As a disclaimer, I will admit that I love many a drama that are objectively flaming piles of trash. This is because I rely on my connection to the characters and whether I form an emotional connection with them. Here I will limit my recs to those that other's agree are good plot-wise.
Gaksital - Barring the female lead's shoddy acting at times, this entire drama impressed me. The characters are complex and intriguing, the story-line is engrossing, and the two male lead's acting is phenomenal. I liked Joo Won and Park Ki Woong before this because they're both pretty to look at and were decent actors, but this made me realize they both were capable of creating a masterpiece with their acting ability. Blew me away.
Bu Bu Jing Xin - This show is my favorite Chinese historical drama still. It may be because it was one of the first more serious Chinese historicals I watched, but it left a huge impression that's still there today. The writing, directing, casting, acting, and narration of this drama were all exactly right for what it was trying to convey. I fell in love with all of the characters, grew with them, loved and hated with them. You truly get to experience life growing from a naive out of time little girl into a jagged weary but strong and intelligent woman right along with Ruo Xi. If a drama can make me love a character while hating their choices or hate a character but understand them as a human, then it's done something great.
Romantic Doctor, Teacher Kim - This drama wasn't at all what I was expecting going in. The narration is unique and fresh, the characters are quirky, rough, and real, and the plot is solid. The characters are all well fleshed out and it's interesting to experience their stories. There's no perfect person here and everyone has their own motivations and goals. It's refreshing and I really enjoyed the romance. It's rare that a hospital drama can focus on the human factor and still balance the technicalities without becoming muddled or dry. I actually end up bored in a lot of hospital dramas because I'm not all that interested in the specifics of medical care, but here I was engaged and actually enjoyed learning specifics, which was a first.
Seo Yeong, My Daughter - This drama impressed me for a very personal reason. Here, the main female lead is not perfect and would be seen as cruel by some viewers. Seo Yeong reaches her breaking point and decides to abandon her father after decades of him ruining her life and financially strangling her. She lies and cuts ties with him in order to survive. In a Korean culture that places such heavy importance on filial piety, this is a horrible thing to do. I empathized with this new and intriguing character, Seo Yeong, and I rooted for her with every part of me. I also cut my father out of my life, so sometimes it is hard watching Asian dramas that put so much emphasis on family always coming first and always staying together no matter what. So when I stumbled on this drama that shows the harsh realities and tried to show all sides of the situation, I fell in love. It's not a masterpiece and I wouldn't say the story-line is top tier, but the message impressed me and like I said, I paid more attention to the characters in this one.
