"I'd rather watch the original," This is a typical review given by viewers who have seen the Japanese remake of the popular Korean drama 'Itaewon Class.'

'Roppongi Class,' the Japanese remake of the popular K-drama 'Itaewon Class,' was released through the online video streaming platform Netflix and the Japanese broadcast station TV Asahi. However, it has been suffering from poor reviews and low ratings. Contrary to the initial expectations, many viewers have been disappointed, and even the local Japanese media criticized the remake as living up to the standard set by the original.

'Roppongi Class' premiered on Netflix Japan on the 7th of July and has been releasing new episodes every week. Immediately after the first episode was released, the drama took 4th place on Netflix Japan, entering the top 10 popular shows. However, the drama has continued to fall down the rankings every week and is no longer found in the top 10.

Rather, the original 'Itaewon Class' is re-gaining popularity as more people are re-watching the original series two years after its release. As of July 29, 'Itaewon Class' reached rank one on Netflix Japan's top TV series category. It seems that more viewers are rewatching the original K-drama after the Japanese remake aired.

'Itaewon Class' aired in South Korea in 2020 and is based on the webtoon series of the same title. The drama follows the story of young people maturing and growing while facing difficulties and challenges while running a small restaurant. When the drama first aired, it received immense popularity not only in Korea but all throughout Asia.

'Roppongi Class' is the first international remake of 'Itaewon Class,' and drew much attention as the Japanese remake decided to maintain the hairstyles and fashion concepts from the original. 

However, there has been a lot of criticism that the remake drama is not as good as the original and failed to re-interpret the original concept. Additionally, despite casting Ryoma Takeuchi, a rising star in Japan, many are criticizing that the lead actor's acting skills are not up to par.

Japanese netizens criticized, "The Korean drama 'Itaewon Class' received much popularity and was a huge hit but 'Roppongi Class' is decreasing in viewer rating with each new episode," "It would've been better if they remade it into an anime instead of live-action," and "The supporting actors and the antagonists are putting on an excellent performance but the male protagonist is not up to par with them."