dramas to recommend to your friends

i like to think this show is what would happen if the saw and danganronpa franchises had a child.
a lot of anime/manga adaptions are really quite awful and don't translate well to western audiences since all the anime absurdity is usually still present ('anime' hair, outfits that worked artistically but are impractical and should not be worn by a human person ever..etc) which never works in a live action context. HOWEVER, shinsuke sato is the only man i trust with things like this as he has delivered with bleach and death note: light up the new world in the past so you can imagine my JOY when i saw his name on the opening credits.

to summarise basically: one day everyone in tokyo vanishes and selected groups of people get pulled into various different deadly games all which require different skills and approaches. the sheer amount of characters along with the complete creativity of all the trials they're pitted against means there's not really much to dislike about this show and its thriller/horror genre is something that's hugely popular in the west as it is.

disabled, broken ballerina who is acted INCREDIBLY by shin hye sun meets an angel who has to make her fall in love as his final mission before he is able to fulfil his duties and get reincarnated. their chemistry as a couple is flawless and the ongoing thriller/mystery type plot of the show also makes it a nice one for newcomers as there is an actual overarching story  and end goal to anticipate.

did somebody ask for soft, sweetheart robot doppelganger meets badass ex-kick boxer girl?? here it is.
all the main cast are so appealing in different ways and seo kang joon really pulls off playing two polar opposite people with the same face exceptionally well. again, the underlying main plot of a corporate power struggle keeps it really engaging right up to the end.

simply put this is about a found family who run a noodle shop by day but also hunt and fight demons on the side.
the main goal of the plot is to find the person who killed the mc's parents but there is also the added message of rich people in power are corrupt scum and we should absolutely make them pay for it with these super powers we have.

the main cast of this show are so loveable and well written that i challenge absolutely anyone to watch the first episode and not be at least a little bit intrigued. while the supernatural element(s) might put some people off, at its core the show is a thriller/mystery about family and forgiveness, the superhero stuff is honestly just a bonus.

there is also no overt romance, though there is one couple who are being built up very nicely and naturally which i think we'll see more of in season 2 but romance is not the main plot in anyway and nothing is ever compromised for the sake of it.

basically everyone knows about this drama but that's even more reason for it to be on here.
fantasy drama about a goblin who needs to find his bride in order to pass on and stop being trapped in a neverending cycle of life. i personally love a good reincarnation trope which is ABUNDANT in this drama and the unlikely bonds that all the characters end up forming whilSt slowly piecing together their past lives is [chefs kiss].

lee dong wook and yoo in a also ended up stealing my heart as the side couple in this and they still remain one of my absolute ride or die drama couples to this day.

finally a drama where the main cast are all late twenties early 30s in a kdrama? i hear you say, yeah me too. (there are only so many shows where high school teenager drama stays interesting for a person in their early 20s).

the plot follows the two main leads on different paths of healing and growing from past experiences and trauma, whilst also tackling mental health such as autism, personality disorders, ptsd..etc. it's heartwarming to see how the entire main cast aid in different ways to the two leads finding happiness and healing in eachother. 

due to its mature themes and cast this drama is perfect for newcomers as it's basically entirely absent of some popular kdrama tropes and stylistic choices that some people may find annoying and off-putting.

in summary this drama will make you cry like a BABY in the best possible way.

if you're looking for something similar to slice of life anime then this is what you need friends.

follows a very refreshing female mc who is an older divorced woman trying to get by and use her past qualifications to go back to work to provide for her daughter. she ends up working at her best friends publishing company and the whole show is truly nothing but serotonin.

again a lot of the 'bad' tropes that have become staples in many kdramas are subverted or avoided altogether in this drama and it's really just a great time if you need something to immerse and switch off to with no big dramatics or twists.

so from what i've seen sf8 is korean black mirror which makes this particular episode korean san junipero.

it's an episodic plot but it was told so well i am politely asking for a sequel episode or director's cut. it's set in a dystopian future where south korea is now covered in a fine dust and those with financial means receive a vaccine at birth that gives them a life expectancy of 100 years. those who never get the vaccine are expected to live until they're 30. the mc is a girl who did not recieve the vaccine so is forced to live a sheltered life in order to prolong her life in any way she can until her eyes are opened to a more fulfilling way of life.

while obviously more reserved than san junipero with the outright w|w representation (expected since this is only SK's second(?) mainstream w|w feature i believe) the period drama levels of yearning and interaction will send you feral if you have ANY taste.

a very well done 'there is something infecting the people so we must band together to survive' story that i actually wasn't that sure about in the first episode but i got very attached very quickly.

some of the monster designs are HORRIFYING and the soundtrack is incredible. really the only thing stopping most people who love this genre in the west from enjoying this just as much is having to read subtitles tbh.

i generally rate ones i would recommend as a 10 but this is a 9 only because i got just a little bit confused in the end.

i feel the need to put a disclaimer for this one that while i've recommended it to friends who have enjoyed i do think it's necessary for those friends to be able to enjoy high fantasy without finding it unbelieveable or silly, etc.

this is 50 episodes of a fantasy murder/mystery which i would describe as being a strange mixture of lord of the rings and bleach (not saying the mix doesn't work for me because it ABSOLUTELY does). it can get a little bit confusing with all the different titles everyone has, but honestly after a few episodes you get used to it and just get invested in the characters which there are Many to choose from.

the soundtrack, locations and costumes in this show in particular deserve so much praise, the quality was top notch.