MsLatté’s Daebak Cybercafé (Kdrama addicts #40): The Filthy Noonas’ rapidly expanding flock gambol into spring with a giddiness only matched by Junkook’s drunken vlives

[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)
Our Blooming Youth (Viki)
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/Netflix)
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 Course in Romance (Netflix)
Crash Landing on You (Netflix)🌟Descendants of the Sun (Viki/Netflix)
Doctors (Netflix)
Doom At Your Service (Viki)
Extraordinary Attorney Woo (Netflix)
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
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)🌟
Delivery Man (Viki)
Happiness (Viki/Netflix)🌟
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’
We 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
Coutrtesy of much-missed Hello’s kdrama spreadsheet, updated by thread regulars. Marks out of 10.
#1 My Liberation Notes 9.45
#2 Alchemy 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 - 9.42
#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!

HeartandSeoul - good reminder, I need to book. Persuading one of my 17yr olds to come with me by convincing her it will be help her understanding of international business, as she wants to do a Business degree next year.

Is that the one where he has... bowel issues? 😬 I nearly gave up on it at first, but after the first few episodes the toilet issues went away. From what I remember it was like a giant Mini advertisement 😆 I'm not keen on Ahn Jae Hyun either and this show did got improve my opinion of him. I did like the FL and her brothers though.

Pol Is DR3 available to watch now?

DH and I are really enjoying Taxi Driver 2, it such a fun show, I love the 80s theme tune too 🎶

Only on HiTV or Olga's Rowdy.

Arse

Dragonrock I highly recommend you both go. I think it only runs until June, so not too long left. If you feel brave then I advise you to have a go at the dance video 😁.

Cobol thank you. Hi to you too 👋🏻😊!

The backlash in SK against Risqué Business Japan has started 😔
netflix-risque-business-japan-fire-praising-adult-video-stars-despite-adult-content-distribution-illegal-in-korea

Migs well I guess we could see that coming. I've just got one episode left and am finding it an entertaining and informative watch. I think the presenters are doing a really good job. Also thought the AV stars came across well, in the sense that they were surprisingly level-headed and (as you said up thread) were keen to emphasis that they were selling a fantasy, not reality. Although I understand there is a place for it, applaud the pragmatism of the Japanese approach to the sex industry, and always try to adopt a live-and-let-live approach, the less savoury side of the industry does bother me (coercion, objectification). At least we know these particular ladies are making a good living out of it.

Has anyone else see the episode on the male host club yet? (A few spoilers I guess coming up, so avoid if you don't want to know anything about the content) The guy actually said 'we're idols you can meet'. They charged about 20 quid a throw for an 'introductory' visit, but once you'd identified your favourite it was at least 120 quid from then on in [whistles] Pricey stuff. Again, they seemed to be very good at what they did, and they're clearly meeting a need, so good luck to them. But I don't think I could take it seriously. I wonder when they said they were allowed to exchange numbers with clients they were alluding to....extra services....? 😳 Roland seemed quite a character. I would be advising him against that hair though, for a start 😁 Looked like a fire hazard, if nothing else 😂

Segueing on nicely from this 😁 TheLoup my course chingu tells me the D-Day concert from Kanagawa on Sat 3 June is due to be broadcast live in cinemas worldwide. Hope this is correct! Although I fear it's going to clash with my last lesson before the level 3 Korean exam 😭

Woohoo 🙌 although I won't hold my breath for a NI cinema venue < wistful > hope it doesn't clash with your lesson Saram ....

Apparently Suga on Jimmy Fallon was good - haven't seen any clips or anything as I was back in work today. I'm guessing Jimin didn't show up to the met gala as I've not heard/read anything about it?

TheLoup no Jimin or Yoongi at the Met apparently. I will watch Jimmy Fallon tonight 💜

Ancient visiting relative loves both Jack in the Box and D-Day 🙌 😁 arrived here as a J-Hope stan (loves the J.Cole collab) and is now moving to the Yoongi dark side thanks to the documentary and 'Snooze'. My work here is done 😁

Good work bringing your relative to the dark side! I'm glad the guys didn't go to the met gala - I didn't think celebrity schmoozing would have been their scene/something they would have been particularly comfortable with.

RBJ Spoiler ‼️
Saram, the outstanding takeaway for me was that becoming a host was seen as a perfectly normal choice if you came from a poor or uneducated background and was willing to work hard and wanted to be successful in life. I was astounded that someone with a Law degree would do that, but then it's hard even in the U.K. to get an internship/pupillage without the right connections.
Imagine being a a school
Careers Advisor and having to discuss the pros and cons of working in this field , to a teenager!!

Following on from the article Migs linked to recently about the suicide crisis in SK, the state broadcaster here has been making a series of short films looking at Korean/K-pop culture. The latest looked at the wider context of Moonbin's suicide and the pressure on young people in Korea. (I would link, but unfortunately it's not in English.)

What surprised me in this film was: 1) They were explicit about government encouragement of/support for K-pop as almost a propaganda tool if you will, specifically to combat the plumeting birth rate (it implied the government was hoping non-Koreans would move over there, either as working immigrants or to have children with Koreans I guess). 2) Suicide figures are highest among young people (which I think they defined as 20-25). But after that it was the category 80+. As apparently there is next to no support in terms of pensions or healthcare for the elderly, and they are loathe to ask for help and terrified of becoming a burden, so some prefer to kill themselves. 3) There is a bridge in Seoul called 'suicide bridge', for sadly obvious reasons. There are numerous SOS telephones postioned along its length, 'positive' messages and cliched pictures of happy families featured on the railings (I would have thought that would depress you more if you were already planning suicide....) and a dedicated team patrolling the waters around it 24/7.

A Korean specialist from a leading university here had lived and studied in Korea for some years and said she actively chose to return to this country as it was such an intensely competitive 'dog-eat-dog' society there. It certainly looks as if Koreans need the escapism of K-dramas at least as much as we do.

There's a new shexsy J-drama omnibus series on Viki @polkettle: The Night I Became an Animal.

I started My Perfect Stranger on Viki, it’s yer mad kdrama mix of serial killer & timey wimey confusion.
Nice to see the Time Tunnel again 😂

Top news FedUp. Just made myself a cup of tea too.

Saram, please dm me a link to the broadcast. A good friend speaks the language in question.
Yesterday a clip of Moonbin and another Astro member dancing came up on my ig feed. One of the comments was a laughing "one's all minimalist and the other's giving it life". The one putting his all into it was Moonbin. As a mother, it made me want to 😢
Hallyu promotion increases SK soft power and becomes increasingly important as world economies shrink, as they are doing now. Note that EU exports are up.
https://www.asiafinancial.com/s-korea-exports-sink-for-seventh-month-china-sales-slump

Gov encouragement of immigrants vs cultural hatred of foreigners esp in older gen... wonder which would win? Would foreign mothers want to bring up their children in that culture or would the entire family relocate to mother's home country?

Thank you fedup, I've added The Night I Became an Animal to watchlist.

I wanna join them, love their sun hats/shields
link

MigsandTiggs - good article, thanks. Was trying to explain the soft power thing to one of my 17 yr olds yesterday, but she was in typical 'not listen to mother mode'. Interesting discussion here yesterday as my girls godmother has just arrived from HK. Not been able to see her since COVID, so we had lots to catch-up on. She is not a fan of the more rom-com style K-dramas but we had an interesting chat about the increasing popularity of BL dramas and how it has shifted from Thailand, now a lot in Korea and Japan and even mainland China. It would have been unheard of a few years ago, so another good shift. I will watch the Korean broadcast on mental health, I have known of the issues in China for years esp as it bucks the trend and is more women than men, but also again more elderly people.

Guys I am doing something very not-me and i think I am abandoning The Smile Has Left Your Eyes with two episodes to go. It is just getting so so sad and I just can feel it is headed for tragedy and I don't know if I can do it. Jung So Min and Seo In Gook are both amazing in it, and I've been so obsessed with it so maybe weird to drop it but I might. Is this weird behaviour??

Amva, it has been described in reviews as a tragedy. I started but didn't finish, but after ep2. Not weird at all to drop at any time if you can't cope with a tragic story. There are recaps of the finale online, if you prefer to read rather than watch how it ends.

@AmVa There is a recap of the last episode here if you want.

I didn't watch it as I had spoiled the end

Thanks guys - have spoiled it and might watch later but maybe not... Such a werid feeling to have loved a show for so much of it but not finish. Anyway... Will stop harping on about it so much.

Onto lighter things like waiting for this week's episodes of Bora / Deborah / True to Love / whatever we are calling it over here!

Self care AmVa. Always self care.
I think the most interesting thing about BL both on screen and page is that its acknowledged primary audience is women. I guess we just get double the abs...