12 Must Watch Korean Drama to Watch While at Home

With the current global lockdown, it’s getting harder and harder to get by without being bored to death. In these desperate times, entertainment has become the last and final hope for people to make use of to get through it all! While Netflix is filled with tons of Hollywood to watch, a certain group of people only look towards the Korean Drama industry to fulfill their binge needs. If you’re one of those people, this article is meant for you!

With so many options to choose from in the diverse K-Drama arsenal, it gets hard to finally make a choice and start streaming. To help you in such a situation, we’ve done all the research and picked out some of the best latest dramas that the industry has to offer.  Sit back, relax, and read through the plot of each suggestion in this article to figure out what you’d like to watch next. Let’s get into it!

Looking for a season that knows how to keep you hooked? The World of Married might be the one for you! It’s based on BBC’s One’s Doctor Foster, following the experiences of Ji Sun Woo, who’s a doctor. She’s seen leading a perfect life, filled with everything the common man could desire. She’s got a high-paying job, a content family living in a nice house, in a posh neighborhood.

But, no drama can keep viewers hooked without things getting messy, right? Same goes down here, as her husband gets into a worrisome affair. Will she find out? How will events unfold? Who’s got the upper hand in this family drama? Well, chase the storyline to find out yourself!  

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve definitely seen memes, scenes and parodies of this drama shared around the K-Drama pages on social media. Hyun Bin, the esteemed Secret Garden actor, wins the fan-girls all over again globally playing a North Korean soldier. The love story begins as a chaebol heiress from across the borderlands in North Korea accidentally and meets this soldier.

They fall in love, as the soldier attempts to protect her and send her safely back home to South Korea. Not only do viewers follow an exciting love story, but they also get to be awestruck by the amazing scenery this drama captures. People loved it so much, that it’s not Korea's second highest-rated drama, and it’s well-deserved!   

The Korean drama industry has grown more and more diverse over the years as viewership from around the world started to give it the attention it deserves. It used to be known for capturing iconic romantic stories revolving around love, but it’s much more than just that now. With dramas like Itaewon Class, people who aren’t looking for a romantic drama can still enjoy addictive Korean entertainment.

Itaewon Class is based on a webtoon with the same name and tells the story of an ex-convict looking for vengeance for himself and his deceased father. He opens up a restaurant in Itaewon and soon starts rising in the ranks among the drinks and food industry. This dramatic story includes issues like discrimination against outcasts and ex-convicts while motivating viewers to chase dreams and believing in second chances.

While we’re on the topic of second chances, “Hi Bye, Mama!” is an honorable mention! It’s a drama about a ghost who gets a chance to revisit the world for 49 days to spend time with her family and friends again. As expected from a show about reunited with one’s friends and family, it’ll make you teary-eyed more times than you bargained for. As the characters learn to move on and let go, get ready to blame your tears on someone cutting onions, because trust me, you’ll need to!  

If the idea of parallel universes excites you, get your popcorn ready for this fantastical K-Drama that’s set in two parallel universes in the 21^st century. The handsome and youthful emperor of a Monarch Korea moves through a portal that mysteriously brings him to the modern-day Republic of Korea. There, the drama begins as he meets a policewoman and finds out that he knows her from his parallel universe. What happens next? Find out in this binge-worthy drama, “The King: Eternal Monarch”.

Here’s another drama that’s not meant for the romance loving audiences. It’s a story that lets us peek into the life of a model student who’s looking to afford his university tuition by hook or by crook. He finds himself committing grave crimes for the sake of it. Everything seems to be working out for him until of course, drama kicks in as one of his classmates find out about his malicious activities. This classmate then starts blackmailing him, as both of their lives take a turn when gangs and police get involved. If you’re looking for something unique to binge from the Korean drama industry, ‘Extracurricular’ is the one for you!  

Ever watch something that makes you want to do what the characters do for a living? Hospital Playlist is one of those light-hearted dramas, that’ll make you wish you were a doctor. It takes place in the Yulje Medical Centre, revolving around the lives of five doctors who are best pals since they started school. Upon graduating, their friendship continues as they work together in the same hospital. Watch it when you’re looking to relax!

What would it be like if you were able to read the memories of people? In this unique story, the main character is a detective who wields this special ability and uses it to solve crimes. He works together with a professional criminal profiler to stop a particular serial killer. As the drama slowly unfolds, the truth about their past gets revealed. “Memorist” is one of those dramas that’ll get you hooked right from the start – give it a go!  

Love cats as much as you love K-Dramas? Look no further, this drama features not only an attractive cast but also adorable cats! It’s centered on a graphic designer who dreams to become a successful webtoon artist. She brings home a seemingly regular and adorable cat, but it’s not so ‘regular’ after all. It can secretly transform into a human, letting users experience the story from the perspective of a pet. That’s the definition of a unique plot if you ask me. Definitely a must-watch for all cat lovers!

Ever wondered how it feels to remember absolutely every single moment of your entire life? Regardless of it being happy or sad, you’ve got it engraved into your memory forever. That’s what life is like for the main character, Lee Jung-hoon. He’s got a medical condition called hyperthymesia, which allows him to recall almost each and every moment of his lifetime. Things spice up when he meets his polar opposite, a woman who has forgotten her past entirely. How will this rare love story develop? Find out!  

If you’re someone who particularly enjoys political-finance dramas from the K-Drama industry, buckle-up for Money Game. It’s based around three peoples’ lives who work at the International Finance Bureau of the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Financial Services Commission. Viewers are promised to be at the edge of their seats as they watch the nail-biting struggle to prevent another financial crisis like the one in 1997.  

The critically acclaimed Kingdom actor Ju Ji-hoon gets a chance to shine under the spotlight once again in his latest drama, Hyena! Fans can watch him play the role of an elite attorney in this drama that takes place in a legal setting. It narrates the story of two lawyers, both working for the top percentile of clients in the society. To be the last “Hyena” standing, they’ll use their top-notch wits and knowledge to win each case! Tune into Netflix and get ready to binge another show for hours, what else can you do during quarantine anyway?

It all started off as a meme; saying 2020 is turning out to be a disastrous year. Soon after, it translated into reality, and it’s been a rollercoaster ride for the entire world. Around the globe, people are locked inside of their homes due to the pandemic at hand, and there’s not much left to do. But that’s what entertainment is for, and Korean dramas never disappoint when it comes to that. What better way to spend our free time then to binge-watch some of the latest hyped-up Korean dramas? We’ve done the research for you, and listed down 12 great titles to choose from. I hope you found the one for you!