TV Series & Korean Dramas I Watched During the Pandemic

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It's been a little bit more than a year since I last wrote a post titled Korean Dramas I Watched During Quarantine. Since then, I've watched a lot more TV shows and Korean dramas that I'd like to share and write a short review for. We're technically not in strict quarantine these days, but we are still going through the pandemic—thus the slight change in the title. Even though the pandemic is not over yet, I hope you're all staying staying safe and healthy. We've all been praying for this pandemic to end as soon as possible, and we'll keep praying until then. Since last year, I watched some new released shows and also some old ones that I didn't get to watch in the past. I hope this post will give you some ideas if you're running out of things to watch or maybe when you're not in the mood to read any books 😉

Title: Sky Castle (SKY 캐슬)
Genre: Drama
No. of episodes: 20
Year of Release: 2018-2019
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This kind of drama is usually not my taste, but I decided to watch it because of the hype surrounding it. Unexpectedly, I enjoyed it quite well because every single episode keeps me intrigued and I want to know how the story is going to end. I think the casting was perfect for each character—the competitive mothers, different types of husbands, and even the children. I think the final episode is my favorite and even made me cry because the characters finally learned their lesson and decided to do the right thing even though it's difficult. However, there's not much romance in this drama, so if you're looking for a romantic show to watch, you might want to skip this one 😉

Title: It's Okay to Not be Okay (사이코지만 괜찮아)

Genre: Romance, Drama

No. of episodes: 16 

Year of Release: 2020  

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

The last drama that I watched starring Kim Soo-hyun (김수현) was Moon Embracing the Sun, which was released in 2012 😂. But I always loved his acting so I decided to watch this one—especially because the posters all look so beautiful and whimsical. The story focuses on the female lead character who has antisocial personality disorder, and how she interacts with a caregiver at a psychiatric hospital who empathizes with her feelings. The male lead character also has an autistic brother who he needs to take care of since they were young. For the most part, it's a heartwarming drama in which you can see how these characters change and transform one another.

Title: Start-Up (스타트업)

Genre: Drama, Romance

No. of episodes: 16 

Year of Release: 2020

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

I had a pretty high expectation for this drama because the premise sounds really interesting. However, after I finished watching this series, it turns out that the second-male lead character (played by Kim Seon-ho (김선호)) became the scene stealer. His chemistry with all the other characters is ten times better than the two lead characters 😅. Nothing against Nam Joo-hyuk (남주혁), but his character lack personality and most of the time he's quite lame in my opinion 😂. A lot of people that I know ships Bae Suzy (배수지)'s character with the second-male lead. I watched this until the end just for Kim Seon-ho and Kim Hae-sook (김해숙), who played as the incredibly sweet grandma ❤️. The plot itself was nothing special.

Title: Flower of Evil (악의 꽃)

Genre: Melodrama, Suspense

No. of episodes: 16 

Year of Release: 2020

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Me and my husband decided to watch this one night because we don't know what else to watch, but it turns out to be one of our most favorite dramas ever! The plot was very interesting and every single episode just keeps us wanting for more! I think we finished all 16 episodes in just a few days because we're so hooked 😆. Lee Joon-ki (이준기) and Moon Chae-won (문채원) did a marvelous job portraying their characters and the emotions. The chemistry between the two of them are great as well. Aside from that, there are a lot of unexpected plot twists that continue to surprise me—even until the very last episode. So Flower of Evil checked all the boxes that I want in a good drama. Definitely one of my all time fave!

Title: The Uncanny Counter (경이로운 소문)

Genre: Fantasy, Mystery, Thriller

No. of episodes: 16 

Year of Release: 2020-2021

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

While I was looking for a drama to watch while I do my daily house chores, I stumbled upon this one on Netflix. I was familiar with the male lead character because he was in Sky Castle, and his acting was pretty good. During that time, a lot of people also watched this drama, so I thought I'd give it a try. The premise of the story was quite interesting, with the superpowers and capturing evil spirits and all that; however, it didn't leave a lasting impression for me. There's really nothing wrong with this drama and overall I had a good time watching it. But maybe it's just not my cup of tea 🤔

Title: The Good Place

Genre: Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Romance

No. of episodes: 53

Year of Release: 2016-2020

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

It's pretty unusual for me to watch an American TV series, but I'm glad I decided to watch this one! I first found out about The Good Place from a friend of mine who posted it on Instagram. I looked it up on the internet and was immediately hooked with the plot, which is about an evil person who died and accidentally ended up in the Good Place (some kind of heaven). Kristen Bell is definitely the star of this show; her character is very interesting and she's great at comedic scenes. I love how all the main characters have distinct personality which are completely different from one another. This series also has a lot of plot twists that keeps surprising me and intrigued me throughout all 4 seasons. Light and fun to watch!

Title: The Falcon and the Winter Soldier

Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

No. of episodes: 6

Year of Release: 2021

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Another American TV series on this list because my husband is a huge Marvel fan so I ended up watching this as well. I am so amazed with this series because it's like watching a super long action movie. The cinematography is just so pleasing to watch! The Winter Soldier is one of my favorite characters and he has incredible chemistry with the Falcon. Both Sebastian Stan and Anthony Mackie did an incredible job portraying the characters. Another great character in this series is Zemo, played by Daniel Brühl, because his character adds an interesting twist to the story. I'm glad I watched this with my husband who remembers all the plot from the previous superhero movies, so he was able to explain to me things that I miss out on.

Title: Vincenzo (빈센조)

Genre: Dark Comedy

No. of episodes: 20

Year of Release: 2021

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I've been highly anticipating the release of this drama because it's starring Song Joong-ki (송중기)—whom I adore so much, and the trailer for this drama looks so promising! However, I watched the first episode and was so confused with what this drama wants to do. I took a break from watching it for a while but decided to continue afterwards. I think I was hooked to the drama after the first 4 episodes, because at that point I started to have an idea what the plot is about and the correlation between all the characters. I think this drama wouldn't work if the main lead character is not played by Song Joong-ki. His acting and action sequence in this drama amazed me. I also had a good time staring at his beautiful face ❤️

Title: Taxi Driver (모범택시)

Genre: Action, Crime

No. of episodes: 16

Year of Release: 2021

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I started watching this drama impulsively one night and was immediately intrigued by the first episode. In this drama, Lee Je-hoon (이제훈) becomes a taxi driver who seek revenge on criminals who get away with their evil deeds. There are various cases that may not correlate to one another, but it breaks my heart knowing that some of the cases are inspired by real life events. Every single episode is very exciting and thrilling to watch, and there's some kind of satisfaction when the bad guys are 'punished' for what they did that ended up hurting people—either physically or emotionally. And I love how in the end this drama concludes with the fact that revenge only begets more revenge.

Title: Shadow and Bone

Genre: Fantasy, Drama

No. of episodes: 8

Year of Release: 2021—

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Third American TV series on this list is Shadow and Bone. I decided to watch this just because I've read the books and I'm curious to see how they're going to portray it in a TV show. It kind of exceeded my expectations because they mixed in some characters from the Six of Crows duology that makes the story a lot more interesting. I absolutely adore how they portray the Grishaverse; the magic, the costumes, the setting. I've finished watching the first season and am patiently waiting for the second one to be released. I'm currently writing my review for this TV adaptation, so hopefully I will be able to finish and publish it soon.

Title: Move to Heaven (무브 투 헤븐)

Genre: Drama

No. of episodes: 10

Year of Release: 2021

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

When I saw the trailer for this drama, I was immediately intrigued because the idea of a 'trauma cleaner' is new to me. In this drama, the main character continued his father's business to clean up and arrange the items left by deceased people. The main character, played by Tang Joon-sang (탕준상), is a young man with Asperger Syndrome—which makes his character even more interesting. Lee Je-hoon (이제훈) is also a main character in this drama and his acting here is just exceptional! Definitely made me shed tears while watching him cry 😢. Some of the episodes are thought-provoking and all the stories behind the deceased people are just heartwarming. If you're planning to watch this, have a box of tissue ready.

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So that's all the TV series & Korean dramas that I've finished in the past year. Didn't realize that I watched this much 😂. I'm currently watching Doom At Your Service, Loki, and Hospital Playlist Season 2. So far, Doom At Your Service is rather disappointing even though I love the casts. On the other hand, Loki is great so far and Hospital Playlist Season 2 feels like a reunion with old friends. If you have any good TV series or Korean drama recommendations, feel free to share them in the comments below, I might try and check them out. This kind of post is fun to write for me personally and I might decide to do them regularly maybe once a year 😊 If you've reached the end of this post, here's a wink from Vincenzo for you 😉❤️

by.stefaniesugia♥ .