MsLattés Daebak Cybercafé (Kdrama addicts #21): With our ranks swelling due to pandemic ennui, the Ajummas of Darkness are building an ARMY 😉 of Addicts.

[boatyardblues]

A quiet corner of MN for serious addicts of Kdrama, or the K-curious. 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/Netflix)
Crowned Clown (Viki)*
Mr Queen (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)*
Run On (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)
True Beauty (Viki)
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)
Misaeng (Netflix)
My Mister (Viki/Netflix)*
My Unfamiliar Family (Viki)*
Prison Playbook (Netflix)*

Once Again (Viki)
Stove League (Viki)/Hot Stove League (Netflix)

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)
Kiss Goblin (Viki, webdrama)
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)*
King: The Eternal Monarch (Netflix)
Kingdom (Netflix)*

Mystic Pop-up Bar (Netflix)
Peninsula - film, Train to Busan sequel (Amazon Prime, iMovies)

The Guest (Netflix)
Train to Busan - film (Amazon Prime)

W: Two Worlds (Viki & Netflix)*
Zombie Detective (Viki)


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)
Lost Romance (Viki, Taiwanese)
Love O2O (Viki, Chinese)
Morning Call (Netflix, Japanese)
My Little Happiness (Viki, Chinese)
Put Your Head on My Shoulder (Netflix, Chinese)
Some Day or One Day (Viki, Taiwanese)
The Romance of Tiger & Rose (Viki, Chinese)
Tientsin Mystic (Netflix, Chinese)

Thread Regulars’ Top Scoring Dramas of 2020 (updated for thread #21)
Courtesy of Hello’s kdrama spreadsheet, updated by/for thread regulars. Marks out of 10.

1 - Mr Queen - 9.4 (5 votes)
2 - Parasite - 9.05 (10 Votes)
3 - It's Okay To Not Be Okay - 8.88 (9 Votes)
4 - The Uncanny Counter - 8.50 (4 Votes)
5 - Once Again - 8.42 (6 Votes)

2019’s top scoring dramas:

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
🥾🍑 (boot, peach) = kick up the arse to go to bed



We also abbreviate titles if they’re long, but explained or 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…

Harrumph. As if FL's best friend in Love Designer was not annoying enough she has just gone on holiday for a month with instructions to FL to change automatic cat feeder and automatic litter tray every 15 days and check on "beloved" cat once every 4 days! POOR COCO. Hope the silly wench crashes her lipstick pink Lamborghini.

polkettle is Love Designer worth a watch?

@bettys

polkettle is Love Designer worth a watch?

Yes I'd like to know this too please! I'm adrift without a drama paddle...

I'm enjoying it halfway in in a casual way. I'd say it's following exactly the pattern you might expect from a 45 episode CDrama. I really like the (gorgeous) FL and good chemistry with ML - great opening encounter in first episode - but annoying secondary couple and a lot of tedious business chaff and meddlesome baddies too.

This looks like a good story and the one where I will watch with the box of tissues.

Also most annoying phone ring song/jingle that is used at least 5 X in every episode in LD. I'm guessing it must be PPL.

Is anyone watching Hello Me? I’m part way through ep 4 but think Anthony may turn out to be the bully that shook down the young ML and took his smily pendant. They’re connected somehow.

How is it boaty ? I watched the first ep but then got lost in Wuxia World, is it worth going back to?

The FL is becoming less downtrodden and the FL’s young self and ML are becoming less grating. FL & YFL’s protest dance routines were fun.

I started a good one today! More than Friends on Viki, 4 episodes in and I'm really enjoying it.

I got all excited there Rowdy as I’m in need of an enjoyable diversion. Just checked Viki & I’ve already watched it. Boo! 😕

Oh no! Sorry you're disappointed Boaty, you're too ahead of the game!

I'm not sure the Control Bureau is an equal opportunities employer

@polkettle

I'm not sure the Control Bureau is an equal opportunities employer

You have to wonder if their agents would be more effective if they weren’t so fixated on hiring men. They’re useless. Despite being hugely outmanned and outgunned, FL (incl with dummy flatmate) and ML keep getting away.

I’m at a loose end. I need something decent to binge. What was Life (the hospital one) like?

Life is quite straight, not bingeworthy in my opinion. About corruption in a hospital and the doctors trying to fight it. It has the lovely Lee Dong Wook in though...

It has lovely Jo Seung Woo from Sisyphus too, Rowdy.

Has anyone watched The Undateables on Viki? It has Namgoong Min as ML & he is usually good value. I’ve had it bookmarked for ages.

I think he is the bad guy in Life! It's a good show but not for binging.

I've not seen the Undateables

Ah, FL is Hwang Jung Eum - aka Mrs Shouty from All The Guys Whoever Loved Me. She’s a bit annoying. I’ll give it a go & report back. (Undateables)

I have avoided The Undateables due to ms Shouty. I did start Life right after Stranger for the sake of Jo Seung Woo but never finished it.

I watched the clip of Minari posted earlier & then a whole rabbit’s hole worth of Steven Yuen YouTube clips. Interesting stuff, anyone seen Okja or Burning?

I’ve seen Okja. I thought it was weird and unsettling. It had some rather disturbing scenes that I remember thinking were unnecessarily gratuitous, but I can’t remember much of the detail.

Okja is still available on Netflix.

Okja is definitely worth watching imo. Uneven and sort of cheese fever dream in places but some excellent bits.

Cheese fever dream is spot on, Pol.

I’m enjoying The Undateables, despite Ms Shouty. It is classic urbane, quirky eminently boffable Namgoong Min. The 2ML is easy on the eye too. There’s a touch of screwball comedy about it too and the set-up of finding love matches for hopeless cases against a deadline has ample mileage. I’m up to ep 5 and will stick with it. It has binge potential.

Finished Run On, a good overall watch, rated it an 8 but may go back and give it an 8.5 after I've pondered on it. It had a slight Woody Allan feel to me with the exploration and development of characters. I liked that the conversations between characters had an unspoken undercurrent to them. Thought the birthday scene was hysterical. It also moved me in places and made me laugh. Bromances and relationships between female characters were very well done also the inclusion of characters who had different sexual identities.
What is confusing me is:

1. Why was there confusion with people around the ending? I thought the scene in the cinema tied it all up nicely. Have I missed something?
2. Ryan? Real or not?