r/kdramarecommends Banner 2023 recommendations

Bride of the Century - What makes a romcom a great guilty pleasure rewatch? Add a plethora of makjang tropes and a dash of ghostly fantasy! A Doppelgänger story where our poor FL assumes the identity of a rich heiress and gets married to a chaebol heir, this drama has pretty much all the makjang hallmarks except for copious amounts of death/murder. Filled with heartwarming moments and a cute kitty, it has just the right amount of fluff to balance out the makjang melodrama. The drama definitely does not take itself too seriously so neither should you, just enjoy the story of two young people falling in love amidst makjang craziness.  - u/myweithisway

Can You Hear My Heart is a romance melodrama that is probably a few episodes too long, and its main problem is that it's the first few "backstory episodes", as by the time the last episode nears, you will wish there's more of it. In it's heart, it's a terrifying story about betrayal, murder, secret identities, scheming and greed that ruins generations. The bond between two step-brothers (played by Namkoong Min and Kim Jae Won) and the emotions they experience as the plot unfolds and reveals the twisted past is probably the highlight of the drama, followed by Lee Hye Young's performance as a woman scorned that will stop at nothing to get revenge. What makes this a stand out is how well they incorporated the male lead being deaf into the plot, as well as carefully balancing the revenge storyline with rom-com aspects. Potential negatives? It's a 2011 drama (so, you know, all those tropes), Hwang Jung Eum is the female lead (a voice you either tolerate or don't), and a rather slow start.  - u/AlohaAlex

Cheese in the Trap is a fresh take on the tried and tested college romance genre that asks a seemingly simple question: what if the male lead was a sociopath? Based on the eponymous webtoon, is stars Hong Seol (Kim Go Eun) as a heroine that's really easy to root for, as she is instantly relatable. Who hasn't had to deal with annoying group projects, juggled work and school and was chronically tired yet hopeful the new semester won't have mandatory subject starting at 8am? It also helps that the cast is filled with incredible actors who make their characters come alive (Park Hae jin, Seo Kang Joon, Nam Joo Hyunk, Lee Sung Kyung), the fashion is still timeless - one of the best in any youth kdrama, and the OST is great. The main negative is the plot, which starts becoming wonky at the half-way point and then completely falls off the rails in the final few episodes, as the screenwriter and director had a public falling out with the webtoon artist (and most of the actors) and ruined the plot out of spite. Do yourself a favour, once things get dicey, just switch to the webtoon.  - u/AlohaAlex

Cinderella and the Four Knights - A very typical, cliché love story of a poor and struggling girl and her Prince. Albeit there are three knights vying for her attention. This K-drama is like a bowl of warm chicken soup on a sick day, you know exactly what is going to happen but it still makes your insides all warm and mushy. The OST is killer, so perfect and catchy. The FL is spunky and adorable- the best combination ever. The ML is broody, quick tempered but sensitive; and oh the jealousy! I speak for all the fangirls out there when I say, the love triangle is done so well. This show is basically a letter to all the girls out there with their fake scenarios, and maladaptive dreams. No other series suits the term  "guilty-pleasure" better.  - u/FanGirl_24  

Doom At Your Service - When Tak Dong Kyung (Park Bo Young) is told she has a tumor growing her brain, she wishes the world its doom. The god Doom, or Myul-Mang, (Seo In Guk) hears her wish and inserts himself in her life. He wants her to wish it properly so that he can end life as we know it, as he's grown tired of an eternity of existing for selfish humans. They make a deal, and, in the process, fall in love.

Why you should watch:

• Great OSTs. Honestly, I think the fact that Gummy, the QUEEN of OSTs, is involved says it all. Also, Baekhyun. His voice is just honey.
• Great visuals. Not just the actors and actresses, but costumes, hair, makeup, background aesthetics - I found them all pleasing to watch. The drama is set during late fall/winter so there's a lot of coats and boots. So pretty.
• Comforting. At least, to me. I watched this drama back when I was going through a health crisis. I guess I was able to relate to the FL. Now, it's my go-to to feel nostalgic.
• Themes of love, family, friendship, and existence. Really makes you think about your own existence. - u/bluelephantz_jj

Faith - THIS is my ultimate guilty pleasure.

All things I need tied up in one show :

• Intense and fulfilling romance(2 couples that no where belongs to each other but fell in love without noticing or by their own wills. Slow burn but oh so satisfying seeing them take each steps towards each others)
• The depth of emotions, feelings portraited in the whole show
•  Bromance(s), multiple!
• Relationship building among different characters (from doubtful, distanced to trust and loyalty)
• Based on history but with a bit of fantasy twist
• Amazing OST that you can listen non stop
• Good looking leads and awesome acting - u/Particular_Song3539

Father, I’ll Take Care of You is not the best family weekend drama by a long shot (Father is Strange, Five Enough, Once Again) and it will make you want to throw the TV out of the window on multiple occasions. That being said, I truly enjoyed how nice and steadfast the leads were and how the two male leads storyline developed. Also, there's a huge friendly dog, so that's an automatic plus. Otherwise, it's a strangely convincing mashup of the traditional multiple couple love storylines, human greed, revenge and pure, unfiltered makjang.  - u/AlohaAlex

Go Back Couple - A couple who decide to get divorced get transported back to their college days before they knew each other. They still have their current day memories.

Why You Should Watch : 

It's extremely heartwarming and funny. It also has a feeling similar to the Reply series as it's set in a similar time period. It's also very fun to see "college student" FL act like an ahjumma. It also explores grief very well. - u/NaotoOfYlisse

Missing 9 is not for everyone but it is a drama that brings me great joy that it exists in the world. It tells the story of a newly appointed employee of an entertainment company; Ra Bong Hee, who is the only known survivor of a plane crash. Despite suffering from amnesia she is forced to piece together the story of how she made it back alive as the public calls for answers to what happened to their beloved celebrities.

This drama was originally set to be a rom-com but throughout production it had many staff and casting changes, it became something else altogether. Tonally it’s a bit of a hot mess, jumping from serious mystery one episode to slapstick comedy the next. 

If you want a drama that doesn’t take itself too seriously, and enjoy group watches where you can lovingly ridicule the drama together this might be a perfect match. The final cherry on the top is Jung Kyung Ho in a comedic role in which he is basically the substitute leading lady AND he does a scene wherein his pants are completely filled with octopuses. Simply amazing.  - u/sianiam

Romance is a Bonus Book: A gifted writer who's the youngest editor-in-chief ever at his publishing company gets enmeshed in the life of a former copywriter (who is also his best friend) desperate for a job.

Why You Should Watch:  

This is a show to watch when you need to see a male lead is completely supportive.  Many Kdramas the ML is difficult and the FL works around his needs.  /Sometimes you need more.  This show is ice cream for your soul. - u/WINTERSONG1111

She Was Pretty - In a reversal of fortune, an ugly duckling who was pretty before puberty hit full force tries to reunite with her ugly duckling childhood love who is now unbelievably hot. She fumbles the reunion but fate has other plans as our leads meet again as superior and subordinate and love finds a way.

Why You Should Watch:

• Childhood love trope done right in a script that combines Cyrano de Bergerac and The Truth About Cats and Dogs.
• Park Seo Joon plays a loyal tsundere and that level of acting and hotness is always a joy to watch.  Hwang Jung Eum plays an eager woman hoping to achieve her dreams and come into her own with a delicateness and sensitivity that is really touching and moving. 
• The best happy ending in kdrama, period. - u/metadarkgable3

She Was Pretty - Why I rewatch:  The confusion of ML as he feels he should love his childhood friend and doesn't while finding himself attracted to this mess of an employee.  And Si Won's devotion.  The theme of hesitation leading to missed chances.  The overall message of stepping up to be the main character in your own story.   Also how after her inevitable glow-up her hair gradually returns to curly and she gives up the makeup that covers her spots. - u/ShazInCA

Something about 1% - A teacher helps an old man who has fallen, and even stays with him in the hospital. Very impressed with her, the old man decides to leave his conglomerate only to the man that marries her, nudging his workaholic and ambitious grandson to be the groom, of course. They dislike each other instantly, but decide to date for 6 months...

Why it's a rewatch: 

It's an old cliché done well, despite the crazy setup their Lovestory is plausible. The chemistry is sizzling and they have the best kisses. I also liked that they are pretty average looking and the neither the ML nor FL are cardboard cutouts. - u/SnookerandWhiskey 

Strong Woman Do Bong Soon - The FL's superhuman is extreme strength which she uses for good purposes. Her dream though is to make her own mobile game. She gets hired as a bodyguard for the CEO ML in his game company. They have a very cute dynamic where he slowly makes her fall in love with him. Worth a watch because they have a great, healthy relationship where they are stronger together and make a great team. - u/caninedesign

Tale of the Nine Tail -  I'm rewatching this in preparation for watching 1938. I think it is the 3rd time I've watched it and it definitely holds up to rewatching. It's the tale of a gumiho who waits hundreds of years for his human love to be reincarnated. Their destinies are inter-twined with the evil Imugi. Why I love it: it's a profound love story down through the ages. The acting is great, the secondary characters are fully developed, the chemistry between the leads is believable and Lee Dong Wook is lovely to watch. He is just so beautiful.  - u/Tall-Ad-9355  

Touch Your Heart - Popular actress Oh Yoon Seo (Yoon In Na), known for her bad acting, is trying to recover from a scandal by working part-time at a law firm to get a better under of the character. There she meets the cold, aloof, Kwon Jung Rok (Lee Dong Wook) and of course they eventually fall in love.

Why watch? 

It's tropey, and cringey in places, but it's absolute feel-good fluff, that makes you giggle. Yeah some of the plotlines fall apart pretty quickly, and the story is predictable, but when I'm feeling down there is honestly no better watch. - u/samptra_writer

Tracer: Corruption in the national tax agency. And even murder? To find out what really happened when his father died, a man happily causes chaos in the agency.

Why you should watch: 

A very good revenge drama with an interesting twist at the end. The writing is really smart, and also a lot of fun (which one doesn't really expect of the tax agency setting). Some really nice character arcs, and of course great acting. - u/MilkyWayOfLife  

W, also known as "W: Two Worlds" is a flawed but oh-so-pretty romcom fantasy thriller about a plucky surgeon that gets whisked away in the plot of a thriller manhwa her father writes, falling straight into the arms of the male lead. She saves his life from the mysterious "hooded killer" and gets stuck in the manhwa world without a way out, unless she can "make a scene that's worthy of being episode-ending". Does it sound a bit dumb? It is. The rest of the plot doesn't really make much more sense, as it features a lot of skipping between worlds and changing the destiny and timelines and usually gets all tangled up in trying to be smart. But you can easily ignore the plot-holes, as the main features are the swoon-worthy romance scenes, the incessant flirting, the incredibly good OST and just how pretty everyone and everything is (it is very obvious where the budget was spent). - u/AlohaAlex

Warm and Cozy is the perfect "get well soon" drama and let me tell you why: it's a relaxing low-drama excursion to springtime in Jeju filled with nice people cooking great food and enjoying tropes such as "obvious birth secret", "forced cohabitation" and "spiraling misunderstanding resulting in true love". What you're looking at is 16 full hours of beautifully filmed fluff, featuring two brothers (who are not constantly arguing, a kdrama trope subversion) that find love by accident. Is it perfect? No, the plot is often mediocre at best and any attempts at creating drama are doomed to fail. The reason why it's a "get well soon" drama is that you can set it to auto-play, fall asleep while watching and wake up and resume without missing much plot. And still it manages to be optimistic and comforting. Warm and Cozy is a drama that had to walk so that Hometown Cha Cha Cha could run.  - u/AlohaAlex

You Make Me Dance - A BL about a contemporary dance student who has to pay back a loan shark. Falling for the lonely student, the loan shark starts to support him as he tries to land the part of his dreams and pays back his debt.

Why watch? 

The boy love genre is gaining popularity, and while this one isn't super popular like Semantic Error or The Eighth Sense, this is a criminally underrated gem in the genre. It's low budget, with a basic plot, but the chemistry between the leads is genuine. It's beautifully shot, and a breezy watch anytime. - u/samptra_writer  

You're Beautiful - A nun-in-training crossdresses as her twin brother to fill in for him as a singer of a kpop boyband. Filled with kpop references that capture the best of late 2000s kpop scene and comedy from that era, it beautifully captures the craziness of the kpop scene. But what distinguishes it from other meta-dramas is that it took an utterly silly premise and turned it into a story of self-discovery and celebration of different types of love. Lastly, the kpop band within the dramas is definitely worth listening to! A.N.Jell forever! - u/myweithisway

Yumi's Cells - A women goes through, life, friendship, work, and love. Each of her cell's is a trait that makes up Yumi the FML See the trials and tribulations of Yumi's life and especially love life. You will also see her love interests' cells as well and see the differences between people and their traits and personalities.  Will she meet the one for her? What is her dream job and can she make it a reality? How can her cells help her through these times? Which cells are the dominant cells and can they grow and change? Find out more by watching!

Why to watch:

Fun light hearted, romantic comedy drama. It has a little bit of everything. Love life, friendship, and office romances. Has cartoons of her cells and it is interesting to see which cells make up people and how inside of them their worlds are different. But see how life changes, then so do you and your cells. See how these Situations impact people (mostly Yumi).  - u/Aralnda  

multiple seasons