MsLatte’s Daebak Cybercafé (Kdrama addicts #15): Tiring of your usual telly during lockdown? Want to be transported somewhere else? Try our escapist boxset recommendations

[boatyardblues]

A quiet corner of MN for serious addicts of Kdrama, or the K-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. 

We also dip into Japanese, Taiwanese & Chinese drama as & when. 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 an asterisk 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)
The Fiery Priest (Netflix)

Crime/Thriller

Come and Hug Me (Dramafast)
Graceful Family (Viki)
Healer (Netflix)*
Heartless City (Viki)
He is Psychometric (Viki)
I Hear Your Voice (Netflix /Viki)

Life on Mars (classy remake of BBC series, Dramafast)
My Secret Terrius (Netflix)*
Signal (Netflix)*
Suspicious Partner (Netflix)*
The Lies Within (Netflix)*
Tunnel (Netflix)*

Historical/Period drama (“sageuk”)
100 Days My Prince (Viki)
Crowned Clown (Viki)*
Mr Sunshine (Netflix)
Rookie Historian Goo Hae-Ryung (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)
The Secret Life of My Secretary (Viki/Netflix)
Thirty Not Seventeen (Viki) or as Still 17 (Netflix)
Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo (Netflix/Viki)
What’s Up With Secretary Kim (Viki)*
Where Stars Land (Viki)*
You are my Destiny (Netflix)


Romance - heavier weight/more grown up themes

Another Miss Oh (Netflix)*
Because This Is My First Life (Viki/Netflix)*

Chicago Typewriter (Viki/Netflix)*
Crash Landing on You (Netflix)**
Descendants of the Sun (Viki/Netflix)
Doctors (Netflix)
Fight For My Way (Viki/Drama bus)*
Go Back Couple (Viki)
I’ll Go To You When The Weather is Nice (Viki)

Just Between Lovers (Viki)*
Melo is my Nature (Viki)/Be Melodramatic (Dramafast)
My Strange Hero (Viki)
One Spring Night (Netflix)
Red Carpet - film (Netflix, very adult content)
Romantic Dr Kim - seasons 1&2 (Viki)
Search: WWW (Viki)*

Something in the Rain (Netflix)
The Package (Viki)



Straighter ‘Slice of Life’ dramas on universal themes
Hospital Playlist (Netflix)
Itaewon Class (Netflix)
Live (Netflix)
My Mister (Viki)**
Prison Playbook (Netflix)*

Stove League (Viki)

Supernatural/zombies/vampires/fantasy/sci-fi - lighter & fluffier

Extraordinary You (Netflix)
Goblin (Viki)*

I am not a Robot (Netflix)
Legend of the Blue Sea (Viki/Netflix)
My Holo Love (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)
Bride of Habaek (Netflix)
Hwarang (Viki/Netflix)
The Last Empress (Viki/Netflix)
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)
Go Go Squid (Viki - Chinese)
Instead of Tipsy Why Not Get Drunk (Viki, Chinese)
Love O2O (Viki - Chinese)
Morning Call (Netflix - Japanese)
Put Your Head on My Shoulder (Netflix - Chinese)
Tientsin Mystic (Netflix, Chinese)

Thread Regulars’ Top 5 Dramas of 2019
(courtesy of Hello’s kdrama spreadsheet, scores range from +10 if very good to -10 for truly awful)

1. Her Private Life - 9.40 (5 votes)
2. Melo is My Nature - 9.00 (5 votes)

3.= Crash Landing On You, The Crowned Clown, The Lies Within, and The Tale of Nokdu - 8.75 (4 votes)

1. Hotel del Luna - 8.50 (4 votes)

5.= Romance is a Bonus Book, and Search: WWW - 8.17 (6 votes)

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. Quite a few of us are learning Korean, Japanese and/or Mandarin (some more diligently than others admittedly), so we swap tips and links to language resources. Basically, anything topical goes.


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/ML is too dense to realise the 2ML/2FL is better)
🥾🍑 (boot, peach) = kick up the arse to go to bed



We also abbreviate titles if they’re long, but usually with an obvious abbreviation. Some favourite actors & actresses have been abbreviated for speed/efficiency, eg Park Min Young (PMY), Kim Jae Wook (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 quite enjoyed Midnight Diner. It's based on the owner of a late night diner and his clientele. Each episode stands alone, so easy to dip in and out.

I'm enjoying My Moochy Boyfriend, although in true MN fashion I want to shout 'he's a massive cocklodger'!!!!

I guess My Massive cocklodger Boyfriend doesn't sound so enticing

I hated My Moochy Boyfriend. Well I hated watching the FL make silly decisions. It was like listening to a teen relationship play out.

Hot Gimmick is quick to watch (for a 2 hour movie) but made me feel a bit slimey. It's on the edge of young adult/new adult but some of the relationships it tries to show are a bit WTF! It seems a bit marmite-y with a 5.5/10 on MDL. The trailer is a bit misleading in my opinion but it has absolutely lovely cinematography, if that's your thing.

I've taken to watching a lot of Japanese dramas on dramacool with adblock on so I'm not much help with where else they can be found.

J-drama really needs better distribution overseas. I find some are either trying too hard to be faithful to the manga they are based on, the lines are very blurred between teen/YA/18+ content and the acting can be ropey. I do like some of the films, though some are odd. (River's Edge was difficult to describe but there were so many things in it that I experienced as a teen as well) 37 seconds was a good film. (Netflix)

I’ve just finished APOYM and agree with Betty about HJI’s awful mac with leather lapels. I’m glad they trimmed it down to 12 episodes, but rather liked it. I was wavering between a 7 & 8, but having consulted the spreadsheet have scored it an 8. It was slow, but it was also atmospheric, gentle and heart-warming. JHI was reliable as ML. I really liked Chae Soo-Bin’s performance, who is steadily charming me with WSL and this one. I liked the guesthouse unni and Mrs Hamman (as she will forever be to me), the med student and the idiot boyfriend storyline. I loved the music and the attention to detail. Basically, there was an awful lot to like. What I still can’t get my head around is the fact they’re moving in together and are still sleeping fully dressed (day clothes!) and hug instead of kissing. They seemed more like friends than lovers.

Goodness me! You lot have been flying through the dramas and recs...

biatyard... Hwrang! 😂 😂 😂 bettys Strangely I found korean knight knightley more annoying in Hwrang and liked her in Mrs Harrumbi... Ahhh! Lovely Hair Kim Myung Soo... Now that Meow has finished I might just skippitydoodah to the end since there's a promise of a 🐝 ending! 😂 😂

bettysif you can cope with a bit of dark and grit... Go back to Memorist.. M.! It is soooo good!

Just finished this weeks The King... It's great! I'm really really enjoying it and loving the mix of Royal Court kdrama with modem Seoul Korea... If all episodes were up this would definitely be an all nighter! 🍑👢

Looking forward to Extra Curricular... Think Dh might enjoy that one so I may leave it until he appears in the sitting room to annoy me! 😁😂

Just rewatched ep 5 of King. WDH is far more interesting to watch than LMH. Maybe its because he’s so buttoned up in Corea. I like his style, except for the weird half leather trench coat in ep 5. It’s clearly the current trend, as JHI had a couple of similar horrors in APOYM.

I’ve just watched 37 Seconds As recommended by monkeywench. It is a good film, not what I thought it was going to be at all from the synopsis!

I love watching WDHs face twitch in King. 😎

I can recommend WDH in Save Me on Netflix. First few episodes of backstory are d sad low but then it gets gripping. He’s 2ML again though 🤷🏻‍♀️

Slow that should’ve read, dunno where d sad low came from

Thanks for WDH recommendation, Betty. A week feels long in between King episodes.

There needs to be justice for WDH. He needs a lead role! After thinking about it, it needs to have situations where he is frequently wearing a well tailored suit. Turtlenecks are banned though and shouldn't go anywhere near him.

monkeywench I quite enjoyed River's Edge but I'd struggle to describe it. It was just an experience from beginning to end.

There needs to be justice for WDH.

Seconded!

AKA “oppa sauce” chez Boaty. It’s surprisingly spicy, but in a good way.

I was looking up the King cast to see where I recognised the gangster-like cop Jangmi from (Grim Reaper, Hotel de Luna) and saw that Court Lady No is 82 IRL. She’s fab, but now I’m watching her make LMH’s bed in ep 6 I feel irrationally cross that the king doesn’t let her put her feet up & get one of the other servants to fuss around him.

And, yes, I have rewatched both episodes because... reasons.

What reasons might those be boaty? 🤔

1. WDH - stern palace guard version
2. Kim Kyung-Nam
3. WDH - shaggy haired social worker version
4. LMH - normal clothes version
5. Maximus (her muzzle looks sooo lovely and soft)
6. LMH - dandy highway man version

^ In that order. If KKN shows up in Corea, I may need a reshuffle.

As an aside baddy undead exiled prince Lee Lim is 41 IRL. I had him pegged as late 40s, so even the older characters are still in toy boy(ish) territory for me. Go figure!

Can anyone tell me whether the ML in Go Go Squid ever cracks a smile? I’m revisiting to see if I can get into it, but the glowering isn’t a great look on a ML.

boaty he does. It's the cutest wee smirk and he does smile a lot more in later episodes. Very much tsundere and saved solely for the FL. (Not biased at all 😂)

I read that list with extreme seriousness and find that it is eminently sensible and provides 6 very good reasons for rewatching.

WRT Go Go Squid I thought the same initially but persevered and yes he does, eventually. In fact Li Xian moved up to my ‘Go on the run with’ option especially after watching Tsientsin Mystic

Oh and the rookie detective in King is also the singing driver in WWWSK

Feeling proud that my Li Xian is getting on lists lol There is such a huge gap between the characters he plays and how he comes across in Interviews that makes him attractive.

Feeling proud that my Li Xian is getting on lists lol

My Li Xian, eh Monkey? I reckon Betty would fight dirty if there was a thread showdown...

Seeing as I already had dibs, bring it on lol (tho boaty and betty scare me)😂😂