I need recs for K-Dramas that are appropriate to watch with my parents during lunchtime. We're halfway through My Love From Another Star, one of my favourites and they seem to like it too. This is the first K-Drama they have watched. They've expressed interest in watching another K-Drama after this one but I don't know what to show them next, since I don't think they'll appreciate the rest of the K-Dramas I have watched. 

So please recommend me K-Dramas with these requirements:

  • Parent friendly and appropriate
  • Have romance as a major genre (or else I'll be bored lol)
  • Not historical (they explicitly stated)
  • Happy ending
  • Not silly/cringe/exaggerated acting
  • Not heavy/sad/intense
  • No illness/disease/deaths (deaths are okay as long as it's not any of the two leads' friends or family)
  • Overall light mood
  • Mature leads (no high school students)
  • Not over 25 episodes (please, we only watch half an ep per day)
  • Or you can follow the template of My Love From Another Star

I know it's a lot of requirements but I want to leave K-Dramas as a good impression to my parents, even though I may not be into them anymore.

I think these two might be very close to what you're looking for:

Secret Garden

The Legend of the Blue Sea

 Kuromi:

I think these two might be very close to what you're looking for:

Secret Garden

The Legend of the Blue Sea

Oooh I've seen a bit of them in the past, I think I'll take Secret Garden as an option. Thankyou! ^^

I have watched these two with my father and he LOVED them !!! (also it was his first time ;) )

1.] Vagabond.

as my father loves action stuff and this one is very fast-paced and also has some terrific cliffhangers which will increase their interest. Its production quality is also very high and the lead's chemistry is very very strong yet not at all inappropriate!

2.] Terius Behind me 

This one believe me is the most wholesome and complete drama there are two cute little twins+some action+ mystery+comedy(not the cringey one)+just a little romance

Hope this helps! 

Healer maybe? It has action and romance and is overall amusing. But in later episodes there is a moment when a foster father of ML's dies.

Or, if they liked fantasy:

My Girlfriend Is a Gumiho

 My Roommate Is a Gumiho 

 martar:

Healer maybe? It has action and romance and is overall amusing. But in later episodes there is a moment when a foster father of ML's dies.

Or, if they liked fantasy:

My Girlfriend Is a Gumiho

 My Roommate Is a Gumiho 

I don't think my roomate is a gumiho is a great k-drama to pick for first impressions. For me it was quite boring as the main couple were already togehter in the first few episodes, plus isn't the fl a student?

  • A Poem a Day - I think this meets all of your criteria.
  • Wednesday 3:30 PM - The plot is a bit shallow, but it meets all your criteria and the episodes (only 15 of them) are just 20 minutes each.
  • The Beauty Inside - The only "illness" is that the ML can't recognize faces. There's also a scene where the FL turns into a young man (she turns into different people from time to time) and the ML still treats her like her. If your parents are conservative about gender issues this might not be the right drama. 
  • Fight For My Way - The FL does aegyo on a few occasions as a joke which might contradict your silly / cringe / overacting point. The leads also sleep together but the onscreen scenes are no worse than My Love From Another Star IMO. Otherwise it meets all your criteria.
  • Because This Is My First Life - The FL is assaulted / nearly raped by a drunk coworker at the beginning of the drama. That's the most serious / sad / intense moment. After that I wouldn't say this is a heavy drama, but it's not exactly "light" either. It's kind of a mix of melancholy and mature sweetness.
  • I Need Romance 3  - Noona romance. There's one scene near the end with the leads talking to each other in bed
  • Romance Is a Bonus Book - Noona romance. The FL is recently divorced.
  • Search: WWW - The FL's relationship with the ML starts with them sleeping together when they first meet. They have at least one intense kiss in the office. Otherwise it's parent friendly / meets your criteria. 
  • When the Weather Is Fine - Not sad / heavy / intense, but a bit melancholy and I found it a bit boring / underwhelming. It meets your criteria though.
  • Descendants of the Sun - It has some intense action / medical scenes, but I don't consider this a heavy drama. As far as I can recall, there are deaths but none of the leads' close friends or family die

Are you sure about the no illnesses / disease / death part? The only dramas I've ever considered watching with my parents are dramas that have death / heavier topics like Just Between Lovers (FL's sister dies, ML's father and surrogate grandmother die, ML deals with a serious illness) or Itaewon Class (ML's father dies), but they tend to prefer serious stories in general. 

 Ri Ara byul:

I have watched these two with my father and he LOVED them !!! (also it was his first time ;) )

1.] Vagabond.

as my father loves action stuff and this one is very fast-paced and also has some terrific cliffhangers which will increase their interest. Its production quality is also very high and the lead's chemistry is very very strong yet not at all inappropriate!

2.] Terius Behind me 

This one believe me is the most wholesome and complete drama there are two cute little twins+some action+ mystery+comedy(not the cringey one)+just a little romance

Hope this helps! 

My dad loves action too! I'll check these out, thankyou ^^

 martar:

Healer maybe? It has action and romance and is overall amusing. But in later episodes there is a moment when a foster father of ML's dies.

Or, if they liked fantasy:

My Girlfriend Is a Gumiho

 My Roommate Is a Gumiho 

I think My Girlfriend is a Gumiho sounds more suitable, I haven’t seen it so I’ll give it a brief watch first then decide if it can be a choice ^^

 AH :
Are you sure about the no illnesses / disease / death part? The only dramas I've ever considered watching with my parents are dramas that have death / heavier topics like Just Between Lovers (FL's sister dies, ML's father and surrogate grandmother die, ML deals with a serious illness) or Itaewon Class (ML's father dies), but they tend to prefer serious stories in general. 

You're spot on, my parents do tend to watch heavier themed movies in their own time but I feel like they should take a break from watching heavy movies/tv series at least during lunchtime, and also it's just mostly me :P I don't like watching heavy dramas, I wanna digest my lunch haha. 

I'll take A Poem A Day and Descendants of the Sun into consideration, they hit all the points and I've also watched them. Thankyouu ^^

 Willgy:

I don't think my roomate is a gumiho is a great k-drama to pick for first impressions. For me it was quite boring as the main couple were already togehter in the first few episodes, plus isn't the fl a student?

I've actually seen a bit of My Roommate is a Gumiho, but I agree with you, it's not exactly what my parents would appreciate... it is quite boring hence why I dropped it :P

 emaureeng:

How old are your parents?

They're mostly in their 60's so dramas like You're Beautiful (once my favourite drama which I now found super cringey - and I think they will too) and Boys Over Flowers (the Male Lead's personality is a no no though I personally love all the remakes and whatnot :P) are not even in consideration.