MsLatte’s Daebak Cybercafé (kdrama addicts #10)

[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)
Graceful Family (Viki) - potboiler!
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)*
Tunnel (Netflix)



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



Romance - lighter & fluffier
Beating Again (Netflix)
Coffee Prince (Netflix)
Don’t Dare to Dream (Netflix, or as Jealousy Incarnate on Viki)*
Gogh, The Starry Night (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/Netflix)*
Descendants of the Sun (Viki/Netflix)
Doctors (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/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

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 with links to Korea 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 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…

Just had quick look on soompi (the font of all serious reporting!) and I think there is a season 2!

WTAF!!!!!! That has made me so mad I am heading over to the score board to mark it down right now! Sodding Netflix, they'd better not fuck about with Triad Princess

Right....I need something to calm me down now....

Side note: I didn’t spot first time around that Soo Ji (CEO Ma’s squeeze in BTIMFL) is in flats and a trouser suit, rather than skyscraper heels & pencil skirts, once she’s running her own company. She looks much more comfortable.

Glad you are as outraged as me. One of the great things about kdramas is no stupid endings to prepare for a new series, in most cases.

Netflix has really misjudged the appeal of kdrama’s contained stories if its going to apply the US serialisation/syndication model to its Korean productions. This won’t be the first show compromised by it - Love Alarm and My First First Love being other examples.

Oooo! Kdrama Suits coming to netflix with lovely Park Hyung Sik... A little clunky! But still worth a watch!... Watched on dodgy site aaaages ago! PHS is really good in it! Honestly! I know I have a soft spot for him but he is genuinely good in it... 😍😍😍

I loved PHS in Suits and it works so much better as a contained season rather than the US and its never ending version.

boatyard you're spot on about Netflix and it's unsatisfying endings. You'd think they'd learn after one or two dramas. Look how much money they spent on Arthdal Chronicles and its still getting terrible reviews which aren't helped by its silly release schedule.

I'm not sure Netflix care about reviews, they just want people to keep paying the subs which is why they have season.

May give Suits a go, even though PHS isn't a big draw for me, exactly because it all gets wrapped up after 16 eps! But then it has been bought in after airing in SK, not created by Netflix the tossers.

We’ll have to keep an eye on Netflix. If they keep this up, it will become a handy reminder to swerve the show.

Soompi article on season 2 of Vagabond

so it's a maybe? It seems risky to leave it like that when it's just a maybe. Who knows if LSG and Suzy want to spend another 11 months tied to season 2.

Quite. And the ending seems universally decried on all the forums/reviews I've seen. Big mistake. Huge.

I’ve just caught up on The Lies Within (consistently excellent) but I’m now not sure about finishing Vagabond. I should watch ep 15 for the shower scene if nothing else, right?

I’m watching - the furniture showroom location is genius. It made me think an Ikea showroom would be a great cat & mouse location too, and as there’s no natural light anyway a night shoot would make no odds to the film/show.

You could film an entire drama in an ikea showroom, and it'd still probably have a better ending than Vagabond. Not that I'm still disgruntled or anything.

You could film an entire drama in an ikea showroom, and it'd still probably have a better ending than Vagabond.

Brilliant!!!! I would watch it

Seriously though, the only good thing about Vagabond was Lee Seung-Gi andhisshowerscenes i think everyone just feels cheated. It doesn't sound as if he knows about season 2 from his IG post

I haven’t watched ep 16 yet. I’ve been roped into a “training game” of Monopoly tactics for the afternoon by DS, who wants to thrash his brother & the adults at Christmas.

I've hid the monopoly this year and the scrabble might also be joining it soon. They are the cause of many a rift in the hello household.

They've really shot themselves in the foot if that really was the ending! How ridiculous!! It'll end up as one of those YouTube vids.. "top 10 flop endings in a kdrama"... In other words... "top 10 dramas to miss because they look real good but the ending makes you think that's 16 hours of my life I'm never getting back!" 🤬🤬🤬

The reason I love a kdrama is you know its all going to end!!

bettys... PHS is really good in Suits... He had me blubbing!... Which really isn't hard!... Was blubbing to live version of Magic Shop with eng subs (BTS) last night because the sentiment behind it is just soooo lovely! 👌💜😍

😍😍😭😭😭😭

I'm watching A Crazy Little Thing Called First Love a Chinese drama. It's an ugly duckling story, she'll take of her glasses and straighten her hair and they'll fall magically in love but they've painted her fucking yellow!

I’m quite torn at the mo. I might have to swap out Lee Seung Gi as my island companion for Lee Min Ki. Its very odd because I’m not even sure I fancy Lee Min Ki, but I would definitely like to get to know him better.

Oh Bea that’s just lurvely 💜😊💜😊

boatyard pub first, then make your mind up