New to Korean Drama?
Welcome to the drama world first of all!
It is impossible to list the best 15 Korean Dramas of All times without categorizing them into Genres or Years. Korean dramas cannot be confined into Numbers!
Anyways, considering the dramas of 2018, 2019, 2020, Check these 15 Korean Dramas to starts with!
Crash Landing on You:
The series portrays the secret and sweet romance between Yoon Se-Ri, heiress of a conglomerate in South Korea and Ri Jung-hyuk, a high-ranking Officer Of North Korea. When she was about to take over the chairman position of her father’s company, a sudden and unexpected accident leads Yoon Se-ri(Son ye-jin) to make an emergency landing in North Korea. There, she was spotted by Ri Jung-hyuk (Hyun Bin), a North Korean army officer. Initially, He hides her and later he wants to protect her by all means. Soon, Ri Jung-hyuk and Yoon Se-Ri fall in love with each other.
King: The Eternal Monarch:
King Lee Gon(Lee min-ho), the Emperor of Kingdom of Corea,( and a country on the parallel world) travels back and forth between the Kingdom of Corea and the Republic of Korea (South Korea) to manage the tensions that about to arise in his Kingdom and to see is love Jung Tae-eul(Kim Go-eun).
Whats Wrong with Secretary Kim:
The story revolves around, Lee Young-joon, the President and Vice Chairman of Yumyeong Group and Mi-so/ Secretary Kim ( of the vice-chairman, Lee Young-joon). Secretary Kim, though worked under Lee Young-joon for over 9 years, still finds it difficult to work with him, and when she told her plans of resignation, shocked Young-joon, realized his feelings for her and wanted her to be with him at all cost. But still,mi-so never knows that the person she desperately looking for years, is with her. Meanwhile, Young-joon’s brother’s friendship with secretary Kim makes Young-joon extremely jealous and eventually adding fuel to his Narcissistic personality.
Korean Odyssey:
A Korean odyssey portrays the war between Son oh-gong and heaven!
Seon-mi is a young girl who can see ghosts and always had to protect herself from ghosts by a small yellow umbrella with protection spells. One Day after exorcises the ghost for her, Woo Ma-wang, a mysterious man asks her help to retrieve a fan from a magical house where Son Oh-gong, the Monkey King, was imprisoned inside by Heaven for his crimes. Despite Ma-wang’s instructions, Seon-mi freed Son oh-gong with a promise that he would help her whenever she calls out his name. But, Son oh-gong tricked the Young Seon-mi.
After 25 Years, things get complicated when Seon-mi becomes oh-gong’s prey but also he is bound to protect her because of a trick by Ma-wang!
The Last Empress:
The Last empress drama portrays the Constitutional Monarch set in Korea. There, Empress oh Sunny (Jang Na-Ra) fight against the higher-ups and entangled in the demise of the Emperor’s Grandmother to find the truth. In this process, she later with the help of Na Wang-sik (Choi Jin-Hyuk), a bodyguard who came to revenge his mother’s death strives hard to take down the imperial family.
Memories of Alhambra:
The CEO of an investment company that specializes in optical devices, Yoo Jin-woo (Hyun Bin) receives an email regarding an augmented reality game inspired by the Alhambra Palace, Spain! He travels to Granada to meet the owner of the Game, but instead could meet only his sister Jung Hee-Joo (Park Shin-Hye), owner of the old and not well-maintained hostel. Things become mysterious as both of them entrapped between the real world and the AR Game World.
Hotel Del Luna:
The story revolves around a hotel, Guest House of the Moon. The Hotel is not for living human, It’s an Exclusive hotel for souls/ghosts. This Supernatural hotel is not visible (in its form) during the Day time. Everybody working here and the customers are ghosts/souls. Humans are invited upon only special circumstances if suppose any ghost wants to have a word with its living relatives or during the lunar eclipse. The existence of such a supernatural hotel is to let the ghosts finish up their unfinished business. Only a few ghosts have the power to appear before the humans with several restrictions, and if broken, the soul will be destroyed and cannot be reincarnated! So what would the remaining ghost do, and how will they interact with the normal people without power? For that, a human must be hired as Manager, who can see the Ghost.
Arthdal Chronicles:
Arthdal Chronicals is a Myth Drama that neither a full-fantasy drama nor a historical one.
In a mythical land called Arth, the inhabitants of the ancient city of Arthdal contend with power struggles and wanted to invade all other small lands including Lark (Wahans). Tan-ya, a tribal from Wahan’s tribe) and Eun-seom (Song joong-ki) go through hardships to bring back the people of Wahans who are captured by Ta-gon (Jang Dong-gun ), leader of the Arthdal Union. Eun-som learns of his true history in the process.
The drama is released in three seasons and well received by the Audiences. The subsequent season releases are not yet scheduled to be started. So this drama has no ending.
Romance is a Bonus Book:
The series is about the personal and professional challenges faced by Cha Eun-ho (Lee jong-suk), a successful author and a senior editor at a book publishing company and Kang Dan-i (Lee Na-young ), a mother and former successful advertising copywriter after realizing their true feelings for each other.
Romance is a bonus book is a special drama to both the leads as it is the comeback drama for Lee Na-young after 9 Years whereas first Romantic comedy for lee jong-suk.
Her Private Life:
Her Private Life depicts the fake love story between Sung Deok-mi (Park Min-young) , a talented chief curator of Cheum Museum of Art and Ryan Gold (Kim Jae-wook),newly appointed Art Director of Cheum Museum of Art and finally how gradually it becomes real.
Doctor John:
Dr. John is one of the best Medical Korean Dramas. Cha Yo-han (Ji Sung) is an ex-convict and an anaesthesiologist. He is sentenced to jail for 3 years because of performing euthanasia on a patient, who was suffering from terminal cancer. Without getting approval from the guardian or the patient, he made that patient to die by injecting a lethal drug. It created furore and due to this, his registration was revoked and he had to serve 3 years sentence. He became famous(infamous, to some) among the inmates as he always takes only ten seconds to deduce an illness. He meets Kang Shi-young, a second year resident, and the medical officer of the prison.
After released from the prison, he become the Head of department of anaesthesiology where Shi-young becomes his student.
Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung:
A historical Story that tells the love story of a free-spirited noble class (classes were defined in Joseon Dynasty),26 years old lady, Goo Hae-ryung (Shin Se-Kyung) and the young and handsome 20-year-old Prince Yi Rim (Cha Eun-woo) has been living his lonely life. He hides his own identity and had a pen name “Maehwa”, and keep himself engaged by writing romance novels that became famous all over, especially popular among women readers.
To comply with the Anual of Joseon, the Royal Court has decided to recruit female historians for the first time in history! Hae-ryung and other 3 female Historians were selected as Apprentices! After a few encounters, the Prince, starts liking the attitude of Hae-ryung who is now a female Historian(apprentice) and she started to reciprocate as well.
Then the story flows on how Hae-ryung with the help of colleagues and Prince, fights against the oppression! Despite that, they had to face and fight the gender stereotypes as they are underestimated when compared to their male counterparts!
Itaewon Class:
Itaewon Class, a webtoon adapted series, portrays the realistic struggles of an ex-con whose life changed upside down after standing against bullying that leads to his father’s death.
Park Sae-Ro-Yi (Park Seo-Joon) who got expelled from school on his first day after punching his classmate Jang Geun-won who bullied a fellow student. The bully boy is the son of CEO Jang Dae-Hee under whom Park Sae-Ro-Yi’s father works. After refusing to plead on behalf of his son’s action, Sae-Ro-Yi’s father was forced to resign his job. Later Sae-Ro-yi’s father was killed in the accident caused by Jang Geun-won. Furious Sae-Ro-Yi, violently beats him and ended up in prison. Once he released from prison, he vows to take revenge on the Jangga group, he plans to open a restaurant and he opened it after 7 Years! He meets Jo Yi-seo (Kim Da-Mi), a schoolgirl who is popular in social media and known as a sociopath. Yi-seo, at all cost wanted and helped Sae-ro-yi to chase up his dreams of ruining the Jangga Group owned by CEO Jang Dae-Hee. Meanwhile, Yi-Seo falls in love with Park Sae-Ro-Yi. Jang Dae-Hee, CEO of the Jangga group and father of Jang Geun-Won tries to stop Sae-ro-yi from growing his DanBam(bar-restaurant) into a franchise.
Hospital Playlist:
Hospital Playlist tells a fantastic friendship between five doctors who works at Yulje Medical Center.The story focuses on their individual story, love and Friendship between these friends of same medical school who later becomes colleagues!
Dr.Romantic :
Three years after the events of Dr. Romantic, Kim Sa-bu (Han Suk-kyu)/Master Kim visits Geosan University Hospital to recruit a general surgeon. He finds Seo Woo-jin (Ahn Hyo-seop), a doctor with a troubled past who is shown cold-shoulder by his fellow doctors. Master Kim predicts his skill and offers him the job in his hospital, Doldam. Meanwhile, Dr.Cha Eun-jae (Lee Sung-kyung),second year cardiothoracic surgery was a top student in her batch but she has a health issue which makes her unfit to perform operations as is suspended after making another mistake in the operation room! and has no other choice and has to work for Master Kim to enter main Hospital! The story follows the how they learn and become skilled surgeons through intricate cases.