MsLatte’s Daebak Cybercafé (kdrama addicts #9)

[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 AmazonPrime and search engine-accessible content available on shady non subscription streaming sites (listed as ‘alt site’ below). The subtitling on alternative sites is variable in quality and the pop-ups can be adult themed...

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, alt site)
Live (Netflix)
Pride & Prejudice (Netflix)*
Prison Playbook (Netflix)*
Suspicious Partner (Netflix)*
Watcher (Viki)*

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

Romance - lighter & fluffier
1% of Something (Viki)
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)*
Morning Call (Netflix - Japanese)
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)**
Melo is my Nature (Viki)/Be Melodramatic (alt sites)**
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
Absolute Boyfriend (Viki)
Are You Human (Netflix)
Goblin (Viki)*
I am not a Robot (Netflix)
Legend of the Blue Sea (Viki/Netflix)
Love O2O (Viki - Chinese)
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)
Before We Get Married (Viki -Taiwanese)
Hwarang (Viki/Netflix)
The Last Empress (Viki)
Sassy Go Go (Netflix)

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

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 (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…

I started watching Gogh, the Starry Night on Viki earlier. It’s only 4 episodes but Lee Ji-Hoon (Rookie Historian’ Officer Min) in modern dandy attire is very much floating my boat. 👌

boatyard I thoroughly enjoyed Gogh The Starry Night . I would be hard pushed to choose between Officer Min and curly mouthed racehorse legs Kim Young Kwan

Aesops I am really enjoying Camellia in spite of its slow pace. Kang Ha Neul has really grown on me

I would love to be having a BTIMFL marathon. Sympathy for the rubbish work week Aesops , mine has been pants too!
I'm being forced to watch Model Railway Challenge by my DS. He's v excited about it 😂.

I'm visiting my dad in hospital so drama is halted for the evening but I'm thinking of Extraordinary You when I get home. I'm still miffed by Well Intended Love

There’s just been a scene with Kim Young Kwan in skinny jeans - absolute racehorse status confirmed. Oh yes!

I'm glad I'm not going to watch Well Intended Love . Horrendous stalking plus medical inaccuracies sounds v annoying!

hello Extraordinary You is a good antidote to hospital blues.

I am now up to date with Graceful Family - Viki subs seem to be quicker now it's getting near the end.
BIG reveal at end of ep 14 that I wasn't expecting.

Still hate all the obvious weevil bods but am beginning to like baddie Prosecutors son and think the TOP team might be getting wary of Director Han.

Weevil bods??? Snort should’ve been eeevil but quite like weevil

Ooh Bettys I'm looking forward to catching up with the latest 2 episodes of Graceful Family! I've got Sunday evening pencilled in for that.

TheGirl this week's episodes of Graceful Family are back on form, I felt it had dipped a bit.

Now to catch up with Vagabond and My Country although I feel WDH is doomed, doomed I tell you

Yes bettys 'buff bff of the ML will be dead soon' is the summation of nearly all period dramas. Poor WDH, back to the swamps for you!

I have another long haul bus trip next weekend. Have downloaded for flights Happy Once Again as I find light and fluffy is the best antidote to waiting at airports/long flights. Have I made the right choice without even viewing a single episode

Loving BTIMFL!

Boatyard-The front post recommendations are so useful for a newbie like me, thank you all

Happy Once Again is perfect fluff and funny, although we agreed there would have been an AIBU about the events in the final episode if FL and her BFF were Mumsnetters. 😄

I signed up a while ago for the 90 Day Korean mailings. There was a link to the best Korean films for learning Korean. Interestingly, one of the tips was about repeated viewings, alternating with the subs on and off. Here’s the list:

Best Korean Historical Movies
Silmido (실미도 | 2003)
The Admiral (명량 | 2014)
A Taxi Driver (택시운전사 | 2017)
The Battleship Island (군함도 | 2017)

Best Korean Action Movies
Chingu (친구 | 2001)
The Good, The Bad, The Weird (좋은 놈, 나쁜 놈, 이상한 놈 | 2008)
Haeundae (해운대 | 2009)
The Thieves (도둑들 | 2012)

Best Korean Romantic-Comedy Movies
My Sassy Girl (엽기적인 그녀 | 2001)
Highway Star (복면달호 | 2007)
Two Faces of My Girlfriend (두 얼굴의 여친 | 2007)
Castaway on the Moon (김씨 표류기 | 2009)
On Your Wedding Day (너의 결혼식 | 2018)

Best Korean Suspense-Thriller Movies
Joint Security Area (공동경비구역 JSA | 2000)
Oldboy (올드보이 | 2003)
The Host (괴물 | 2006)
The Man From Nowhere (아저씨 | 2010)
The Witch: Part 1. The Subversion (마녀 | 2018)

Best Korean Dramatic Movies
Peppermint Candy (박하사탕 | 1999)
Oasis (오아시스 | 2002)
Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter…and Spring (봄 여름 가을 겨울 그리고 봄 | 2003)
Bleak Night (파수꾼 | 2010)
How to Steal a Dog (개를 훔치는 완벽한 방법 | 2014)
Intimate Strangers (완벽한 타인 | 2018)

So far I have only seen Oldboy on that list, but I have Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter in my DVDs to watch pile.

Aesops - its good to hear the list is useful. I have no doubt you’ll be adding suggestions in time.

After reading that list I can confidently say I still can not wrap my lips around pronouncing 량 properly. It one of the few sounds that eludes me after all this time.

I got myself thinking about what would happen if more people in dramas were on mumsnet. I've concluded dramas would end after 2 episodes because they'd be told to go NC and then they'd live happily ever after.

A lot of the Mandarin ones would screech to halt with MNers extolling the FL to go to the police after the initial sexual assault/false imprisonment, the relationships board would get the red flag bunting out and there would be a deafening chorus of LTBs.

Aesops Happy Once Again is good fun and perfect for travelling. And yes, there is a (light-hearted) potential AIBU MN thread in the last episode.

As hello says though if dramas had MNers in there would be a lot of LTBs and toxic relationships advice and recommendations to read the 'we took you to stately homes' threads

Crosspost!

Plus the 2ML would get the girl a lot more often in MNers gave their advice!

On that film list I have seen On Your Wedding Day (racehorse legs Kim Young Kwan & Park Bo Young) and The Witch. Both very good.

Hurrah for the end of the kdrama drought! I am loving Extraordinary You and My Country. Nothing like a good sageuk (armour, manes of glory) to perk up my day!

Where did you track them down, Betty?

boatyard they're on dramafast Warning - don't watch with teenagers as one is embarrassing ( v funny talk about masturbation) and the other is gory

242Mummy lol I'm a sucker for long hair and swishing swords too! And Extraordinary You is delightful and quirky

Nice to see you again 242 I'm glad you're enjoying My Country, I am too, at least until Woo Do Hwan inevitably dies

I am too, at least until Woo Do Hwan inevitably dies

But that won't be until near the end hopefully, so plenty of time for more shirtless scenes

You're right bettys I'm being such a pessimist about it all. I should be enjoying it for what it is, and not just waiting for him to die.