MsLatté’s Daebak Cybercafé (Kdrama addicts #36): The one where gluten-free and baguettes stopped being about baked goods. Best leave it at that.

[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
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!

I watched some of Michael Palin’s North Korean show. All I can remember about it is his rather firm, insistent lady minder.

My very very kind colleague who went to Korea for a friend's wedding has brought me back an amazing haul of stuff! I only asked for sheet masks!
I've got a Tata keychain, two big Jimin photo cards, 14 BTS photo cards in a cassette case, BTS dalmajung pins, Permission to Dance washi tape, a BT21 pen (not in photo) AND animal face sheet masks!!

Oh jeez I just watched Matt Hancock peel his top off and shower...
I'M A KDRAMA FAN GET ME OUT OF HERE!

Great haul! Bravo TheGirl's friend 😍

😱🤮

Chef John’s date dish in ep 9 of Love is for Suckers has me foxed. When he mashed the potatoes and mixed them with flour and egg yolk to make dough I thought gnocchi. Then he pan-fried them and served them with a “imagine you are in Madrid” flourish. I’m so confused. What just happened?

There was a ham and onion cream sauce too and THYME!!!

I'm watching ep 7 at the moment, I will watch carefully when it gets up to that bit

What a haul!
We need pics of the face mask when you try one please 😁

I've watched 4 eps of Curtain Call and although invested I'm not overly impressed. Time to dive into love is for suckers as I'm intrigued after skipping to chef John's dumplings. It's Gnocchi Boaty but not as we know it. They were huge!

Pol - Matt Hancock??! Don't do it to yourself.

Will do Aesops 🐯🐻

Amazing haul The Girl! You must be delighted with that!

Pol isn't Matt Hancock the oddest being? I would almost feel sorry for him, except for the fact that he's a scumbag. What were he and ITV thinking?

Looking forward to watching the last episode of Love in Contract. I feel like it's been a while since I actually completed a K drama!

@TheGirlWithTheArabStrap That's the kind of colleague we all need 😀 Amazing! 😍

@polkettle On this occasion I'm glad I can't access British tv. Hancock is grim in every way. UGH! As someone once said 🤔😁

Thegirl, lucky you! I know you're going to have fun with everything.

rowdy, thanks for the tip. Last night I looked for Palin's NK and kept getting that MyC5 was down....but I have Disney+ so it's square eyes day today!

I just flicked it on for a second and THERE WERE HIS NIPS.
Never leaving Seoul again.

Briiiiick is Love in Contract worth persevering with? I watched the first maybe 4 or 5 episodes but couldn't really get into it, although Kim Jae-Young is ridiculously hot, didn't really like the main ML....

I mean, it's no Secretary Kim or Her Private Life, even though it's trying hard to be!

But a reasonable watch, a solid 6. You won't miss out by not bothering 😊

Haha polkettle - Matt Hancock's nips: truly horrifying. Brain bleach needed.

Might start 'Her Private Life' instead, that's been on my watch list for a while...

@TheGirlWithTheArabStrap you have lovely colleagues, loving the selection.
Going on holidays is the best. Do you know what’s the 2nd best thing? Friends returning from holidays with presents.

I have started Behind Every Star
will watch couple of more episodes to form any opinion but one thing for sure it’s not Sh**ting Stars type fluff.

Waiting for AOS season 2.
these days nothing is grabbing my attention.

I've started Behind Every Star too. Only one episode in but it's sticking pretty closely to to French version so far.

I'll give it the Two Episode Method before declaring allegiance or not.

I'm waiting for AoS season 2 as well. I have 4 episodes remaining in season 1 and trying to hold off watching them..... Despite having spoilered myself about the cliffhanger at the end.

Lovely colleague was showing me some photos of the trip today. At the wedding there was a bit where chickens were thrown at the people getting married. She wasn't sure why it happened though 🤣
And she took a picture of this sweatshirt 🤣 I tried to subtly ask if she read manhwa but then ended up explaining why we referred to baguettes. I think she's seen me in a new light 😬 in a good way hopefully

I NEED this sweater.

Like NEED IT.

Hopefully Japan will offer up some bad English goodies for me to bring home 😁

@TheGirlWithTheArabStrap 😂 I don't even read manhwa but can't now see references to baguettes ANYWHERE without spontaneously going 'ooooh matron!' a la Kenneth Williams in my head 🙈😁