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…

Tsundere indeed!

And such nice hands!😆

I have commented on his beautiful hands upthread, but I thought the GQ cover showed them off well.

Drunk-in-the-morning Nian Nian is very funny. The fact Li Xian managed not to laugh his head off is a credit to his acting skills, though this may have been the 15th take for all I know.

“This style of decoration. Do your eyes not hurt?” 🤣

I finally found a perfect sentence to sum up how I'm feeling about The King right now. "RIP woo do-hwan and kim kyung-nam’s backs after carrying this entire drama."

Maybe I'll feel better after I've digested it some more but WDH is the best thing about it for me.

Mask not only has a contract marriage but a swapped identity.

It's rather average but I am watching it in a skippety doo dah sort of way.

A contract marriage you say? Hmmm.

Well, you are all a terrible influence on me. The decorating has not started (there’s always Whitsun...) and I’m still in my pyjamas, but I have nearly finished ep 37 of Go Go Squid and I am definitely converted to Team Li Xian. His Insta feed is also a joy.

I have nearly finished ep 37 of Go Go Squid and I am definitely converted to Team Li Xian.

Team Li Xian's work is done

Your next choice should be Tientsin Mystic (Netflix) or maybe Medical Examiner: Dr Qin although the first ep of that is (sick inducing, put me right off street food)

The parents’ house in Squid is a puzzle. It’s clear the property itself was originally studio apartments and it is a reasonable sized detached property with a large garden/yard, which must be worth a ton of money in Shanghai. However, a lot of it is unimproved, like the hall and lounge, and a bit like a scummy student house. The Dad is a transplant surgeon, the Mum is a teacher and there’s the suggestion of old money, so they are presumably well-off. Is ‘boarding house charm’ a thing in Shanghai or did the production company just hire a vacant property and skimp on set dressing? It’s been bothering me all the way through.

Argh I want to watch more King now! I was getting a bit confused with some of the relationships and Corea vs Korea but I think I've got it straight now 😂.
LMH is not really doing anything for me in his range of expensive, fluffy polo necks. But everyone else is great.

a lot of it is unimproved, like the hall and lounge, and a bit like a scummy student house

I thought this!!! The common parts, hall & landing etc are really scruffy for what you would assume to be a comfortable middle class household

My work here is done 😁 Serious SLS in Only Side by Side With You but he is one of my faves. Tientsin Mystic is good too.

I just wondered if its a stylistic thing - a riposte to all the shiny, blingy new buildings that have followed China’s economic surge - that if you live an older building with more history, you embrace it’s flaws.

It's a pity that it was cut short (although they did end it in a good way) allegedly because of an issue with one of the maps not showing the proper border or some sort of thing like that. It would be nice to have a YaYa/Xiao Bai spin off. They were really sweet as a couple.

Xiao Bai was one of my favourites. The actor is in another series called My Roomate is a Detective which I'm dipping in an out of. Its got a bit of bromance but it's not entirely my thing. It's set in the 1920s so the fashion is lovely to see.

What? It was cut short? Why tell me now, 38 episodes in? I hope there is a satisfactory wrap up. 🤞

I don't think they're talking about Go Go Squid

Go Go was supposed to be 44 or 45 episodes. Don't worry, it wraps up well!

Phew!

I will Tiensin Mystery a go at some point because it’s only 24 eps.

A word to the wise with Tientsin, there is a second series so it has an open ending, but it is still really worth watching, just for the style and look of the thing alone.

(And Li Xian obvs)

OK, so it is a 50 hour marathon. I’ll give it a go.

.....but Li Xian isn't in the second series, someone else plays his role so I guess he had other projects on so really you only need to watch the first series