MsLattés Daebak Cybercafé (Kdrama addicts #18): Our piggyback taxi service has been suspended whilst we are socially distancing

[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 AmazonPrime. There are also platforms streaming content illegally if you go looking, but we don’t promote them as they are peppered with pop-ups of “Olga” and friends offering a good time, which gets in the way of the drama.

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/Netflix)
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, no major site yet)
My Secret Terrius (Netflix)*
Signal (Netflix)*
Stranger - 2 seasons (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/Netflix)*

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 (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/Netflix)*
Go Back Couple (Viki)
I’ll Go To You When The Weather is Nice (Viki)
It’s OK Not To Be OK (Netflix)

Just Between Lovers (Viki)*
Melo is my Nature (Viki)/Be Melodramatic (other sites)
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 Handmaid (film, Netflix - content warning: explicit sexual content)
The Package (Viki)



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

Once Again (Viki)
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/Netflix)*
Kingdom (Netflix)*

Mystic Pop-up Bar (Netflix)
The Guest (no mainstream platform yet)
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)
My Secret Romance (Viki)
The Last Empress (Viki/Netflix)
Sassy Go Go (Netflix)



Mad as a box of frogs/uncategorisable

Strong Girl Bong Soon (Netflix)
School Nurse Files (Netflix)

Not Korean but decent quality
Regulars also 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)
Find Yourself (Netflix - Chinese)
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 Scoring Dramas of 2019
(courtesy of Hello’s kdrama spreadsheet, which are updated by/for thread regulars)

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…

One for Betty and anyone else in striking distance: www.theguardian.com/food/2020/oct/18/jay-rayner-restaurant-review-jae-at-untitled-london-seriously-punchy-korean-cooking

boaty that restaurant looks ace! It's about an hour away from me but would be just perfect for a non-covid Daebak Café hangout! As long as they serve soju of course....

Aah soju not envy... 🤣

I bet its too trendy to serve makeoli. We have some chilling in the fridge as I type.

Oooh yum to that restaurant which is definitely reachable for me if allowed to go to it. I am wanting to drink some soju in both the approved fashions so badly (solemnly poured and assessed for sweetness and then in a beer bomb)
I have just finished Where Stars Land and I have to say it shook my faith in your otherwise BRILLIANT asterisk system a bit because I thought it was...just okay. Bit troubled by the underlying disability is a disaster message but mainly too much random plot and Veeerrrrry Looooong Meaningful Glances and too little banter and snogging for me. I think you should consider moving it from light and frothy romance section. Having said that seen me through my weekend enjoyably enough so maybe I'm getting picky. Security guards definitely best bit. Right rolls up sleeves onwards...I need proper light nonsense now

Aesops My Mister is worth all the upsetting dark bits, the cathartic payoff is awesome, & even though I sobbed for most of one episode near the end it was good sobbing if that makes sense.

Currently on final ep of My Mister and been sobbing for the last hour. DH fed up with seeing me crying and decided to clean out garage until it's finished. I'm making Kimchi Jjigae with pork belly for dinner, it's that spicy though so expect more tears later!! 🌶🌶🌶

It’s good sobbing, though, Aesops? Are you glad you stuck with it?

polkettle I have to agree with you, I think the asterisk for Where Stars Land is misplaced. Radio Romance or The Beauty Inside are much better.

Currently on final ep of My Mister and been sobbing for the last hour. DH fed up with seeing me crying and decided to clean out garage until it's finished.
This made me laugh Aesops - I don't watch sob worthy kdrama in front of DH as he would just think I'd lost the plot

Boatyard, where do you get your Makgeolli from? I bought some Korean pancake mix and want to make seafood and chive pancakes to serve it with. Preferably the plain not fruit flavoured?

just finished My Mister, need to digest it as still upset 😢 Not as uplifting an ending as I hoped.

Yes Boatyard, good crying. It's def a classic for a reason. Acting was superb.
That final scene though ... 😭

I think is redemptive, Aesops. I won’t say more for fear of spoiling.

The makkeoili is from our local Korean shop. It is delicious (the plain one that is. The flavours are an abomination and further reduce the ABV).

@bettys Lovely. Will add both to ever expanding list.

We can always move stuff around in the OP & recategorise. It’s why we have a shout out for updates at every thread end.

@boatyardblues The op is a masterpiece of concise helpfulness. And led me to Don't Dare to Dream which I absolutely loved so apologies if sounding sniffy! Not all dramas can be all things to all people after all. And they're also so hard to shake into a particular category you rightly say.

Since we're talking food... I made Hotteok the other day... Can't remember if I told you all... Anyway here it is!... It was yummy! It had a brown sugar cinnamon syrupy filling! Hmmm!

Here... Forgot to attach!... 😭😂

i follow BTS ARMY Kitchen on twitter... they have lovely recipes (although there's an obvs link to all BTS food - it's all inspired by what they've been eating... especially from their most recent reality show In The Soop which was just Bangtan waking up... wondering what to eat... cooking it... eating it and then start the cycle again! It's hilarious!) There's some super recipes and it's lovely as the everyone posts what they've made!

Those hotteok look just like Welshcakes.

We had bastardised spicy ricey with gochugaru for dinner, topped with salmon fillets that had been steamed in a foil parcel over the rice in the rice cooker with a slosh each of mirin, soy sauce & sesame oil. Yum!

Ohh Bea they look delish!
I'm in a Sunday night depression, work is shit at the moment. I've got a horrible meeting on Wednesday. I'm trying to blank it out with dramas.

I've watched all available episodes of 9 Tailed, which I enjoyed a lot. Lots of shirt off bits and the fake vet friend is sweet (with v v wide shoulders).
I also watched the first ep of Watch, which was good but a bit tense/scary!
I'm now watching Run BTS on YouTube

That also sounds amazing boaty 👌

TheGirl... ahhh! re's nothing that Run BTS won't cure...if you lived closer I'd pop round with some freshly made!!!!.....😍❤💜💜

That looks amazing. I'm going to attempt my first lot of kimchi pancakes this week.

Can you link to the recipe Bea. I have a bakestone I could make them on and I even have a bar of red bean jelly at the mo, which I reckon I could splice in to hotteok.

hmmm it's making me hungry now and now i want some... it was pretty easy to make the prob being is they're the nicest when cooked fresh (like doughnuts!) and you just can't make one or two... so i made about 6... gave two away to the neighbours.....dh had one... kids had some... I ate two and the regretted it... though they were yummy!!!!

i actually used this Recipe... there's a youtube channel too... you actually shallow fry them in a frying pan... hmmmm fried goods... what's not to like!!!! ????