MsLatté’s Daebak Cybercafé (Kdrama addicts #43): Where we marvel over the singularity of Taecyeon’s ears while waiting for Lee Min Ho to show up in his space scrubs

[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, Thai & Chinese drama as & when.

The previous thread is www.mumsnet.com/talk/telly_addicts/4842000-mslattes-daebak-cybercafe-kdrama-addicts-42-where-we-weigh-up-two-smokin-hawt-chaebol-hotelliers-one-tortured-by-loss-and-the-other-crippled-by-abandonment-issues?page=1here
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, 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)🌟
King The Land (Netflix)
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)h
Misaeng (Netflix)🌟
My Liberation Notes🌟
Move to Heaven (Netflix)
My Mister (Viki/Netflix)🌟
My Unfamiliar Family (Viki)🌟
Navillera (Netflix)🌟
Not Others (Viki)
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
A Time Called You (Netflix)
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)🌟
My Lovely Liar (Viki)
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
Behind Your Touch (Netflix)
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)
Fake it Till You Make it (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!

Having caught a bit of Escape of the Seven unsubbed on a bus - where it cut out at dramatic moments every time we went through a tunnel (did they kiss? did she get white van squished?) keen to start that properly as it looks fantastic nonsense. But no Viki here...

I've started Strong Girl Nam Soon (mainly because I saw people sharing stuff about the PBY / PHS cameo scene online) and enjoying so far. It feels slightly less insane than SGBS... Maybe only slightly though. Loved the cameo, made me want to rewatch SGBS but maybe just fast forwarding to the main couple bits and zooming past the wacky gangsters etc.

Checking in here as I speed on the KTX from Seoul to Dongdaegu. Watched about 15 mins of K-drama on the way over but that's been it really. Korean Air had films I couldn't see anywhere else, so focused on them.

@boatyardblues I was inititally planning to organise everything myself. But as I ended up joining polkettle (thanks again chingu 😘) I fitted in with their Inside Asia plans for the relevant section of my trip and am glad I did. In fact IA has also arranged the Daegu part of the trip (transport to and from + hotel, plus one activity). Agree totally with what the others say about the welcome ease of having things arranged for you, certainly the first few days.

I arranged flights and the hotel for the last week in Seoul myself. IA have arranged a driver for one day that week, and I've arranged other activities myself via IG. Korean chingus also checked the odd thing for me. Curious as to how it will pan out!

I watched the cameo ep of Strong Girl Nam Soon and loved it! This drama is all my brain can cope with at the moment

I've been seeing Min Min & Bong Bong clips all over SM too AmVa and it's also been making me nostalgic for SGBS. I'm watching Behind Your Touch atm which has a similar mix of absurd comedy and violent crime. It's proper laugh out loud funny at times but also quite dark and gruesome in places. It really shouldn't work, but it does somehow.

@Cobol I am watching Behind Your Touch with my husband - so getting through it slowly. Only 3 episodes in and we do laugh a lot everytime the ML calls the FL 'pervert' and does the glaring eyes thing.

Yes, agreed! I've really been enjoying Lee Min-ki in BYT. He's never been a crush for me but I always find him very watchable in everything he's in, sort of like a Korean John Simm.

Is anyone else up to date on The Worst of Evil?

OMG. I need to talk about it so badly - 3 episodes to go. WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN!!

JCW is my ride-or-die, especially in undercover cop mode, but lonely gangster Jung Gi-cheol is tugging at my heart strings as well.

Hi chingus! It's my last night in Japan, online check-in for flight home has been declined, so I'm just dropping in here to say "Call a doctor for poor Wookie's lips" after ep8, The worst of evil). <no spoilers>

migs - that was such an uncomfortable scene, especially with the flashbacks. You could definitely feel the reluctance - can't say I blame her for trying though, haha!

(If you can't check in I guess you are just going to have to stay 😁)

Have a safe journey home, Migs.

Safe travel home Miggs

Cobol and AmVa I really enjoyed BYT it settles into a really gripping drama. I love Lee Min Ki too ❤️

Tomorrow is the day for the Internet reconnection so I will be able to finish off all the dramas I was watching pre move, and then start some new ones. I'm looking forward to watching Revenant and The worst of Evil

I have started Miraculous Brothers on Netflix as I downloaded it not knowing what it was about. It's got the Great Dane, the young dad from Our Blues and the ML from Mad for Each other. After watching 1 episode, I still don't know what is about but it's very intriguing, looking forward to watching more tonight.

Paramount+ getting in on the act now… does this mean another subscription?😱
www.imdb.com/news/ni63822101/

DH tells me we have paramount as part of our sky subscription, but neither of us can work out how to sign in to it 🤣

Rowdy I really liked Miraculous Brothers, I've only watched the first 10 episodes as that was all that was on Netflix for ages. I will definitely go back and finish it if the rest have been uploaded!

Last night I discovered the retro cheesy joy that is Dream High - cast of idols (Suzy! Taecyeon! IU in a fat suit!!) And laughed out loud when JYP himself turned up as a teacher 😁 I mean the plot is whatever, but I'm here for it.

Rowdy I really liked Miraculous Brothers, I've only watched the first 10 episodes as that was all that was on Netflix for ages. I will definitely go back and finish it if the rest have been uploaded!

It's all available to watch now TheLoup. It actually unnerved me watching it last night, and I felt quite scared with DH being away. It's not scary so I don't know why I felt like that 😂

It's not a horror, but there are some HORRIBLE people in it, which always seems more unsettling to me. I think the wee guy from Our Blues is really likeable whatever he is in.

Bae Hyun-sung is his name, I had to Google, I could only think of the character name which is probably a spoiler 😆

I’ve stumbled into Love in the Afternoon on viki and it is shaping up well. It’s one of those sharply observed social dramas that the Koreans do so well. The child actress playing the little girl in the rich family across the road is cute as a button. I’m enjoying the slow pace, subtle performances and small details.

Kim Mi Kyung as an unsympathetic MIL though? Sacrilege!

Boaty, is that the one also known as Love Affairs in the Afternoon with Lee Sang Yeob and the little parrots?
I watched that some time ago and I loved it.
I also came across it by chance and I think it’s underrated.

Yes, that’s the one. I am fully expecting FL to liberate the lovebirds at some point.

I hadn’t realised that lovebirds have a blue variety too. I’ve only ever seen the green ones with peach faces before. They are very cute, but strangely mute compared to the ones I’ve seen in real life.

Can anyone explain the rationale of the rooftop washing line set-up in Doona when (gestures at huge expanse of lawn next to the house) there are safer options? Are there bylaws against ground-level airing or something?

They are very cute, but strangely mute compared to the ones I’ve seen in real life.

I’ve never known any lovebirds but certainly the parrots I’ve known tend to chat when they’re with familiar people. As soon as a new person comes in they fall silent - maybe listening to and learning the new voice.