The Glory, a smash Korean series on Netflix, gained popularity for its gripping vengeance plot. Audiences were on the edge of their seats during the retribution thriller. The Glory’s gripping narrative, along with stunning revelations and horrifying plot turns, captured everyone’s attention. The drama, which was written by renowned Korean author Kim Eun-Sook, proves to be a significant departure from some of her earlier works, including the classic K-Dramas Lovers in Paris and Secret Garden, as well as well-known Korean dramas like The Heirs and Guardian: The Lonely and Glorious God. Following the action-packed love series Descendants of the Sun, this is the author’s second K-Drama with lead actor Song Hye-Kyo.
We’ve put up a list of Korean dramas that are ideal for you whether you’ve just read The Glory or need a break from its twists and turns. These K-Dramas, which are also streamable on Netflix, are excellent for relieving tension between episodes or for getting over the sombre themes The Glory so expertly presented to its audience. Discover the ideal therapeutic play for you by reading on.
Table Of Content
18 Again
The central character of this 2020 K-Drama is a married guy who, in the midst of a life crisis, reverts to his basketball-playing, 18-year-old self. That instance, he received divorce papers from his wife and lost his job. It sounds like you? That is due to the fact that this drama is a Korean adaptation of the 2009 Zac Efron, Leslie Mann, and Matthew Perry film 17 Again. In this Korean remake, Yoon Sang-Hong Hyun’s Dae-Young is portrayed by actor Lee Do-Hyun as the younger version of Jung Da-Jung, who is played by Kim Ha-Neul. The renowned BaekSang Arts Awards presented Lee Do-Hyun with the Best New Actor prize in 2021. The 16-episode run of the show is a fantastic family drama with the ideal amount of romance.
Business Proposal
If you enjoy the contract-marriage and Korean drama CEO tropes, SBS Business Proposal is the ideal romance drama for you. Ahn Hyo-Seop portrays Kang Tae-Moo in the drama, a typical CEO with no time for romance. Unaware that Shin Ha-Ri is merely pretending to be her heiress friend Jin Yeong-Seo, he meets Shin Ha-Ri (played by singer-actress Kim Se-Jeong) on a blind date arranged for him by his grandfather. The turn? The CEO of the business where Ha-Ri works is Tae-Moo. This 12-episode 2022 drama is full of light romance scenes that will make you swoon and probably have you hooked on its current cliches, despite how formulaic the plot may seem. The K-Drama received a lot of adoration from its viewers in South Korea and around the world. At the 2022 SBS Drama Awards, it won numerous prizes, including the Best Actor prize for Ahn Hyo-Seop. Kim Se-Jeong won the Best Actress Award, and the Best Couple Award went to both the main characters and their supporting actors.
Crash Course in Romance
Crash Course in Romance has everything you need for a feel-good Korean drama: a classic romance with a heartwarming storyline. It highlights the endearing romantic relationship between a popular after-school academy instructor played by Jung Kyoung-Ho and a former national athlete played by Jeon Do-Yeon. It’s a reassuring decision, with a stone-hearted successful male lead being softened by an unintentionally upbeat primary character. Such a drama might provide you with a reprieve from life’s difficulties as well as from serious programmes like The Glory.
Extraordinary Attorney Woo
Netflix, ENA Hit Series: 4 Exceptional Attorney Woo Attorney Woo with Lee Jun-ho The internet adored Extraordinary Attorney Woo for its accurate and motivating representation of an attorney with an autism spectrum disease. Woo Young-Woo is brilliantly portrayed by Park Eun-Bin. She works at a prestigious firm as a lawyer-in-training. Her original approaches to problem-solving and her novel viewpoint on problems are what make this drama so captivating. As soon as the drama’s 16-episode run came to an end, there were rumours about a second season. The principal actor of the show, Kang Tae-Oh, is required to serve in the military, so there won’t be a second season until 2024, according to rumours.
Familiar Wife
Familiar Wife is ideal if you’re wanting to get hooked on a light drama because it has a fascinating fantasy plot and a cast of renowned and up-and-coming performers. Ji Sung and Han Ji-Min portray an unhappy couple who are bitter against one another as a result of the hardships life has dealt their family of four. Cha Joo-Hyuk, played by Ji Sung, travels back in time after assisting a stranger on the tube and waking up in a very different circumstance. His college sweetheart Lee Hye-Won (played by Kang Ha-Na) turns out to be his wife, and his alleged wife is now simply another (single) teller in the bank where he works as a manager. The K-Drama is full of unexpected turns that will make you be grateful for what you have right now before you lose it in the future. With Ji Sung as the star, the Korean drama earned 10% of all South Korean viewers in 2018, making it the most watched show for its time slot.
Fight for My Way
Simply put, some of us in life require more effort than others. That is precisely the point being made in the popular Korean drama Fight for My Way. Ko Dong-Man, played by Park Seo-Jun, is a former athlete with a promising future. Choi Ae-Ra is played by Kim Ji-Won opposite him in the play. She was a childhood friend of Dong-and Man’s had aspirations of becoming a news anchor. In navigating their complex relationship, the two discover renewed motivation to revisit their long-forgotten dreams. During the 2017 Korea Drama Awards as well as the 2017 KBS Drama Awards, the drama won a number of accolades, including the Outstanding Actor and Actress awards for its protagonists. Due to celebrity cameos, like Choi Woo-Sik of Parasite, several of its scenes went viral in the nation and its viewership skyrocketed.
Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha
South Korea has a huge market for healing dramas. Healing plays are usually a major hit in the nation and later by the rest of the world because of their reassuring quality. Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha demonstrates how soothing these kinds of dramas can be by using a variety of character-driven plotlines. Yoon Hye-Jin, played by Shin Mi-Na, a dentist looking to start a new life, is the main character of the film’s major plot. He meets Kim Sun-on-screen Ho’s character Hong Du-Sik there, and she is immediately drawn to him. This K-Drama, which is a remake of the 2004 Korean film Mr. Hong, becomes a huge hit with viewers all over the world who enjoy Korean dramas. The imaginary town was located in Pohang, South Korea, which was transformed overnight into a popular tourist destination. Its audience found solace not just in the main tale but also in the side stories about the other residents of the made-up coastal resort, reaching a peak of 13% nationwide.
Hospital Playlist
Hospital Playlist, which has two seasons left, is simply one of many successes from author Lee Woo-Jung. An upbeat television show called Hospital Playlist follows the lives of five doctor buddies, their colleagues, and their patients. In 1999, Cho Jung-Seok (internal medicine), Yoo Yeon-Seok (paediatrics), Jung Kyoung-Ho (cardiothoracics), Kim Dae-Myung (OBGYN), and Jeon Mi-Do (playing the surgeons) all attended the same medical schools (neurological). Other popular Korean dramas written by Lee Woo-Jung include the Reply Series, coming-of-age tales set during various crucial times in the history of the nation. The author is renowned for his masterful use of foreshadowing, Easter eggs, and surprising turns.
Mr. Queen
South Korea places a high value on the past. Mr. Queen became a huge hit in 2020 because of its humorous plot because of this. This historical drama begins in the present day when a presidential chef accidentally travels to the past and wakes up inside Queen Kim So-(Shin Yong’s Hye-Sun) body during the Joseon Period. The series includes politics, betrayal, and classic romance—everything you’ll love about period dramas. The representation of a guy in a woman’s body by Shin Hye-Sun, however, is likely to make you laugh aloud. It makes sense why the audience loved her performance.
Mystic Pop-Up Bar
Something about Korean fantasy dramas lends itself perfectly to feel-good television. Food and drink, healing, and an all-star ensemble are all present and correct in Mystic Pop-Up Bar, making it a fantastic series. Wol-Ju, portrayed by Hwang Jung-Eum, is a lady who manages a shadowy food cart that only operates at night. The food cart, which is situated on a building’s rooftop, offers food and beverages to both live people and deceased people. The pop-up bar serves as a crossing point where the deceased can complete their unfinished business and a healing spot for the living. Yook Sung-Jae, a singer-actor, and Choi Won-Young, an actor, also star in the drama. This 12-episode anthology-style format is plenty of promise. As the tale of the bar owner and his patrons develops, it switches back and forth between the present and historical Korea.
Racket Boys
Sports dramas have a certain quality that makes them entertaining to watch. As we follow a middle school badminton team that is about to break up, Racket Boys demonstrates just that. Similar to Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha, Racket Boys’ charm is based on the supporting cast from their small-town setting as well as the leads. With its entertaining young ensemble, the drama became popular and won prizes at the 2021 SBS Drama Awards. It also contains the Supporting Cast Team Award, Best Female Character for Oh Na-Ra, Best New Actor award for Son Sang-Yeon and Choi Hyun-Wook, and Best Youth Actor & Actress award for Tang Joon-Sang & Lee Jae-In.
Romance is a Bonus Book
Romance is a Bonus Book, as implied by its title, follows the growing love affair of two childhood friends who work in the publishing industry. The heartwarming drama contains some allusions to the hard knocks of life, but just like Kang Da-Ni, the primary character, viewers will emerge stronger and triumphant on the other side. The series follows single mother Kang Da-Ni (Kim Na-Young), who is trying to keep her failed marriage a secret from her famous childhood friend Cha Eun-Ho (Lee Jong-Suk). After an 8-year layoff, Lee Na-Young is making a comeback with The K-Drama. The drama was also the lead actor Lee Jong-final Suk’s project prior to his required military service.
Run On
Finally, we tackle a classic love story without the toxic second lead so common in Korean dramas. Im Si-Wan, a sprinter for the national team, and a translator are the main characters of Run On (Shin Se-Kyung). The story of a sports agency CEO (Soo-Young) who battles gender inequality in her industry and a university student (Kang Tae-Oh) she crosses paths with is told in the background. This drama’s realistic portrayal of contemporary love is its best feature. It has complex relationships, the cutest meet-cutes ever, and a tonne of cute, swoon-worthy, lighthearted moments. Spoiler alert: Our leads succeed in everything, including the clichéd “bribing the female lead by the male lead’s wealthy parents” trope.
Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-Joo
Weightlifting is an amusing film with catchy one-liners and young love. Fairy Kim Bok-Joo discusses the life of a student-athlete in addition to growing romance. It tells the tale of Kim Bok-Joo, a talented college weightlifter who crosses paths with a boy from her past (played by model-actress Lee Sung-Kyung). Jung Joon-Hyung of Nam Joo-Hyuk portrays a swimmer dealing with trauma. Despite how humorous their relationship is, the drama nevertheless addresses serious issues including generational trauma, society’s fixation with weight and appearance, and unfulfilled goals. According to news reports, Olympic gold winner Jang Mi-life ran’s served as inspiration for the drama.
Welcome to Waikiki
Need a good laugh? Welcome to Waikiki can easily provide you with that. There are nonstop laughter for everyone during the 20 episodes of this comedic series. The drama centres on three friends who manage a guest house they lovingly refer to as Waikiki. They are an aspiring filmmaker, an aspiring actor, and an unfortunate writer (complete with tropical themes across). The buddies come upon a single mother and her infant just as the guest house is on the verge of going out of business. This 2018 comedy, which clearly pays homage to Three Men and a Baby and incorporates certain Friends cliches, has the right combination of hilarious one-liners and masterfully staged slapstick. It was such a success that a second season was created the following year.
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