MsLatté’s Daebak Cybercafé (Kdrama addicts #27): The one where global smash Squid Game launches kdrama into the stratosphere. C’mon in!

[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/Netflix)*
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)
Hometown Cha Cha Cha (Viki)
Love from a Star (Netflix)*
Lovestruck in the City (Netflix)
Monthly Magazine Home (Viki)
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)
Fight For My Way (Viki/Netflix)*
Go Back Couple (Viki)/Couple on the Backtrack (Netflix)
I’ll Go To You When The Weather is Nice (Viki)
It’s OK Not To Be OK (Netflix)

Just Between Lovers (Viki)*
Mad For Each Other (Netflix)
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)
Racket Boys (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/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 ‘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)*

AVOID, AVOID, AVOID aka “the shit list” 💩

Melting Me Softly
The Birth of a Beauty
Well-Intentioned Love season 1 (S2 is fine)

Thread Regulars’ Top Scoring Dramas of 2020
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. 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). 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!

yes, I just discovered you all. I'll be working my way through the list of dramas.

So glad you found us. The more the merrier when it comes to kdrama fans is our philosophy here. No kboo (to steal a phrase from mykoreandic on Insta) left behind. 😄

Boggling that the actress who plays younger her is still only 15 and has already been in eleven billionty a LOT of dramas.

Hi @Annonnimoouse42, welcome to the thread 👋

Welcome & annyeonghaseyo @Annonnimoouse42! 👋

Hi @Annonnimoouse42 welcome to the thread! I'm v behind in Squid Game so have just seen Lee Byung-hun's cameo. I made myself go to bed before the end. Yay me!!

@TheGirlWithTheArabStrap I hope you're enjoying it so far. I binged them all in one go. Violent but so good

I am enjoying it @Annonnimoouse42 but the violence is a bit 😱

This 1,000 year old artifact 14-sided die from Korea with instructions for a drinking game 🎲

Known as a juryeonggu (주령구, lit. “liquor command tool”), each side of the die has an action, like “drink two cups” or “dance without music”.

www.dellacivetta.org/goldandjade/2020/07/05/juryeonggu-14-sided-dice/

[quote JinBhoot]This 1,000 year old artifact 14-sided die from Korea with instructions for a drinking game 🎲

Known as a juryeonggu (주령구, lit. “liquor command tool”), each side of the die has an action, like “drink two cups” or “dance without music”.

www.dellacivetta.org/goldandjade/2020/07/05/juryeonggu-14-sided-dice/[/quote]
That is awesome and I need one in my life.

That is amazing Jin! The koreans sure love their drinking games!

Finished HTCCC and HP season 2, and I loved them both. Like a warm hug from a lovely friend. Ahhhhh.

And now I've started My Name, which is very different but am loving it - and DH loves it too which is a massive bonus. I do need a lovely romance to go alongside it though. Maybe I should revisit DAYS, I just didn't find it really gripped me so sort of tailed off halfway through. Hmmmm. Any suggestions for a good romcom to try?

My absolute faves are Secretary Kim, Fight for My Way, CLOY and Goblin. I know there's lots with Lee Jong Suk that I like the idea of but I find his lips really off-putting for some reason (sorry LJS, I'm sure you're a lovely man).

Is Yumi's Cells worth a go?

Yumi's Cells is fab Larry, it's really nice and a fun show to watch.

My fave^ rom coms are WWWSK, Because this is My First Life, CLOY, Be Melo (more slice of life but I ❤️), Her Private Life, Another Miss Oh, My Contracted Husband Mr Oh, Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo... ^

This year I enjoyed Mad for Each Other.

I've seen most of those Fed but not Melo, weightlifting fairy, another miss oh or my contracted husband. Might give weightlifting fairy a go. Also tempted by yumi's cell, glad to hear it's good rowdy. Thanks both for the recommendations!

Weight Lifting Fairy is a good shout too Larry, very funny and sweet in places

@LarryUnderwood I like her private life, Melo is my nature, secret life of my secretary and shopping king Louis are both very fluffy. Dali and cocky prince is currently airing on Viki and a nice easy romcom. Still 17 is good and on netflix & suspicious partners is also good but not really a rom-com? I'd second mad for each other and I enjoyed you are my spring but it's starts better than it ends!
If you like romance with extra sadness contract marriage is great but be prepared for tears!

And if you've not seen it monthly magazine home is good or 1 the woman is not really a rom com as such but has a lot of comedy and some romance

@TheGirlWithTheArabStrap I'm actually surprised so many people seem to have let children watch The Squid Game. It's far too violent.

I'm going over to Netflix to choose something. Got sidetracked with Ozark yesterday - it's very good too

I've been v productive on my day off today 😂 finished Squid Game and started rewatching Oh My Venus which I am loving!! I'm laughing so much DS came to investigate what was happening 😂

I’m annoyed now that I watched the first 2 episodes of Jirisan over the weekend ‘cause I’d love to binge it. It’s been popping into my head on and off all day. I like the forest woo and Ju Ji-Hoon in those utility trousers with loads of pockets.

@boatyardblues

I’m annoyed now that I watched the first 2 episodes of Jirisan over the weekend ‘cause I’d love to binge it. It’s been popping into my head on and off all day. I like the forest woo and Ju Ji-Hoon in those utility trousers with loads of pockets.

I had to stop myself from starting it for that very reason Boaty. Going to build up some episodes for a good old binge.

Is anyone else finding the King (crown prince’s pops) in The King’s Affection rather attractive? I’m sure I’ve seen him play a twinkly-eyed sageuk noble in something else but mydramalist isn’t jogging my memory. He looks unexceptional in his MDL headshot, but he really suits the wispy sageuk goatee, robes and hat. He’s giving Rowoon a run for his money in perimenopausal eye candy stakes.