MsLatte’s Daebak Cybercafé (kdrama #8)

[boatyardblues]

A quiet corner of MN for serious addicts of Kdrama, or the Kdrama-curious. (MsLatte is a Her Private Life reference.) Most of our viewing is drawn from Netflix and Viki, with a sprinkling of Dramabus (non subscription, maybe dodgy) and AmazonPrime.

The previous thread is here, but our ‘Addicts Recommend’ list below is cumulative so includes recommendations and favourites from all previous threads.

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. supernatural, romance and a thriller; crime series with fantasy elements. 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 moments. 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
Come and Hug Me (Dramafast)
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)
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/zombies/vampires/fantasy/sci-fi - lighter & fluffier
Goblin (Viki)*
I am not a Robot (Netflix)
Legend of the Blue Sea (Viki/Netflix)
% Orange Marmalade (Netflix)
While You Were Sleeping (Viki)*

Supernatural/zombies/vampires/fantasy/sci-fi - darker/more grown up themes
Black (Netflix)*
Hotel del Luna (Viki)*
Kingdom (Netflix)*
The Guest (Dramafast)
Train to Busan - film (Amazon Prime)
W (Viki & Netflix)*

Guilty Pleasures (for the joy, not the quality)
Hwarang (Viki/Netflix)
The Last Empress (Viki)
Sassy Go Go (Netflix)

Mad as a box of frogs/uncategorisable
Strong Girl Bong Soon (Netflix)

Not Korean but just try it

We 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 with links to Korea who pop in from time to time to provide the context for some of the more baffling cultural references. (Although we may 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 cookery, language, film and music when the mood takes us.

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)
🥾🍑 (boot, peach) = kick up the arse to go to bed

We also abbreviate titles if they’re long, but usually only after using the full title & acronym together or an obvious abbreviation. Some favourite actors & actresses have been abbreviated for speed/efficiency, eg Lee Jong-Suk (LJS), Park Min Young (PMY), Ji Chang Wook (Ji Chang Wook) 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…

I agree. That is impressive. Did you have a head start by already knowing another language like Mandarin? Mind you, I ask this having read about Korean that it is in a different (niche) language group to other languages in that area.

Japanese makes Korean easier to learn because it has the same sentence order. Mandarin is easier to learn as a native English speaker for the same reason.
I found I didn't really start learning the language until I started writing and talking, but I guess it's different strokes for different folks. I love learning languages so I've found the best way for me to learn which makes it more fun.

On a tangent, caught up with Hotel del Luna and I'm so excited for the final episodes. How's everyone spending their bank holiday? Hopefully enjoying the sun and maybe a few dramas!

I've walked the dog and am now back in the garden with laptop, coffee & ginger cake.
Hmmmm let's see, need to catch up with Hotel del Luna and later on I Wanna Hear Your Song. I have just finished episode 5 of Voice which is v v good. One of the darkest crime/thrillers I've seen on kdrama, and no hint of romance. Fab performance from Jang Hyuk and FL, still no sign of HH KJW.

What I really should be doing is gardening and updating work stuff but bollocks to that.

Combination of life admin, some overdue professional development reading and kdrama in the gaps between. I’m annoyed the weather has warmed up because it has sapped my motivation to get some energetic chores done.

I tried Dramafast again for ep 6 of Melo but its still crashy. I love the documentary stuff. Soo Min and her manager have a fascinating dynamic - its very well done.

Ep 6 is at 72% on Viki so not too long to wait- I will prob rewatch as Viki subs are better. The documentary stuff is great, but also loved the dinner where they suddenly clicked each had input in making the new drama possible

I don’t think I’ve got as far as the dinner you are referring to. I’m so frustrated, but good quality writing deserves a decent viewing.

bettys do I remember you watching a bit of Doctor John or am I confused? I don't know whether to put it on a to watch list or just leave it so wanted any opinions you may have, if you did watch it of course.

OMG, Melo is brilliant. “Oppa, oppa, oppa, oppaaaaa!” I keep wondering how much of the writer/directors’ experiences made it into the script, possibly even their experience of trying to get Melo off the ground (given that only the first 2 episode scripts are required to get it into production). It was hilarious! And, yes, the dinner where everything came together was great. Neatly contrasted with the other one, obvs.

Yes the act cute bit was great! That character could so easily be the weakest one but she really pulls out the bag!

hello I got up to episode 6 (half hour) of Doctor John and it was fine, I might go back to it, but I somehow forgot about it 🤔

Pulls it out of the bag

I’m also fascinated by So Min and her driver. The subtitling of the scene at the arcade was quite different on Viki (better). The insight into his relative lack of progress for his seniority was also relevant, I think.

Just finished Melo - soooo good!

I kind of dislike the female writer character but cannot help grinning at her antics

Question please...
Why do some women turn their head away when taking a shot of Soju and some do not? Is it a modesty?

I'm settling in to Melo once DS is asleep. I'm thinking Doctor John might be an option to take up residence in my watching list once 3 of my dramas end next week. On the other hand, I could actually catch up on Watcher. What should I do?!

Aesops it's customary to turn away from those who are senior to you when drinking! It can be just turning away from older family members or friends or those who are in a more senior position at work.

Thanks Hello - sweet tradition!

I've just finished Watcher. It was twisty and turny right to the end. I really enjoyed it, it wasn't the fastest paced but I was totally absorbed trying to work out who did it.

TheGirl I'm stuck on episode 4. Does the pace improve at all or is it just a slow one?

hello there are definitely some faster bits but a lot of the background story is revealed slowly. I also enjoyed Seo Kang Joon very much 😍

Aesops - I was talking to DH yesterday about why I prefer kdrama so much and a lot of it was down to the writing and how fleshed out the characters are. I find a lot of Anerican stuff too plot driven with 1 dimensional, unexplored characters. I gave the FL of Melo as an example, because she has many unlikeable traits - a bit lazy, stroppy, often disrespectful - but somehow she is relateable and I’m rooting for her. Interestingly, when we talked about quality writing, the example he came up with was Six Feet Under and a specific scene between Nate & Brenda, which has to be 15+ years ago! 😮

We also agreed that The Wire had multi-dimensional characters and really good writing. I am currently warm towards iZombie on Netflix but its not in the same league.

IZombie was one of my favourites pre-kdrama. It is very character driven, but also has similar bonkers plot aspects ie turning into the person whose brain you eat 😆

I also liked izombie, unfortunately ive never seen six feet under or the wire so can't comment on those. I do agree with the character driven vs plot driven argument though. Unlikeable characters in western TV shows seemingly have to be evil in one way or another, you can never just have someone whiney or annoying.

Interesting that 3 of liked iZombie...(haven’t seen Six Feet Under or The Wire but did like Luther early series)
Other favourites pre kdrama were Sense8, Into The Badlands, Mrs Maisel, and Jessica Jones/Marvel stuff, Orphan Black, Call My Agent, Spiral, Wanted, Rita and a whole bunch of Scandi/French stuff

I adored sense8! It was so different. I liked Jessica Jones and Agents of SHIELD. I also am partial to Lucifer. Maybe it's the complex characters and stories.