DRAMAS I WATCHED IN 2021

What it says on the tin. Includes some notes on my thoughts and feelings on these dramas.

courtney-june Nov 22, 2021

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1. Love Alarm

Korean Drama - 2019, 8 episodes

6.0
- First Korean drama I've watched.
- Surprisingly addictive. I binge-watched the entire thing in one day.
- I really liked the production and the OST, and the acting wasn't that bad, either.
- I was just annoyed by how terrible the storyline was.
- The romance was also not entertaining to watch. Seemed toxic and shallow.
- Even though my first experience with watching a Korean drama wasn't stellar, it did not stop me from watching them. In fact, I was so annoyed by this show that it really helped to motivate me to find an even better Korean drama that I could properly enjoy.
- And I did :) thanks for that, Love Alarm.
2. Flower of Evil

Korean Drama - 2020, 16 episodes

9.5
- AMAZING. SPECTACULAR. FABULOUS. WOW.
- I consider this drama to be the one that officially got me hooked on k-dramas (sorry, Love Alarm.)
- I remember being really impressed by the acting and how easily I became emotionally invested in this drama.
- Just pure, domestic bliss with a side of murder. I love it.
3. Life

Korean Drama - 2018, 16 episodes

10
- I still consider this to be one of my favorite dramas.
- The writing is immaculate and all of the characters had such amazing chemistry with each other. I wasn't bored for a single moment.
- Made me cry like a baby several times.
- Introduced me to actors like Lee Dong-Wook, Jo Seung-Woo, and Won Jin-Ah. I love them all so much <3
- Seriously underrated.
4. Stranger

Korean Drama - 2017, 16 episodes

10
- Bae Doo-Na if you read this I'm free Thursday night and would like to hang out. Please respond to this and then hang out with me on Thursday night when I'm free.
5. Stranger Season 2

Korean Drama - 2020, 16 episodes

10
- In my opinion, this was a lot better than the first season.
- Admittedly, the investigation/crime aspect was more interesting in the first season, but I really enjoyed seeing how character dynamics were explored here, as well as how the relationship between the police and the prosecution was portrayed. I just felt more engaged with this season than the first.
- Also, I cried a lot while watching this. Like, a lot. Especially during that last episode.
- Basically, Lee Soo-Yeon is a fantastic writer and I will watch anything she writes for.
6. Beyond Evil

Korean Drama - 2021, 16 episodes

10
- To be honest, I feel like if I re-watched this drama, my score for it would probably go up since I have a better understanding of the storyline and the motivations of the characters.
- Literally the epitome of 'I love you. I want both of us to eat well.'
- FOOD AS A METAPHOR FOR LOVE.
- I'm actually in love with most of the cast.
- Just thinking about this show makes me tear up.
- Has two of the best rain scenes I've seen in any form of media.
- This drama is actually a romantic comedy.
7. The School Nurse Files

Korean Drama - 2020, 6 episodes

8.0
- This was a funky little show. I just wish there was more of it.
- I also wish that the soundtrack was put on Spotify.
8. Strangers from Hell

Korean Drama - 2019, 10 episodes

10
- I've seen this drama three times now lol.
- Absolute masterpiece (in my opinion).
- I could literally write a whole essay about this drama, including analysis but I'm not...yet. so instead I will just say:
- hee hee hot dentist.
9. D.P.

Korean Drama - 2021, 6 episodes

9.0
- Emotional roller coaster.
- I absolutely loved Jung Hae-In and Koo Kyo-Hwan in this. They had such good chemistry.
- I also was really impressed by Won Ji-An's acting. I hope to see her in more roles soon :)
- Can't wait for season two!!!
10. Save Me

Korean Drama - 2017, 16 episodes

8.0
- This drama was really dark. Some aspects were reminiscent of Strangers from Hell (they also share the same writer).
- However, I was kind of underwhelmed by this drama.
- The storyline and the writing weren't necessarily terrible. I just had a hard time staying engaged, and I also feel like this isn't something I'd want to watch again.
11. The Devil Judge

Korean Drama - 2021, 16 episodes

9.0
- Has such an amazing OST.
- The acting was spectacular!!! Especially Kim Min-Jung.
- I was also totally blown away by the production. Very sleek and polished. Reminded me of Baz Luhrmann's The Great Gatsby (2013). Dizzying and enchanting.
- Another great example of food as a metaphor for love.
- THE STORY OF HADES AND PERSEPHONE...BEAUTY AND THE BEAST...
- CHA KYUNG-HEE AND THAT SCENE WHERE ALL THE MALE IDOLS/ACTORS WENT TO GO LIGHT HER CIGAR...THE MALENA REFERENCE...POETIC CINEMA.
- I was kind of disappointed by the dystopian aspects since they didn't feel fully fleshed out and it lost its significance as the show went on.
- I'm also bitter about how this drama treated women. Most of the women were completely underutilized.
12. Hot Stove League

Korean Drama - 2019, 16 episodes

9.0
- Honestly, I'm such a sucker for sports narratives, and baseball is one of my favorite sports, so I feel like I'm kind of biased here.
- It was really interesting to me to see the differences between Korea and the United States when it comes to professional baseball.
- I also really liked learning more about the management side of baseball.
- One of my favorite parts about this show was seeing the dynamics between the players on the team!!
- I was kind of disappointed by how the show-runners chose to utilize Lee Se-Young.
13. Squid Game

Korean Drama - 2021, 9 episodes

8.0
- Highly entertaining.
- Clever critique of capitalism; just wish it didn't go over everybody's heads. (Especially corporations and celebrities...learn to read the room.)
- The acting was phenomenal. (Except for the VIPs...that was embarrassing to watch.)
- Episode 6....man. Never going to emotionally recover from that.
- Hated the ending.
- Does not need a season 2.
14. Vincenzo

Korean Drama - 2021, 20 episodes

7.5
- I wanted to like this so bad since it seemed like something I would enjoy but there were just so many issues.
- 20 episodes were too much. I think 16 would have been enough.
- I honestly didn't mind the humor. I laughed a lot while watching this drama, and to be honest if I had a main character who was from Italy and/or is Italian, I would make a lot of jokes about that, too. The writers saw their chance and they took it.
- However, the showrunners seemed to really struggle with the balance of humor and the darker/thriller aspects of the show. Some scenes seemed really out of place and didn't seem to match the tone of the show.
- I also really hated how the villains became more diminished as the show went on. They all started out really strong but by the end they all just kind of reminded me of chickens running around with their heads cut off. Kind of disappointing.
- The found family was strong with this one. I loved the tenants and all of their silly antics so much!!
- The OST was also pretty good.
15. Goblin

Korean Drama - 2016, 16 episodes

8.0
- I have a lot of conflicting feelings about this show.
- It was pretty enjoyable to watch for the most part! The cinematography was amazing and I loved the OST! (Though whenever I listen to the opening song, I get a little teary-eyed.)
- I feel like in general the world we were introduced to here was very interesting. An immortal goblin with a sword in his chest, a girl who can see ghosts, Grim Reapers, past lives, cabbage-throwing grandmas, Canada, a mysterious woman in red, FREAKING GOD WAS IN HERE TOO? AND HE POSSESSED SOMEONE'S BODY? AND IT WAS NEVER REALLY ADDRESSED PROPERLY? WHAT WAS THAT ABOUT?
- Instead of exploring all of the above, instead, we were forced to bring our attention to a romantic relationship between a 900-year-old man and a high-schooler. Which is weird.
- It also led to a lot of pointless conflicts (like miscommunication, etc.) which helped to remind me why I don't usually like stories about relationships between immortal beings and regular mortal beings, or reincarnation.
- I feel like a lot of people dislike the FL but I really liked her! I feel like the only time she annoyed me was when they portrayed her as being materialistic (which didn't seem necessary and doesn't seem to add up with her character at all, so I'm putting more of the blame on the writers here).
- I did really like Sunny and the Grim Reaper. They were so cute!!!
- I also cried a lot while watching this, which is kind of unexpected, especially since I wasn't even really rooting for the main couple anyway.
- Though I didn't cry as much as Lee Dong-Wook did.
16. My Name

Korean Drama - 2021, 8 episodes

8.0
- Can we please give a round of applause for Han So-Hee? She was amazing in this!!
- All the fight scenes were incredibly done.
- I loved the soundtrack.
- I was emotionally gutted by that ending.
17. My Mister

Korean Drama - 2018, 16 episodes

9.0
- I cried...a lot.
- Humanity is just so beautiful (and so is IU.)
- Best enjoyed in the wintertime burrowed underneath warm blankets while it's raining or snowing outside.
- Very healing.
18. Sweet Home

Korean Drama - 2020, 10 episodes

8.5
- SO. GOOD.
- The acting was incredible!!
- I really liked the OST but...Imagine Dragons? Really?
- Can't wait for season 2!!!
19. Kingdom

Korean Drama - 2019, 6 episodes

8.0
- BAE DOO-NA!!!! And Joo Ji-Hoon. He was good in this too.
- Honestly, the scenes with the zombies were probably my favorite parts. Everything else felt kind of flat to me.
20. Kingdom Season 2

Korean Drama - 2020, 6 episodes

8.0
- Slightly better than Season 2.
21. Psychopath Diary

Korean Drama - 2019, 16 episodes

8.0
- *slaps Psychopath Diary* this bad boy can fit so much second-hand embarrassment in it.
- No, really. Dong-Shik, how were you not murdered?
- Besides that, this was probably one of the funniest things I've ever watched.
- I do think 16 episodes was a bit too much, considering the storyline. 12 would have been enough.
22. Mouse

Korean Drama - 2021, 20 episodes

9.5
- I have never been so stressed out while watching a drama before.
- Amazing plot twists!!! I liked how there was a nice balance between plot twists you could predict (you know, in order to make you feel smart!!) and plot twists that were still pretty unpredictable but still make sense.
- Sometimes the storyline got confusing, especially since the showrunners seemed to like to jump back and forth between different scenes so much, but once I got a better understanding of what they were trying to do, it became a lot easier to digest.
- This drama made me feel so many different emotions, like anger, rage, confusion, sadness, excitement, fear, frustration, etc.
- This is definitely the kind of drama you don't want to watch as a casual viewer; it demands all of your attention.
23. Hellbound

Korean Drama - 2021, 6 episodes

4.0
- I don't usually like to say this about TV shows, but I really felt like this could have been a movie.
- I really wished there was more correlation between the first three episodes and the last three episodes. On their own, each arch and storyline were pretty interesting, but together it felt very jumbled and rushed.
- I don't usually get bogged down by dark themes in TV shows or movies but watching this made me feel depressed. Definitely not the kind of show you want to binge-watch. I could barely handle watching only two episodes a day.
- I thought the casting was pretty good! All the actors did a wonderful job. I just wasn't very engaged with the storyline.
- This isn't a show I would recommend to anyone unless they were interested in any of the characters.
24. Happiness

Korean Drama - 2021, 12 episodes

9.0
- SO. GOOD.
- The entire cast was amazing!!!
- I'm also obsessed with the OST.
- FL and ML had awesome chemistry.
- I feel like the only things I didn't really like about this were the last two episodes. They seemed very weak as compared to what came before it, and I feel as if this drama could have benefited from having 16 episodes instead of 12.
- Overall, though, I was pretty engaged with this drama! Never a dull moment.
25. Hotel del Luna

Korean Drama - 2019, 16 episodes

6.0
- Production, OST, and the costumes were all really nice.
- FL and ML had nice chemistry. Romantic or platonic, I would not have minded their relationship either way.
- I was really bored when watching this. Not really sure why, I just had zero interest in the plot.
26. Chimera

Korean Drama - 2021, 16 episodes

9.0
- Slow beginning but eventually managed to pick itself up!
- Somewhat generic and predictable plot, but what made this show so compelling for me were the connections between our four main characters. I wish I could have seen more of them!