Feeling bored and not sure of what to watch on TV? Whether you are a seasoned K-drama addict or a newbie to Korean dramas, here is a list of addictive Korean dramas to watch.
- Squid Game
Since its airing internationally on September 17, 2021, Squid Game has become Netflix’s most-watched series. The series is the most viewed series in 94 countries with 142 million member households with 1.65 billion viewing hours during its first four weeks since its release. Squid Game is a survival drama series and it features mostly fresh faces among the cast. The contest features 456 players who pit against each other playing deadly children’s games in order to win 45.6 billion won.
Squid Game received several awards such as Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film for O Yeong-su and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series. Lee Jung-jae and HoYeon Jung won Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series. All three of them are the first Korean stars to win in those categories.
Squid Game also received fourteen Primetime Emmy Award nominations, including for Best Drama, making it the first non-English language work to be nominated in this category; Jung-jae won the Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama series, making the first time an Asian actor had won this award for a non-English work.
2. Business Proposal
Starring Ahn Hyo-seop, Kim Se-jeong, Kim Min-kyu and Seol In-ah, Business Proposal is a rom-com that is based on the Korean webtoon of the same name. Shin Ha-ri (Kim Se-Keong) goes on a blind date in replacement of her friend but she finds out that the date is actually her employer Kang Tae-Moo (Ahn Hyo-Seop). The single woman has been in love with her friend for a long time but she found out that the friend is attached.
Shin’s female friend, Jin Young-Seo is from a wealthy background. Jin offered money to Shin to go on a blind date with Kang. Kang turned out to be Shin’s boss from work. He has been pressured by his grandfather to get married.
3. Extraordinary Attorney Woo
One of the most memorable and meaningful dramas has got to be this legal drama that focuses on autism. Park Eun Bin plays Woo Young-Woo, a rookie lawyer who has autism spectrum disorder yet she is incredibly clever and has a photographic memory. She starts off her career at a large law firm, and despite prejudice against her, she manages to solve cases successfully. Woo does not have proper social skills but she has people around her who are supportive.
Kang Tae-oh plays her romantic interest while Kang Ki-young stars as Woo’s senior. The series is so popular among viewers that there may be a second season for the show. Kang has been enlisted in compulsory military service which is a must for South Korean men. It has been said that a possible second season will be filmed after he completes his duty.
4. Start-Up
Resembling the story of how most IT giants first began, Start-Up is a story about Seo Dal-Mi (Bae Suzy) who desires to be like Steve Jobs. She required $90K to start her own business so she left university and does part-time work to do so. An IT genius, Nam Do-San (Nam Joo-hyuk)) is the founder of Samsan Tech and he started up the business two years ago but at the present, the company is not doing well. Kim Seon-ho together with Nam and Seo are caught up in a love triangle when Nam takes on the identity of Kim’s character.
5. It’s Okay Not To Be Okay
This drama series touches upon mental illness and how two people heal each other by accepting each others’ flaws. Seo Ye-ji stars as Ko Mun-yeong, a children’s storybook author who has antisocial personality disorder. Oh Jung-se plays as Moon Sang-tae, an autistic man who lives with his younger brother Moon Gang-tae (Kim Soo-hyun) who is a caretaker at a psychiatric hospital. This touching story is sometimes comical and realistic as it explores real-world issues.
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