Ms Latte’s Daebak Cybercafé (Kdrama Addicts #11)

[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)*
The Lies Within (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

Another Miss Oh (Netflix)*
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: Two Worlds (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:

Before We Get Married (Viki - Taiwanese)
Love O2O (Viki - Chinese)
Morning Call (Netflix - Japanese)
Put Your Head on My Shoulder (Netflix - Chinese)

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…

I am starting to get a better sense of the kdrama actresses I’d invite on a night out. Gong Hyo-Jin is on the list. Son Ye-Jin too. Park Min-Young looks quite playful, so I reckon she’d be a hoot after a few drinks. Also, mum-to-rule-them-all Kim Mi-Kyung.

Confidential Assignment was lots of fun, though there was a lot of fighting/violence. I second Betty’s assessment of Hyin Bin as hot af in it. I loved the chase scene in Seoul near the beginning, especially the parkour-style bits. I love that they partnered him with someone so average looking and then played it for laughs. I love the SK cop’s harried wife: “I know he’s an idiot, but he’s all we’ve got, so look after him.” It was pretty blokey, but that wasn’t an entirely bad thing. A score of 7 for me.

Oh is it supposed to be one person only on my island with me? I must have missed that 😉. Its so hard to decide....

It’s deliberately hard, because you have to weigh up whether you’ll prioritise visuals over promising conversation/companionship. That’s not to say that some options may not fulfil all your requirements.

Happy New Year from Toronto.
We are having afternoon tea at posh hotel and I had to send you this photo of a Korean actress we are sat next to.
I believe she is wearing a Chanel new season suit. My friends inform me of that fact but I've personally seen similar in Zara 🤣😂🤣

Gasp! You don’t ‘alf get about Aesops!
Who is it?! I thought by the hair it might be Bae Doona but I don’t think it is

Don't know her name but we asked the waitress.
She sat and sipped a cocktail and ate a delicate salad. Whilst I had a beer, club sandwich and my body weight of truffle fries 😋

Ooh Aesops! I've just got back from eating fried chicken in our local Korean bar. Which was good but maybe not as fancy 😋

She sat and sipped a cocktail and ate a delicate salad. Whilst I had a beer, club sandwich and my body weight of truffle fries 😋

See, I would have had the beer, club sandwich and truffle fries too!!!

I'm off to google Chanel's & Zara's collections now ( 'cos obv. it being NYE I am at home finishing off the soju before dry January )

TheGirl did you do soju bombs with your chicken & beer?

No cos DH didn't want soju and I didn't think I could justify a whole bottle to myself, even via the medium of bombs 🤣

Happy new year kdrama lovelies!

I came back from a party with DS1 about 5 min ago because he needs to revise tomorrow. DH and DS2 ditched just after midnight. The most entertaining bit was DS1 belly laughing at the drunk adults. Apparently I only qualified as tipsy. 🤷‍♂️

I’m watching Witcher. Subs are beyond me just now.

Me and DH are skipping between channels and I'm horrified to realise I'm older than Craig David, who is on BBC 1 😳
Pretty sure I wouldn't keep up with subtitles at the moment 😁

Witcher is a big ole pile o’ poo, but I can MN and half watch... man, I’m going to have a stinking hangover later. Too much red wine. 😞

Happy New Year! May 2020 be full of kdrama goodies

We watched Jools Hollands' Hootenanny (Craig David wasn't cutting it) then when as was wired from finishing off the soju after an abundance of red wine & port managed to fit in Swindlers with Hyun Bin in tousled hair hustle mode (film dramafast) Preferred Confidential Assignment

Alas, no getting tipsy here but I might start soon! The church next door decided to start their fireworks display at 1:15 after everyone else had stopped long enough for me to get DS to sleep. They're still going so DS is still very much awake and unhappy.

Aesops That really does look like Bae Doona. She's got a distinct profile so I want to say it's her. You lucky duck! Plus your meal sounds absolutely gorgeous. Fancy swapping?

Just started on the wine here. I cooked a seafood Thai broth with sides of Kimchi and radish for dinner

Have got one of our friends hooked on BTIMFL this afternoon

Hello what are the chances of that?! Spooky coincidence
^

^

CLOY!!... just finished ep 6!....noooooooooooooo!! I can't wait another couple of weeks! 😭😭😭😭... I'm on tenterhooks here!... I'm loving it and it's a solid 9 at the moment!! HB is super yummy! Is he joining GRR JCW and Seo Kang Joon in the centre of the Venn diagram?! 😂😂😂😍

Now... Do I stay up till 3.30am to watch my lovely BTS boys sing in the new year in Times Square new York?... (boatyard... To answer previous query from waaaay back... They were on a break but only around 5 weeks in August!... They've been back for ages causing havoc! 😂 😂)

Oooh! Dramavision for 2019 is done. Any scores before we announce top 5? I'll leave it til this afternoon so those who had late nights have got time to recover!

Triad Princess was a 5 for me. Otherwise, I think all my scores have been added.

I'm still really disappointed in Triad Princess. It watched like the dream of a teenage girl who wanted to meet her idol and fall madly in love with him. Even to the point of assuming that idols personalities are exactly the same on and off stage. If it was a 20 episode drama where story could have built up gradually, I think it might have been salvageable.

I've added the films I've just watched to the bottom of the pre-2019 spreadsheet.

Oooh exciting, if only we could have our own virtual awards ceremony!

Triad Princess is another example of Netflix not getting it right.

boatyard did you score Hotel del Luna & gRACEFUL fAMILY?

I've realised I am using the spreadsheet now instead of my own personal Notes on my phone. Thanks for all your work on it hello!

I am scrolling through Hyun Bin's IMDB looking for more stuff to watch. Actually I think MyDramalist is better as they have hang little pics of all the cast.
He does 2 films or dramas a year! They work so hard, I bet they are knackered on CLOY