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…

Would you recommend how to be thirty?
Just finished find me in your memory- good points were it's beautifully shot, sound track is lovely, good supporting characters but although I liked both the leads I just didn't get the chemistry between them and there were too many plots I think- would have been better to stick to one and build the suspense. Also I needed more of the sister, and something other than a time skip at the end

@Bea I'm watching the Grammys too!! I didn't realise the performance was on the main show, rather than this Premier bit

Argh!! They were robbed. Lady Gaga couldn't even be bothered to do a thank you video 😤

I'm getting more and more pissed off! Don't care if they don't win (obvs I do!...) but its becoming more and more obvs they're using BTS and ARMY for free promo and buzz! The way they use them so prominently in their tweets.. Ads... Features etc... 😡😡The YouTube viewer numbers dropped by 500,000...as soon as their category was announced! 😯😅

I agree with you Bea it feels like they are using BTS for Tokenism and for promotion purposes. I felt the same last year when they performed... I don't know, something just doesn't feel right about it... I hope I'm wrong and it's all genuine

I just watched To My Star, a very gentle, heartwarming BL film on Viki.

[quote polkettle]Subs up for this too @JinBhoot in case you missed and again I'm weeping. [/quote]
Thanks @polkettle. I though they only release episodes once a week on Thursdays.

😂😂😂😂😂 they are hilarious.
I am laughing with subtitles, imagine how much fun it is for the people who understands the language & have knowledge of Kpop/celebrity culture.

I wonder what is the posh fruit which Mido bought? Looks like grapes but do they taste like mangoes?

What is this game about? Is it from some famous game show?

Mido bought posh grapes called Shine Muscat Grapes - I have just googled, they are Japanese & quite expensive.

Shine Muscat has unique taste i.e delicate mango flavour and has higher sugar content than other grapes.

I can’t find any sellers in UK. Waitrose & Sainsbury’s are selling Muscat grapes which are not the same thing.

... Best grapes ever!... M&S green grapes variety - Sweet Globe!... Sooo crispy! Sweet and just yummy!!

Rowdy Bea & The Girl I agree with you!! I’m one of the 500,000 that switched off immediately 🤬🤬

GRR I don't want to watch Grammys now...

I mean, to be fair, it always has been the most corrupt, racist awards ever!!

Grapes sound good @JinBhoot ! I like a Muscat grape. The games they are playing are from travel/variety show New Journey to the West and you can find clips on YouTube - some more comprehensible than others. Also the show that our favourite ob/gyn watches obsessively on HP.
Condolences to the Grammy watchers.

So, so pleased I'm not the only person who strongly believes our beloved BTS were used to increase viewing numbers worldwide for the crappy Grammys! 🤬

Have you seen the videos yet where the boys saw the result live? So classy in their acceptance of being robbed. Then later VLive - just wanted to give Jimin a big hug. 😢

They wus robbed!! 😭 And they were classy, I felt the masks hid a lot 😩

@bettys

They wus robbed!! 😭 And they were classy, I felt the masks hid a lot 😩

stubble!

The Grammys Have Never Been More Openly Racially Divisive

and this tweet sums it all up.... if Gaga and Ariana were The Best Performance why not have them end the main show!??? 🤬

went to bed at 4am!!!! up at 6.30am! 💪... the things i do for those boys!!

the tweet....

The VLive did me in! They looked so tired, the little poppets.

Although the RM and Jhope photos after wards helped me recover

Poor Jimin, all you could see was his little puffy eyes, I'm hoping that was from lack of sleep rather than upset. I think the grammys have a lot to change... They need to do better! It's such a huge amount of awards, why do they try and fit it all into one ceremony? Having your award in the pre show is like only being invited to the evening reception of a wedding, rather than the whole day.

At least women did well, but still 🤷‍♀️

Ooof I am now watching Eternal Love and the middle section where FL is mortal is dreary AF!!! The ML is a pompous selfish dick! It’s just one awful thing after another I much prefer The Eternal Love where the FL makes the most of every chance she gets to grope MLs chest 😂

Four episodes in to You are my Hero (however do they think up these titles 🤔?) and thoroughly charmed by plucky neurosurgeon doing rescuing with handsome SWAT officer. Don't want to kill secondary couple either so far! But yet another where I'm going to be waiting for episodes and subs.

I've been binge watching the last few days and hardly lifted my head up from the screen . Re watched a couple of shows and watched Wacko at Law, which was nothing like I expected. It's good overall and nearly every episode has a different case to solve, which ties in with the overarching plot. Acting is good, with only one really irritating secondary character. The writing does have some plot holes and of course, slightly unbelievable. FL is kinda quirky, and badass. ML handsome, and a genius, great combination I didn't really get the chemistry for a proper romance, although the relationship suits both their history and present emotional state. Overall a 7, maybe 7.5 The best product placement for a car in any show I've seen , also for Uno

Woah! I was just momentarily blinded by the sight of Lee Dong Wook making an appearance in Search www 👀 what a pleasent surprise 😁

Finding the school bully violence in The Uncanny Counter pretty hard to watch. Just starting episode 4. Is it going to continue throughout series or move on to common or garden demon psychopaths?