Korean dramas have collectively gained quite the global audience over the years, thanks to platforms like Netflix and Disney+ Hotstar. Their intriguing storylines, approachable characters and general relatability is what make them such an addictive watch. Shows like Squid Games and Money Heist were among the most watched series of 2021. And if you watched either, you know about the quality of k-drama. And so here’s a list of popular new k-dramas to watch.
Another popular k-drama, Doctor Lawyer is a medical drama about a surgeon whose license gets cancelled after surgical malpractice. Graduating from one of the top medical schools in South Korea, Han Yi-Han is a celebrated surgeon who specialises in general and cardiothoracic surgery. However, Yi-Han’s license gets suspended one day after one of his patients dies in his operating theatre despite the fact that the surgery had gone well. Yi-Han goes on to become a lawyer whose main expertise is medical litigation. While working alongside a public prosecutor who lost a loved one thanks to Yi-han’s supposed surgical error, the truth of what really happened to the patient slowly starts to uncover.
Watch online on Disney+ Hotstar
Extraordinary Attorney Woo
Photo Courtesy: IMDb
One of the most popular K-dramas, Extraordinary Attorney Woo has become the most watched series on Netflix with a record-breaking 3.4 million viewers worldwide. The series focuses on a book smart Woo Young Woo played by Park Eun Bin. Woo is a young lawyer with an IQ of 164. Due to her high IQ, impressive memory, and creative thought process, the brilliant Woo Young Woo graduated from a prestigious law school at the top of her class and gets a job at the prestigious law firm called Hanbada. While there, Woo manages to win and close cases that even her peers struggle to achieve. Yet despite this, Woo struggles with social interactions and emotions like empathy, making her a peculiar but interesting personality to watch. The show has been renewed for Season 2 slated to be released in 2024.
Watch online on Netflix
Little Women
Photo Courtesy: IMDb
Based on Louisa May Alcott’s novel with the same name, Little Women is a 12-episode series following the lives of three sisters, played by Kim GoEun, Nam JiHyun, and Park JiHu, who grew up in poverty and face off the wealthiest family in the country. Each of the three sisters grew up with a different perspective. While the oldest (Go-Eun) believes that money is everything, the middle child (Ji-Hyun), a journalist believes in doing what is right and does not share her sister’s beliefs. The two sisters have done everything to ensure the youngest (Ji-Hu) got everything she needed including a seat in a prestigious arts high school. While Little Women is a classic, the Korean adaption gives the classic original a twisted turn of a thriller crime genre.
Watch online on Netflix
Once Upon a Small Town
Photo Courtesy: IMDb
Based on the novel of the same name, Once Upon a Small Town is a romantic plot between a veterinarian and a police officer. The veterinarian named Han Ji-Yul played by Choo Yeong-Woo moves to Huidong Village after a frantic call from his grandfather. However, upon reaching the village, Ji-Yul realises that his grandfather, who is currently touring Europe, wanted the former to take over his animal clinic for half a year. While there, Ji-Yul meets a policewoman named Ahn Ja-Young, a town insider with a friendly secret. As the series progresses, the duo start spending time together forming a friendship that gradually buds into something more.
Watch online on Netflix
Remarriage & Desires
Photo Courtesy: IMDb
Divorce, scandals, scams and covers ups, the Netflix original Remarriage & Desires has all the juicy drama. Directed by Kim Jeong-Min, the series is a satire on Korean society that highlights the a couple’s hidden desires about remarriage, focusing mainly on upper-class marriage information companies. One in particular is Rex, a match-making company visited by women who strive to marry men from the high-class society. The story focuses on Seo Hye-Seung, a divorced woman who visits the agency with the agenda of exacting revenge on her ex-husband’s mistress.
