Fave kdramas

Be Melodramatic is a refreshing gem of a drama that manages to tell a satisfying story from start to finish while simultaneously being a clever meta examination of dramas. It's a balancing act that could go awry, but the team behind the drama manage the difficult task of serving both the story and the meta-commentary. 

It's a genuinely funny comedy that strikes out on its own path, breaking free of the formulaic writing that plagues some dramas even as it engages with and finds humour in the clichés and tropes of the genre. Despite being a comedy, it takes its characters and their pain seriously, and the result is that they feel both real and relatable. The actors are all uniformly great; there are no weak links in the cast. 

Be Melodramatic deserves to be on the banner because it's an all-round great drama as well as being a love letter to dramas and the people who love them.  - u/puffyskyclouds

Descendants Of The Sun - It was my first kdrama and I loved it.  It is responsible for me being completely hooked on kdramas.  I liked it because it was such a refreshing change from the overt sexuality of western tv.   I loved the romance between the two leads - it reminded me of old Harlequin and Mills and Boon novels.   I laughed at the corny-ness when the two leads make eye contact in the first episode in slow motion with mood music playing but I think that is what hooked me.   Now when I go back and watch it after two years of watching many, many kdramas I can see why people might say it is overhyped and I now recognize the tropes but I still think it is a terrific intro to kdramas and recommend it to people interested in trying them out. - u/CCCri

Descendants Of The Sun is worth watching.  Big budget, mega stars, outstanding OST, good story.  Some of its scenes have been replicated in other dramas, like in Touch Your Heart as Easter eggs,so it’s especially fun if you have watched it.  It does have some cringey parts, and some bad English actors, but overall, I loved it! - u/ShayeAnne

Kim Sa Bu, a famous surgeon who decided to give it all up and is now working in a run-down hospital in a small, remote town is joined by Kang Dong Joo (who desperately wants to achieve success after growing up in poverty) when he gets transferred to the hospital due to his lack of wealthy connections and Yoon Seo Jung who is still traumatized by watching her fiancee die in a car accident. Not only a medical drama, it also poses an important question: Who is a good doctor? Still, among the strong character development, difficult and often heartbreaking patient stories, hospital politics and philosophical questions the slow-burn romance somehow manages to thrive.

Why you should watch: the whole cast of the hospital is a family, and even more than medical issues, the drama often focuses on the human aspect - the actions and the consequences, the society as a whole. Even the sidestories are explored and the drama has a satisfying ending. It really is different than an other medical drama out there. - u/AlohaAlex

Dr. Romantic focuses on the growth of the characters as they give their judgement both as doctors and human beings. What I also liked about this drama was it did not only focus on the doctors. The whole medical staff had a great chemistry. It was showing how every staff holds importance in establishing the organization (hospital). - u/taehyungpapi

Romantic Doctor Season 1 - The operation scenes are just so realistic the characters would really pass as doctors. Its medical accuracy was also praised by professionals, which I believe what made this drama really good. - u/kwbljj09

Flower Of Evil - The ML's acting will blow you away and I'm not even talking about his back muscles. The writing includes absolutely amazing lines that will have you think about them over and over, as well as flashbacks that make your heart flutter, with very clever Easter egg references later on. Delicious angst of the "I'm not good enough for her' kind. Spouses that defy gender stereotypes, and a FL that doesn't wait for the ML to rescue her. Colleagues that feel each other's pain and are willing to even risk their job to support each other.

The director did an amazing job making sure this is a bingable and rewatchable drama too esp. the bed scene omg., despite the difficulties of filming in the middle of a world pandemic. Mental illness and its misdiagnosis not being romanticized, but its effects on the person and the people around them shown in a real and heart-breaking way. A final episode that ended all other final episodes for the majority of its viewers, and you know how whiney we usually are over finales. - u/MALLY10FE

Flower Of Evil - For people like me who prefer more relaxed rom-coms, I was amazed at how quickly this series engrossed me. I rarely watch crime thriller genre because I don't want to feel too stressed while watching and waiting for the next episodes. However, FoE did away with my misgivings by making sure that I was more curious than stressed. There was also a sufficient amount of fluff, thanks to the adorable daughter, the chemistry of the two leads and the funny/witty banter of the supporting cast. All in all, this drama encouraged me to watch more dramatic series and watch more LJG series. - u/SquareSwan

Goblin - because it skillfully reimagines traditional Korean folklore/folk belief into a modern setting to tell a story of revenge, forgiveness, and brotherhood (bromance) that manages to explore the conflict between fate and (human) choice. Where it distinguishes itself -- cinematography, OST, and incorporation of foreign locale. - u/myweithisway

Goblin - It's still one of the most popular dramas and the one which received critical and commercial success. The OST is amazing even today, and the cinematography is totally out of this world. The episodes are quite lengthy, however it has a strong plot and way of conveying the story. And about the characters?? All main as well as supporting roles did amazing job!!  - u/NaaruGaaraShika

Goblin - I've seen many complaints about it recently... The truth is you can feel conflicted about the age gap but I still pretty much enjoyed the story as a whole, it can seem as a love story, but I think it has a lot of layers so you can enjoy it for different reasons. I personally didn't feel particularly troubled with the main characters relationship, so I can say I enjoyed every bit of it. It taught me about forgiveness, selflessness, living in the present, letting go of past mistakes and loving without fear because love makes life worth living. Also, it taught me second chances rarely come around so do your best to make it work and accept it if it doesn't. ❤️ - u/AlexaWarriorPrincess

Healer - It's a wonderful combination of genres: amazing action sequences (parkour is wonderful), romance, comedy, angst, characters (the adjumma is a classic well-known kdrama character with talented and versatile Kim Mi-Kyung), romance, childhood trauma and connection tropes, slowly unravelling story, and yet there is something deeper and more timely. It ultimately deals with the power of the media and idealistic young people who yearn to document and expose corruption. It exposes the vast network of control that one person or group can have over an entire society and how dedicated truth-seekers can thwart this if they persevere with smart, coordinated, focused actions.

Hospital Playlist - I think that it has been popular and well-received. It has great acting, wonderful and witty dialogue/scriptwriting, poignant directing, beautiful OST, and most all perfect cast chemistry.

Hotel del Luna - Everything clicked for me with this show, from the execution of the plot, through the performances (IU steals the show and she works great with Jin Goo), the beautiful cinematography (and Man Wol's dresses!) and excellent musical score, down even to the instrumental tracks that infuse the show with a magic and identity of its own (few shows can say the same). I've mentioned before that this show feels like Harry Potter at times and Hotel del Luna feels like Hogwarts. Every ghost side story served a purpose, reinforcing the main narrative and the relationship between Man Wol and Chan Seong, sometimes even giving hints of things to come. It's a modern day retelling of Beauty and the Beast, possibly the Hong sisters' best work to date, and my favourite show. - u/OdanUr

It's Okay Not To Be Okay - It’s one of the most popular kdrama this year, one of the most watched kdrama on Netflix (recently entering the top 10 worldwide, making it the highest kdrama), and is fairly often mentioned or talked about in this sub. It has a very talented cast that produced great chemistry between the characters, not to mention an iconic FL. The talent also extends to the writer, director and the rest of the crew who helped bring the drama to life.

Although it’s a romance genre, it’s much more than that as it can make you laugh from the characters’ banters one minute, then make you cry the next from their stories where many life lessons that could be learned. It’s definitely not the first drama to be centred around mental health but I think it gave it a boost to get people to have discussions on the subject, and I personally learned a lot from those discussions that I’ve seen. - iwantbubbleteanowpls

Just Between Lovers - I loved the peopleness and humanity of the characters. They felt real and I cried along with them. The OST is clever, adding to scenes. I thought that Junho's performance was extraordinary,vulnerable,real. Direction, writing and other production features,in my view, showcase the best of Korean small screen. We are taken on a journey of discovery of the origin of trauma for the main characters that is heartbreaking and yet I felt like I had learnt something about myself too.  - u/tattymouse

My Mister - the overall production was just of a different class— the sense of community, the cinematography, the drama being shot during winter, the acting. Though the premise may be depressing, it's one of the most healing dramas I've watched, and will always recommend to people. - u/lightupstarlight

Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo - Set in a university, it revolves around a group of friends and the ups and downs of becoming successful in the world of sports. The characters have great chemistry and are all lovable. It also shines a light on mental illness and how it affects the daily life of the protagonists and the people around them. - u/drmd16  

What's Wrong with Secretary Kim - It's one of the most popular rom-coms of recent times, and it's certainly my top rom-com so far.

While You Were Sleeping - This is a story of a woman who could see a portion of a future, most likely their deaths. She could ignore it or do something to prevent it as it is possible that it could be changed. But what if the death that she saw is hers? Another thing is... what if she's not the only one who could see them? How can she stop her death along with other people who could see the future?