MsLatté’s Daebak Cybercafé (Kdrama addicts #24): where we ‘lean in’ to our obsession. Non-judgmental support served up with a side-order of kpop.

[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)*
Lovestruck in the City (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)
To My Star [BL] (Viki)
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)
You Make Me Dance [BL] (Viki)


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)
Doom At Your Service (Viki) - still airing
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)*
Move to Heaven (Netflix)
My Mister (Viki/Netflix)*
My Unfamiliar Family (Viki)*
Navillera (Netflix)*
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
#Alive (Netflix)
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)
Sisyphus (Netflix)
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 ‘You May Also Like’
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)
You Are My Hero (Viki, 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 bum 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…

Gah! Forgot screenshot!

Maybe they're going to leave it open for a further series if it's popular

@JinBhoot Having tried every Korean restaurant in Soho my favourite is Assa (very vegetarian friendly). I also like Soju & co and Olle for barbecues, all in the same area. Do stand in line for Bunsik corn dogs as well!

In Greenwich, there’s only takeaways - Paranhodu and Naru are good but quite far from the dome. If you want to do ingredients shopping you can go to SeeWoo which is close.

Enjoy London!

@KSeason thank you 😊 didn’t think about ingredient shopping - will definitely try to pass by SeeWoo.

It’s Hospital Playlist day and I am in a face to face training session. Can’t wait to go back home & watch ep2.

kseason good to know there is a veggie friendly Korean restaurant 👍

I just absolutely bawled my eyes out at Doom ep 14! 😭 The acting had been excellent in it, I can't wait to see how it all ends now! Please be happy 🙏

@polkettle I think I spotted you on the KTO London twitter photos from yesterday 😃

Ooh Pol that walk and food sound amazing!!
I'm up to date with DAYS now, I really love it. I think they will work a happy ending into it 🤞

@Rowdythree skulking at the back causing trouble like usual 🙄😁

I LOVE HOSPITAL PLAYLIST SO MUCH 💞

although saddened that the UK is apparently a country of impatient posties and racist barristas 🤷‍♀️ Just wait til she works out that Swindon isn't actually London at all because there seems to be confusion and maybe it's a PhD scam.

Hello everyone, I have been having a tv break as I have had rl things going on and didn't want to spoiler myself on DAYS but going to catch up this weekend.

I had a bit of a diversion today and binged 4 episodes of a new Chinese drama Please Be At Ease Mr Ling with Zhao Lu Si, she of Tiger and Rose and I am pleased to inform you that the wine cooler vibrantly coloured drinks from Love 020 now come in cans rather than bottles 🤣🍹🍹🍹

@polkettle the tour and meal sound fabulous! Great job by your friend getting you a place! Film library sounds awesome. Korean films seem to rarely be available on Prime or Netflix (at least compared with TV). I did laugh at the tenuous connection to Son Heung-Min at Tottenham Court Road!

Wotcha Cassini

I am pleased to inform you that the wine cooler vibrantly coloured drinks from Love 020 now come in cans rather than bottles 🤣🍹🍹🍹

This is the kind of random information I love

I was going to take a look at Mr Ling as Rosie Zhao is usually excellent but wasn't immediately taken with ML

He improves and can actually act, the FL could act with our favourite card board cutout and have chemistry 🧪

And I am also #shallow

There is only a handful of counties in the UK (maybe England, vague) that don’t have a university. Wiltshire is one of them. Swindon, my arse.

This is the kind of random information I love smile

Me too!

In kdrama recycling, the proportions of the gumiho’s house in My Roomate is a Gumiho makes me think they used the same set as Chicago Typewriter, but with a do-over.

#shallow is the oil that greases this thread’s engine Cassini.

@polkettle - the tour sounds amazing... Pllleeease say you took Mr Binn along for it. 🙏 Hr could have been the star of the show! 😊

👊 #teamshallow

It's shady Boaty. Very shady. I may have to research higher education options of Swindon to uncover who's pulled a fast one on the Korean military continuing education budget.
No Mr Binn leeloo It was all a mad last-minute dash anyway and one sneaky gatecrasher was enough. Because goodness knows that cardboard man can put away more than his fair share of BBQ pork belly

I’m enjoying the new gumiho drama on Viki. It is perfect for where my head is at.

I'm enjoying the Gumiho drama a bit too much, it's bobbing along nicely at this point (ep 10) and 2ML (who was in my fave web drama XX) is on a par with Park Morgan #teamshallow
Nice secondary characters who start off annoying but become engaging.

I think PBATML is in the same wheelhouse of easy trope driven fluff we can enjoy without engaging our brains 🥰🥰🥰

@Cassini

I think PBATML is in the same wheelhouse of easy trope driven fluff we can enjoy without engaging our brains 🥰🥰🥰

🙋‍♀️ here for this

2 eps of Hospital Playlist and I've cried at both! 😭😭😭😖😖😖... It's lovely watching though I keep waiting for something nasty to happen! But nooo! They're all so lovely and friendly!... Have I been in Korea for too long now as I'm beginning to recognise random songs in dramas that are not BTS!! 😱😱😖😖😖... 😂😂😂

Racket Boys is lovely lovely watching too! The Dad / coach makes me think he's Hyun Bins older brother! 😂😂😂 All lovely heartwarming stuff! ❤️💜❤️💜❤️💜

In some sort of weird synchronicity 2 dramas (Gumiho & PBAEML) I have seen today have featured men watching What's Wrong With Secretary Kim?

Is it some sort of code for characters feeling attraction/lust?