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!

Kinda bored now of Forever and Ever.

Might drop it for^ something more stimulating^.

Making a start on May I Help You.

Already the obligatory cutesy animated opening credits are giving me joy. 🤞 for a good one. I need a 🐝 friendly ending for a change!

I have just put Little Forest on my Christmas list so I can own it and watch it whenever I want.

I've tried to buy it before Boaty but no success finding an edition that would play on our player.
For SHAMEFedUp that's a lot of crab feeding you're going to miss if you bail now. Plus the actual plot after 23 hours! 😉

I'll just trade a break from F&E and go back to it with a reinvigorated desire to watch coats and crabs.

Ooo! Bit late but the cassette case is straight from hybe exhibit! 🥰🥰🥰👍🏼

The last ep was FAB!! 😱😳😊

💜💜💜

I’ve stumbled into When My Love Blooms which is delivering emotional heft and feelz aplenty. After ep 1 I am sufficiently drawn in to keep going. Whoever was charged with drizzling the melo syrup had a slip of the hand here and there, it’s proper syrupy in places. I feel spoiled though: age appropriate oppa Yoo Ju-Tae in the present and Park Jin Young (Yoo Babi off Yumi’s Cells) in the flashbacks. Both FLs are good too.

I am getting a bad feeling in the Bea-friendly ending stakes though, even after 1 episode.

Not watching then!! 😂😱

Bad Prosecuter is recommended for anyone who likes a bit of rumpus at the Prosecution Service... Good fun... Bad baddies... Twists and turns... Excellent supporting cast! 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼😊

are not revealing much, looking forward to 10th December. Will rewatch the S1 just before that.

Under Queen’s Umbrella - why there are no princesses? Was there no female child born? 9 wives yet not a single girl, how is it possible?
I have finished ep9 & it keeps getting better & better, I have no idea where the plot is going & how will it end.
Queen is fabulous- her talk with Prince was just perfect.

@JinBhoot I must crack on with Hotel del Luna so I can watch AOS 1 before the second part comes out (though I assume release here will be delayed as per usual). And I stranded with the vets, but it's the perfect length for watching in my break so will get back into that too!

In other news, my Korean chat groups were going crazy yesterday in response to this: I don't think anyone is ever going to recover from Yoongi's man bun 😲 Biases are being wrecked all over the world 😁But overall....just fantastic. Various members have been criticised for being weaker dancers in the past, but no sign of that here. Chapeau, gentlemen 👌

@Saram13 I think Alchemy of Souls 2 is two a week from Dec 10th.

@polkettle going back ages but vety jealous you got to see Alienoid. I missed out on tickets as I firgotvto cyeck on day of release and the next day it was Sold Out. Haven't managed to see one film this year at the London Korean Film Festival. 😔 Enjoyed it a lot last year.

Watched Train to Busan for the first time at the weekend. Amazing film. And Gong Yoo just gets lovelier.

Started Dr Romantic last night and the first episode is a rollercoaster. ALL the K drama tropes. Loved it.

That choreo video was outstanding!

Two takeaways:

1. Jin saving the day by snatching that errant bandana off the floor before someone did themselves an injury
2. Yoongi would GET IT

Min Yoongi's Man Bun 😍😍

Knowing the size of the ICA screen I put an alarm on my phone sakura 😁
It's still on this week but not sure I'll get to anything else even though there's some I'd like to. I did do the women's short film programme last Sunday - a couple of dramas and a couple of very arty docs which were interesting
I must be on some sort of KCC mailing list because tonight me and lucky DS are going to a freebie event hosted by them with Korean street dancing crews and ADG7 Not entirely sure what it is but should be fun!

@FedUpWithBriiiiick 😱😱😱🤔😻😁

Even covered in blood and zombie guts, Gong Yoo is gorgeous @sakura06 isn't he? I love Train to Busan absolutely the best zombie film around.

I am struggling to finish Love in Contract - I'm on the last episode, but it's not quite the fluffy romcom I imagined. Two very gorgeous males leads though, so there is that.

@polkettle that sounds fab! I clearly need to get on a mailing list. I didn't realise ICA has such a small screen. I will make a note for next year! Last year I saw the closing film at Picturehouse Central and that has a massive screen so it's a shame they didn't put it on there. Kim Tae-ri is my absolute favourite.

@Metheven I completely agree! It was Coffee Prince that brought me to my fandom! Train to Busan phenomenal. 5/5. My first 5* film of the year. A shame am coming to it 6 years late! (The Raid was the best film I saw last year so I have form for this...)

Following on from your news about the London Korean Film Festival (Alienoid sounds amazing, definitely want to see it!) there's a small Korean film festival coming up here later this month. Interestingly, the theme is 'hwa', anger. I've booked to see I'm a Cyborg, But That's OK (2006, Park chan-wook). And Fanatic, a 2021 documentary made by a fan of Jung Joon-young (one of the idols involved in the Burning Sun scandal), reflecting on the fallout from idol scandals and exploring how she feels as a once-devoted fan.

There are also two hands-on workshops - making your own kimchi (I know it's not that hard, but Mr Saram and Junior Saram moan about the smell so am probably better off making it elsewhere🤔) and MAKGEOLLI 😃. Signed up for both 🙌

@Saram13 is there a link or photo in your post re: Korean chat group?
age wise, isint Yoongi next to enlist? I think he is growing hair as a last hurrah before get a military chop cut.

I wonder if military life is extra tough for celebrities. They are someone special to the world but once in military every one is equal and to show who is in charge & in control, superiors’ attitude is very anti-fan.
Its about control & upper hand.

I think doing military service with the whole of the nation watching must be particularly hard with all the pressure to acquit yourself well/better than others. I think that would be one of the biggest disadvantages of going in as an established star. Few seem to get it out of the way early (Park Seo Joon did, I believe) even though you'd think it would be better not to have to take that time out just as your career's starting to take off. For instance, Finland also has mandatory military service so F1 drivers Kimi Raikkonen and Valteri Bottas both served in their late teens before embarking on their F1 careers, which just makes so much more sense to me. Just the physical side of it must be harder at 28 than 20 I would have thought. I don't know if it's harder on celebrities as such, as I think it's pretty hard on everyone, but having the public scrutiny on top must be tough.

BTS practice was so energetic! 😍

Why didn't anyone explain the problem with making kimchi in a Scottish winter? It's now in my bathroom, next to the heated towel rail to get fermentation started. 😜

Coming to the end of Reply1988 💖 and will start an English show next as kdramas I'm watching drop new eps at weekends.