Korean Dramas I Watched During Quarantine

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Hey there! It's been a while since I last wrote anything on this blog; my last post was published at the start of this year and now we're almost half-way through 2020 😅. This year has been a crazy one so far, I think we all can relate to that. I had a LOT of things planned for this year—including my wedding and also renovating my new apartment, I also had a lot of travel plans—but they all need to be readjusted due to the current circumstances. Anyways, I hope you're all staying safe and healthy, wherever you are; and let's hope this will soon come to pass ❤️. I didn't write any book review since the beginning of this year and wasn't able to find the motivation to do it just yet. So here I am writing mini reviews for all the Korean dramas that I watched during quarantine. I still read a few books, but I think I've spent wayyy more time watching Korean dramas these past few months 🤣🤣. I watched a few new released dramas and also decided to watch some old dramas that I didn't get to see years ago. Hopefully after writing this post I will be able to get a newfound motivation to write book reviews again 😊

Title: Itaewon Class (이태원 클라쓰)
Genre: Drama
No. of episodes: 16
Year of Release: 2020 
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This drama made me fall in love completely with Park Seo-joon (박서준) 🤣. His acting is amazing in this series and he portrayed his character perfectly. Itaewon Class is definitely one of my favorites on this list, and probably one of my favorite Korean dramas that I've watched. The storyline is full of intrigue that keeps me invested until the end. I can't help but root for the main character, Park Saeroyi (박새로이), and want him to win in the end. Jo Yi-seo (조이서) is also a very unique female lead character that I've never seen in any other Korean dramas before. Overall, this drama is very addicting and worth to watch until the end. It truly inspires me not to give up on my hopes and dreams, and work hard to achieve them.

Title: Memorist (메모리스트)

Genre: Thriller/Mystery 

No. of episodes: 16 

Year of Release: 2020  

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I've been a long-time fan of Yoo Seung-ho (유승호) because I think he's an incredible actor and has a really handsome face 🤣. This time, he takes on a role as a detective who has the ability to read another person's memory (thus the title, Memorist). I have to say this series is very intense and suspenseful, and there's absolutely zero romance in it (even though I've been hoping for a loveline between him and Lee Se-young (이세영)). The mystery is revealed slowly and it kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time. If you decide to watch this drama, don't forget to watch the behind the scenes as well because the casts are so adorable and fun!

Title: Fight for My Way (쌈, 마이웨이) 

Genre: Romance, Slice of Life 

No. of episodes: 16 

Year of Release: 2017  

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

After watching Itaewon Class, I decided to go on a Park Seo-joon marathon and watch his old dramas, starting with this one. It's another drama about young adults' hopes and dreams, and it's also about romance between childhood friends. Personally, I wasn't really loving the storyline, I think it's pretty cliché and typical. I stayed until the end because of Park Seo-joon and I also think that Ahn Jae-hong (안재홍)—the second male lead—adorable. He's a pretty good actor as well and there are times that I liked his character better than Park Seo-joon's. If you love Park Seo-joon as much as I do, then you can give this drama a shot 😉.

Title: She Was Pretty (그녀는 예뻤다) 

Genre: Romantic Comedy 

No. of episodes: 16 

Year of Release: 2015 

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Another Park Seo-joon drama! This one's a bit older but I personally like the story better than Fight for My Way. I am constantly amazed at how Park Seo-joon portrayed his characters very differently in all of his dramas—which proves that he's a great actor. In this drama, I think the scene-stealer is Choi Si-won (최시원), another second male lead character. I never knew that he's a great actor as well! His character is so lovable in this drama and my heart was heartbroken because of course he didn't end up getting the girl. Overall, I enjoyed this drama because there are a lot of hilarious scenes that were able to make me laugh out loud. Sometimes they're a bit over the top, but it's still fun to watch.

Title: Because This is My First Life (이번 생은 처음이라) 

Genre: Romantic Comedy 

No. of episodes: 16 

Year of Release: 2017 

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Next, I decided to watch this drama that was recommended to me by a friend of mine a long time ago but never got around to watching it. Now that I have all the time in the world, I decided to give it a try. Before watching this drama, I wasn't really fond of Lee Min-ki (이민기), but his character here is so quirky that I ended up finding him quite adorable. The overall tone of this drama is pretty lighthearted and poetic at the same time; I guess because the female lead character is a writer, the narrations are so beautifully written. The last episode is definitely my favorite because it's just too cute! The side characters are really interesting too and they each have their own storyline as well.

Title: The King: Eternal Monarch (더 킹: 영원의 군주) 

Genre: Fantasy, Romance 

No. of episodes: 16 

Year of Release: 2020 

Rating: DNF (Did Not Finish)

The King is probably one of the most anticipated Korean drama release of 2020 because Lee Min-ho (이민호) is finally back after his military service. I'm not a huge fan of him to begin with; I've only seen him once in Boys Over Flowers.. Since the hype for this drama is so crazy, I decided to watch the first two episodes to see how I feel about it. Unfortunately, I was completely disappointed because the opening was really grand and it holds a lot of promises, but the first two episodes doesn't show any progress at all. I'm also not really fond of the directing. I know that Lee Min-ho is handsome, but I don't need a close-up look on his face every couple of minutes 🤣. Decided not to continue watching it after two episodes.

Title: Kill Me Heal Me (킬미, 힐미) 

Genre: Romantic Comedy 

No. of episodes: 20 

Year of Release: 2015 

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

Another old drama that I didn't get to watch back when it was released! One of my friends used to love this drama and admired Ji-sung (지성)'s acting here. Park Seo-joon is also in this drama but he's the second male lead character here. I don't absolutely love this drama, but I don't hate it either. At the beginning, this drama is a full-blown romantic comedy, with a lot of over the top ridiculous scenes. However, it ends super melodramatically, with a lot of tears from the main characters. This is a typical old Korean drama which involved a dark past that intertwined the main characters. I don't know; maybe I would have loved it if I watched it back in 2015. But in 2020, I think it's just okay for me.

Title: The Smile Has Left Your Eyes (하늘에서 내리는 일억개의 별) 

Genre: Romance, Mystery, Thriller 

No. of episodes: 20 

Year of Release: 2018 

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

While looking at all the old Korean dramas that I have in my computer, I decided to watch this one because I used to love Seo In-guk (서인국) so much ever since I saw him in Reply 1997, I also adore him as a singer because he has a beautifully soothing voice. This drama is pretty interesting because we keep questioning whether he is a good guy or a bad guy. The overall theme of this movie is pretty dark and the ending was definitely not a happy one. The storyline is not my favorite but I think the casts all did a great job in portraying their characters.

Title: Extracurricular (하늘에서 내리는 일억개의 별) 

Genre: Teen, Crime Drama 

No. of episodes: 10 

Year of Release: 2020 

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I just recently finished binge-watching this drama and it's AMAZING! Did not expect to love and enjoy it as much as I do. This drama revolves around high school students with complicated lives. First of all, the casts are on point! Each of them delivered their characters perfectly 👏👏. Kim Dong-hee (김동희) also played a role and Itaewon Class, and he's a completely different person in this one. Park Ju-hyun (박주현) portrayed her bad-ass female character amazingly. Each episode in this series just made me invested more and more into the characters. It's so gripping and made you feel nervous for them. But please note that there are a lot of violence and strong language if you decide to watch this series.

Title: Hospital Playlist (슬기로운 의사생활) 

Genre: Medical Drama 

No. of episodes: 12 

Year of Release: 2020 

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

The last one that I'll mention is a drama that I'm still currently watching; we still have two weeks left until this series ended. At first I wanted to watch Hospital Playlist because of Jo Jung-seok (조정석) since I love him so much in Oh My Ghostess. But I ended up loving all the main characters and also the friendship between the five of them. Each of them have their own charms. This drama is light, heartwarming and gives me a lot of nice feelings whenever I watch it. It portrayed the lives of medical workers and all the things that could happen in a hospital. Looking forward to how it's going to end! I'm going to update this post when I'm finished watching 😉.

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Okay, so that's it for this post! Hopefully I'll get more motivation to write book reviews again after this 🤣. If you have any good Korean drama recommendations, feel free to share them in the comments below, I might try and check them out. And if I watch more dramas after this one, I might update this post or make Part 2 so that it won't be too long. Thank you so much for stopping by! Here's a cute Seung-ho for you *wink* 😉.

by.stefaniesugia♥ .