Getting bored with k-drama after 8-10 episodes

Hello, drama addicted fellows :) I've been a k-drama addicted for more than 6 years. I've seen many dramas and suffered from some drama slumps, and nowadays it's hard to find a plot that I would be interested in from the beggining to the end. It's almost always the same - I'm very interested and I enjoy a lot the first half of the drama and then somewhere around 8, 9 or 10 episodes it breaks and I loose all the interest in it. It only happens with k-dramas. I don't have this issue with chinese - I can watch 40 episodes and it's still interesting. I feel like all k-dramas tend to get worse in the middle - after the first kiss the main couple always have to break up and the plot focus more on their struggle or something like this? I'm not sure. I've recently watched and put on-hold:

- It's Okay to Not Be Okay - I loved the first 9 episodes, but I struggled a lot with the 10th episodes and then lost the interest;

-Lawless Lawyer - after 8 episodes. I hard hard time with the 9th episodes, even though I enjoyed the first 8.;

- The King: Eternal Monarch - after 8 episodes.

Do you have the same thing? What do you think about it?

same problem!

I have had this issue for the longest time (kdramas and cdramas). 

Cdramas are actually worse for me because they usually take a while to get good then almost always drag especially when they have annoying or boring side characters. Many cdramas really don't need to be so long. As for kdramas, I don't like how episode run times have been getting longer and longer.

Overall, I usually experience this decrease in interest in shows reliant on romance. If the romance isn't compelling, the interest obviously wanes faster. Some dramas have episodes where nothing really happens until the last few scenes, and that just feels like a waste. As much as I love pretty scenery and fancy CG, I prefer plot progression and character development more lol 

My solution has been to put dramas on hold or just drop lol I guess that isn't really a solution, but I used to feel guilty about not finishing stuff. I've enjoyed some shows more after I revisited them at a later time. Another thing I do is ff scenes (mainly for cdramas).

Another thing is simply being burned out from watching too much kdramas over a long period of time. Just this year for about 1-2 months I couldn't really get invested in any kdramas. I decided to re-explore cdramas, and found several fun shows to watch. However, I think kdramas are definitely my preferred as I am back watching them pretty much full time again. I have many cdramas I want to eventually watch / complete, but I've put all of them on hold for now.

 reyofsunshine:

Same Problem for me too especially with the highly-appreciated/overrated dramas such as:

1. Descendants of the Sun - ep 8
2. Hotel Del Luna - ep 8
3. Love in the Moonlight - ep 8
4. Record of Youth - ep 8

I just noticed that I have a bad habit of dropping dramas at ep 8. Please help me.

I was addicted to DOTS at eps 6-12, that was the best parts of the drama but the last 4 eps felt like filler after they came back to Korea. I couldn't get into the hype over HDL and haven't seen the other 2.

Thank you, guys, for so many replies on this topic! :) I'm glad there are more people that feel this way too... 

 newbiefan:

That is why I mostly watch shows on my laptop; easier to do quick jumps ahead. I can stay with the story (Lawless Lawyer and The King do get better, I had no trouble finishing either) yet move it on faster. If I end up liking the drama I can go back and watch it again for the details.

You're right. We can use the fastforward button or skip scenes, but when I do this a lot I start to question myself: "what is it that I'm still looking for in this drama? Maybe I just waste a time?" When I skip too many scenes in the last episodes, after some time I can't remember the ending of the drama. And it makes me feel like I never really finished it. I put it on my Completed list but it doesn't feel like completed at all, more like a dropped. It feels like cheating. 

 Robert Timsah:

You're right. Having written full length feature screenplays, I don't envy a series writer. It's Okay To Not Be Okay started out really good, but then seemed to fall flat as conflict deflated. I lost interest. I fell in love with the soundtrack instead.

A series is a monumental challenge to write well. Primarily because they're so long and you have to credibly extend conflict, character growth, twists and story over 7 to 10 episodes. This leads to writers having to "pad" with sometimes boring events/scenes, especially with pure dramas.

He's Coming To Me (https://mydramalist.com/31880-he-s-coming-to-me) is probably what I would call the best written BL. Well crafted story, sad situation and ultimately, very touching.

Right. Writers have to struggle a lot to make the plot interesting during the second half. There is something that makes the plot weaker. The forced turn over/plot twist that happens always somewhere around 8-9 episodes, and we know that there is going to be a plot twist right there! Like we know that the kiss will happen in the end of the ep 8 (or 6?). It's predictable from this moment. 

It's Okay to Not Be Okay stole my heart with its OST. Totally agree :)

And thank you for you recommendation - I'm going to watch He's Coming To Me soon! :)

 reyofsunshine:

Same Problem for me too especially with the highly-appreciated/overrated dramas such as:

1. Descendants of the Sun - ep 8
2. Hotel Del Luna - ep 8
3. Love in the Moonlight - ep 8
4. Record of Youth - ep 8

I just noticed that I have a bad habit of dropping dramas at ep 8. Please help me.

I wanted to watch Hotel Del Luna. Now I'm not sure ^^' Nowadays I try to pick only the most popular ones with the highest ratings, because I think that the second half has to be great to get such a high rating in the end. Don't most people remember the second half more than the first half?

 Kim Moo Young:

for some shows yes. Oddly I actually got hooked to Healer and SKY Castle more at ep 8. 

I started watching daily makjang dramas last year and I got hooked to them the more I watched them even though they were long (100 episodes 30 minutes each) since they usually get more intense during the middle/last episodes and the cliffhangers at the end of every episode makes me want to watch the next one! I don't ever get bored of watching these cliche makjang/melodramas LOL meanwhile I struggle to like most popular hyped dramas nowadays (some start out good but got boring/meh)

Wow. I'm not afraid of long dramas but I was so sure that these daily makjangs are poor quality dramas. This sounds interesting. I will give them a try! Thank you, chingu :) Do you have some recommendation?

 Juveria Khadri:

this is the exact reason i started watching j doramas . most j doramas have only 8 -12 episodes depending on the channel theyre aired . and also tend to have lesser side characters. and stick to their genres. if its a crime/investigation dorama it will stick to the theme and not bring in romance when its not required. same way romance sticks to romance and will not bring unnecessary childhood trauma or some cliche into the story.

I understand you. I tried some j-dramas but they aren't my cup of tea. I like long dramas with a good plot - I can watch them even though they last for 50 episodes - if they are good ones, and I like the main cast, the characters, the plot, then I just want to see more of their adventures :) I really like long dramas, but it can't bore the watchers with only one main plot - there should be more! :) There are some long c-dramas that I wish there would have another 50 episodes and I would still enjoy them, like: Under The Power, Ten Miles of Peach Blossoms, The Joy of Life, Legend of Fuyao... Such dramas are full of different adventurous, that are divided into arcs. If the main characters are fun to watch, then it's great to keep watching their adventures :)

 Justina Sulystio:

SAME! I thought I was the only one who felt that about It's Okay To Not Be Okay. Show seemed really promising at the start, but got really predictable and plain near the end. I ended up dropping it. I absolutely loved the casting, it's unfortunate. Also, I heard many comments saying that 2020 is a good year for dramas, while I don't feel that way at all. I don't know if it's because I've watched too many dramas, but I couldn't find one drama this year that I didn't skip over or even stuck with till the end. The only drama that's decent enough that I could think of are probably Once Again (50+ episodes), Hospital Playlist (absolutely recommended!) and Black Dog (only because Seo Hyunjin is my favorite actress ever ). But thanks for posting this! Hahaha

I've added Once Again to my PTW list. Thank you for your recommendation :)

 freefree:

It's amazing how we all share the same feelings. I tend to watch the dramas with the cutest actors or ones that are on my favorite actors lists.  This does help with watching all episodes til the end.  I   also watch the popular dramas in the genres that I like.  I'm not fond of high school dramas or variety shows.  

I tried to watch Jdramas or Tdramas but I couldn't get interested in it.  I don't like dropping dramas so I try to put them on the on-hold list temporarily and see if I will pick it up later.  Sometimes it helps if I read the recap to see what's going on.  I have no problems with knowing what is going to happen before I finish the drama.

Yes, that's true! It's easier to watch the drama till the end when you enjoy looking at the actors. I love watching  historical c-dramas because I enjoy looking at the beautiful palaces, hanfu (their clothes), and overall the climate of it. It makes me want to keep watching even when I get bored with the plot :)

And sometimes it's helpful to know some spoilers, I agree :) I like reading the tags to know what to expect. When the drama doesn't look interesting at first, then I try watching some fan videos and look for spoilers that will catch my attention. To see if the drama has something interesting to offer.