High-quality, non-idol costumed dramas

You're probably thinking - why am I discriminating against idol dramas?? Well, it's just that after you see the usual idol costumed dramas being recommended over and over again, you want to yell: But there is so much more out there beyond these shows! (And due to many international streaming platforms' habit of almost always picking up idol dramas, many non-Chinese international viewers are not even aware of the vast selection out there.)

Idol dramas often star traffic actors, who are not always professional actors but attract a lot of viewers due to their popularity. These dramas often focus on romance and focus on pretty/handsome actors.

The list below are CDramas recommended from members of the r/CDrama Reddit sub, which I'm a member of.

While some can be arguably borderline idol-ish (Rise of the Phoenixes, Nirvana in Fire), they are more in-depth and complex than the average idol drama.