MsLatté’s Daebak Cybercafé (Kdrama addicts #42): Where we weigh up two smokin’ hawt chaebol hotelliers, one tortured by loss and the other crippled by abandonment issues

[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
Bloodhounds (Netflix)
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)
Race (Disney+)
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)
The Good Bad Mother (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)
F4 Thailand (Viki)
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!

TheGirl congrats on the Japan decision! Amazing!!! 🥳😃

I also LOVE the Yeontan theme 😍😍😍

Leonardo I enjoyed all those dramas you've watched post-Squid Game. The creepy/explicit one with the wheelchair-bound character was Somebody, which I thought was fabulous (but not generally popular here I think it's fair to say, it was - understandably - rather marmite). I forgot to include The Good Bad Mother in my list of favourites.

Leonardo the serial killer one is Somebody I think? I really enjoyed that one - I felt so conflicted watching it as Kim Young-Kwang is so hot and yet also creepy and evil 🤣

Yeontan album theme for V is so cute 🥺 poss my favourite celebrity pet?

Mine neither TheLoup, although I did enjoy it a lot 😬

It's taken me 2 days to catch up with all the posts I've missed over the last couple of weeks. So much I wanted to say about things but now I can't remember 😅

I'm one episode away from finishing SYIMNL which I've really enjoyed even ABH. I just think it's a really classy show. Hopefully I'll finish it tomorrow. DH and I are still working our way through TGBM which is just excellent. Lee Do Hyun is so, so good, as well as the rest of the cast. Definitely one of my favourite shows this year. We've got three episodes left to watch, but won't get chance to finish it this week as we're off camping again at the weekend.

There are so many new shows out that I'm desperate to watch! I think I need to start a list otherwise they just pass me by.

Thegirl how exciting about your Japan trip! Fantastic news 🇯🇵🎉

That's brilliant!!! You'll have a great time! Let me know if you need tips 👍

Thanks chingus! Me and DH have been to Japan before but the last time was about 15 years ago, pre smart phones and DS so a lot will have changed. So there will be less staying up till 4am after karaoke and night clubs this time 😅

Yeaaaah for Japan trip thegirl!

I agree with pp about the abundance of good shows currently, not made any better now that I've branched in J and C-drama. Just saw a 🔥Japanese/American actor (Luke Ishikawa Plowden) in Thai dramas and so need to try at least one T-drama now!😉

OK, serious question now, Wok of Love, is is worth keeping going? I really like it so far ep3 done, and loving the horse! But, I was shipping the gangster and FL but looks like Junho might win the day...shame. The girl, oh Japan in the spring, are you going Sakura watching. We are aiming for next summer and like you not been for more than 15yrs, how did that happen?

@Dragonrock I'm up to episode 10, enjoying it greatly but main reason I'm watching it is for the Junho loveliness so one of us is bound to be disappointed 😅 the way the relationship develops between Junho and the gangster though is great and worth watching for too!! Also all the slo mo food shots

I am looking forward to Vs album - I really like both Christmas Tree from Our Beloved Summer and Sweet Night from Itaewon Class.

That writer sure loves a love triangle AmVa and Dragon. But fortune cookies don't lie...

A music tip for anyone who likes the more eclectic end of hip-hop/electronica/house - Korean-American producer/DJ/vocalist Yaeji's 'With A Hammer'. She grew up in NYC and Seoul. I booked tickets to see her locally in November on the strength of a quick listen, but only properly dived into the album today. I really liked it, especially the mix of Korean and English lyrics, and the rather hypnotic title track and the brass-infused 'I'll Remember For Me, I'll Remember For You'. She'll be playing London as part of what looks like a festival (not purely Korean) the day after Leenalchi.

And I finished SYIMNL! Overall I really enjoyed it. Lego Hair, Shin Hye-sun, their chemistry, the supporting cast, the soundtrack (one song featured old LH himself! Though I preferred the Colde track), the overall mood and look of it. But do agree the end was not quite as good as the rest - it did feel slightly rushed. Still one of my favourites so far this year (together with TGBM, The Glory and Bloodhounds).

Now back to The Uncanny Counter (series 1) and Mr Queen. I'm itching to start Zombieverse too😁

Oh yes and Risque Business Taiwan is out later this month. When was that creepy mask thing out, does anyone remember? And I want to watch the IU film too. Jeez 🙄😂

So after a short break I dived back into Six Flying Dragons and ended up totally gripped, it just got better and better towards the end, with so many epic sword fights and action sequences I lost count. And Yoo Ah-in's performance as King Taejong is just utterly compelling. For anyone interested in full-on historical drama I highly recommend it. Even at 50 episodes you won't be wasting your time, it really does stand out as a quality piece of historical storytelling. It's an epic 10/10 from me 🏹

Saw this on Bato and just went “phhwoooar! I’ll have ‘em!” (Can you tell I’m waiting for my takeaway to arrive?)

That’s a compelling review! I’ll check it out.

I've been waiting to start Six Flying Dragons as well! This weekend perhaps!

I like that Mumsnet had those macarons flagged as sensitive content Boaty.

Lol can't be too careful!

It was me that ticked the sensitive content thinking I’d trick some of you into thinking my image was blurred out man-morsel, but I shot myself in the foot by mentioning takeaway. 🤦‍♀️😂 My takeaway was delicious, but I could really do with one of those beautifully rendered macarons with my cuppa, damnit!

Just catching up with Heartbeat - for this week's Taecyeon appreciation post I would like to draw your attention to his manly shoulders, arms and slightly exposed collarbone whilst he was angstily wandering around the guesthouse in his grey v-neck sweater in episode 13 🤭 10/10 for rehabilitating old-man fashion, holy shit🔥🔥🔥

Also, I really want macarons now boaty 🤣

I sense that An Hour of Romance is reaching its finale on Bato, which is a great shame because Do-Jin is my all time favourite 2D stud muffin. He’s as beautifully drawn as the macarons. I’m keeping everything crossed for a shotgun wedding following the night they threw caution to the wind. 🤞

Wordlesss.
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