Am I the only one who thinks MDL ratings are inaccurate?

It is a good suggestion to give a direction to the rating.

 Floki:

10 = Perfect/Masterpiece
9 = Superb/Almost Perfect
8 = Great
7 = Good

but still Ratings can measure quality, but cannot tell what is the basis of quality measurement.

basis

• artist/cast/actors/idols
• direction/director
• production/producer
• contume/makeup
• music
• story
• theme/tag
• genre
• scandle on that time
• new/old drama
• scenry
• what mood you have watched
• country etc 

example

• different person, different  base, same drama :  person "A" gives 4/10 to a drama based on story,  person "B" gives 10/10 to the same drama based on idol and the  person "C" gives 7/10 based on genre and so on.
• same person, different base , different drama : Sometimes people do not think similar all the time. Same person takes different basis for two different dramas. Like a person considered story as the basis for drama "A" and genre as basis for drama "B".

So this question "Am I the only one who thinks MDL ratings are inaccurate? " will arise even if what you are suggesting is implemented some day.

Here every person/user wants things and people equal to his intelligence/like. 

example 1

Some time ago someone had question MDL rating on  support section. 

"Why Immortal Samsara   rating is low,?

whereas at that time its rating was 8.9. Despite this he felt its  less."

example 2

An honest review by a user(don't remember user name), was removed by MDL, Because its admirer did not like it.  on Congrats My Ex! 

example 3 

If you -ve comment on any scene on any drama page, the response you get is "Leave the drama and go away. Your level is low."

NOTE: How much rating a person gives, on what basis he gives the rating and what are his views, it is the freedom of every person.

I totally agree!

 TimiZero:

Yeah but I agree the analogy wasn't the best. But I just wanted to highlight the number itself is meaningless. In the case of MDL most people already aware of its higher rating. As someone in earlier post has mentioned it's safe to consider a minus 2 points of anything on MDL....if you want to compare it with standard scale of 10 ratings.

The fact that you are saying it should be minus 2 points on anything kinda proves my point that it is actually inaccurate. It should be compared to standard scale of 10 ratings because it is what it is. Just because a group of people are using it the wrong way does not mean that it is not the same system. You see this system in a variety of content (movies, shows, books, video games) as  well as sports, they all try to use it to estimate the quality of whatever is rated.

 TimiZero:

Actually, I saw many MDL users have their own ratings when I first joined this site. So that's why I came up with mine and tried to adhere with it as much as possible.

You must be wondering why I don't have anything lower than 5 in my list. That's because I chose my drama and I avoid what I hate. I don't list down what I watched on TV (basically the Korean and Chinese)....which I rarely finish and able to watch fully without accidentally missed some of the episodes.

I previously used to rated things I dropped as 3 or 4. But later I removed the rating as I mostly drop anything based on my personal value. So that lower rating was actually not objective but was the hate i have towards that trivial personal reason.

I have seen it before and while it makes sense for someone who follows you and trust your ratings specifically, it doesn't make sense when  added to the average as no one seems to be using the same system in the end. 

I actually didn't look into your list but I am not surprised because I actually try to do the same and avoid content that I know isn't for me, or that I wouldn't like. But this is also why I have complaints about how accuracy of the current system, or it's flaws (that could be fixed!). It does make sense to select what you will more certainly enjoy, even though we can always go out of our comfort zone but that's an entirely different conversation imo. 

It also makes sense to drop content that is average or below average, even though it is debatable that we can still review or rate it (just to warn others about the type of content). We all are affected by our own views on certain topics and characters but that doesn't necessarily mean your review wouldn't be valuable. That is as long as you can word it and express why you feel that way, then your review will be helpful to many. It's also perfectly reasonable to complain or rate something lower because of a certain character, because if you do hate that character there are probably good reasons as to why (lacking character development, being too much etc).

 TimiZero:

This is by itself is a subjective statement. I can agree and disagree at the same time...lol

Because it has pros and cons. And while I don't mind using older system as long as they are efficient, I would  probably prefer to improve the ones that are broken or dysfunctional in some ways. Of course it would affect older content too as it wouldn't be rated with the same logic, but with content consumption it's inevitable if you want to improve something like that.

 TimiZero:

I forgot to write this but I understand the concern of small margin between 7 - 10. Yes that is true for individual rating as you can only have half point between the number, but as a whole the range between 7 and 8 is actually 10 points apart. I mean you have 7.0 up to 7.9 before reaching the 8. Then the 7 and 10 could have like 30 points in between.

I get your point and it is valid, but the points in between are much easier to reach (one way or another) compared to the actual point. While there is nuance in there, I just feel like it's not as meaningul or shouldn't be compared to the actual point. In the end whenever I check a drama and that it's rated in the 7', I don't know if it's going to be terrible or good, because that's the margin of error for me and that I need to consier all  the previous groups we talked a bout. This makes the experience frustrating, and I don't believe I am the only one in the community (based on this topic too haha).

 edneversleeps:

Actually just be saying ratings are subjective but saying MDL ratings are more inflated as compared to IMDB already shows that MDL ratings are more “inaccurate”.

It’s not just that people here use the scale in a more “inflated” way. It’s that people here like every single drama. That’s just not possible.

I think MDL is a good site for fans to connect, but not a good site for reviews, period.

You just need to find some friends who have similar tastes and maybe look through their lists to find good drama gems.

Exactly my point, to me they are admitting that it's inaccurate by trying to correct it and consider that the "real score" is actually minus 2.

Sorry for bringing this useless discussion up once again but I have to say that rating in dramas isn't rocket science that would cause tragedy if you accidentally misread or misunderstood it...or even MIS-RATED any dramas. It's for FUN guys for goodness sake...you are free to see it as you feel fit. 

Selfishly accuses others as dysfunctional just because they added the rating by 2 should be awarded a Nobel Prize I believe!!

Even if you rated a drama 3/10. How do you know you rated it accurately or not? 

If higher numbers is inaccurate just because you think so, does lower numbers guarantee the accuracy? 

Maybe it's only accurate if it is the exact same number as your rating?? Then only you will approve it?

I guess Burhaa Aadmi has summed things in previous post quite nicely. I recommend people who read this discussion to read it again with an open heart.

 TimiZero:

As someone in earlier post has mentioned it's safe to consider a minus 2 points of anything on MDL....if you want to compare it with standard scale of 10 ratings.

It looks like my statement above have somehow became "solid proof" MDL is inaccurate. I was just requoting earlier post and number 2 isn't set in stone. It's just rough idea. I should have said IMDB instead of standard 10 scale to make things clear.

The reason I said the above because there are always people who rely on number to decide on things and that "minus 2" is just the reference to what would normally rated in IMDB. 

But for sure it is not always the case. For example: Tokyo Vice is rated 8/10 in IMDB. It is also rated 8/10 in MDL. So in this case does IMDB inaccurate because MDL is always minus 2??

These numbers only relevant when you want to decide on watching something. It's not an Ego Check to see if your taste is inline with any rating sites. For that, rating isn't the only decisive factor. 

I personally don't rely on ratings especially if it's hyped drama. Look at Tokyo Vice example above. Most of the people who blatantly rated 9 and 10 at IMDB are the west people who don't watch Asian dramas (based on the reviews).  

If you read the review (IMDB) it's funny how these people easily impressed by the drama just because it is claimed to be based on real stories...LOL For them the drama was groundbreaking but for MDL members who know Japan drama inside out the drama was just another hyped drama. I would say it should be rated 6/10 but since MDL is "2 points extra", it's an 8.

 TimiZero:

Haha I must have probably read that and re-quoted it without realize

I quoted you because our thoughts match.
And that is also an important point that needs to be highlighted.

You say this

 Floki:

The issue is not that they rate lower or higher than others (or us), but that they purposely rate inaccurately because they feel bad (or any other reason).

And

 Floki:

What isn't fine for me is if I feel that the content is a 4 and that I feel bad for rating it badly so I will jump it to a 7.

How do you know the person would ever wanted to give a 4 in the first place? Are we assuming here? Isn't the 4 is the number we picked?

To that person, 7 might be justified from the get go. You might have stumbled upon an extreme case, but I don't think anyone would rated lower first just to increase it later. Although the "additional 2 in MDL" I keep mentioning sounded like it....but it is not. I was talking about the overall (resulting average) rating....not an individual person adding 2 on every single drama.

I personally set the value high from the get go. I would have never first rated 4 or 6 then added 2 or 3 to give higher final rating. In other words my rating system already been adjusted to suit MDL's so called "standard". There's reason behind this that I wrote on my profile previously (years ago), but I already deleted to make it short. I even wrote in my comment/reply in this thread but I guess it was easier to be missed.

I guess that's why you couldn't get my point. 

Another thing to remind everyone is...accuracy isn't equal to overrating/underrating.  Accuracy should be something like a 9.5/10 MDL Drama should feel similar like another 9.5/10 MDL Drama. That's accuracy. 

And so even you minus two, (9.5-2)/10 drama should feel similar to another (9.5-2)/10 drama.....this is not possible unfortunately but if you want to define accuracy...this is accuracy.

I guess my focus on discussion was more on the "the non existence of accuracy in subjective matters" but you are talking about "how to make sure people rate rightly so that their rating is accurate". 

If you understand the former you would understand why it won't be possible to achieve the latter.

However, I do agree with the idea of providing guideline/education on how to rate. You can do that by personally making a thread or writing an article (when it's possible in future). The integration in the system is a good idea but seasoned drama watcher already know how to pick dramas without having to 100% believe on the rating.

IMO the EMOJI idea is useless as you already said the whole world understand the meaning of number except me :D. Therefore why you want to tell them 5 is average, 6 is good, 7 is amazing? again? LOL

The problem with MDL is that this site is fangirls/boys centered. People tend to be biased with their stand. It's already like that since the very beginning. Even if you put 5 as GOOD, people will still rate 10/10 for mediocre dramas....because their idol is in it. We need to accept this fact. This can't be changed...I guarantee you! That's why there are people like me who will counter this phenomenon by increasing our ratings (from the get go of course). We are the people who don't watch drama for the sake of idol....and mostly don't watch dramas with idols.

 TimiZero:

How do you know the person would ever wanted to give a 4 in the first place? Are we assuming here? Isn't the 4 is the number we picked?

To that person, 7 might be justified from the get go. You might have stumbled upon an extreme case, but I don't think anyone would rated lower first just to increase it later. Although the "additional 2 in MDL" I keep mentioning sounded like it....but it is not. I was talking about the overall (resulting average) rating....not an individual person adding 2 on every single drama.

This was an example and is beyond the point, I said "if I feel like a content is worth a 4". I was clearly stating that I wouldn't do something like that and explained why, using an example to emphasize on the problem, don't put words in my mouth as I never said it was worth a 4 in their minds. The same way I didn't say you "lost your critical thinking", I am only responsible for what I say not what people understand. 

What I can tell you for a fact is based on what they said: they felt like it wasn't worth this much or even above the average but felt bad rating it low. Even if they were thinking a 6, this would make the average more accurate if they gave it a 6. 

Our friend burhaa aadmi was kind and condescending enough to say that "Synonyms for 'inaccurate' include 'false', 'wrong', incorrect', etc. ". Can we agree that if they think the show is a 6 but give it a 7 because they feel bad, it's a false/incorrect rating? Because that's not what they believe it is worth, that's not their true feelings but it was altered. They do not believe it is a "7 - Good" all of a  sudden, they feel bad giving it a lower score so they change it to that, leading to an inaccurate personal rating affecting the average and making it slightly inaccurate. One rating doesn't change the average, but having this multiplied will lead to more inaccuracies. This does not represent what they feel about the show, this represent what they feel about giving it a bad score,  which is a completely different thing.

 TimiZero:

To that person, 7 might be justified from the get go. You might have stumbled upon an extreme case, but I don't think anyone would rated lower first just to increase it later.

I did not and actually linked conversations with other people on different drama pages early on. We also had people in this same conversation saying they felt bad rating it as low as they actually felt it was worth. So either there are many extreme cases (since I didn't even had to dig to find them), or this is more common you would believe. Either way, these people are giving inaccurate ratings, affecting the average with their ratings and making it inaccurate as a consequence. To these persons it was justified to give it a 7, not based on what they felt this show was worth, but because they were feeling bad/guilty to give it what they had in mind. They do it so they don't feel bad about themselves, not because they think it's not worth a lower score. Then it's not about rating the content they watched, but it's a fight with themselves because they feel bad/guilty doing something they actually think is representing what they trully feel and believe. There are many reasons as to why people feel that why but this isn't the point I am trying to make.  I am repeating myself a lot here, the problem leads to the same consequences.

 TimiZero:

I guess my focus on discussion was more on the "the non existence of accuracy in subjective matters" but you are talking about "how to make sure people rate rightly so that their rating is accurate".

I believe rating systems are put in place to give an idea of how a community feels about what  tehy watch. This is not supposed to be maths or exact science because we are talking about something super abstract: feelings/emotions. My point isn't on the subjective nature of a rating, it's on the way some people change their rating and true feelings, affecting the average in the way. We are not talking about the same thing, and I do not have a solution to subjective matters. What I suggest is to fix the inaccurate ratings that I noticed by spending time looking at people's opinion.  I am not pretending to know how much it would affect the average or if it's going to be as meaningful as I think it would be. But I know it's an easy fix that can help the site getting rid of those.

 TimiZero:

Another thing to remind everyone is...accuracy isn't equal to overrating/underrating

I agree, and I am not complaining about a show being overrated or underrated. If that's how people feel then so be it, my point is that a part of the community isn't giving the rating they actually think it deserves. A show being overrated because a good chunk gave it a 10 for one kiss scene is a different issue. While you can educate people into using critical thinking and being more objective, it would take a lot more efforts than have descriptive words/emojis next to the rating system haha

 TimiZero:

However, I do agree with the idea of providing guideline/education on how to rate. You can do that by personally making a thread or writing an article (when it's possible in future). The integration in the system is a good idea but seasoned drama watcher already know how to pick dramas without having to 100% believe on the rating.

Then we agree that there is something that can improve the community and the rating system. It's not a big enough of a change to actually make everyone confused, but it can help the community rate more accurately and possibly feel less guilty to rate something higher. Because if they are confronted to a "7 - Good" option and felt like it was terrible, maybe they will give it a 6 instead. While not much, this can change a lot and make ratings make more sense in the end. 

I am not saying that MDL isn't going to have overrated drama anymore, just because of that tweak alone. But it's a minor improvement that can do good and no wrong imho. Now people who like beautiful actors, kiss scenes and give ratings based on that while fast forwarding everything else.. They won't disappear but again this part is subjective.

Many users know they cannot trust the ratings on MDL and either go with the logic "minus x points" or dig deeper and check reviews. Still just because people who knows don't necessarily need it and that it won't change their habits, I believe it is a minor good improvements on the current system.

 TimiZero:

IMO the EMOJI idea is useless as you already said the whole world understand the meaning of number except me :D. Therefore why you want to tell them 5 is average, 6 is good, 7 is amazing? again? LOL

This was a reaction to "words mean" something and this was an answer to burhaa aadmi. Words mean something numbers do too. You both agreed that MDL was an exception in some way. I was arguing that while  ratings are subjective, the way we use the scale shouldn't be because it was already established everywhere in the world. At that point it was said that exams weren't the same, they are exams and not content ratings. I was saying emoji more as a way to make it more visually appealing, but I don't believe it will be more precise or better than descriptive words. I strongly believe having descriptive words will help the current system.

 TimiZero:

The problem with MDL is that this site is fangirls/boys centered. People tend to be biased with their stand. It's already like that since the very beginning. Even if you put 5 as GOOD, people will still rate 10/10 for mediocre dramas....because their idol is in it. We need to accept this fact. This can't be changed...I guarantee you! That's why there are people like me who will counter this phenomenon by increasing our ratings (from the get go of course). We are the people who don't watch drama for the sake of idol....and mostly don't watch dramas with idols.

I agree that a good amount of people that affect ratings actually are doing so because they are fanboys/girls. This part though is subjective, I can't and won't try to make people stop being fanboys/girls. Is it the majority? Probably not. Is it an important enough part of the community to affect the ratings more than anything else? Possibly yes. This part cannot be changed but I still hope what I suggested would change things enough to make it more accurate. I can't predict anything though, but I have to believe that having a better system would change things for the better. After that we can always debate whether or not it was worth changing.

That and the ability to sort ratings would be very welcomed too.

 TimiZero:

I personally set the value high from the get go. I would have never first rated 4 or 6 then added 2 or 3 to give higher final rating.

I don't recall accusing you of doing it, but I did say that I don't think we can agree because you already adapted and chose to have your own system. I also recall saying that it was problematic and explained why (if we all come up with our own system etc). Instead of debating what a 7 should mean (and I don't think we did), we should just clarify it for everyone by adding the descriptive words. There shouldn't be any room to interpret what which rating actually means, because this also leads to inaccurate ratings. Or you will have people going with "oh but 7 in my book is very bad", the same way you wil have people what words actually means to them.