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Looking for a good romantic drama

Kim-Park-Lee Author
Hello :) I'm posting this because I've been dying to watch a new drama for about... 2 months now, and nothing yet has caught my attention! I used to pride myself in being a pretty enduring drama watcher, since I would finish every single drama I started, including the ones I hated like Playful Kiss (sorry for the fans!)... But recently, I've started a handful of dramas that looked good (and probably really are!), but none got me hooked... I've been developing this weird pattern of giving up on a drama after 5 episodes (which is pretty far in, no?) - it has been the case for Arang and the Magistrate, the Heirs, School 2013, You Who Came From the Stars, King 2 Hearts, The Moon that Embraces the Sun, Full House, My Name is Kim Sam Soon, Coffee Prince, Protect the Boss, Devil Beside You... I'm so annoyed with myself! What I really do enjoy is good romance - last drama I watched was I Hear Your Voice, and I loved it. A few other favorites of mine are Sungkyungkwan Scandal (although, admittedly, not only for the romance), City Hunter, Reply 1997, Rooftop Prince, Master's Sun, Last Cinderella... I also enjoyed My Girlfriend is a Gumiho, although not one of my all-time favorites (but I adore Shin Min Ah's character!), and yes, I did like Boys Over Flowers. I like when there's a huge gap separating the two leads - wealth, age, looks, fame... whatever! Oh, and I have a hard time with action/thriller/revenge dramas - City Hunter was an exception for me. I'm one of those rare people that actually hated Bridal Mask! (admit the romance was flat!) I would really appreciate reading your explanations (short or long!) of why you loved a romantic drama of your choice - because reviews and opinons, more than plots, push me to watch a drama. If you want to recommend a drama I mentioned in my "dropped" list, that's no problem, I may be tempted again! (apart from Heirs, sorry, keep me away from that one!) Thanks so much :) P.S: as you can see, I'm mainly k-drama oriented, but only because that's what I know best! Any nationality, as long as the romance is good, is welcome!
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Surprise-Lobotomy
I'd say keep watching You Who Came From The Stars - it really picks up and I think it may end up being one of the best kdramas I have seen since A Gentleman's Dignity. The romance is very, very sweet and Jun Ji Hyun is simply outstanding. I'd definitely give it more than 5 episodes to see if you get hooked. I think it's better than I Hear Your Voice, but they both give me a similar feeling.


Also, since I mentioned it, you might want to give A Gentleman's Dignity a shot - this drama has several love stories, including one with an older guy / younger girl. It also is probably the best "bromance" or friendship drama I have watched. It is one of my all-time favorites.

The dramas with what have my favorite romance are typically not korean, though. If you are willing to try other countries I would recommend the following to start:

MARS - Painfully shy girl with a tragic past is swept away by a guy who has his own demons to conquer. It's absolutely touching, when broken down it's a simple story about true love conquering all. It has the rich guy/poor girl archetype, but it doesn't play a huge part - it's more about personal growth. Han Qi Luo and Chen Ling have to be one of the sweetest couples in dramaland, definitely worth a watch.

Autumn's Concerto - also Taiwanese, this one focuses heavily on the wealthy guy / beautiful poor girl archetype and it does it really well. It also features probably the cutest kid I have seen in a drama.

Orange Days - my favorite out of any I have suggested. It's heavy on friendship and growing together. I thought the romance was incredibly touching and it is absolute canon for anyone that likes romance dramas. You could say that the main couple is separated by a "gap" in that the lead girl is blind, but it's actually a barrier that brings them closer.
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PrettyCarEye
Pride & Buzzer Beat - both are incredibly good sports dramas with amazing love stories at their core. If you're not that into sports (hockey & basketball respectively), don't worry. They're significant to the central plot, but never completely take centre stage. It's the relationships and friendships that are the main focus. You're likely to become fans of both leads, if you aren't already.

City Hall - wonderfully mature romance with a political backdrop. Takes a few eps for the romance to get started, but it's well worth the wait & is hella funny in the interim. You'll probably fall in love with one or both of the leads.

The Greatest Love - has the same male lead as City Hall & he's just absolutely hilarious here. Whilst TGL is not among my top favourite romances, it does have moments of brilliance ... mostly in the form of Cha Seung Won's incredible comedic act. The romance is cute too, although I did grow a bit frustrated with the female lead in the middle of the drama. But keep watching, it redeems itself. Also if it's any motivation it's written by the same folks behind Master's Sun & My GF is Gumiho, both of which you really enjoyed.

I also second the recs for MARS, Orange Days and A Gentleman's Dignity above. The first two are classics & by far some of the greatest romance dramas I've ever seen, and AGD is the best bromance drama I've seen so far.
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Shaolex
I see you haven't seen Nagareboshi yet. I highly recommend it as the two leads are as different as you can expect. The female works in the sex trade industry and the male works in an aquarium.

Fate brings them together as the male lead saves the female from committing suicide. The female is in debt and has nothing to lose while the male is willing to do whatever it takes to get a liver transplant for his sister. It's a really nice story with no love triangles or strange twists. Highly reccomend you check it out
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versaillesyoo
Smile, You is a family drama but the lead couple has amazing chemistry and is a joy to watch. She's rich and he's middle to low class and their personalities are nothing alike but since it's 45 episodes long you get to see their entire relationship evolve which is great.

Someone mentioned City Hall so Everything About My Relationship came to mind. It coincidentally has the same female lead as in Smile, You but it's a fantastic romantic political drama and the main couple is adorable and realistic and just perfect.
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FullDex
I know what you mean, I've run into this problem before as well. It especially happens right after you watch a really amazing show, it seems like anything you watch after it won't even compare. Or my main problem is that when everyone raves about a show, you go into it expecting it to be amazing, and when it isn't what you thought it would be it's really disappointing.

It seems both you and I are having a hard time getting into the newly airing dramas that everyone else is raving about. I totally agree with Heirs and You Who Came From the Stars, I don't get the appeal. I suggest giving Emergency Couple a try. I am really enjoying it and having the hardest time deciding who I actually want her to end up with in the end. It also fulfills the gap requirement. The male lead comes from a family of doctors who looked down on the main girl for not being from a wealthy family herself.

I also agree with MARS, it's probably my favorite drama of all time. The chemistry between the two leads was absolutely beautiful. Every romance I've watched after this one doesn't even compare. I would say more but I think it was already summed up perfectly.

Another one of my favorites is 49 Days. It's beautifully done, I love both the main and the side romances, but I have to warn you it has a sad ending. Don't let this deter you though because it really is a great show.

Two others I watched recently that I thought were amazing are Beautiful Life and Bara no nai Hanaya. Beautiful Life is another sad one, but again it's very well done. I thought the acting and the chemistry in both of these were simply wonderful.

If you try these and none of them appeal, send me a message, there are a couple of others I could recommend.
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Kim-Park-Lee Author
thanks so much for all these recommendations - and sorry for my late answer! I wanted to actually try a drama before answering, so I started Mars, since it came up so often in your answers, and planned only to watch an episode or two and then answer... but got so hooked I'm now onto episode 12. Thanks a lot! And when I'm done with that, I'll definitely try the other ones you mentioned :)
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sa6abe
Hey, I think you tried and droped some really good dramas. I wanted to share that it happens to me when I FALL IN LOVE with a drama I've finished and (it sounds dramatic but still) it's hard for me to connect to a new one cuz I'm just comparing it all the time and miss the other one. Could it be it? :) My recommendation is The Greatest Love, it's one of my favorites and I see you liked Master's Sun which reminds me of it a lot.
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peachy_love
Hey, I'm a lot like you and I drop some really famous dramas and continue some that I really wanted to drop (Like Heirs haha). I would agree with previous comments that The Greatest Love and A Gentleman's Dignity might be good ones to try, especially if you lean towards more of a comedic romance. Personally, one I really got into was Secret Love. It is a revenge drama, but that's what makes the romance really click, at least for me. To tell the truth, reading the description and watching the beginning, I really wanted to drop it. But I came to really like it, I was itching to know what happens. It is a melodrama so there are a lot more tears than comedy of course, and the main actor is the guy from Protect the Boss, but give it a try. Shining Inheritance might be good too. I actually dropped that one since it got too long (it was the time where I first started watching K-dramas so forgive me) but it does have that rich-gap.
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loreamar
Zettai Kareshi is something quite original.
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