MsLatté’s Daebak Cybercafé (Kdrama addicts #39): February sees the Filthy Noonas warmed by the smouldering embers of Jin’s leather trousers

[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)
Little Women (Netflix)
My Name (Netflix)
My Secret Terrius (Netflix)🌟
Signal (Netflix)🌟
Somebody (Netflix, content warning: sexual & violence)
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 Forbidden Marriage (Viki)
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 (Netflix)🌟
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
Gaus Electronics (Viki)🌟
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)
Sell Your Haunted House (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)
First Love (Netflix - Japanese)🌟
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)
Meet Yourself (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 Makanai (Netflix, 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)

Top Scoring 2022 Dramas
Courtesy of much-missed Hello’s kdrama spreadsheet, updated by thread regulars. Marks out of 10.

#1 My Liberation Notes 9.45

#2Alchemy of Souls 9.10

#3 First Love 8.88 (Jdrama)

#4 Our Blues 8.83

#5 Gaus Electronics 8.75

Top Scoring 2021 Dramas
#1 The Red Sleeve - 10
#2 Happiness - 9
#3 Devil Judge - 8.75
#4 Squid Game - 8.6
#5 Navillera - 8.57

Top Scoring 2020 dramas
#1 Mr Queen - 9.4
#2 Parasite (film) - 9.05
#3 It's Okay To Not Be Okay - 8.88
#4 The Uncanny Counter - 8.50
#5 Once Again - 8.42

Top Scoring 2019 dramas
#1 Her Private Life - 9.40
#2 Melo is My Nature - 9.00
#3 tied: Crash Landing On You, The Crowned Clown, The Lies Within, and The Tale of Nokdu - 8.75
#4 Hotel del Luna - 8.50
#5 tied: Romance is a Bonus Book, and Search: WWW - 8.17

We are fans of all things Korean, so equally happy to talk about Korean cookery, language, current affairs, film and music when the mood takes us. A few of us are learning Korean, Japanese and/or Mandarin (some more diligently than others), so we swap tips and links to language resources. Basically, anything topical goes.

We often resort to acronyms and/or abbreviations of show titles or 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 loved watching him in Jack in the Box, so feel extra sad he’ll be enlisting. 🤞he’ll be doing some admin duties in a nice safe office. 🤞

I’m loving LtHU - beautiful and age appropriate 2ml! And CciR too. It feels like ages since I’ve been so happy watching shows. What is Melo called on Netflix please? I think I’ll line that up to watch next. I’m halfway through moment of 18, but it isn’t as gripping as the other new shows.

Leeloo1 She also had her moments of being a pushy mother in CLOY, iirc.

She reminds me of Ryan Gosling in The Big Short and La La Land; he obviously was playing a different character but he managed to sound completely different and look completely different in the two films.
It took me ages to twig that Kim Sun Young in CCiR was the North Korean ajumma from CLOY.

@leeloo1 - which is the drama with the separated at birth twins where the boy is killed and the girl has to take his place and is obviously 2 foot shorter than all the men? Was it the one with Rowoon being all pretty and skippy?

That would be The King's Affection and yep, I really struggled with that one too. I mean Rowoon is 6'3" ffs, so whenever she stood next to him she looked even shorter!

leeloo I think it's Be Melodramatic on Netflix 👍

I'm still low-key not ok about Hobi - although I think he will be fine he is so likeable and positive and gives 100% to everything.

Yes! Cobol The Kings Affection I was trying to think of the title - another one where every needs their eyes tested 🤣

sorry typo - 'everyone needs their eyes tested' that should read..

I am also watching Moment of 18.
I think JK will enlist soon but if they all are releasing album before enlisting then JK is last.
V’s solo is also pending.

@Andante57 - absolutely, it’s the sign of an accomplished actress when it takes you a while to place them. I was the same wracking my brains before I remembered she had been in CLOY. I think I just switched dramas at an inopportune time as in Moment at 18 she was driving her child and had long hair and then in CCiR she was also driving her child but had short hair, so it was a proper double take moment. 🤣 i guess there are a lot of Oma roles for ladies of a certain age!

@cobol - ah thank you, yes The Kings Affection! It was a very pretty drama, but a lot of suspension of disbelief needed. 🙈 wasn’t that also the one where there was a Secret Garden moment - as no one had noticed the full on house hidden behind a not very well hidden gate in the wall?

@TheLoupGarou - many thanks. I’m going to be good and go to bed instead of catching up on the last episode of CCiR (what a cliffhanger!!), but have added Be Melodramatic to my watch list first. I’ve heard it be recommended so many times over the years that it’ll be great to finally watch it. 😊

Did bato wipe anyone else’s history on their landing page? I suspect it’s to do with their upgrade as I haven’t touched my cookies. In some respects it’s probably for the best, but it’s going to take a while to find all the weekly updated series I was following.

Yep. 😖

I'm currently watching Call it Love on Disney+; two episodes have dropped and it looks promising with Lee Sung Kyung (Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo) as FL. It's marketed as a Romance/Melodrama.

Halfway into ep 4 Melo and I'm still not feeling it, but will persist as sometimes one's opinion can be affected by other shows you're watching at the same time, plus good reviews here.

In a moment of madness I bought a case of Mogu Mogu and will probably make myself sick by drinking/chewing it all. 🤢 8% sugar!

JHope In the Box made me feel sorry for Hobi the pressure all the boys must put themselves under to succeed. The scenes with Jimin exemplified the deep friendships that must have developed between individual band members and was very heart warming.💜

BBC News - Physical 100: Are K-reality shows the next Korean cultural trend?
www.bbc.co.uk/news/64741961

Physical 100 made the BBC!

Jinny's Kitchen got mentioned as well 🙂 I definitely like the family viewing aspect of the reality/variety format. As well as Physical 100 my kids absolutely loved the Run for the Money that had Minho from Shinee (I know that one is Japanese not Korean but still)...

Migs I loved the bits with Jimin in J Hope in The Box - such a genuine and supportive friendship. 💜

@MigsandTiggs I didn’t enjoy the Melo either. I am watching it again in a hope that I’ll enjoy it as first time around was in my early Kdrama watching day. So far NOPES …. writer is getting on my nerves, her & director’s scenes are not funny anymore.

Moment of 18 open class - backbencher boy with the glasses ahahaha

CCiR - last night watched both episodes and went to bed at 2:30. It’s going to be a looooong Monday.

BBC News - Thai drug dealer had plastic surgery to look like Korean man, police say
www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-64782024

⬆️This guys surgeon did a great job 🤣

Jin fighting for today 💪 CCiR was good though, I'm looking forward to seeing how it all wraps up next week

Rowdy 🤣🤣🤣

🤣 I think I wouldn't be able to sell enough drugs to pay for the amount of surgery required to make me meet the Korean beauty standard, alas!

Best advert for a surgeon ever. Hope whoever it is makes great use of those Before and Afters 😂 It's like Face Off!
Finishing up CDrama Lighter and Princess with quite a lot of skippety skipping. It's quite a meaty revenge thriller (excellent baddy force-feeding his wife an egg scene) and some pretty 🔥 chemistry too but suffers from being about computer programming and there is just nothing compelling about on screen coding or watching an admittedly hot nerd type on a keyboard for episode after episode. He even gets an authentic but again Not Sexy lumbar spinal collapse.

Thanks for that Jin, I too find that character in Melo annoying, so back on the back burner it goes. That is what is great about this thread- it helps you make IMPORTANT decisions 😆

I am hampered by sturdy lass build. With enough surgery, a fake beard and more machismo I might pass as an ahjussi. I am not dainty enough to ever convincingly meet Korean female beauty standards, even without the menopausal middle aged spread. 😂

I can totally see how it’s not for everyone. It’s very arch and the two leads are wilfully unlikeable and flawed in numerous ways, but somehow it just spoke to my inner black-hearted misanthrope and made me laugh like a drain. I still love it.

Speaking of my inner misanthrope, I had a particularly wearing week last week. I was grumbling ranting to DH last night that I was shattered and said I feel grumpy and fed up about more things than not these days. He said he feels exactly the same. Maybe it comes to all of us. I never realised Victor Meldrew’s character had such realism. Younger me thought he was a caricature, played for laughs. Now I’m morphing into him.