MsLatté’s Daebak Cybercafé (Kdrama addicts #49: Still reeling from the insanity of When the Stars Gossip, we dust off our party frocks to present Daebak Café’s 2024 best scoring shows

[boatyardblues]

A quiet corner of MN for serious addicts of Kdrama, or the K-curious. Most of our viewing is drawn from Netflix, Viki, Amazon Prime, 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 - the best are listed below.

The previous thread is here. Our list is cumulative & includes previous threads’ recommendations and favourites. Shows marked with a star are more uniformly loved or admired. On genre categories, 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. This tonal chaos is part of kdrama’s charm. View the categories below as best approximate & ask if you need guidance about suitability for younger viewers.

Comedy
I picked up a celebrity on the street (Viki)
LTNS (no major platform yet)
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) Killer Paradox (Netflix)
Life on Mars (classy remake of BBC series, no major site yet)
Little Women (Netflix)
Maestra (Disney+)
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)🌟
The Worst of Evil (Disney+)
Tunnel (Netflix)🌟
Vigilante (Disney+)

Historical/Period drama (“sageuk”)
100 Days My Prince (Viki/Netflix)
Crowned Clown (Viki/Netflix)🌟
Missing Crown Prince (Viki)
Mr Queen (Viki)🌟
Mr Sunshine (Netflix)
My Dearest (Viki)
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)🌟

Makjang
Perfect Marriage Revenge (Viki)

Romance - lighter & fluffier
Beating Again (Netflix)
Business Proposal (Netflix)
Coffee Prince (Netflix)
Dali & the Cocky Prince (Viki)
Destined with You (Netflix)
Don’t Dare to Dream (Netflix, or as The Eighth Sense [BL] (Viki)
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 for Love’s Sake(QiYi)
Love from a Star (Netflix)🌟
Lovely Runner (Viki)
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)
Semantic Error [BL] (Viki)
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)🌟
Wedding Impossible (Viki)
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)🌟
Daily Dose of Sunshine (Netflix)
Descendants of the Sun (Viki/Netflix)
Doctors (Netflix)
Doom At Your Service (Netflix/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)/When the Weather is Nice (Netflix)
It’s OK Not To Be OK (Netflix) Just Between Lovers (Viki)/Rain or Shine (Netflix)🌟
Mad For Each Other (Netflix)🌟
Marry My Husband (
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), season 3 (Disney+)
Search: WWW (Viki, Netflix)🌟
Something in the Rain (Netflix)
Tell Me That You Love Me (Disney+)
The Atypical Family (Netflix)
The Handmaid (film, Netflix - content warning: explicit sexual content)
The Package (Viki)

Straighter ‘Slice of Life’ dramas on universal themes
Gaus Electronics (Viki)🌟
Family By Choice (Viki)⭐️
First Responders (Disney+)
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)🌟
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/Netflix)🌟

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)
Twinkling Watermelon (Viki)
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)
Light Shop (Disney+)
Moon in the Day (Viki)
Moving (Disney+)
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
Chicken Nugget (Netflix)
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)
I’m Married But… (Netflix - Taiwanese)⭐️
In House Marriage Honey (Viki, Japanese)
In Time With You (Viki - Japanese)
Instead of Tipsy Why Not Get Drunk (Viki, Chinese)
Let’s Talk About Chu (Netflix, Taiwan)⭐️
Lost Romance [BL] (Viki, Taiwanese)
Love O2O (Viki, Chinese)
Meet Yourself (Viki, Chinese)
Million Yen Women (Netflix, Japanese)
Morning Call (Netflix, Japanese)
My Little Happiness (Viki, Chinese)
My Personal Weatherman [BL] (Jdrama, Viki)
Orange Days (Japan, Netflix)
Put Your Head on My Shoulder (Netflix, Chinese)
Rinko Wants To Try (Viki, Japanese)
Some Day or One Day (Viki, Taiwanese)
Sweat and Soap (Viki, Japanese)
The Makanai (Netflix, Japanese)
The Romance of Tiger & Rose (Viki, Chinese)
The Untamed (Nertlix, 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 2024 dramas with 5 or more votes
Overall scores reduced due to more voters this year.
#1 A Shop For Killers 9
#2 Lovely Runner 8.8
#3 Let's Talk About CHU Score 8.8
#4 Family By Choice 8.6
#5 Squid Game 2 8.5
#6 Mr Plankton: 8.3
Full run down by Bettys here.

Top Scoring 2023 Dramas
#1 Bloodhounds 8.9
#2 = The Good Bad Mother 8.8
#2 = Deaths Game 8.8
#2 = Moving 8.8 #
#2 = The Glory 8.8 (#2 rankings by number of votes)

Top Scoring 2022 Dramas
#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.

I really liked Mr Plankton too peanutcookie.
It also feels like a while since I've watched anything with Ji Chang Wook in (The Sound of Magic?) so I may give his new show a go when I've finished The Murky Stream.
Not sure about Spirit Fingers, though. The English translation of the title is a bit...off-putting? I can't seem to get past it 😂

I binged the 4 eps that have dropped of Manipulated (Disney+) and can state with certainty that it is perfect smooth brain fodder for lovers of 18+ violence. 😈🔪

Gannibal, on the other hand, is a grown up and thoughtful horror drama that left me pondering on the transactional nature of human survival instincts, tendency towards superstitious beliefs, and family/group relationships in South Korea. I made several comparisons with what happened after the 1972 Andes plane crash. #cannibalism

The cinematography was exceptionally beautiful in some of the wintry scenes, so much so that one scene in particular, is imprinted on my mind.

Watching Typhoon Family I can’t help feeling a bit sorry for actor Moo Jin Sung (rival trader’s awful son). He seems to be well & truly typecast as a thoroughly unlikable prick. It won’t be hurting his bank balance - they are ten a penny in dramas currently - but I wonder if he feels creatively unfulfilled.

TW
For anyone planning to watch As You Stood By. (Netflix)
I'm putting this here for anyone interested in knowing a bit more about domestic violence in South Korea.

Domestic violence in South Korea remains a significant issue, with approximately 9.4% of women and 5.8% of men reporting experiences of domestic violence according to a 2022 survey. Despite legal frameworks aimed at addressing this problem, many victims do not seek help, often viewing it as a private family matter.

https://generisonline.com/understanding-domestic-violence-protection-measures-in-south-korea/

Is it worth watching @MigsandTiggs ?

Yes. It's not darkly grim but doesn't try to avoid the grimness either, iyswim.
Both M and F lead characters are interesting, particularly ML role and the bonus is Kim Mi Kyung as the abused mum.

Female director and it's very of-the-time to hang a kdrama on domestic violence and its effects, when many feel that the gov't hasn't gone far enough in punishing the abusers or helping victims.

Thanks Miggs, I'll give it a go. I'm up to date with Moon River, Last Summer, Would You Marry Me and Typhoon Family. Going to give Dear X a swerve but might try Spirit Fingers (despite the weird name). Loads of dramas to watch all of a sudden!

It’s an important topic Miggs. I plan to watch As You Stood By but I am choosing when to watch and waiting until I’m fully over a recent bug.

Miggs, that’s so sad and shocking about so much domestic violence in Korea.
I wonder in many cases if alcohol has a hand in it.

@Andante57 given the level of alcohol abuse by both sexes in SK, I wouldn't think that this would be a major driver of DV, though alcohol could play a part. In AYSB, the victim is the one using alcohol to cope with her situation!

After only one episode of As You Stood By, I cancelled my gym classes and binged the entire series in one day. No regrets, as it was delivered.

As a pacey thriller the twists in the story just kept coming, and as social commentary on what is clearly a Korean problem, it showed the context of how DV is viewed in Korea, and effect on victims.

Along with Our Movie, it's my highest rated drama of the year. Close, but not quite a ten, because everything was tied up too quickly and neatly in the end. I guess the director had little leeway for in-depth coverage with only eight episodes.

Lee Moo-saeng for Alt Oppa Calendar please

On the subject of DV in S.Korea I remember now being told that there were public service announcements and awareness campaigns in S.Korea during the 1990s and early 2000s, particularly around U.S. military bases, that addressed domestic violence involving American servicemen and Korean spouses. Gosh how these things pop into my mind. He was Western married to a Korean woman who worked for Cathay and we were talking about the cultural differences. They gave us a set of Korean wedding sucks when we got married. Things you remember eh!

Wedding ducks!!!

I was so confused by wedding sucks - I thought they gifted you something with "Korean wedding sucks" on it and thought, what an odd present. Now, off to Google what a Korean wedding duck is!

Finished As You Stood By - very binge-able. My favourite thing about the ending was Mr Jin’s haircut - such an improvement.

@mrsfeatherbottom I would watch a drama about the story of his hair!😂

He was punishing himself for past mistakes by not allowing himself a decent haircut!

Even though Would You Marry Me? is suffering a little from a soggy middle I’m glad I’ve stayed with it. Mr Geometry Bae Na Ra’s smile was worth the wait! 👌 ETA: The second couple are leavening the soggy middle no end. I’m rooting for first & second couple equally.

Well WYMM wrapped up satisfactorily at ep 12. It started well but then cruised at a solid 7. I adore Jung So Min and will watch her regardless but I feel she has so much more range and wasn’t fully utilised in this. Happy takeaway: Bae Na Ra’s many charms and I look forward to seeing more of him.

I also get why Choi Woo Sik is feeling typecast and making noises about wanting more stretching roles. He needs to achieve the Leonardo Dicaprio transition from pretty boy ML to heavyweight roles before he ages out of those romantic lead roles.

It’s time for new thread header additions so I can cue up our new thread. I need title, platform & a suggested genre. This will likely be a significant reboot as we haven’t filled this thread as quickly.

I nominate Our Unwritten Seoul (Romance/heavier, I guess) and Romantics Anonymous (Not Korean). Both Netflix, I think.

Good call on both of those. Done!

I'd like to nominate Glass Heart (not Korean: Netflix - Japanese).

Also Squid Game. I know it's a bit obvious but the final installment has been my favourite kdrama this year so far. Not sure what category though. Thriller? Horror? Dystopian survival drama?

Great calls Cobol. Hard to believe but Squid Game wasn’t even in the list. I’ve marked it up as 2 seasons. 👍 ETA: I put SG under thriller.

I was going to suggest Thriller genre for SG too.

Apologies in advance, if everyone already knows this.
After many dramas where even school children are shown taking over (sometimes forced to) responsibility for their parents' debts, not just loan shark debts, I decided it was time I knew more about the legal side of things. Here's what I found.

As a co-signer, the child accepts 50-50 responsibility with their parent, and once the parent dies, the child becomes solely responsible for the remaining debt.

I can't believe that a child could ever legally co-sign on a loan, but a minor is someone who is under 19. Between 2016 and March 2021, 80 minors filed for personal bankruptcy due to their inheritance of parental debt.

A revised bill was passed in Nov 2022 to prevent minors from taking on the burden of their deceased parents’ debts.

If parents die, the inheritor has to choose between three choices – “absolute acceptance,” to inherit both debt and property, “qualified acceptance,” to pay off the parent's debt only within the scope of the inherited property, or “renunciation,” which is to give up both the inherited property and debt.
If the parents have more debt than property, it is better for the child to choose qualified acceptance or renunciation. However, if minors who are not familiar with the law fail to clarify their choice within a set period of time, they have no choice but to take on the burden of debt.

https://m.koreaherald.com/article/3008412

Because S Korea is like Scotland, in that all spouses and children have an automatic right of inheritance, this means children inherit their parents' properties and liabilities, unless they refuse the inheritance.

One post I read pointed out that it is common in SE Asia, especially in India and Pakistan, for entire families to work to pay off debt taken on by a single parent.
Poverty is a real bitch.😢