2015 Korean Dramas

I will update this page with every Korean drama I watch throughout the year 2015! Be prepared to see a long list by the end of this year.G

Oh My Ghost

The lead girls steal the show (Park Bo-Young & Kim Seul-Gi)! 

Decently paced storyline - I have a soft spot for ghost possession storylines after watching 49 days (2011) and Who Are You? (2008) The storyline is about a ghost, Shin Soon Ae, she is trapped on Earth, unable to go to heaven as she has unfinished business (not going to spoil it!). She possesses Na Bong Sun's body to resolve the reason why she is stuck on Earth.

If you enjoy food, you will like this one. The main premise of the drama is set in a restaurant. So be prepared to drool and learn a few cooking tips here and there.

A last note, the antagonist in the drama is darn convincing!

Oh My Venus

Sad to say the storyline isn't too intriguing. The show is fun at times, but overall it's not a drama I anticipate every week.

Reply/Answer Me 1988

Seriously loving this one despite only being 6 episodes in!! Can't wait for the rest of the episodes to come out. TBH I prefer this series over 94'. Taekie! I'm rooting for you. Heres hoping the storyline remains interesting :)

P.S. Still loving the episodes - up to E14!

UPDATE** I have just finished watching this drama, boy did the writer put us viewers on a rollercoaster. I love that the drama mainly focused on family and friendship (rather than on the romance side), and how important they are. I found myself crying from being so touched or even envious at times by the strength and love that a family's or friend's bond can be. 

I also loved that there was no clear first lead, second lead character, unlike stereotypical dramas. I loved not knowing the final OTP before the drama started, the series did a great job at keeping that mystery. In doing so, I fell in love with all the characters as they all had their time to shine, from the 88' kids that this drama revolved around to their parents. I feel a great connection to each character whether they were minor or major. It is rare that I ever feel a connection to all characters of a show and cheer for each and every one of them to achieve happiness and success. 

And for those that were complaining because of the long episode lengths, I don't see why. The writers would have specifically and strategically chosen that length to appropriately tell the story. As with all dramas, I watch them without judgement and enjoy them for what they are, not picking at every little detail or discrepancy.

Finally, this reconfirmed my love for the reply series. Heres to many more. 

She Was Pretty

It's been a while since I had watched a drama with 4 main characters that are so loveable. This is a must watch!! The last few episodes are quite slow and strung out but the overall drama was a good watch.

Yongpal

Currently Airing
Genre: Medical, chaebol - inheritance issues
Episodes: 20

Main Cast:
Joowon as Kim Tae-Hyun
Kim Tae-Hee as Han Yeo-Jin
Jo Hyun-Jae as Han Do-Joon
Chae Jung-An as Lee Chae-Young

Gist of Storyline:
Kim Tae-Hyun is a talented surgeon who is in desperate need of money to pay for his sister's medical bills. He takes on the name Yongpal and offers his skills to those in need of medical attention but who cannot do so publicly, that is, dealing with gangsters.

P.S. I'm really enjoying this drama at the moment. Finally a drama that has been able to withhold my attention... it's been a while.

Scholar Who Walks the Night

Currently Airing
Genre: Human turned vampire, seeks truth for the death of his friend
Episodes: 20

Main Cast:
Lee Jun-Ki as Kim Sung-Yeol
Lee Yoo-Bi as Jo Yang-Sun
Shim Chang-Min as Crown Prince Lee Yoon
Lee Soo-Hyuk as Gwi
Kim So-Eun as Hye-Ryeong

Gist of Storyline:
Jo Yang-Sun dresses as a man as she is the head of her household (her father is ill). She sells books to support her family, she meets an attractive scholar, Kim Sung-Yeol whom is a vampire.

High Society

Currently Airing
Genre: Chaebol trying to live a normal life
Episodes: 16

Main Cast:
Uee as Jang Yoon-Ha
Sung Joon as Choi Joon-Ki
Park Hyung-Shik as Yoo Chang-Soo
Lim Ji-Yeon as Lee Ji-Yi

Gist of Storyline:

Jang Yoon-Ha is the youngest daughter of a chaebol family. Despite her wealth, she works part time at a "high end" grocery store/market and hides her true identity. She wishes to find a man who loves her for her and not her money. 

Choi Joon-Ki grew up in poverty but loving family. Now working as a middle manager for a conglomerate. Joon-Ki dream (that he wants to make a reality) is to become/be a chaebol/wealthy... he starts dating Yoon-Ha with those intentions. 

UPDATE** Got bored of this one, the otp aren't as an interesting couple as the second leads...

Mask (가면)



Currently Airing
Genre: Chaebol... I want to trick you into handing over all your inheritance... Identity swap...
Episodes: 20

Main Cast
Soo-Ae as Byun Ji-Sook/Seo Eun-Ha
Joo Ji-Hoon as Choi Min-Woo
Yeon Jeong-Hoon as Min Seok-Hoon
Yu In-Young as Choi Mi-Yeon

Gist of Storyline

Germaphobe Choi Min-Woo is the successor of a large corporation, he has trauma and suppressed memories of his childhood from watching his mother die. Min Seok-Hoon (Min-Woo's brother-in-law) wants take Min-Woo's role of successor. Due to an accident Eun-Ha is comatose and is unlikely to wake. Seok-Hoon "hires??/threatens" Ji-Sook to take Eun-Ha's place (doppelganger) as Min-Woo's fiancee.

Orange Marmalade (오렌지 마말레이드)




Currently Airing
Genre: Vampire, romance
Episodes: 12

Main Cast
Yeo Jin-Goo as Jung Jae-Min
Kim Seol-Hyun as Baek Ma-Ri
Lee Jong Hyun as Han Shi-Hoo
Gil Eun-Hye as Jo Ah-Ra

Gist of Storyline

For those who don't know, this drama is an adaptation of a popular webseries on Naver (manga) of the same name. It's a complete webtoon, you should check it out, the artwork is so lovely yet different from usual manga characters (in the way its drawn and the colouring).

The story is set in a world where vampires and humans coexist, for the most part humans are still living in fear... the stigma that vampires will always harm humans. Baek Ma-Ri, a vampire, has had to move schools several times. Now at her current high school she tries her best to stay out of trouble. Jung Jae-Min develops an interest towards Baek Ma-Ri when she unconsciously kisses his neck because of his sweet aroma.

The storyline is more deep than this but I'm not sure how closely the drama is going to follow the webtoon. In the first two episodes there have already been some major changes in characters from the original. The pace has been quite fast, in sense that characters that were introduced later on have already been shown in the first two episodes... I will continue watching though.

UPDATE** The storyline is almost completely different from the webseries.

Who Are You/ School 2015 ☆

Currently Airing

Genre: School, identity swap, romance, bullying

Episodes: 16

Main Cast:

Kim So-Hyun as Lee Eun-Bi/Go Eun-Byul

Yook Sung-Jae as Gong Tae Gwang

Nam Joo-Hyuk as Han Yi-An

Gist of Storyline:

Identical twins Lee Eun-Bi and Go Eun-Byul are separated at birth. Their lives are highly contrasting; Eun-Bi is a victim of bullying and lives at an orphanage in Tongyeong whilst Eun-Byul is attends the most prestigious private high school and is well off. Only Eun-Byul is aware of Eun-Bi's existence. 

One day, on a school field trip to Tongyeong, Eun-Byul disappears. At the same time, Eun-Bi is unjustly expelled from her school and attempts suicide off a bridge. Ten days later, Eun-Bi lies in a hospital bed without her prior memories. Eun-Bi is mistaken for Eun-Byul and is taken home by the latter's adoptive mother, where she starts living as Eun-Byul. But soon her memories return...

☆ I really enjoyed this drama, I anticipated every episodes right until the very end.

Producer (프로듀사)




Currently Airing
Genre: Office romance, bts entertainment industry
Episodes: 12

Main Cast
Cha Tae-Hyun as Ra Joon-Mo
Gong Hyo-Jin as Tak Ye-Jin
Kim Soo-Hyun as Baek Seung-Chan
IU as Cindy

Gist of Storyline

To be honest I'm not drawn to this drama... the first two episodes have aired but they were lacklustre. I really want to like this drama because of the cast but so far I'm not impressed. I really can't sense the direction they are trying to go for... I with it.

The story so far is that Seung-Chan is a new intern at KBS he is stationed at the variety department where Joon-Mo is the head PD... Cindy is an arrogant popular idol... Ye-Jin is the head PD at the music department... Besides this there wasn't much more important developments in the first two episodes.

I like Soo-Hyun's character though, he is cute... Sorry, I have nothing better to say about the drama. You would think the first two episode would set the tone for the rest of the series but I'm left more confused than ever.

UPDATE** It gets better after the first few episodes

The Girl Who See Smells (냄새를 보는 소녀)




Currently Airing
Genre: Romance, mystery, fantasy~
Episodes: 16

Main Cast
Park Yoo-Chun as Choi Mu-Gak
Shin Se-Kyung as Oh Cho Rim
Nam Goong-Min as Kwon Jae-Hee
Yoon Jin-Seo as Yeom Mi

Gist of Storyline

Choi Mu-Gak's younger sister Eun-Seol is killed in the "Barcode" murder case three years prior. After his sister's death he develops congenital analgesia, a condition in which a person cannot feel physical pain. He vows to find and kill his sister's murderer.

Oh Cho-Rim has no prior memories after waking up from a coma. She had lost her parents to the Barcode murderer, and was the sole eyewitness to that crime, running from the murderer she gets hit by a car thus the coma. Since the coma, all her senses become more sensitive, she can see smells (particles in the air). She teams up with Mu-Gak to catch the killer.  

Persevere, Goo Hae-Ra (칠전팔기 구해라)

Currently Airing
Genre: Music, love triangle
Episodes: 12

Main Cast
Min Hyo-Rin as Goo Hae-Ra
Kwak Si-Yang as Kang Se-Jong
Jin-Young as Kang Se-Chan/Ray
Henry as Henry
Park Kwang-Sun as Jang Goon
Yoo Sung-Eun as Lee Woo-Ri

Gist of Storyline

Hae-Ra's dream is to debut as a singer so she can let people hear her late father's composition (which was her last gift from him). Hae-Ra auditions with her two best friends, twins, Kang Se-Jong and Kang Se-Chan on SuperStarK2 (singing competition similar to Idol). They get through the initial audition. 

At super week the three are teamed with Henry, Jang Goon and Woo-Ri but due to circumstances (I won't ruin it) they are disqualified. 

I don't want to let on anymore than this as it will be a spoiler but I will say that the ending of episode two... someone be cutting onions, no dust flew into my eye... So far the first two episodes don't disappoint, although I think I already know where the storyline is heading but the in-between/road to getting there I will anticipate and continue watching.

Oh it's one episode a week! Not the regular two. Hopefully the momentum continues!

Kill Me, Heal Me (킬미, 힐미)

Currently Airing

Genre: Romance, split personalities, mystery
Episodes: 20

Main Cast
Ji Sung as Cha Do-Hyun
Hwang Jung-Eum as Oh Ri-Jin
Park Seo-Joon as Oh Ri-On
Kim Yoo-Ri as Han Chae-Yeon
Oh Min-Seok as Cha Ki-Joon

Gist of Storyline

After an accident at a young age Cha Do-Hyun loses all his previous memory and is diagnosed with 7 different personalities which are triggered by pain. He keeps this illness from his family, only his assistant and doctor know of the condition. Do-Hyun meets Oh Ri-Jin as his alter ego Shin Se-Gi whom says that Oh Ri-Jin is his first love?? After finding Ri-Jin his alter ego Se-Gi only gets stronger, appearing in hallucinations/taking over his body. 

Ri-Jin quickly catches onto Do-Hyun's split personalities, she ends up helping him.

Ohohoh! Do-Hyun is a chaebol and Ri-Jin is a first-year psychitric! Ri-Jin's brother, Ri-On follows Do-Hyun's life, attempting to reveal the lives of the rich (mystery novel writer). 

Others

• Pinocchio - The beginning was good and I did anticipate the first few episodes but then it just dragged on. I quit at about half way through, don't quite remember which episode. I just lost all interest.
• Birth of a Beauty - Similarly, for this drama I stopped watching after episode 13. Not that it wasn't interesting, I just forgot about it for a while. I might catch up on this drama when I have free time. P.S. I loved Han Ye Seul's hair! Her hair alone made me want to watch the show.