climate at the time, with one of the characters emulating the then Venezuelan president. Any country could adapt Cosita Rica as their own by translating the script into another language, but it cannot exactly capture the political commentary in it. 

 This leads to an even broader question: what elements of a show will be lost in translation if adapted by another country? 

For one, we learn the censorship in Turkey doesn't allow raunchy scenes to be aired. It would make adapting many telenovelas quite difficult as love and romance is often shown with physical intimacy. Another factor would be the actors themselves. Chemistry between couples both onscreen and offscreen is vital to show a convincing story. A show may be even more beloved because the two protagonists have rumors of dating in real life. Such was mentioned when the main leads of one telenovela were to be cast together in another due to circumstance, causing an uproar of excitement. How would another country capture the excitement the actors caused? It is one of the things that can't be translated or adapted. 

The globalization of dramas truly brings into question of what makes a drama so successful--a question asked at the beginning of the course. Such factors can't be quantified or defined. Crash Landing on You was an extremely successful K-drama about a South Korean woman accidentally getting lost in North Korea. The essence of the show was based on the the two split countries and the understanding of Korean culture. This could always be modified to fit another country's narrative, but it would not be able to garner the exact same response.

There are plenty of other examples that I didn't mention, but I would love to see if there are more shows that reflect this idea with my classmates.