In recent years, a phenomenon called Korean dramas has hit the brazilian ground and it was not by any means that the population decided to embrace these new contents in the way that only Brazil can do: body and soul. With this expansion of Korean culture reaching full steam in the country, a fever broke out among Internet users to actively follow all the new dramas that were available there in South Korea, thus creating great blogs and portals that started to make available all these translated content for us free.
But Brazil is Brazil and it was not possible to continue pushing it. After filling the social media of the biggest Korean streaming platforms with messages, such as Viki, k-dramas started to be shown first hand with subtitles in Portuguese on several platforms (and Viki also came with a version entirely in Portuguese), to the joy of Brazilian dramaland. And yet, with the coronavirus pandemic keeping the population at home, many people decided to venture a little more into this style of series different from the standards already known.
Now, with the fame of k-dramas around here, you may have heard of dramas recognized as acclaimed by the world as Boys Over Flowers, or its Chinese sequel, Meteor Garden, and perhaps a more recent one like Love Alarm. But today, I decided to bring a quick list of 5 Korean dramas that are usually forgotten, but that have beautiful stories (and beautiful characters, jokes aside) that will delight your heart and make you give a chance to this new world. And go for me, there’s something for everyone.
- My ID is Gangnam Beauty
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We cannot start a list without starting with the classics of the classics: the novel. And for that we need to bring a drama that affects our feelings in different ways, this being the role of My ID is Gangnam Beauty.
With a more university-like footprint, this drama launched in 2018 addresses, in a unique and intelligent way, the problems that young people go through during adolescence to become young adults. The story revolves around Kang Mi Rae, a shy young woman who suffered during her childhood for not having the standard of beauty considered ideal by Koreans. To go through this new stage of his life, Mi Rae decides to undergo plastic surgery and to transform completely, becoming a beautiful woman worthy of being appreciated.
But as not everything is pink, even though she has completely made up her appearance, the protagonist suffers from the reputation of being a “Gangnam Beauty”, a girl who only became beautiful due to aesthetic procedures. A curiosity: this pejorative term really exists in Korea, and it came about because of the Gangnam neighborhood, which is famous for being very luxurious and where most plastic surgery clinics are located.
Even with the difficulties, Mi Rae manages to fit in and find a love that will pass good situations by his side: Do Kyung Seok, a boy with a beautiful and striking appearance, but that does not match his ideals. Kyung Seok doesn’t judge people by appearance and cares more about what’s inside than outside, quickly falling in love with our protagonist.
The drama itself is fun and curious to watch, the approach to heavier themes is presented in a light and quite impactful way, making us understand the steps of the characters involved in the story. A kind of nice k-drama to watch under the covers and with handkerchiefs in hand, because you’re going to cry.
- Suspicious Partner
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And who doesn’t like to have a good laugh, no? Suspicious Partner can be a good option for those who need to laugh until their tummy hurts, and you can still watch it on a direct weekend, enjoying the drama and some popcorn – just be careful not to choke from laughing.
Released in 2017, the drama revolves around Eun Bong Hee, a law student who eventually finds out that her boyfriend was cheating on her. Outraged and saddened by the ex’s act, Bong Hee bumps into the young Promoter Noh Ji Wook, who later discovers that he is responsible for taking care of himself during her first internship in the area.
But a big twist happens: Bong Hee’s ex-boyfriend is found dead inside her home. And, without knowing where to run, she is considered the prime suspect in murder for revenge for the betrayal. The only person you can trust? At Promoter Noh Ji Wook, known in the middle for arresting bandits and doing justice in the right way.
The case ends up destroying their careers: she becomes an excluded lawyer in the middle – if only because who would hire a murderer? – while he loses his job after the process and becomes a bitter and disgruntled lawyer, since he was born to arrest bandits, not defend them. And two years later, the two are reunited with a promise: to find and arrest the murderer who destroyed both their lives.
Speaking like that, it seems that the narrative is serious. But it’s far from it! Exploring themes like criminal investigations and murders, the drama has a much lighter content of presenting the story to the viewer, and the good thing is to follow how these two opposing characters will work together (even if one doesn’t want to see the other’s face) to find the solution and regain their dignity.
The scenes are too funny and the romance of Bong Hee and Ji Wook is gradually built, which in a way is distressing, but at the same time very pleasant to follow. This k-drama is pure comedy, believe me.
Check the trailer by clicking here.
- A Korean Odyssey
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Don’t worry, because if you don’t like the styles I mentioned above, I’ll offer you one more – but this time, let’s talk about fiction. A Korean Odyssey is a captivating drama that mixes a fictional narrative with elements from Asian mythology, making a modern and romantic adaptation of Wu Chengen’s book “Journey to the West”.
The drama brings a narrative around Ji Sun Mi who, after a tragic accident during childhood, acquires the curse of seeing spirits and becomes a child alone and strange. To protect her from the creatures, her grandmother presents her with a powerful talisman that is stuck in her yellow umbrella. A few years later, Sun Mi meets Son Oh-Gong, a deity known as The Great Sage of Heavenly Essence, who was imprisoned in a mountain house for “bad behavior”.
He convinces little Sun Mi to release him, but only on one condition: whenever she calls his name, he will have to appear and protect her. But we are talking about a super smart and problematic deity: obviously something would go wrong. Oh-Gong erases her name from the child’s memory, so that she never calls him, and runs away leaving her behind.
Years later, Sun Mi becomes a wealthy owner of a real estate company, and as an adult she discovers that she is SamJang, an entity that has the smell of the lotus flower in her blood, making it very powerful. And whoever managed to devour it would become the strongest deity among the gods. Oh-Gong, discovering this, wastes no time: he goes around Sun Mi at all costs, fighting battles with any creature that threatens to get close to the woman and devours her first.
Forcing him to protect her person at all costs, the protagonist puts on his arm a bracelet capable of controlling the emotions of the divinity and making them work in her favor. But here comes the strong point! When both finally fall in love with each other, Oh-Gong discovers that their fate is much more drastic than he imagined: they are both destined to kill each other.
This drama comes with an important lesson, in which we learn that pain can be the only thing that can teach us to empathize and have compassion for others. You will be thrilled and have fun with the secondary characters like Ma Wang and Jung Se-Ra. A very dramatic k-drama, get ready for the end of it if you want to risk it. But don’t ask me for spoilers.
Check the trailer by clicking here.
- Kill It
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If your vibe is more action, shots, chases and bombs, Kill It is the dose of adrenaline you need in your life. With a very different approach from the known dramas, it can be content to watch when the weather is calmer, because it goes for me: you will need to be very calm for this drama.
During his childhood, Kim Soo Hyun was chased by a hit man named Pavel. It’s not known why, but he decides to keep the child alive and train him to become his right hand, growing up under his care. Years later, Pavel acquires an illness and on his deathbed makes the now young Soo Hyun promise that he will live a normal life, without jobs and without deaths.
At the request of the mentor, the former hired killer disguises himself as a veterinarian for large animals and goes about his life like this. But someone makes him an offer he can’t refuse, making him go back to work. In the meantime, Do Hyun Jin, a very strong personality detective, begins to follow in his footsteps to find out who the perpetrator is behind the crimes that are haunting the population. But neither knew that they had been linked since the beginning, or rather, since childhood.
Everything is presented with a lot of action; the scenes are full of aspects of strength, fights and persecutions to the point of leaving your hair standing on end. Also, even if you have a romantic interest hovering between the main characters, don’t expect kisses through the blood and hugs after fights. Kill It is a more exciting drama, where a romantic narrative unfortunately does not fit the story. And I leave a reminder: if you are going to venture into this k-drama, be ready. That’s all I have to say.
Check the trailer by clicking here.
- Romance is a Bonus Book
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All of the dramas mentioned above have a style far removed from the real events of life. So, I decided to bring a drama that portrays more clearly the real problems that adults go through and, as always, that we can turn around at any time.
Being the only drama on this original Netflix list, Romance is Bonus Book tells the story of Kang Dan-I, a former divorcee with a daughter to care for. Formerly considered a renowned publicist, Dan-I marries and leaves her career to focus entirely on her home life. After the divorce, penniless and with a young daughter to feed, the protagonist needs a job and this becomes the first pillar of k-drama: how to get a job as a single mother, in an area practically dominated by men, and years after you have your rise?
Even though she hid her current situation from her longtime best friend Cha Eun Ho – no personal secrets around here, he loves her very much – Dan-I still has his immeasurable support. As a young editor-in-chief of one of South Korea’s most renowned publishers, Cha Eun Ho does not hide his feelings from the protagonist and pledges to help her get a job.
The drama released in 2019 has a hint of comedy with a lot of romance, and all of this takes place on the pages of books, since the story of the protagonists only started because of the books. In a friendship that blossomed between weekly readings until a romantic relationship, it’s the kind of k-drama to fill with chocolate during a rainy afternoon.
Tell me, do you risk watching any of these k-dramas? It has for all tastes and styles and I bet you can find one that you like. Now, if you’ve watched any of those on the list, how about recommending it to a friend?
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