Dramas I Watched: 2024

I'm calling it now, this is the best thing I will watch this year. (It's January 8 as I write this.)

I'm so sad to say goodbye to these characters and this story and this universe. It feels like there is a hole in my heart.

I watched the first half of this drama in 2023. This is my second of the Reply/Answer Me series dramas to watch, and so far, I like 1988 best. For some reason, 1997 never quite pulled me in. Not that I didn't enjoy it. I did. I really liked all of the characters and the general storyline. But I didn't like the love triangle (the older brother was too old for the female lead/he had been her teacher before pursuing her), and there was just something about it that kept me from really connecting with the story. I can say that I really appreciate the Reply/Answer Me dramas now that I'm watching them though. They deserve to be so beloved.

First rewatch. The way these writers played with their timeline to create such a layered and emotionally resonant romance was astounding. The secondary couple was frustrating, because there's essentially no romance between them until the end of the drama, but the main couple are absolutely wonderful and make the entire drama more than worth it.

First rewatch. Honestly, it's kind of meh now that I've rewatched it. The main couple's romance is kind of...problematic in some respects, and in a better written drama, she probably would end up with the second male lead instead. But it has its own charm. If you're looking for something fluffy where you can turn your brain off and just have a good time, this is a decent drama to go to.

Fourth rewatch. Just a cheeky little rewatch for the serotonin boost, lol.

Fourth rewatch. Obviously, I have to rewatch the special if I rewatched the drama, lol.

Started in 2023. I understand why so many people love Lost Romance. There are flaws in the execution, but this drama has some interesting story mechanics/concepts, and there are some genuinely good twists. It's not good enough to be a favorite for me, but I might rewatch it someday.

Started in 2023. I was hesitant going into this, because my understanding was there are slight romantic feelings between the leads, and the lead is supposedly a serial killer, but my fears were unfounded. This was a great story with great leads. Would def. recommend.

First rewatch. I'm so impressed with the quality of the writing for this drama. I love the story, the female lead, the male lead (despite Cha Eun Woo's acting ability), the exploration of beauty standards, the exploration of female interpersonal relationships. I love basically everything.

I don't really know how to quantify my thoughts on this drama. I like a lot about it (particularly the female lead), but I was also surprised by the direction the story went.

First rewatch. I don't have a lot to say other than this drama was fantastic, is fantastic, and will always be fantastic.

First rewatch. And what an unexpectedly good rewatch it was. I enjoyed Hello, Me the first time I watched it, but there were elements of the story I thought were a bit lacking. I definitely still find the drama enjoyable, but the things that I had a problem with before I actually don't see a problem with this time around. So while this will probably never be an absolute favorite for me, I enjoyed rewatching it from start to finish.

Very heavy emotionally but also full of humor, a surprising dash of magical realism, and a camera/filming style that leans toward realism (if that's the right word to explain it). It's not quite what I thought it would be, but I very much enjoyed it.

Just be ready to cry.

Dropped after ep 13. I knew in the first episode that this show was going to be silly nonsense, and I was content with that. The leads are cute together, and the silly nonsense was entertaining. (I consistently had no interest in everything around the antique stealing mystery plot though and fast-forwarded it at times. (Should have fast-forwarded more.)) But the silly nonsense and cute interactions between the leads began to take a backseat, and after seeing how all the plot points concluded in the finale eps, I've determined that I've gotten all the enjoyment out of this drama that I can, so I'm dropping. There are other dramas out there to watch.

I would love to find the webtoon this drama is based on though and see what it's like.

First rewatch. This drama is so fun! It's excellently plotted and paced, has great comedy, and is surprisingly heartfelt with its themes. 10 out of 10.

First successful completion of this drama after 3 attempts at watching it over the years. I'm happy to say that I generally enjoyed it this time around. It's flawed and definitely of its time, but there are some fun things about this drama despite the flaws.

This drama is just so dang fun! Perfect for something light and swoony to take your mind off of real life.

I really, really hate to do this...but I'm going to call this dropped.

This drama is really solid up until around the last 5 or 6 eps (At least I assume it's the last 5 or 6. The Netflix version cut the episodes up to make them shorter, and I left off after ep 28.) The story holds up surprisingly well given when it came out, and it's downright hilarious most of its run. Unfortunately, the story has a heaping dose of final quarter angst, and I just can't make myself finish.

I'm reading the manga and enjoying it, and people were raving about the drama when it came out, so I put it on my tbw list. Finally sat down to watch it, and wow. It was great. If I hadn't read pretty far into the manga already, I may have been a bit lost at times, and sometimes the story moves rather fast, but every episode kept me coming back. Do sort of wonder if I should have finished the manga first because spoilers, but oh well. I'm here now, lol.

This is a very sweet romance, and I would definitely recommend it, but it doesn't spend enough time on the plots outside of the romance, particularly the female leads journey into adulthood after spending years of her life in a comma, which I found disappointing. Love a lot about this drama, but it's not a favorite.

First rewatch. The first time I watched it, I didn't think the leads had any chemistry, and I ended up dropping before the final ep, but I have to disagree with past me now, because I found the leads to be really fun together this time. It's definitely of its time, but it's still a pretty consistently humorous drama with a cute romance.

First rewatch. While I still wish the age gap wasn't quite so large, I can't help but really love this couple.

This was a bit lackluster, to be honest. I like the focus on how everything is new and kind of scary to the female lead, because of her lack of experience (I really love the female lead overall), but the romance is rather paint by numbers. There are points where I think the story would have been better if it had gone in a different direction (ie. with a different male lead), and the ending is a disappointment.

I know this probably would have been unique at the time it came out, but so many noona romances have come out since that have done the theme better. It might be enjoyable for others, but I doubt I would ever rewatch it.

First (and only) rewatch. Dropped before the last episode.

This was disappointing. I really tried to finish for the sake of the female lead (I can't overstate how much I love her and relate to her struggles), but I wish she ended up with Jin Rak instead. His method of approaching her is ineffective, but he's miles better than Enrique, a hyper-active man-child whose behavior is not attractive at all.

On-hold until it's available in my region again on Viki, lol. Started in 2023.

I've seen the anime (love it), read part way through the manga (been loving it), watched the movie version (it was alright), and now I'm watching the drama. And whoever cast this version should get a raise, because every single actor/actress is nailing it. This is a pretty over-the-top story that could easily become way too campy in live action, but it really works here. My only caveat: now that I'm close to the end of this story for the first time, I realize Jellyfish is not going to end with a happy romance, and my heart is already breaking.

Currently watching. If you like romance with low-level conflicts that resolve fairly quickly and easily and the majority of the story focuses on the cute interactions between the main couple, then you might like this. I think it's very cute, and the lead actress is fabulous, but the story's not the most exciting for me.

Currently watching.