MsLatté’s Daebak Cybercafé (Kdrama addicts #35): Autumn - season of mists, mellow fruitfulness and Woolly Wookiee oppa

[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 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)🌟
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
Alchemy of Souls (Netflix) 🌟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)
Sweat and Soap (Viki, Japanese)
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. Happiness - 9
3. Devil Judge - 8.75
4. Squid Game - 8.63
5. Navillera - 8.57

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

2019’s top scoring dramas

1. Her Private Life - 9.40
2. Melo is My Nature - 9.00

3.= Crash Landing On You, The Crowned Clown, The Lies Within, and The Tale of Nokdu - 8.75

1. Hotel del Luna - 8.50

5.= Romance is a Bonus Book, and Search: WWW - 8.17

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!

C'mon. If they had a wax SSK you'd melt the pants off him.

Argh I was hoping for slightly quicker moves in today's episode, I want to bang their heads together 🤬 she should have just grabbed him for a snog in the peach wine store! 🍑🍷

That sounds like a challenge 😜😂

How long do you think it would take to wear down the wax SSK?

For my 40th birthday in January I demand you all buy me a wax SSK.

Sorry Rowdy "moves" may have been overselling it. But he was quite smouldery. They won't snog til the end because it's just a short thing.

Do we all get a section to hand mould FedUp? I... could do that...

For you, not very long I should think! 😂😉

A cardbosrd SSK is difficult enough to get hold of! I might have to try and sculpt you one out of left over birthday candles 😂😅

A cardboard SSK wouldn't last the day 🤣

I know which section you'd like to handle fnar fnar

I think he did make a move, but she is just like a startled rabbit, so nowt happened. I'm not worried about how this one is going to turn out 😊

Yeah yeah yeah!!!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LoveThattWillFreezeeto_Death

Looks gooooood. 2FL

I am also in slump, nothing is grabbing my attention. Work is busier then usual & Monday’s bank holiday has completely thrown me off. Every working minute is precious these days.
I should be relaxing & winding down with some lovely Kdramas but I am not.
Was thinking about the drama I have enjoyed in recently & there was a common theme … good friendship support (Hospital playlist, AOS, Business Proposal etc). They all are young & have really fun friends. Which led me to the next part of my thought process (bear with me, in my head this trail makes sense). Perhaps I enjoy what I lack in real life hence find escapism in these fictional stories. Some days it makes me really sad that I don’t have any friends nearby so I can hang out with them.
That led to the next point > are these dramas reflection of Korean society? Are people always that happy, cheerful & have a great support network?
Or society is more closer to Misaeng, MLN, My Mister, Something in the rain etc and these cheerful dramas are escapism from reality?
thank you for reading so far. I had another thought, which I will share later.

I'm sorry about your lack of local chingus Jin and send you a virtual fingerheart, bottle of sojuvand kimchi pancake to share
It's probably wrong to comment on your question as I am neither Korean not have been to Korea but it does seem to be a society where loyalty to the group is placed above individual needs - whether family, school, workplace, club etc To me, many dramas explore that as a theme. And it can be a great source of strength or of confinement or of exclusion...

I often wonder how much of kdrama is an idealised S Korea as they’d wish it to be, and how much the reality deviates. Agree with Pol about focus on social bond and group identity over the individual. It’s so consistent, I have assumed it is the ideal. Whether it can withstand the pressures of modern life is another matter.

JIn I am also in a drama slump and find that manhwa is supplying all the kdrama feels that are missing at the moment....I particularly enjoyed My Cute Beast which had all the tropes including evil scheming exes, but was nicely low-stakes on the main romance with a side of great friendship building and support network - so that is a feature in manhwa as well as kdrama, interestingly enough.

Having said that, I did enjoy the first ep of Love In Contract in spite of not being a fan of yer man from Chicago Typewriter. He plays blank very well. Also liked her roommate & back story.

Episode 3 of Little Women. Laughing at the stinginess of the politician man barbecuing and cutting up one measly steak 🤣

@JinBhoot Virtual soju and honey butter chips from me too 💜

I too have not yet been to Korea, and my knowledge of it is limited. But here are my thoughts.

I totally agree with Pol and Boatyard on the importance of loyalty to the group in Korea, and how we very much see that reflected in many K-dramas. However at the same time I would focus in on what Pol says about that potentially being a source of exclusion, if you're not on the right side of the fence as it were. And Boatyard's suggestion that, while it may be an ideal (and the driving force behind the country's astounding post-war development), there's no saying actual life is experienced like that. I think we're all aware of how hierarchical Korean society is, the immense pressure on people to perform and conform, and how harsh it can be on anyone considered to have stepped out of line.

On a similar note, I think it was Migs who linked to some interesting articles on Korean society and how a particular group of tourists can get a very rude awakening when they travel to the country hoping to meet the love of their life. My teacher in fact asked my class if we idealised life in Korea and dreamed about living there, and we were all quite clear that we didn't. (She was not at all offended by this, incidentally. She thought it was nuts that people would take it all at face value.) It's a country packed full of contradictions, which for me is definitely part of the fascination.

So what it boils down to is I think K-dramas are just as aspirational and escapist for most Koreans as they are for us. And genuinely give people alot of comfort. @polkettle I think you touched on this theme in your interview for your son's friend's podcast - the comfort they provide, and the virtual or real friendships and connections they inspire. That has definitely been my experience.

Jin, I hope you are feeling better soon. And long may we continue to enjoy everything Korean 🙂

Sorry you're feeling blue @JinBhoot . It seems to me that most Kdrama is a fantasy. Given S Korea has some of the highest suicide rates and lowest marriage fertility rates in the world, plus some of the longest working hours, and is highly patriarchal, I imagine the need for escapist wish-fulfilment is high. Its interesting that so much kdrama is written by women, and that it focuses so frequently on female friendships. That's one of the things I love as I think it is such a departure from British TV. But I think they are 2 sides of the same coin: kdrama (perhaps) fills a void in women's lives due to the sexist society they live in; and British TV (perhaps) focuses on the male gaze and male perspective because of the sexist society we live in.

The fact that we can get from moulding a filthy wax oppa to the inequities of a patriarchal and fast industrialised society on the same page is one of the reasons I love this chat.

😂🙌 Tonal chaos, anyone? 🤔

Fascinating chat Chingus, I imagine many people (women in particular) do fantasise about moving to Korea and finding a gorgeous, kind, rich Oppa to sweep them off their feet, as that is what we're told Korea is like if you view the country through the lens of romantic dramas. I recall someone sharing an article about women who have gone there with these hopes and dreams and come down to earth with a massive bump when they get there. I agree with others that putting the group before the individual does have some benefits, but it can become stifling and we've all seen the portrayals of characters who don't fit into the group identity and how they are treated.

I would like to see more documentaries about real life Korea, particularly about those who don't fit into the idealistic view of a Korean citizen. For example teenage parents. I really enjoyed watching the documentary about the Korean gay men's choir, so hopefully we can see the other side of Korea in this way.

K dramas must have done wonders for the country's tourism though, well done to them for that 👏

Jin, if you check out Quora, you will see answers from Koreans on the subject of depicting reality in kdramas. I'm on this thread because apart from one sister, I have no one to discuss kdramas with, as none of my friends watch them.

My take is that the opposite side of the coin of the Hallyu wave is a reciprocal influence of western, primarily American, culture and ideas of equality, on younger people. More women are choosing to reject their country's patriarchal culture by refusing to marry and carry the burden of the extended family that entails, or have children. However, Confucian ideas of a strict hierarchy both in society and family and knowing and adhering to your place remains strong. Something in me believes that SK is at a point in its culture, whether it's a wobble or a step change, and only time will reveal if it leads to a increase in individualism and social acceptance of that.

Apart from what I consider to be more realistic shows like MLN, many kdramas are pure escapism, full of Cinderella tropes, beautiful people and enjoyable OSTs. This is not to say that some depictions or contexts are not realistic. An interesting point is that as shows are aired while episodes are still being filmed, it is possible for storylines to be manipulated depending on the positive or negative reactions of viewers.

I just find a lot of UK and US drama is either very cynical or very dark and depressing these days. I like the way kdramas often depict ordinary working class lives with warmth and humour. There's also a strong visual aesthetic that you also see in cdramas, backdrops are beautifully framed and frequently stunning. It's not like we can't make tv like this - Detectorists for instance shares both the warmth and humour of every day life and beautiful natural settings - it just seems we mostly choose not to.

My guess, and it's only a guess, is it's a reflection of a relatively young entertainment industry in a relatively young democracy. They still have a lot to say - about love, life and everything - that they have only recently gained the freedom to say. And that enthusiasm is infectious, even when the results are variable, especially when contrasted with the jaded soullessness of a lot of modern US and UK content.

Great reading these posts. We truly are The Best Thread on MN(c)