MsLatté’s Daebak Cybercafé (Kdrama addicts #41): A poorly anticipated placeholder thread to contain the Filthy Noonas’ ongoing musings on all things Korean, with Japanese and Chinese sprinkles

[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’
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
#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 - 9.40
#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!

Bloodhounds is going to be like Kingdom for me: watching in short bursts, through my fingers when it gets tricky.

🥹

Maknae line just happy to let the world burn in chapter 2 😂🌶️🔥

You’re all very quiet today. 😁

What was the king carp made of?

I've had my head fully in DR3 still got 5 episodes to watch tomorrow 👀

I wondered this too.... Glass? Or sugar candy 😂

Home from camping and catching up on everything x why

Didn't mean to write 'why' autocorrect gets more random every day 🤣

I don’t know what he is selling as I can’t move on from Butter.
The amount of butter is good for Gambas pil pil but not for pasta
link

I've finally finished Alice in Borderland (DH is not a binger 🫤)

Loved it!

Next DH watch is going to be Oldboy. I'm letting episodes of King the Land to build up. Also watching Ōoku on Netflix 👍

Holy cholesterol batman!
... Also there's no way he plated that up himself at the end - the fancy pasta twizzle and delicate prawn placement, but kudos for not splattering it all over his white shirt if he did 😂

MrLoup and I still frightening ourselves with Revenant - its really creepy so probably would be a good one so save for a dark autumn evening, but we are sucked in now.

I did eyeroll at the end of ep5 of KTL as it was so daft - I couldn't give a monkeys about the hotel inheritance plot but it is light and fluffy, I like the leads so I'm sticking with it to paddle in the warm, shallow lagoon of romance.

SYIMNL - I'm actually really interested to see how the plot develops & where the writers are going to take the story. I like all the supporting characters too. WTF with the subway PPL though? That is one of the most unsubtle things I've seen outside of a Run BTS episode.

FedUp I still haven't finished Alice in Borderland! We keep getting distracted by other things. I feel like I need to rewatch the first series now too as I can't remember where I was up to ..

Finally Dr Romantic 2 is off to a grand start! 🚑🏥 Doldam has the more attractive workforce I'd say, but I think I'd rather work at Yulje....

Sugar for King Carp, cf Reply 88 (with thanks to chingu for pic
Rumours (denied) today that Yoona and lovely eyes Juho are actually an item. They do have nice chemistry.

Rumours (denied) today that Yoona and lovely eyes Juho are actually an item. They do have nice chemistry.

Quality goss Pol! 👌

Anyone else find Junho less attractive when he smiles, or is it just me? His brooding tsundere glare really works for me. 😄

www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-66083253

That’s a great review for Blackpink. 👏

Yeah, they sound amazing!!

I woz there and they were amazing!!! Very, very polished but Lisa was the only one in black bondage gear, doing some very sexualised porno moves. But then, she's the only non ethnic Korean. 🤩

On the recommendation of DeemaLovesDrama on IG, I watched Junho on Home Alone (on YouTube) which has cameras set up in his apartment. I'm not sure if his very messy walk in wardrobe was off putting or endearing. He had reasons why he couldn't get rid of loads of his clothes! And he is very cute with his cats - they have their own exercise wheel in his gym room!

That sounds like must-see YouTube TheGirl. You’ve reminded me how gorgeous his cats are too.

boatyardblues - I got pushed the dance they did to Senorita, wasn't keen on his satin suit but not sure I saw anything that set off my radar. TheGirlWithTheArabStrap - I saw clips of that as well, those are BIG cats! I reckon my walk in wardrobe could easily look like that. MigsandTiggs - sounds like a great night, really please that the BBC article was not a hatchet job. I have just finished Her Private Life, got a bit convoluted at the end, and not sure all that trauma would be washed away quite so neatly for them but hey ho. Still my favourite at the moment is Heart Signal S4, had to keep pausing to clap and ohh and ahhh! Only one episode per week though, could do with a binge watch.

So pleased that Junho has a floor robe. I think we are hoarding twins 😆
Wonder if he has a garage like mine?

The at home with Junho thing sounds like essential viewing 😂 I can't criticize the state of anyone's wardrobes - he sounds like a kindred spirit!

migs sounds like good fun! Glad you enjoyed it - was it crazy crowded? What was the vibe like? I had contemplated taking dd (7) but didn't due to cost/travel mostly but I also thought the atmosphere might have been a bit too 'adult' so I'm interested to know for future reference, were there many kids there?

Ha - I like the tsundere glare as well, plus it makes it more effective when he does flash a quick smile... Junho and Yoona eh? Still in the denial stage rather than the "getting to know each other with open hearts and good intentions" 😂 watch this space . ...

Loup, where we were, wasn't crazy crowed, BUT when Blackpink came on you couldn't see the stage (if you're short) for all the hands up holding phones! The atmosphere was great, everyone dancing, singing along and waving their (£65) light sticks. As there was also a Pride celebration on in L'don, there were lots of males in "interesting" gear. Think black chaps with bare buttocks matched with a pink backless crop top; bondage black leather all in one with a pink tutu; girls in mini kilts with half their arse out etc. I just thought that I'm getting old, as I was shocked.

There were some children but not many, where we were, but there was a baby in a pram!! We had premium entry tickets so were close-ish to the front. I liked that there were fans of all ages. Next to us was a father and his 10 yo daughter from Harrogate, who had won his tickets in a Twitter competition. He said that he had left his disappointed 7yo at home because he thought she was too young for it. HTH.

Jin, the butter gave me a Brooklyn Beckham ick

Some Junho fun

Thanks migs all good to know - I also had visions of getting spinal compression from potentially having DD on my shoulders for 3 hours 😂 it sounds like the right decision anyway for now.....