2023 K-Drama Challenge

2. A drama which subverts a trope

The male lead is not the usual alpha male CEO stereotype.

Completed in June 2023.

3. A drama that was referenced in another drama  (Examples: famous dialogue, in-character cameos, re-enactment of famous scenes, re-use of OST, in drama TV watching, etc.)

This drama was in-drama watched by Park Min-young's character in Love in Contract.

This challenge was originally slated for Extraordinary You which was very famously referenced in True Beauty. Unfortunately, I had a hard time trudging through episodes. I know the webtoon was well-loved but sadly, I will have to park the live action version after five eps for now. (I do hope to pick it up later!)

Completed in December 2023.

8. A drama with a main lead that started off as a child actor (They must have debuted under 16 years of age. They must be over 18 years of age in the challenge drama.)

I had parked this show for a number of months but this prompt motivated me to finish it because Kim Yoo-jung is my poster Korean child actor. (I did a double-take though because I failed to take note of the age requirement until I am typing this. I thought to watch another one of her more recent shows since I still have a few days left in the year. After a bit of research, I saw that KYJ was 18 years old in Korean age when the show ended and the Korean age system was still in effect when I completed this prompt. So that's that.)

Completed in May 2023.

9. A drama starring a well known supporting actor (Actor must have at least 5 supporting roles on MDL. Note: Can be either a lead or supporting role.)

I picked 2022's favorite chingu, Seo Hye-won. I love her and I hope to see her on more shows.

Completed in March 2023.

10. A drama starring one of the actors from your first drama (Note: If you do not remember the very first drama, the earliest you can recall is fine.)

I picked Kim Bum since my first ever K-drama was Boys Over Flowers. 

Completed in June 2023.

11. A drama starring an actor who has previously won the Baeksang best new actor or actress award (Note: "Previously" denotes the role should be after the award was received.)

I picked Lee Do-hyun's latest project which turned out to be a great watch! LDH won the Baeksang for new actor in 2021 for 18 Again. 

Completed in August 2023.

12. A drama starring an actor who is a member of a Kpop group (Only current members of non-disbanded groups.)

So many shows to choose from and my K-pop loving heart is just happy to watch these idols appear in these dramas. I picked this show to fill this prompt since it starred SNSD's Choi Soo-young.

Completed in April 2023.

13. A drama where two of the main or support cast have been co-stars on multiple occasions 

If I'm not mistaken, this is the third time Jang Hyuk and Jang Na-ra have worked together (I've only watched Fated To Love You but not their first work together). Despite the reviews, I was glad to watch this--had some good laughs with a bit of action sequences. 

Completed in July 2023.

14. A drama with an OST by an artist who has been nominated for or won a MAMA Award for best OST

Remember Me by Gummy won in 2019.

Completed in June 2023. 

15. A drama with a multigenerational main cast

There were three generations in the main cast plus a fourth in the support.

Completed in April 2023.

16. A drama where one of the main cast shares your zodiac sign (Note: May be Eastern or Western Zodiac.)

Park Gyu-young is a Leo.

Completed in July 2023.

17. A drama where the college alma mater of a character was a plot point

Ung's opportunities to study abroad was pivotal in both their relationship while they were in college as well as highlighted as closure at the end of the series.

Completed in June 2023.

18. A drama with a dream interpretation (Examples: conception or lucky dreams.)

The concept of the story itself is going into dreams to change one's present or do things that have been left undone.  

Completed in July 2023.

19. A drama with minimal or no romance

It's a relief to know all those cigarettes were just CGI!

Completed in May 2023.

20. A drama with a main or supporting character that is an athlete

Both of the main characters were athletes--FL was, well, a weightlifter and ML was a swimmer.

Completed in June 2023.

21. A drama featuring disguises or false identities (Examples: cross-dressing, conman, vigilante, undercover.)

The FL was using a different identity for her safety after a failed attempt on her life.

Completed January 2023.

22. A drama which features a character seeking revenge 

I had been saving The Glory for this prompt but managed to fill it earlier than expected even if I watched this show without a prompt in mind--I just felt like watching Lee Joon-gi's greatness.

Completed in August 2023.

23. A drama with at least one animal pet (non-human animals)

After watching this show, I thought I would never be able to tag it for a certain prompt. I just happened to skim it again because I thought there was a scene that would meet one of the challenge prompts. It's funny that I never got that confirmed but instead saw again that the Crown Prince's pet turtle would fit right here. And saw that Lee Chae-min (Seon-jae in Crash Course...) was the alcohol deliveryman in the first ep! 

Completed in May 2023.

24. A drama you always wanted to watch but for some reason have not watched yet

Since I only got into Kdramaland during lockdown, I never had the chance to watch this before but I wanted it out of the way before I watch Reborn Rich and The Glory. So many eyerolls whenever the former Song-Song couple had sweet moments--I must have sprained my eyeballs. LOL! I must say that I stayed for the second leads. Looove them!

Completed in April 2023.

25. A drama whose poster you liked at first sight 

The first poster of this drama that I actually stumbled on was the one with the full body shot of the lead characters, the one shot in the street fronting their house. I loved that! The fact that one of them was a celebrity didn't help--I love this trope, too! Fun fact: Even if I waited for this show for months, I actually didn't look up the cast and only found out about Suzy a few days before it dropped. Ahhh, she's too pretty for words!

Completed in October 2023.

26. A drama from a screenwriter or director whose works you have previously enjoyed (A drama you haven't previously watched.)

Well, I just loved this entire series and I'm here for the rumored prequel.

Completed in May 2023.

29. A drama suggested by a fellow KDC participant (Maybe a suggestion from previous challenges.)

I had seen this show mentioned in the earlier months of the challenge and had heard good things about it from friends. Unfortunately, it did not quite meet my expectations--or I just set a bar too high for it.

Completed in August 2023.

30. A drama whose title is a direct translation of the Korean title 

Its Korean title is still 킹더랜드. Finally, a Yoona and Junho project! I have waited for this show ever since it was first announced and it didn't disappoint.

Completed in August 2023.

31. A drama with an episode which received less than 2% overall viewership rate from Nielsen 

I don't know why this show didn't rate well (pilot ep was at 1.069%) but I finished it in a couple of days. It was soapy and over-the-top which was fun to have on weekdays. 

I had started Strangers Again to fill this prompt awhile back. Sadly I had to park it mid-way and presently don't have the inclination to pick it up again yet (in 2024, maybe).

Completed in December 2023.

32. A single episode drama (Examples: KBS Drama specials, tvN Drama stage/O'PENing, JTBC Drama festa)

This short drama's title is really The Effect of a Finger Flick on a Breakup. I had a hard time choosing which one to watch since there have been a number of recommendations for this prompt. But since I have been missing Kang Tae-oh while he is enlisted, I chose to watch this instead. Sad but refreshing, realistic and a great quick watch as a whole.

Completed in December 2023.

33. A long form drama (Over 50 hours in length)

This was the most daunting prompt in the entire list being the only second long-form drama I would attempt to finish! I think I started this drama back in August or September and I was so confident I will finish it well before December. All the while getting stuck around episode 10, moving to a new place, and going on a long vacation, this was put in the back-burner until, well, December. I just finished this last night (Dec 26th!) as the last filled prompt and I was surprised by how much I enjoyed  it and how quickly I went through it over Christmas weekend. (Kang Sang-min and  his effortless gift for secondhand embarrassment is iconic!)

Completed in December 2023.

34. A drama with less than 500 watchers on MDL (Drama must be over 12 months old with less than 500 users that have completely watched it.)

I found this as one of the more difficult themes so I wanted to make sure to get this out of the way the soonest. The show turned out to be surprisingly okay for a web series and I really wanted more because I thought there were more to the the different storylines. The female cast are members of Kpop cover group, ARTBEAT. I was MDL watcher number 208 as of May 17. 

Completed in May 2023.

35. A drama that is at least 10 years old 

They did say it's highly recommended to watch this show and I was only glad to tag it to this prompt. I used to think I was an LMH fan but I see that I'm not anymore. This was still an okay watch but I think it didn't age very well.

Completed in September 2023.

36. A drama which fits a challenge from previous KDC years (2021 or 2022 challenges that are not repeated this year. Note: The bonus challenges may be used if you are doing all 36 challenges or chaebol level.)

I picked theme 11: A drama featuring great friendships from KDC 2021 since I loved the bromance of the ML and the SML in this show. They were just both so unserious. 

Completed in January 2023.