The first time (in 2021) I spent 16+ hours of my life watching a single KDrama series with friends, I was addicted. I have put in many more “kdrama hours” since, so I had to write this blog post and share a bit of my favorite romantic ones! Which have you seen?
10. Romance is a Bonus Book
Kang Dan-i is a person you want to root for. She is a character kind of like Will Smith was in The Pursuit of Happyness. Dan-i has had a seemingly tough time since the beginning. Divorce, starting over, lacking stability, struggling financially, bullied at work, the list goes on. Good thing for her…she is able to meet her challenges with the support and help of her best guy friend Cha Eun-ho. Eun-ho loves Dan-i and is ready to convince her of his love — even if she keeps sticking him in the friend zone.
9. She Would Never Know
Frustrating “love” story throughout so much of it. I kept saying, Yoon Song-a girl…get it together 😒
Song-a is dating her boss who turns out to have been engaged the whole time. When a co-worker (Chae Hyeon-seung) with a crush on Song-a reveals Song-a was actually the mistress in the affair, surprisingly Song-a doesn’t want to get over her fling as quickly as Hyeon-seung (her coworker) wants her to.
We watch an annoying step & repeat storyline where Song-a does not like Hyeon-seung then she does, and then she leaves him, but then she wants him again.
I added this to the list because Chae Hyeon-seung was a hopeless romantic and you cannot help but cheer for him and his efforts even when his time could be better spent elsewhere.
8. Her Private Life
Art Curator Sung Duk-mi is incredibly talented at her day job. She is also a k-pop artist stalker of sorts; as a hobby.
Meanwhile, her new boss Ryan Gold has a ton of secrets himself. Gold and Duk-mi navigate the awkward parts of working together and maintaining their secrets. They eventually really lean on each other for emotional support as their secrets get revealed.
Living double lives is the name of the game for this drama but it also makes for a cute and quirky romantic comedy. Watching their relationship unfold is bound to keep you really engaged like it did for me!
7. Clean with Passion for Now
It took me a while to get into this one but I am glad I stuck with it. I was glad to see an inclusive story line that includes members of the neurotypical community.
Gil O-sol’s character is simply a mess of a human for the most part. She is usually drunk, clumsy and often very messy; literally. Even though keeping things clean is not a personal strength, O-sol manages to land a professional cleaning job. CEO Jang Seon-gyeol has mysophobia, is extreme in his fear and hate for germs, dirt and anything out of place.
The ‘opposites attract’ angle lays on strong for this one but it works. You start to see both characters round out some of their inflexible areas to meet in the middle and kindle a friendly romance. This drama has a bit of a love triangle too with a mysterious neighbor who has loved O-sol for many years and wants her to return his feelings. Throw in Seon-gyeol’s overbearing, scary father and you have got yourself an all-out drama to keep!
Keep tissues on standby. There is an episode or two in there that may make you cry.
6. Crash Course in Romance
All the math content went right over my head but I really enjoyed the dynamic development of Choi Chi-yeol and Nam Haeng-seon’s stories. Beware there is a creepy supporting character in this drama to keep viewers on their toes. But better news — there is more than one love story at play in this series. I vote that Crash Course in Romance is a keeper!
5. You Are My Spring
I did not expect to like this one as much as I did. I usually do not choose fictional psychological thriller shows with dark elements like murder and suicide. I leave true crime content to my documentary playlist.
This series definitely has some twists that keep it interesting. Darkness aside, the importance of good mental health has a nice platform here. One of the main characters is a therapist.
I will say I thought the love story was a cute one and I could not stop watching! Ju Young-do is protective from the very start and you see that theme throughout. Also worth mentioning — part of what kept me from turning it off after the first drop of blood —- the drama was skillfully portrayed in such a uniquely creative and artistic way. Two thumbs up if you can handle it!
4. Extraordinary Attorney Woo
Woo Young-woo is a young lawyer with Asperger’s Syndrome. While Woo’s bold honesty gets her in trouble sometimes, her approach is so wholesome and she is incredibly intelligent. It is impossible not to like Attorney Woo Young Woo.
Besides Woo Young-Woo, I also fell in love with Lee Jun-ho who is one of the few kind, patient and loving people in Attorney Woo’s corner from the start. Jun-ho wants to woo her so badly (pun intended!) that he will give his time for anything Woo likes, even her whale obsession.
Between the constant crime cases at court, two major competing law firms and a past that circles back for Attorney Woo, you’ll be pressing that ‘Next Episode’ button so fast at the first sight of end credits!
3. Doctor Cha
In a Word…Powerhouse. Cha Jeong-suk (Dr. Cha) starts as a stay at home mom who has been trampled and overlooked by both herself and her family. They all see her mostly as a servant. Cha’s husband is not faithful, her kids order her around, her in-laws think she should be grateful for the lacking life around her because at least the house is nice and her husband pays for things. Cha is a devoted mother and wife but something is missing.
Dr. Cha has a health scare that starts to wake her up to wanting more from the life she has. Despite the naysayers (mostly her family sadly) she decides to make a bold career move at her age and later stage of life. When life gives you lemons girl…
This series explores family relationships, adulting as children grow up, choosing self over unhealthy marriages and finding strength to move forward in life, love and career even after constant setbacks. Circumstances certainly do not always go how Cha thinks they will but sometimes that works out for the best.
As far as romance, Dr. Cha is completely oblivious but a hot new doctor at her hospital definitely tries his best to make her feel seen and heard. It is the kind of care she deserves.
2. King the Land
This is my show! I almost cried because this was a 2 episode weekly release at the beginning. I was literally stalking my Netflix feed for updates.
As for the series — classic guy and girl despising each other at the beginning. Slowly but surely they start to realize they have more in common than they thought. Then they become more endearing of the other and you want them to live happily ever after. Their main character romance helps you forget a lot of the mean, greedy characters in the show which is nice.
Sidekick perk: There is also an adorably goofy and funny assistant to the leading character. To be honest, I would watch a second season with the sidekick as the main man.
1. Crash Landing on You
Crash Landing on You will always be number one for me. Always. I went through every emotion watching this show. I think I fell in love, laughed, cried each time I turned it on. There was so much action and layers to the storyline. It was just that good.
Yoon Se-ri is a famous and successful entrepreneur from a tough and cutthroat family in South Korea. Thanks to terrible tornado weather on an otherwise perfect day… Se-ri ends up across enemy lines in North Korea. There Se-ri has to convince everyone who comes in contact that she is not a spy, including the military men (led by Captain Ri) who are doing everything to protect their own lives by keeping her hidden in plain sight until she can return home to South Korea.
Along comes this corrupt jerk (who shall not be named) that desperately wants to destroy anything in his way to absolute power. That jerk goes after Se-ri and Captain Ri through intimidation, invasions of privacy, assault, etc. Se-ri has nothing to worry about though because the gorgeous Captain Ri has promised to do everything in his power to keep Se-ri safe as long as she stays in his sights. His limits are definitely tested on his promise but he will never give up.
There are a lot more characters and interesting storylines with plenty of mystery, drama and even a few laughs. All in all — ‘Crash Landing on You’ is the love story of a lifetime. I have not met a person yet who does not love this series!
Honorable Mention: *Business Proposal*
Kang Tae-moo has to meet his grandfather’s demands to settle down. He goes on a blind date with a girl. As fate would have it, that girl Shin Ha-ri is pretending to be her best friend because her best friend wanted to ditch the blind date. At dinner, Ha-ri suddenly realizes her blind date is actually her boss. At first, Ha-ri somehow manages to keep her identity a secret but now needs to keep ruse that up.
Later Tae-moo and Ha-ri end up striking a deal to fake a relationship that starts to turn deeper for Tae-moo when he realizes who Ha-ri is by accident and that he actually is developing feelings for her. Ha-ri is also a badass food scientist in the show which is just a cool tidbit. The whole show is quite cute.
I have so many on my watch list but I am always open to more. Any recommendations?
Life Untangled 