In the article about Im Si Wan's new Drama getting a 2nd season, I commented on how much I dislike multi-season shows and that I miss the old days when  K Dramas were always "one and done"

Someone replied "Kdrama absolutely had several seasons even decades ago " but they have not replied to my request for them to give examples.

Obviously, there have been an ever-increasing number of true multi-season series in the last 5-6 years , but since the person who said they've been around for decades has been unable to name even one, I thought I'd ask here: What are some K Dramas from before 2014 (one decade ago) that carried on over more than one season?

They said "decades ago", which means at least 20 years (2 decades). I checked https://wiki.d-addicts.com/Category:KDrama and found exactly ONE multiseason K Drama in the period from 2000-2013 (the year I started watching K Dramas

By multi-season I mean Dramas where most or all of the characters appear in more than 1 season, and some or all of the storyline carries over as well. Series like the "School" series  and "I Need Romance" are not multi-season because each series was completely different and separate. Each had a  new cast, new characters, new storylines - the only link each had was the name. 

The only thing I can think of is Miss Young-ae, but that's it. If there was a multi-season series aired before 2000s, I'm not knowledgeable enough to know about it.

Agree with you that stuff like "School" is not really a multi-season series; IDK how you should call it, maybe a "franchise" kind of thing?

 kura2ninja:

The only thing I can think of is Miss Young-ae, but that's it. If there was a multi-season series aired before 2000s, I'm not knowledgeable enough to know about it.

Agree with you that stuff like "School" is not really a multi-season series; IDK how you should call it, maybe a "franchise" kind of thing?

Thanks for that - it confirms my perception. Yes, I think "franchise" is probably the best fit - like the "Reply" franchise - that one had some overlap of cast, but no contnuity of plot or characters in the main

  • God's Quiz
  • Hello Franceska (seasons 1-2 are proper seasons; season 3 is more of a spin-off, as I understand it)
  • High Kick series (though falls more into your "franchise" category again)

And they may also have been referring to those shows that went on for multiple years and sometimes hundreds of episodes, but never were split into seasons as such (I have come across multiple 90's era sitcoms and daily/weekly soap opera-type dramas that would be in that category)

 zeamays:
  • God's Quiz
  • Hello Franceska (seasons 1-2 are proper seasons; season 3 is more of a spin-off, as I understand it)
  • High Kick series (though falls more into your "franchise" category again)

And they may also have been referring to those shows that went on for multiple years and sometimes hundreds of episodes, but never were split into seasons as such (I have come across multiple 90's era sitcoms and daily/weekly soap opera-type dramas that would be in that category)

I think the relevant point here is that they made NO attempt to support their claim, or to refute any evidence to the contrary.  That others have attempted to answer for them while they couldn't be bothered strengthens my belief they were not attempting a serious discussion.