Uniquely Korean Dramas:
In 2015 I stumbled upon a youtube channel called Simon and Martina. They were a couple living in South Korea, at the time, traveling around and experiencing all things Korean. My love for trying new foods and cooking was what originally drew me into that channel. Soon after, I started watching some of their other videos about Korean music and Korean culture, and eventually I looked up a drama that was recommended by Martina, Boys Over Flowers. That weekend I watched all 20+ episodes of Boys Over Flowers on Netflix, thus my love for Korean dramas was born. Honestly, discovering that YouTube channel was a huge turning point in my life. I learned multiple new languages, decided to change my career path, and started to engage in cultures I previously had zero interest in.
Sadly, my initial love for Kdramas has started to change. Normally I finish 2-3 dramas per month. One of the dramas is typically airing, and the other two tend to be old dramas highly recommended by others. I never had time to rewatched dramas no matter how much I loved them, excluding Scarlet Heart: Goryeo, because I was forced to balance my daily life with my hobbies. Now I've found myself not even bothering with most new releases, rewatching all of my old favorites, and even watching old dramas I didn’t like. When I started to think about this change of heart it seemed odd to me: right now Korea’s popularity is at an all-time high, most of my favorite actors are out of the military (or never had to go), and Netflix has started to pick up dramas (which means more budget). Despite all of this, I find myself watching more and more Chinese and even Japanese dramas.
I’ve come to decide that I have multiple problems with this new wave of dramas, but for now I’ll only talk about one issue. Korean dramas are losing their uniqueness. Now dramas are either simplifying their plots to attract a wider international audience, or just remaking foreign dramas with Korean casts. I’ll go into more detail about this in a later blog post, but for now I’ll just share with you all a list of “Uniquely Korean Dramas.”
Strong Woman Do Bong Soon
Rating: C+
Korean culture loves the juxtaposition of complete opposites, and it shows in dramas. Women that are cute and sexy are the ideal type. Men with brooding personalities and puppy faces are the top choice. So this drama starring a petite loveable Park Bo Young as a cute girl with initially uncontrollable strength is quite uniquely Korean. The cinematography and fashion choices are all light and airy while some of the content and action are very dark and serious. While I will say this drama started wonderfully and went down from there it’s still a great story overall.
Hotel Del Luna
Rating: B-
This drama which aired in 2019 is quite recent compared to some of the dramas on this list, but it still deserves a spot for being very uniquely Korean. First of all, the fashion is very Korean. Many of the outfits that IU wears are beautiful, but hardly seen in the west. The combination of her particular accessories and stylish business-wear are all very fashion-forward but still carry a Korean flair. Another point to note about Hotel Del Luna is the whole concept of ghosts. While ghosts exist all over the world every country has its unique version of ghosts and ghost stories. This drama provides a very interesting look into Korean folklore and traditions in an exciting way.
Sky Castle
Rating: A+
I’ve come to think of sky castle as a must-see for any drama viewers with prior understanding of the Korean education system. It’s not that people without prior knowledge can’t watch, but I think informed viewers will have an easier time understanding their actions. East Asian cultures are already known to value higher education, but the way each country achieves its goal is different. Sky castle shows the Korean family dynamic and how excessive pressure, greed, and overachievement can end up hurting more than helping.
Oh My Venus
Rating: A
The drama trope Oh my Venus focuses on is “physical transformation.” and of all the dramas that use this trope Oh my Venus does it best. Some people hate transformation dramas in all forms because they believe they’re a part of “Korean toxic beauty standards.” while, I agree that plastic surgery transformation dramas are scary, dangerous, and unhealthy I disagree with the sentiment that all transformation dramas are bad. Being overweight (not just mildly overweight but obese) no matter the situation is bad for your health. Shows that promote healthy weight loss are not only informative, but serve as friendly encouragement. The reason this drama works while many transformation dramas don’t, has to do with so Ji Sub’s character. He recognizes that Kang Joo Eun (shin min ah) isn’t taking care of herself physically which is causing multiple problems for her in other parts of her life. They have a very interesting relationship and I love both the male and female lead.
Goblin
Rating: A-
This is another drama that tackles Korean folklore in a very interesting way. It also includes the drama tropes: the male and female lead moving into the same house, initially mean and cold-hearted male lead, and the rich man poor woman trope. I love the characters and their way of communicating with each other in often witty hilarious ways. One thing I will say about this drama is I wish the story had continued going with the tragic route. All of the main characters are set up as tragic and easy to sympathize with, so the overwhelmingly happy ending was a little disappointing to me.
Boys Over Flowers
Rating: A+++ for nostalgia
Three of the drama’s on this list have the “rich man, poor woman” trope and every single one of these dramas was a huge hit while they were airing. Even now people will still talk about these dramas, and almost anyone just getting into Kdramas will enjoy these. I’ve mentioned before that too many tropes in one drama can overwhelm the plot and make it comical. In this case I would say that is exactly what has happened. If I were just introducing someone into Korean dramas I would choose to show them Boys Over flowers first for two reasons. One, They will get to see all of the popular tropes in one place, and two after watching better dramas Boys over Flowers becomes an almost impossible watch.
Comentarios