MsLatté’s Daebak Cybercafé (Kdrama addicts #34): July brings internal conflict. Make the most of sunshine and the long days, or keep on top of your kdrama? 🤔

[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 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 a star 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)🌟
My Liberation Notes🌟
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)
Our Blues (Netflix)🌟
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.

The Red Sleeve - 10
Happiness - 9
Devil Judge - 8.75
Squid Game - 8.63
Navillera - 8.57

2020’s top scoring dramas
Mr Queen - 9.4
Parasite - 9.05
It's Okay To Not Be Okay - 8.88
The Uncanny Counter - 8.50
Once Again - 8.42

2019’s top scoring dramas:
Her Private Life - 9.40
Melo is My Nature - 9.00
Tied 3rd: Crash Landing On You, The Crowned Clown, The Lies Within, and The Tale of Nokdu - 8.75
Hotel del Luna - 8.50
Tied 5th: Romance is a Bonus Book, and Search: WWW

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 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!

The German safe cracker and the Indian bride are my favourite pairing, they have great chemistry! Tuppence Middleton is also stunning.

Evening chingus! I'm back from my holiday with a lovely dose of covid 😷
Just catching up on the thread 🤯 at that SSK montage
I also enjoyed My Fellow Citizens and Sense8
I'm up to date with AOS and I'm hoping the last few episodes will be worth the wait 🤞

Oh no Thegirl feel better soon 💐

Thanks Rowdy 😊

Hope you feel better soon, TheGirl and have a nice convalescence watching k dramas.

Thanks Andante, I've just watched episode 4 of Cafe Minamdang after not watching it for a while. It is very funny. I don't think it'll be long before the FL gets suspicious that the cranky shaman isn't all that he seems

Get well soon TheGirlWithTheArabStrap I hope your symptoms are mild.

Get well soon TheGirl! Take it easy x

I hope you feel better quickly TheGirl. 💐 Think of your recovery period as guilt-free kdrama time.

Thanks everyone 🥰 I'm realised I only feel really rubbish if I stand up and do things. I'm fine if I stay laying on the couch 😁

@TheGirlWithTheArabStrap sorry you're feeling rubbish. 💐

As long as the remote is in reach, you stay put. 😁

That’s a sound advice & perfect antidote.
Get well soon @TheGirlWithTheArabStrap💐

Thanks for the good advice all ☺️ I'm watching ep 5 of Cafe Minamdang at the moment. The theme music sounds really familiar. I'm trying to remember what drama it's reminding me of 🧐

Gat well soon TheGirl. K dramas are perfect recuperation fodder.

I’m still caning my new Manta sub. It’s had a knock-on impact on my grown up reading (no pictures) and kdrama viewing.

Pol after your post abt Sung Dong Il,'s face lift, I went online to have a look-see and this CNN report popped up. I had not realised "ghost doctors" really existed!!
SK Ghost doctors

Aigoo Miggs that's grim. They'd have been much better off with Sung Dong-il's type of more literal ghost doctor. And goodness the contradictions of SK are endlessly fascinating if sometimes uncomfortable.
On holiday Abroad and Woo is a few episodes behind here on Abroad Netflix so won't be able to catch up until home but I have read Concerning My Daughter by Kim Hye-jin today which is ANOTHER beautifully-written-but-brutal-reality-of-womens-lives-and-engrained-homophobia SK book. I have a shelf full now...

That's a very grim read Migs, that poor young man. I vaguely remember a drama plot where a doctor was operating under other doctors names, it may have been Doctor Romantic 🤔

Thanks again for another book recommendation Pol, I need a new book, I keep reading absolute trash lately.

Exam result stress for us this morning, but it was all good, and DD has BTS to thanks for her choices. After listening to the song Dionysus DD got really interested in the Greek Gods and studied Classical civilisation! So you never know where these things can take you 😁

Thanks again for another book recommendation Pol, I need a new book, I keep reading absolute trash lately.

Same here.

I read The Disaster Tourist by Yun Ko-eun recently. It was a good concept. The book felt a bit uneven and under-developed. I’m never sure how much gets lost in the translation process, mind. It was savage about developed countries seeing less developed economies as a playground. With the right screenwriter and director, it would make a great social satire like Parasite.

Congratulations to DD, Rowdy.
I can remember the stress of results day as if it was yesterday.

Rowdy, the ML in Doctor, Lawyer was a ghost doctor and I seem to remember another kdrama where the medical equipment salesman was doing surgery. I thought it was all from the writer's imagination and never thought such a thing could ever happen irl!

Pol, I've now bought Concerning My Daughter as an audiobook; would you be willing to share your SK reading list? I have eye operations coming up in a couple of months, so stocking up on audio books for my walks, as I can't do gym classes during the healing period.

No spoilers, but I wanted to say how satisfied I was with the finale of EAW. I swear that in this drama, Jin-ho is prettier than Attorney Woo!!!

Boaty, I'm going to order The Disaster Tourist. I note that Gambia now wants to stop the sex tourism of European "grannies".

If you have spreadsheet access Miggs I've added books to a sheet on there. (Boaty will provide if not)
I enjoyed the bonkersness satire of The Disaster Tourist. All too real. Agree both on film possibilities and the possible underdevelopment.
Have also brought The Old Woman With the Knife by Gu Byeong Mo on holiday so will report back on that. It's about a 65 year old female assassin. Once again SK gives voice to those not often featured in western literature...

I feel I should insert a trigger warning about the first person narrator of Concerning my Daughter expressing quite rampant (but probably depressingly authentic) homophobia. And another TW for dementia content. Nevertheless there is healing and it ends with comfort and I found it moving.