KDrama Addicts Anonymous (#7)

[boatyardblues]

A quiet corner of MN for serious addicts of Kdrama, or the Kdrama-curious. Most of our viewing is drawn from Netflix and Viki, but there other sources, including Dramabus (non subscription, possibly dodgy) and AmazonPrime.

The previous thread is linked below, but our ‘Addicts Recommend’ list is cumulative so includes recommendations and favourites from all of the previous threads:

Thread 6

Shows marked with asterisk(s) are more uniformly loved or admired. In categorising series, its important to note most Korean dramas have multiple strands - e.g. romance and thriller; supernatural, romance and a thriller, crime series with blossoming relationship aspects. Genre-busting mash-ups are normal. Series that are tagged as dark may also have moments of comedy or the absurd, likewise fluff can have heavier elements. View the categories below as best approximate & ask if you need guidance, eg about suitability for younger teens.

Comedy (with a side order of absurd)
I picked up a celebrity on the street (Viki)
My Fellow Citizens (Viki)

Crime/Thriller
Healer (Netflix)*
Heartless City (Viki)
He is Psychometric (Viki)
I Hear Your Voice (Netflix /Viki)
Life on Mars (classy remake of BBC series, Dramafast)
Live (Netflix)
Pride & Prejudice (Netflix)*
Prison Playbook (Netflix)*
Suspicious Partner (Netflix)*

Historical/Period drama (“sageuk”)
Crowned Clown (Viki)
Mr Sunshine (Netflix)

Romance - lighter & fluffier
Beating Again (Netflix)
Coffee Prince (Netflix)
Don’t Dare to Dream (Netflix, or as Jealousy Incarnate on Viki)*
Happy Once Again (Netflix)
Her Private Life (Viki)*
His Master’s Sun (Netflix)
Love from a Star (Netflix)*
Pinocchio (Netflix)
Radio Romance (Netflix)
Romance is the Bonus Book (Netflix)**
She Was Pretty (Dramabus/Netflix)*
The Beauty Inside (Viki/Netflix)
Thirty Not Seventeen (Viki)
Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo (Netflix/Viki)
What’s Up With Secretary Kim (Viki)**
You are my Destiny (Netflix)

Romance - heavier weight/more grown up themes
Because This Is My First Life (Viki)*
Chicago Typewriter (Viki)*
Descendants of the Sun (Viki/Netflix)
Fight For My Way (Viki/Drama bus)*
Just Between Lovers (Viki)**
My Strange Hero (Viki)
One Spring Night (Netflix)
Red Carpet - film (Netflix, very adult content)
Search: WWW (Viki)*
Something in the Rain (Netflix)
The Package (Viki)

Supernatural/fantasy/sci-fi - fluffier
Goblin (Viki)*
I am not a Robot (Netflix)
Legend of the Blue Sea (Viki/Netflix)
While You Were Sleeping (Viki)*

Supernatural/fantasy/sci-fi - darker
Black (Netflix)*
The Guest (Dramafast)
W (Viki & Netflix)*

Zombies
Kingdom (Netflix)*
Train to Busan - film (Amazon Prime)

Mad as a box of frogs/uncategorisable
Strong Girl Bong Soon (Netflix)
The Last Empress (Viki)

Not Korean but just try it
Regulars occasionally branch out into Japanese, Taiwanese and Chinese drama. The Chinese & Taiwanese stuff is much more variable quality-wise, so we’ve noted anything decent here:

Love O2O (Viki - Chinese)
Morning Call (Netflix - Japanese)

We have some lovely occasional posters who have lived in Korea, are Korean or have Korean partners/family members who pop in from time to time to provide the context for some of the more baffling cultural references. (Although its possible we have scared them all away since our early threads with the fangirling. If you’re still reading, please say hi.)

We are generally fans of all things Korean, so equally happy to talk about Korean food/cookery, film and kpop when the mood takes us. To get to grips with the lingo, try dramaloveaddicts.proboards.com/thread/24/korean-word-day?page=1

We have a few frequently used acronyms:
FL/2FL = female lead/2nd female lead
ML/2ML = male lead/2nd male lead
SLS = Second Lead Syndrome (where the FL/MLis too dense to realise how much better the 2ML/2FL is)

We also abbreviate titles if they’re long, but usually only after using the full title & acronym together or an obvious shortening. Some of the regular favourite actors & actresses have been abbreviated too for speed/efficiency, eg Lee Jong-Suk (LJS), Park Min Young (PMY), Ji Chang Wook (JCW) and his hotness Kim Jae Wook (HH KJW). Don’t be afraid to ask for help/clues if we’re not making sense or have descended into acronym soup.

If you want to join us down the kdrama rabbit hole, welcome! Pull up a chair, say goodbye to early nights and get stuck in…

Top reasons for binning a drama are:

Unengaging/annoying leads, lack of chemistry
Rubbish story/plot withers and dies en route
Tired old tropes

I've just realised Love Alert needs to be added to the list as it has all of those.
I usually give a drama two episodes. Sometimes I will skip to the last episode to see what happens and a sure sign of it being a wise decision to skip is when you realise you've
missed nothing by not watching the intervening 14 episodes

I always put it on a back burner if there's an overdone trope (rich guy/poor girl springs to mind) or bad kissing (the kind where both actors are so stiff it's painful). Maybe those will be my reasons to bin something now.

Agree with kissing thing, it is very off putting

I can't reel off the abandoned ones as I've forgotten them!! 😂 😂 😂

Can't say they're what's absolute Top 3 but... The ones that I think are solid all rounders?... Or I recognise they've got problems but I still thoroughly enjoyed them?...?...
While You Were Sleeping
W... Just because I love the style of it!... Even though it got crazy...
My Love from Another Star . Great blub factor!
Healer . Just action packed!
The Crowned Clown
Just off the top of my head... I know I've missed a good one somewhere!

Looking at my netflix list now for abandoned ones!
Moorim School was pants!
The Girl who sees scents
Something in the Rain... Controversial I know but just too grim and miserable! I watch kdramas to get away from it all!
The Third Charm.. Promising but heard it had rubbish ending!
Descendants of The Sun! 😱😱 Am I commiting a kdrama sin? 😂
Hello my twenties

That's just a quick roundup!

Tonight I've watched ep 3 Hotel Del Luna.. I like it!
And think I've found my new binge watch!.. The Emperor Owner of the Mask! Good fun so far! 👍👍👍.. Bit bonkers but I can cope! 😂👍

Oh yes. Pride and Prejudice was almost ruined by CJH and FL’s lack of chemistry and the wooden, robotic kissing.

I’m dipping into Love Myself or You with Jasper Liu & Puff Guo from BWGM and he is playing a very different character, shy and sensitive. Based in a restaurant, has a much lighter more innocent feel to it. Not sure if there’s enough to it yet to stick with it

Something in the Rain... Controversial I know but just too grim and miserable! I watch kdramas to get away from it all!

Wash yer mouth out, Bea. 😮 That’s blasphemy.

Does playing a more sympathetic role make Jasper Liu any more appealing?

Boatyard!.. Hee Hee! Even the allure of jung hae in wasn't enough to lure me in! Just to ooooo sombre!

Honourable mention for faves... Boatyard! You'll hate me... But just for pure Lovely Giggley Cute Romance and bonkers ness... I will always love Strong Girl Bong Soon! 😱😍😍😍
And
Just Between Lovers for angst! (I love a bit of angst!)

Started off great!... But sort of didn't deliver when it had soooo much promise (but still enjoyed!)... He Is Psychometric...

Agree Bea that The Crowned Clown is worthy of a place, I need to update my lists.

Also agree with The Third Charm being a dropper. I also dropped Something In The Rain 😱

boatyard I have done a complete about face on Jasper Liu and find him rather appealing, he has a very infectious grin 😀

Started off great!... But sort of didn't deliver when it had soooo much promise (but still enjoyed!)... He Is Psychometric...

I still haven’t watched the last 2 episodes of Psychometric. I stopped caring about the characters, but it irks me that I was so close to finishing so its not officially abandoned yet.

I still can’t get past Liu arranging poorly Puff on the sofa in BWGM with all the tenderness and romance of displaying a corpse for identification. Maximum romantic! 🙄

I'm 3 episodes into Love Myself or You but shoved it on a back burner for some reason. Let me know if it's worth picking up again bettys

hello it’s flimsy nonsense I think I’m only watching while I wait for Hotel’s subs to be up ( and Jasper Liu’s dimples) . It’s ok for doing the ironing too as it doesn’t matter if I miss bits. Somehow I am on ep 6 though....

bettys he does have rather cute dimples, but I can't match it with his rather prominent Adams apple. It's such a confusing look

I know I know it's what put me off him in the first place, especially when he's in profile shots, but he has grown on me

he's in a new Netflix drama that coming out later this year. Triad Princess. So far it's only got a synopsis but it sounds interesting. His role isn't made clear but it sounds like it features a badass female, fingers crossed.

Just looked it up, sounds like it could be good!

His role isn't made clear but it sounds like it features a badass female, fingers crossed.

I’m not getting my hopes up. A tenner says she still gets for forcibly pinned to a wall and slobbered on by the ML. 🙄

I'd love to see more dramas with soft male lead and a badass female. I'm struggling to think of many right now but surely there's got to be some. Strong Woman Do Bong Soon must be one, PHS was a big softie.

Jasper Liu is pretty soft in Love Myself or You, and of course the robot in Absolute Boyfriend. Then there Jung Kyung Ho in Prison Playbook who is very sweet with the girl who was attacked.

I was going to say SGBS! An Min Hyuk was as soft as soft! 😍😍

And... Jung Joon Hyung weightlifting fairy kim bok joo was a nice boy too!!

I'm sure there's more!

But paired with a badass female is tricky....WWW? My Strange Hero?