MsLatté’s Daebak Cybercafé (Kdrama addicts #32): Spring is in the air, it’s blossom season and the BinJin wedding was lovely. Happiness abounds!

[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, AppleTV and Disney+. There are also platforms streaming content illegally if you go looking. We don’t actively promote them as they are peppered with pop-ups of “Olga” and friends offering a good time, but we can point you in the right direction. We also dip into Japanese, Taiwanese & Chinese drama as & when.

The previous thread is here but our list 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. Writer/actor Simon Pegg referred to it fondly as “tonal chaos” - it’s part of kdrama’s charm. View the categories below as best approximate & ask if you need guidance about suitability for younger viewers.

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 Name (Netflix)
My Secret Terrius (Netflix)*
Signal (Netflix)*
Snowdrop (Disney+)
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)
Pachinko (AppleTV)
Rookie Historian Goo Hae-Ryung (Netflix)
Tale of Nokdu (Viki/Netflix)*
The King’s Affection (Netflix)
The Red Sleeve (Viki)*

Romance - lighter & fluffier
Beating Again (Netflix)
Business Proposal (Netflix)
Coffee Prince (Netflix)
Dali & the Cocky Prince (Viki)
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)
Twenty-five Twenty-one (Netflix)*
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)
Yumi’s Cells (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)/Rain or Shine (Netflix)*
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, Netflix)*

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)*
Hospital Playlist 2 (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)*

On The Verge of Insanity (Viki)
Once Again (Viki)
Stove League (Viki)/Hot Stove League (Netflix)
Racket Boys (Netflix)
Would You Like a Cup of Coffee (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)
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)*
Happiness* (Viki)
Hotel del Luna (Viki/Netflix)*
King: The Eternal Monarch (Netflix)
Kingdom (Netflix)*
Kingdom: Ashin of the North (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)
In House Marriage Honey (Viki, Japanese)
In Time With You (Viki - Japanese)
Instead of Tipsy Why Not Get Drunk (Viki, Chinese)
Lost Romance (Viki, Taiwanese)
Love O2O (Viki, Chinese)
Million Yen Women (Netflix, Japanese)
Morning Call (Netflix, Japanese)
My Little Happiness (Viki, Chinese)
Put Your Head on My Shoulder (Netflix, Chinese)
Rinko Wants To Try (Viki)
Some Day or One Day (Viki, Taiwanese)
The Romance of Tiger & Rose (Viki, Chinese)
To Fly with Me (Viki, Chinese)
Tientsin Mystic (Netflix, Chinese)
You Are My Hero (Viki, Chinese)*

AVOID aka “the shit list” 💩

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

Posters’ Top Scoring 2021 Dramas
Courtesy of Hello’s kdrama spreadsheet, updated by thread regulars. Marks out of 10.

1. The Red Sleeve - 10 (2 votes, more pending)
2. Happiness - 9 (6 votes)
3. Devil Judge - 8.75 (3 votes)
4. Squid Game - 8.63 (12 votes)
5. Navillera - 8.57 (7 votes)

2020’s top scoring dramas
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, writers, film and music when the mood takes us. We have some ARMY (BTS fans) among our regulars. Some 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 sometimes resort to acronyms and/or abbreviations of show titles or favourite actors’ names. 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 we did! 😁 I'm going to catch up on the semi finals tonight

Nothing special bought Rowdy, just stocking up on spices.

The supermarket only sells alcohol to licensed restaurants. When I told them I identified as a licensed restaurant, they, alas, remained unmoved.

YY to Eurovision.

I'm going to take a wild stab in the dark and say that Ukraine will win 🇺🇦

Thoughts and prayers FedUp! You need a decent soju outlet in your neck of the woods, and soon. 🙏

Good call on Ukraine FedUp. I’m going to take a wild guess at the UK scoring <10 points. I’m not confident in calling an outright zero, but I definitely weighed it up.

I just watched the Ukrainian entry, it's really good! I think they will probably win, but someone will have to host it for them next year (please be us so I can go 🙏) I reckon we're going to do well this year! If we get zero points, I will definitely cry 😭😂

I just dipped my toe into The Sound of Magic. There’s spontaneous singing and hoofing. I’m not sure how long I can hold out (the horror! I’m allergic to musicals) but I feel the need to see JCW in his swooshy magician’s cloak at least once.

In small doses, Boaty. Thon Rowdy one is a terrible influence. I'm still hungover from our virtual soju session...

I wonder where JCW’s Grrr went. This one’s another puzzler. Does his agent need a kick up the backside?

Me and DH have stayed up watching YouTube 😅 I'm going to regret this in the morning 🍻🍻🍻🍻 I only made him watch That That once 🤣
Jilly Cooper was a v formative part of my teenage life. I can still quote parts of The Man Who Made Husband's Jealous but Rivals is also a favourite

Rowdy nice you've signed up for the talk too!

Normally I'm well into all things Eurovision, but it's passed me by somewhat this year. Some friends are coming to ours to watch it. But it will just be with DH as I will be out at.....a Korean film 😀 There's an Asian cinema festival on here at the moment, and this will be my second Korean film of the week.

I'm loving all the love for Jilly Cooper 🤩 What with that, Eurovision and industrial heritage crossover - now I know why I felt at home reading this thread even before I joined 😁

In other Korean news - we recently saw the 'alternative K-pop' group Balming Tiger. They will be playing Bristol, Birmingham, Leeds and London next week. Highly recommended if any of you are anywhere near. They're distinctly weird and wonderful. The lead rapper, Omega Sapien, is excellent, as are their group numbers. It was only after I booked the concert that I found out Namjoon had recently tipped them as one to watch. And lo, the circle is round 😁

Balming Tiger - JUST FUN! For anyone who is curious 🙂

DH shared this with me: www.nippon.com/en/features/h00124/ It’s lovely but extremely concise. Global warming must be playing havoc with such an orderly progression of the seasons.

I enjoyed that video Saram 😊
And the list of mini seasons is beautiful boaty

I like the singing frogs, although it immediately brought MLN’s popping frogs to mind again.

Hey chingus! This new update has played havoc with my (already poor) ability to keep up with threads, as it kept losing my bookmarked pages so I’ve spent much time scrolling… 🙄

I loved the Sound of Music - didn’t really know Jcw (I’m afraid to move away from this page in case I lose my post, so apologies if I mess up names …) from anything else and adored him as the magician - that vulnerable beauty really gets to me! The singing gets less as the episodes go on (good or bad depending on your viewpoint) and the ending feels a bit rushed, but puts a new spin on everything and does pull all the strands together. Make sure you watch til after the credits on the last episode for an extra surprise. ☺️

I also really enjoyed the show about the death cleaners (again apologies for bad memory and fear of losing my post) - though I feel I need a second series. I watched the first couple of episodes of our blues, but don’t like the direction it’s going in… and judging by the posts here I might be better off leaving that and starting Mln instead.

I am finally finishing off strong girl bong joon though, but mr ahn’s ears are starting to bother me (shallow I know) as they’re too small and elvish. I had this problem with Full house too - all of a sudden there was an episode where the ml looked like he had elephant ears coming out from under his hair and it put me right off watching. 😬

Andante - good luck on your sk adventure and I hope it’s improved now you’re there. 🤞

Move to heaven was the death cleaners one - such a clever premise and could easily have carried one episode per death/mystery I thought , without the extra plot.

Yes Move to Heaven was fantastic. That we actor (did Racket Boys as well) is great.

I am finally finishing off strong girl bong joon though, but mr ahn’s ears are starting to bother me (shallow I know) as they’re too small and elvish.

You are not alone in this, although post military service Park Hyung-Sik is much more my cup of tea. Maybe it’s that he’s more manly so I can overlook his ears. 😄

😂 I've still got some soju in the fridge, I'm tempted to get it out for Eurovision bingo 😜

I'd quite like to go and see Balming Tiger Saram, they look interesting! I don't have anyone to go with though, as DD is studying hard for her A levels (she's far more conscientious than I was😜) and I don't think it would be Dh's Cup of tea.

Hi Leeloo, good to see you, I hope you get your bookmarking sorted, so annoying! I haven't been tempted to try the Sound of Magic, but it sounds quite nice, and maybe I'll like JCW in it.

I've got really behind on Our Blues and MLN, hopefully I can catch up a little tomorrow.

Meanwhile, it's nearly time for EUROVISION!! 🎉🎉

What a night! Liverpool win FA cup, and Eurovision on the way!

Sorry K-dramas. One night off. It's a special occasion for the Filthy Noonas.

I managed to watch to within the last 15 mins of MLN. I’m up to Lee Min Ki giving exGF a lift. It’s been amazing so far. Gu and Mi-Yeong’s night time walk was brilliantly done. I’ve had to drop off and start Eurovision with my family.

Finally a realistic car parking scene in a KDrama!
Eurovision post Gu here too.

Hope you have the new thread lined up Boaty, methinks it's going to be busy on the threat tonight!

*thread