Eleison

Haha, oh dear. I did ask for that, didn't I? 😂
Well, you won't get an simple definition (I think that would take years to write 😂), but, first off (and get ready, this is long), I'd say it depends on the genre. Some genres I'm less familiar with, and sometimes it's more of an intuition that I struggle to define (like how I could know how to use proper grammar in a sentence, but not be able to break it down if you asked me to, which I know sounds like an excuse 😂), but here I go! A first draft shot.

Kdramas are not episodic. They have long character and/or thematic arcs which do not get realized until the final episodes, and even if there are side characters and little vignettes that come and go into the story, they will not be wrapped up, episode by episode. Nothing important is ever revealed immediately, and there is always mystery that is slowly revealed that fleshes out the characters and their stories as the drama progresses no matter the genre. The storytelling is NEVER completely linear. They are usually fairly clean as far as sexual innuendoes and crass jokes go (there's a bit of a spectrum, though), and explicit scenes are just not done. Strong language DOES feature, though. The ML is always a good person or becomes one by the end of the drama.

With more time I could try to do better to refine the main elements of the formula that ALL Kdramas share, but I'd need more time to think about it and map stuff out. 😂 Kdramas are a kind of format (think Hallmark, but more sophisticated, and a longer format) with a grab bag of formulaic non-negotioables, tropes, and cliches that get creatively mix-and-matched to form: the Kdrama.

Most dramas I can think of from these genres that don't adhere consistently to the elements I'll list below (and which "experiment" more) will always be from Netflix or Disney.

Now, as for the traditional Kdrama thriller/crime/mystery, it wouldn't have a sex scene, sexual innuendos or anything elicit or lewd beyond the implied (D.P., for instance, and My Name, diverged from the formula wildly here), and it would show the ML (since FLs are not usually focal points in thrillers, they will team up with the ML or support him, but they won't be THE person the drama is about, and there is also rarely romance at all of any kind, but there is often bromance or buddy cop dynamics (i.e. The Good Detective, Stranger, Signal, Tunnel, Beyond Evil, etc. though Flower of Evil is a tweak on these)) growing in some way by the end of the drama as the ML fights for justice against all odds (he's also either wicked smart and a prosecutor/attorney, a detective/policeman with mad fighting skills) or to find the person responsible for the crimes being committed. There will also be EITHER intense business fraud/corruption, prosecution fraud/corruption and/or police fraud/corruption, or all three showcased at some point as integral to the plot's climax. These are a few elements off the top of my head for this genre, but this is my weakest genre in terms of familiarity... so maybe I shouldn't have made claims about how they portray gangsters and what makes a Kdrama of this genre a Kdrama. Oh well.

As for the rom-com (though a few items below can overlap eith melodrama), there's a wide variety here of mix and match tropes and cliches that you will find scattered throughout Kdramas, and some slight variations in pacing for when things will happen in which episodes. The pacing differences usually have a lot to do with slow burn (which usually climax somewhere in Episodes 10-16) vs. traditional romantic build (which has the confession and/or first real kiss happening in Episodes 7 or 8). Here are a few of the non-negotiables for the rom-com formula:

1. ML is sexually pure and innocent, even if he's the biggest jerk on the planet and a spoiled brat
2. If the leads date before Episode 7, they will not have a happy ending/stay together
3. The 2ML never gets the girl (and there's ALWAYS a 2nd lead, and he's almost always in love with the FL; the love triangle comes in if he tries to fight the ML for her, which is also VERY common); if there is a drama without a second lead like this, then it's because there's an 2FL who takes this role instead towards the ML)
4. The ML is either: royalty, rich, adorably devoted to the FL no matter what she does, an expert at fighting/martial arts, extremely smart or an expert at ___________ (insert anything random here) that plays an important role in the story, or some combination of all these traits and qualities.
5. The FL is clumsy and/or trips frequently, and ends up in the ML's arms AT LEAST once in the drama, but most likely three or four times (and said fall must have a "swoosh" sound effect to accompany it)
6. Nine times out of ten, there must be a trip to the beach OR a camping trip (or both)
7. There are parents of one of the main leads featured pretty heavily in the drama, and they either fawn all over their child's love interest (so, for comedic relief), OR are the biggest stumbling block to the main couple being happy
8. If the ML is royalty or a chaebol heir (or an heir of any kind), wait for their fiance-from-childhood (or an old girlfriend) to show up and create angst
9. Someone (either ML or FL) has an Episode or more of noble idiocy that they have to work past (this usually results in a temporary breakup)
10. The FL or the ML is a better person by the end of the drama (or overcomes some momentous obstacle) and in large part due to their love interest's presence in their life
11. The main leads fail to communicate about something majorly important at some point in the drama (and most likely more than one time)
12. The FL (or ML, but less common) is saved in some way by the other and/or one of them suffer an accident or injury that usually leads to the noble idiocy or ends it.😆
13. The FL and ML (almost always) have some previous connection to each other that they discover later in the drama at some point (often a childhood connection); if it's not with the ML, the FL probably has this connection with the 2ML.
14. No explicit sex scenes, though they may be started/implied, but the lovers are always clothed or covered

If a rom-com does not have 75% of some combination of this list of items, it's not a rom-com Kdrama. It's either an imposter or a wannabe.

Romance action dramas are usually a mix of the rom-com and thriller/crime dramas (i.e. Descendents of the Sun, I Can Hear Your Voice, Crash Landing, etc.), but that's a whole new list...

Anyway, how'd I do? Are you still scratching your head and thinking, "Yeah, I think she's making this stuff up" 😂?

I've never seen My Name, but I can imagine. But sometimes I feel like Netflix fails to really do the Kdrama well, haha (I wonder if Disney will also be a bit of the same, but I can't access their dramas in the U.S. so, I wouldn't know 😐).

Sometimes Netflix's original content just doesn't cut it for me, like someone trying to write the next season in a TV show a previous screenwriter helmed and just not getting there cause they're really trying to do their own thing while claiming it's "doing the same thing as the previous writer," but not. Just because you make something with 16 episodes and Korean actors, that doesn't make it a Kdrama. What I'm trying to say is that I don't trust all their content to really get the spirit of the thing. Non-Netflix Korean crime dramas, whodunits and thrillers can really be gory, terrifying and suspenseful when they write about murderers, serial killers and kidnappers (and would certainly NEVER EVER do a sex scene), but usually they seem to make gangsters a little more gimmicky, with the telltale paunch, patterned shirts, black pants and the swagger. They're all brawns (but even then, just brute force, not sophisticated fighting skills present) and no brains (in the stereotype I'm used to). The other point I'm trying to make is that if you can point to a drama with truly terrifying gangsters, it's most likely from Netflix or Disney (and your example checks out), not one of the cable network dramas.

But Netflix gripes aside, I do see what you mean about them being a little too not-scary, but it didn't bother me that much. I mean, they're called Kitty and Bulldog gang--how scary can they be? 😆 And it just feels SO Kdrama of the writers to portray them this way. (To me!)

I just always leave Kdramas with gangsters in them with the impression that Koreans secretly feel bad for their gangsters, and find them a pitiable lot. 😢 If that portrayal is completely false to real Koreans who live in Korea, then the only conclusion I can come to is it's a consistent Kdrama gangster cliche. 🤷‍♀️

But minus the serial killer/kidnapper plot (which is a plus, in my book!). :)

I have yet to see a Kdrama with gangsters who are genuinely intimidating in any way. 😂 I didn't see that recent drama with Ji Chang Wook, and maybe it would be the first, but all the other dramas portray them as kind of clownish and more often than not, kind of endearing and pitiable. 🤷‍♀️

In fact, this drama did a good job showing that most of the thugs didn't have a way out. They're not malicious guys at heart, but they've messed up their chances and their only way forward is the gangs cause no one else will give them any more opportunities. Even the fact that none really had spouses or children made sense, since they could just be used by their opponents to manipulate them into more shady stuff. Having loved ones is a liability.

I DO think it was completely unrealistic that the ex-cons would be executives at a huge company without training or education, but they made it work. But Ji Hwan was so lovable and earnest that everyone felt so grateful to him. It would make sense that all his employees are those who genuinely want to live better lives after messing up in the past, and who wanted to be worthy of Ji Hwan's approval and respect since he allowed them to have new lives with dignity and purpose. While it probably wouldn't work in real life, it worked in the story they told.

😂😂😂 Good luck! I procrastinate here, too. I get it. 😆

I agree they did a great job. I loved all kiddos' together and I think they all brought something unique to the ensemble.

I'm not super familiar with Cdrama or Chinese novel tropes but I totally see what you're saying. And while I do feel the similarities between the two dramas, I wouldn't venture to say either is a copy of the other.

I think tropes are impossible to escape and people get WAY too snobby about writers and creators needing to be "original." You mean those indie movies no one watches or those books no one wants to read but are super "original"? Give me a break!

Good, compelling stories don't have to be "original" to be good or even unique in their own way. We all have our favorite go-to stories or genres which always do the same thing over and over, technically, but who still manage to bring pleasure and enjoyment because of the creativity of the execution and they way choose to freshen up the formula, cliches, and tropes. I'm with you on this. 👍

Haha, nope. I always enjoy engaging the writers (or avid readers) on MDL and hearing their ideas cause they're always fun to talk to even if we don't agree on everything. They can usually see the nuance of a thing and are perceptive and insightful about characters, dialogue, pacing and plot, and I love talking nuance, subtlety, subtext and all this stuff. (And their writing is always fun to read! :)) I've encountered a few writers on MDL who don't even speak English as their first language, and even with the language barrier their writing voice and insights still come through. So cool!

Anyway, all the best with your writing endeavors! 😊

Haha, I never said the other two did badly (I loved them), I just said I thought Hyun Wook shines in this, in particular. And I saw him in this before Weak Hero and Twinkling Watermelon were a thing; it was before he was popular.

Oh, good, I'm glad! I wish I could pin it at the top so it would be readily accessible. Maybe I should make it a review and just call it "Cheat Sheet For Under The Queen's Umbrella!" 😂

Right?! Haha, I died laughing he was so cute!!

The Queen is the King's "head" wife and the concubines/consorts (the king has about 10 of them!) are his other wives with a lesser status than the Queen.

The Queen has five sons with the King (from oldest to youngest): the Crown Prince ("Crown" designates that he will be the next king) (the perfect son), Grand Prince Seongnam (the mysterious wild child 😂), Grand Prince Gyeseong (gentle and kind), Grand Prince Muan (sweet and charming but obsessed with girls 😂), and Grand Prince Ilyeong (into math and astronomy and "still just a kid").

Any other princes without "Grand" in front of their title are sons the king had with one of his concubines (aka Prince Ui Seong (actually the oldest of all the king's sons, even older than the Crown Prince, and a BAD EGG), Prince Bogeom (the most intellectually promising of the brothers after the Crown Prince), Prince Simso (good-hearted but struggles to measure up), etc.).

The "Grand Heir" refers to the son of the Crown Prince (he's about 4 or 5 years old in this), who is next in the line of succession to inherit the throne. He will become Crown Prince when his father (the current Crown Prince) becomes king, and is technically 3rd in line for the throne.

The oldest son of the King and Queen is traditionally chosen as the Crown Prince, and is given preference over the concubines' sons in the line of succession (which is why Prince Ui Seong, despite being the oldest son of the king, is not the Crown Prince since he's only the son of a concubine).

The "Queen Dowager" refers to the mother of the King, though interestingly, she was just one of the previous king's concubines... then how did the current king rise to the throne despite being the son of a concubine? 🤔

I will let you figure out the rest. :)

Hope that's a helpful cheat sheet!

That scene... my heart! 🥺

For those who are confused by who everyone is and how they're connected, I will break it down as I had to look all this up. I had to pause Episodes 1 and 2 a bunch of times to figure out who on earth everyone was because I couldn't keep up and was super confused 😂:

**Don't worry, there are NO SPOILERS below, but if you want to figure everything out on your own, don't read any further (I just put the rest under a spoiler tag because it's long and I didn't want to hog the thread, lol)***

Ack, the synopsis for this is just terrible and so confusing. I'll attempt to craft an improvement:

"This sageuk follows the fictional Joseon Queen, Im Hwa Ryeong, as she fights to protect her five sons from the machinations of evil-minded family members, ambitious concubines and scheming ministers. While hell-bent on preserving her children's safety after experiencing a tragic loss, Im Hwa Ryeong becomes a force to be reckoned with, inspiring those around her in the process--even her husband, the king--to uphold the values of a flourishing kingdom. But will she ultimately succeed in protecting those she loves?"

Oh, no, there are definitely worse kings in Kdrama land, haha! At least he gets something of a backbone whenever he teams up with/trusts the Queen! And yes, he's a weak king, but it's because he doesn't deserve the throne, and he knows it.

I think your criticisms are all valid, and I completely tracked with all of them, reasoning-wise, and yet ultimately I somehow came to a completely different overall impression. I still liked it. 😂

I felt like the stuff it was trying to "preach" about was never what intrigued me about this, so I didn't care that it didn't deliver on that front. I was more interested in Sae Ro Yi's growth and determination as he learned the value of friendship while building his life back up after being horribly ruined (and I can take or leave romance as long as there are interesting characters and stories to follow). So, it didn't feel contrived to me, but I guess my experience was also different because I went into it without expectations. I still like rewatching parts, though, which proves my initial impressions have held up over time and after exposure to many more Kdramas (and many good ones).

The one thing I completely agree with you about was the fact that Park Seo Joon acted well in this. He still managed to make me love his character even with one of the ugliest male haircuts I've ever seen! 😂

If you think it's boring after Episode 1, then the rest of it probably won't be interesting to you.

Vincenzo is the drama you're looking for, then.

Ah, the nostalgia for this one.

I think it was one of the first five Kdramas I ever watched, and I still have so much love for it.

I didn't realize it at the time, but it doesn't fit the formula in a lot of ways and does some risky things while still being very much a Kdrama (in that it includes strong character arcs, with characters transforming and growing as we watch, and I LOVE this about Kdramas).

It also packs a wallop emotionally (particularly from/because of the ML (Park Seo Joon absolutely ROCKED this drama; I just love Sae Ro Yi)), and I am still IN LOVE with the OST (particularly the BGMs, some of the tracks are up there with my favorite instrumental music of all time).

And the scene with Sae Ro Yi and his father on the bridge? Still one of my favorite scenes in a Kdrama to date.

So many things to love about this drama! Not perfect, but 100% a classic. If you want to dispute the fact, look at how many viewers it has while still maintaining an 8.4. Only Kdrama classics hold up under that many viewers' ratings!