Mad for Each Other

2021 (Korean)

She’s paranoid with a secret and he’s an ex-cop with anger issues and after a series of run-ins and misunderstandings they’d very much like to never see one another again. Of course, it turns out they’re neighbors and share a psychiatrist. Toss in drug lords, neighborhood crime watch, and more and this makes for the perfect blend of shenanigans, down to earth, and thrilling crime mystery.

Touch Your Heart

2019 (Korean)

He’s a serious lawyer and the best at his firm. His new unwanted assistant? An actress ruined by scandal pretending to be a nobody all for the chance of proving herself and landing a role in a new K-drama. The romance is fun, but each episode brings on new cases that delve into Korean law and both its strengths and failures.

Vincenzo

2021 (Korean)

Adopted by an Italian family, he later joins the mafia, but now he’s back in Korea to collect a hidden stash of gold except unexpected rivals and neighbors will put his skills as a lawyer (and mafia man) into use threatening to alter the direction of his life. Thrilling, captivating, and with just the right amount of quirky relief to keep you clicking ‘next episode’.

Hotel del Luna

2019 (Korean)

Cursed to help shuttle souls to the afterlife, Man-wol is a thousand years old and looking for a new human manager for her hotel. She’s found just the person and, whether he likes it or not, she’s going to gift him the ability to see ghosts and drag him kicking and screaming into his new job. There’s humor, ghosts that are sometimes scary and sometimes not, fascinating lore, and Man-wol’s mysterious past creates an undercurrent of intrigue that will keep you fascinated.

The King’s Avatar

2019 (Chinese)

If you like gaming, then this is for you. If you don’t care about video games, then this will tempt you to play.

When an elite professional player who helped found and shape the world of gaming is shoved aside for new blood, he bands together a ragtag team of nobodies into a team skilled enough to take on the championship. Unexpectedly gripping, fun, heartfelt, and thrilling, this show is an absolute edge-of-your-seat binge.

Mystic Pop-up Bar

2020 (Korean)

Help solve the grudges of 100,000 humans or face Hell? Weol-ju has spent 500 years trying to pay this price and not only has an ex-afterlife cop joined her side who might know more than she realizes, but an innocent grocery store worker revealed his unusual ability that just might help Weol-ju make the deadline. Fun, exciting, high-stakes, and threaded with Weol-ju’s dark past, it all comes together in this fantastical world where ghosts and the living collide.

100 Days My Prince

2018 (Korean)

He’s a prince with amnesia and she’s an unmarried village girl sentenced to being beaten or life as a concubine. The solution? Marry this useless stranger who’s wandered into her life and can’t even remember his own name. Of course, there’s a reason why the prince can’t remember his past and those behind it won’t rest until he’s dead. Both hold deadly secrets in their hearts and the village can only shield them for so long before deadly court politics hunt them down swords in hand.

The King’s Affection

2021 (Korean)

Twins were unacceptable. She was supposed to die. Instead fate brings her back to her brother, the prince, and when he breathes his last she’s dragged into the palace to take his place. If anyone discovers she’s a female, it won’t only be her head that is lost. Forced to grow up under the intense scrutiny of court life while hiding a deadly secret only her two closest servants know about, the Crowned Prince must fight for her place in the palace, her right to the throne, to protect those few she’s allowed herself to love, and for the good of her country. High-stakes, thrilling, with pockets of sweetness it all wraps together for an addicting watch.

Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung

2019 (Korean)

Female historians are being hired for the palace and causing a stir in tradition. Not only will they have a lot to learn about recording history, but how to navigate the deadly political plots that seem to be hidden everywhere. The prince might enjoy secretly writing romance novels and Goo Hae-ryung might think she’s found the perfect job as a historian, but neither are prepared for the secrets of their pasts that will soon rise to haunt them or the deadly lengths to which their enemies will go. Whether they’re ready or not, they will face historic moments that could make or break their country but will the prince learn to speak up and will the historians remain silent on the sidelines?

Her Private Life

2019 (Korean)

At work she’s a dedicated art museum curator. After work, before work, and sometimes during work, she’s a famous anonymous blogger & diehard fangirl of boyband member Cha Shi-an. It’s a secret she’s managed to hide for years but her new boss just might be her downfall jeopardizing her career. He already gives her a hard time about work, the last thing she needs is for him to discover her fangirl secret. Or to fall in love with him. This show was so fun to watch!

Love O2O

2016 (Chinese)

Does the best friend have a super annoying personality/voice? Yes, she seriously does. That aside, however, this show presents one of the cutest couples ever and unfolds the story of how they first meet online in a video game and end up together in real life. Super adorable, chill, fun, and the way the gaming parts were interwoven with their real lives/events was great too even without a bigger budget for the graphics. I really liked this couple! She’s smart and genuinely kind, he’s driven and just the right amount of devious, and from day one they build a foundation of trust between them that honestly more characters need to take notes on.

Romance is a Bonus Book

2019 (Korean)

She’s in her 40s, a single mom, and desperate for a job. Despite her many awards and past work on her resume, it means nothing to the current market who can only see the multi-year gap she took to raise her daughter. Thankfully, after some key omissions on her resume, she lands a job as a publishing intern. Cue shenanigans and challenges. It does a great job of bringing up social and workforce issues while also balancing humor and romance creating a show with a deeper resonance than expected.

(There’s an American version of this called Younger starring Sutton Foster which is more of a quirky sitcom than the Korean version. Both are based on the book Younger by Pamela Redmond Satran.)