The Korean dramas or K-dramas had a secret and wide audience since time immemorial. Now, with the rapid insurgence of the Korean Wave, assisted by Netflix as well, K-dramas are the new cool and gone are the days of “drama-shamers” and the fragile misogynistic ego supporting it. K-dramas tells the story of people from various walks of life with a pinch of thriller, fantasy, horror and romance. Here is the list of 5 K-dramas that are sure to get you hooked on Netflix and K-dramas, in general.
Vincenzo
If you are still not over Captain Yoo Shi-jin (Song Joong-ki from DOTS), then you are not alone. Our love for Captain Yoo was taken over by Vincenzo Cassano, a smart and dashing lawyer who works for the mafia as a legal advisor, played by Song Joong-ki. Upon his arrival in South Korea, he befriends Lawyer Hong Cha-Young (Jeon Yeo-Bin) and soon falls in love with her. The drama, with a fascinating exposure to the lives of underground Mafia, paired with violence and thrill, heart-wrenching death scenes and fluttering romance, it has managed to surpass the expectations of the Korean as well as the international fans. The camaraderie of the main characters with the foray of characters has always been an unique feature of K-dramas that carries the story forward and Vincenzo was no exception.
Move to Heaven
To be candid, Lee Je-hoon was what drove me to this new drama series produced by Netflix. However, with flocks of talented actors like Tang Joon-Sang, Hong Seung-Hee and not to forget our beloved Lee Jae-Wook from ‘Extraordinary You’, the K-drama is a rollercoaster of emotions and the drama dive into the life of a young man with Asperger Syndrome, Geu-ru played by Tang Joon-Sang and how he copes up with the death of his father and welcomes his uncle, Sang-gu who happens to be an ex-convict, played by Lee Je-hoon, into his perfect life. If you missed it, Joon-Sang was the youngest North Korean soldier in Captain Ri’s unit from ‘Crash Landing on You’. The 10 episodes of this drama is inclusiveness of people’s emotions and dire emotions felt by the different characters introduced in each episode before their demise and Geu-ru and Sang-gu as trauma cleaners, attempts to imagine the lives of the deceased by the things they’ve left behind. It specifically, also, focuses on the special needs of special people and society’s perception of it.
Love Alarm – Season 2
Love Alarm’s season 1 left us in quite a turmoil and hung over on doubts about the drama’s main trio’s future and Jo-jo’s (Kim So-Hyun) fleeting heart did not help us at all. The first season explored the love triangle of Kim Jo-jo, Hwang Sun-oh (Song Kang) and Lee Hye-yong (Jung Ga-rem). In a microscopic view, it focused on Jo-jo’s weak attempt of coping up with her childhood trauma of being the sole survivor of her family’s suicide attempt and balancing her feelings for Hwang Sun-oh. After their tragic break-up, we get a glimpse of Hye-yong trying to win Jo-jo’s affection and the season ended abruptly with a cliffhanger. Unpopular opinion but Jo-jo ending up with Hye-yong in the season 2 finale is the ending we should have all hoped for and thankfully, got. The beautiful analogy portrayed in Season 2 was overwhelming with Jo-jo’s only wish to get rid of the shield on her love alarm that enables her to hide her true feelings, is an indication of Jo-jo’s heart finally gathering courage and making peace with her past.
Law School
Fans of Reply 1988 can hardly forget the scary and stoic Sung Bo-ra played by Ryu Hye-young and she made a dashing comeback in 2021 and gave us Law School and let’s not forget Kim Neon, one of the F4 members in Boys Over Flowers and he also appeared in Tale of the Nine Tailed as the half-blood gumiho, Lee Rang and finally starred next to Hye-young as Han Joon-hwi, a 1st year law student with top grades. The drama explores the lives of law students in Hankuk University Law School. The students and one of their professors gets involved in a murder case and it further explores the process of administering legitimate justice and serves us a promising career choice. Hey-young’s character comes from a humble background and eventually, shedding her insecurities, explores the true legal profession.
Nevertheless
‘Nevertheless’ is an ongoing series on Netflix and Team ‘Sun-oh’ from Love Alarm can once again see their favorite in action. It tells the story of Yoo Na-bi (Han So-hee) and Park Jae-eon (Song Kang) and their uncertain romance and distorted perception of love. It takes a different approach, usually not witnessed in K-dramas where the lead characters are insincere with their feelings, breaking our hearts in each subsequent minute. Based on a webtoon with the same title, this anticipated romance drama has to be in its finale to determine the satisfaction and expectations level of the fans. Although, with just 4 released episodes to its name, the sceptic romance has created quite a buzz of its own.
