Top 5 K-Dramas To Watch If You Loved 'Squid Game'

Top 5 

K-Dramas To Watch If You Loved ‘Squid Game’

‘Squid Game’ has absolutely taken the world by storm after its Netflix release, and it’s amazing to see how much attention this show is receiving. As all my friends know that I watch a lot of Korean Dramas, the questions I’m constantly getting asked right now are ‘what other good K-Dramas are there?’ and ‘what else is there like ‘Squid Game’?’ The answer to the first question is- lots! The answer to the second one is a little trickier. It’s hard to pin down what exactly it is about the show that made it such a success and so enjoyable to so many people. The short answer is that the reason ‘Squid Game’ is so popular is because it’s sort of the first of its kind. But if you look closely, there are a lot of K-Dramas that share elements with ‘Squid Game’. There’s so very many K-Dramas out there, so it can be a tricky realm to navigate- particularly if you don’t know what you’re looking for. Hopefully this list will help both old and new K-Drama fans find another drama to enjoy.

5: Circle

On the surface ‘Squid Game’ and ‘Circle’ don’t have that much in common. But if you look a little deeper ‘Squid Game’ and ‘Circle’…still kinda don’t really have that much in common. They’re both Korean, I guess? Seriously though, ‘Circle’ is a K-Drama that I would recommend to almost anyone. It has great acting and a great story, and its twisty, unpredictable plot make it a very addictive watch. There is great mystery in this show, and it’s fascinating to watch the characters inch ever closer to the truth of their world. I would say that if you straight up like a solid story with lots of mystery elements and touches of thriller, ‘Circle’ would be a great watch for you.

4: 365: Repeat the Year

The similarity that I would find between ‘365’ and ‘Squid Game’ is the initial choice and resulting life-or-death consequences. In ‘365’ the characters all choose to go one year back in time, and one-by-one they start to die under mysterious circumstances. The mystery is a big draw in ‘365’ and has a relatively satisfying conclusion. The acting is all top notch, and the relationships between the characters are interesting to watch play out. There is a similar life-and-death vibe to ‘Squid Game’, only in ‘365’ it’s less clear who the game-master is and what rules they should all be playing by. Again, if mystery is your jam and you like characters being faced with deadly consequences, this could be a K-Drama to add to your watch-list.

3: Smart Prison Living

This addition is probably the most seemingly random of the 5 K-Dramas I’m recommending on this lift. There’s no game. There’s no secret mastermind. There’s no sudden death if you choose wrong. It’s just a bunch of dudes in prison. And their guards. While ‘Smart Prison Living’ doesn’t have the same sort of hook that more flashy dramas have, it has a host of amazing, relatable characters with emotional and heartfelt stories. While the death games in ‘Squid Game’ were a big draw and a huge part of why the show stands out, it is the emotions and the stories of the characters that retained the audience’s attention after the hook got them in. ‘Smart Prison Living’ unravels its characters personalities and stories to perfection, and is rich with emotion. If it’s the delicate character relationships and the slow revealing of character intentions that grabbed you in ‘Squid Game’ (Ali and Sae Byeok fans I’m looking at you) then I would wholeheartedly recommend you check out ‘Smart Prison Living’ (may also be called ‘Prison Playbook’ depending on what country you’re in). As an added bonus, Park Hae Soo who plays Sang Woo in ‘Squid Game’ takes the leading role in ‘Smart Prison Living’.

2: Kingdom

In a way, ‘Kingdom’ is a bit like the predecessor to ‘Squid Game’. Also from Netflix, ‘Kingdom’ entered the Western market pretty strongly and shook the barriers that divide Asian and Western television just enough so that ‘Squid Game’ could break them down. As it’s a zombie show, it’s got the bloody, gritty survival side that ‘Squid Game’ has- just in a far less controlled environment. Similarly to ‘Squid Game’ the production values are high in ‘Kingdom’- it feels like a blockbuster right at home. Beautiful (if creepy and a bit gory) cinematography, and great action scenes. Set in historical Korea the show feels very unique, though the politics may initially confuse some viewers who aren’t as familiar with historical plots as the regular K-Drama viewer. If the blood, fighting and desperate struggle for survival is what kept you hooked on ‘Squid Game’ then ‘Kingdom’ may be a good show to follow. Also, like ‘Squid Game’ (and unlike most of the other shows on this list) ‘Kingdom’ has a small episode count- two 6 episode seasons and a one hour special. If you don’t have or want to invest a lot of time into a show, this is a good, short watch.

1: Liar Game

Dare I say it, ‘Liar Game’ is like the original (albeit PG) version of ‘Squid Game’. When asked to pick a K-Drama most like ‘Squid Game’, this is the one my mind always goes to. The premise is very similar- a bunch of debt-ridden Koreans are invited to join a game to compete for a huge amount of prize money. Only rather than dying if you lose, you are simply eliminated from the game. The games are also not simple kids games either- ‘Liar Game’ is all about the psychology of the games and the contestants trying to out-manipulate each other. The games are often complex and involve lots of strategy, but I think that adds to the appeal of the show. ‘Liar Game’ comes from the era of Candy Girls (sweet, innocent heroines who are often down on their luck but trusting and hardworking nonetheless- and sadly often don’t have much of a personality)- so fair warning for those going in that the female lead is not like Sae Byeok in ‘Squid Game’. At all. But the leading man and lady make a great pair and are an enjoyable team to watch compete in the games. ‘Liar Game’ was also a 2014 release, so it may feel a little dated for those more used to the slick, modern shows of 2020 and 2021- but I would implore people to give it a go despite the drama’s age, at it really is a great watch, and I think that most people who liked ‘Squid Game’ will enjoy ‘Liar Game’ as well. I believe that the source materiel is from a Japanese manga that has also been made into a Japanese live-action, but as I don’t have experience with those versions I can’t comment on their quality. But the K-Drama version- awesome.

What K-Dramas would you recommend to 'Squid Game' fans?

Navillera

 Navillera

9/10

Navillera

Genre:                                       Episodes: 12                         Year: 2021

Melodrama

Synopsis:

Shim Deok Chu is a 70 year old retired mailman who decides to pursue his lifelong dream of learning ballet. He meets his instructor, Lee Chae Rok, a young ballerino who has hit a slump while preparing for a big audition. 

Cast:

Park In Hwan (Shim Deok Chul)

Song Kang (Lee Chae Rok)

Na Moon Hee (Choi Hae Nam)

Kim Kwon (Yang Ho Beom)

Jo Bok Rae (Shim Seong Gwan)

Jung Hae Kyun (Shim Seong San)

Hong Seung Hee (Shim Eun Ho)

Kim Tae Hoon (Ki Seung Joo)

Jo Sung Ha (Lee Moo Young)

Kim Soo Jin (Shim Seung Sook)

General Thoughts:

This show is great and I love it. Ever since the first snippets of casting news and synopsis was released I was so keen for this drama. It sounded insightful and emotional, and the slightly unusual paring of an older actor and a new up and coming actor officially peaked my interest. Every bit of new news about this drama had me getting more and more excited and impatient for it to finally be released. I set a pretty high bar for this drama, and it met that bar. And then some.

I absolutely adored this show

The acting in this was really phenomenal, and there wasn’t a single person on the cast who didn’t delver an outstanding performance. As most of the show focused on Deok Chul and Chae Rok, those two characters had a lot of screen time, and were asked to bring a vast range of emotions to the drama. Park In Hwan is a very experienced actor and it was nice to have a drama that allowed him to really stretch his acting muscles. It’s a sad fact that once actors hit a certain age there’s usually drop in the amount (and quality) of roles they can take on.

By far one of the most easily loveable characters in K-Drama

It was nice that Park In Hwan was able to take on a role where he was not a side character, but the main character, and boy was he able to deliver on the emotions. Park In Hwan had such a magical way of making Deok Chul appear so sweet and soft, but never let the audience forget that this was a man who had a vast depth of life experience. The confusion and grief that Park In Hwan had to portray was a difficult thing to do, and Park In Hwan seemed to navigate this very tricky terrain with apparent ease. His performance was so layered, with his expressions in highly tense scenes able to portray more than one emotion at a time. Similarly, Song Kang delivered a complex performance also. Grouchy young person with a soft heart is not exactly a new idea in K-Dramaland, but it seems to be something that Song Kang can do very well. Song Kang was so good at ensuring that the audience knew that his snappiness came from places of hurt and worry, and not from anger or selfishness. I also thought Song Kang did a marvellous job of acting out the part of the ballerino. In my head I knew it probably wasn’t Song Kang himself doing the complicated ballet moves, but he was so convincing in the closeups with how he held himself and moved that I didn’t have a disconnect with the character where it felt like someone else in the dancing scenes. Song Kang put in a he effort at learning ballet for this show and it translated really well, and his performance and the show as a whole benefitted immensely from the time and effort he put into learning the art.

This show has made me want to go and watch a ballet performance

While all the support actors were extremely good, a stand out for me was Kim Kwon as Ho Beom. Kim Kwon had a similar task to Song Kang, where he had to convince the audience that his aggression and anger was coming not from a place of malice, but from a place of deep hurt. I found Kim Kwon’s eyes so wonderfully expressive and he really sold his characters redemption arc, as it never felt like it came about unexpectedly. The plot for this drama was pretty straightforward. It almost seems like it should be boring, a retired man is learning to dance ballet, but it never was. Each episode was packed with character development and relationship growth.

You know what those angry boys need? A gentle grandfather figure

A layer of complexity was added to the story with Deok Chul’s Alzheimer’s diagnosis, and I was pleasantly surprised when it was revealed that Deok Cheol had known about his diagnosis the whole time- usually dramas would use this as a big emotional point where the main character would consider giving up on his dreams due to an illness. But instead, Deok Chul found out about his illness and that was the trigger for him to go after what he had always wanted. The theme of dreams and goal was very present throughout the entire show, and I liked how the drama touched on this in different ways through different characters. The most obvious was Deok Chul who after almost an entire lifetime of putting his dream off was now pursuing his passion. We also had Song Kang who was overcoming obstacles as he pursed his dream. But the two inclusions that really added a lot to the show for me were Ho Beom who thought he had missed the chance for his dream, and Eun Ho who just had no idea what her dream or passion was. Both were extremely relatable situations, perhaps more relatable than our leads. It can be so easy to think that we have missed out opportunity to follow what we really want to do with our lives, and Ho Beom was an interesting way to illustrate that. Compared to the other boys playing soccer he may have been older, but compared to Deok Chul who had decided to pursue his passion, Ho Beom was still so young and so much time. It was a great parallel between the two characters was lovely and mirrored a parallel that was being formed between Deok Chul and Seong San and Seong San and Eun Ho.

While they were all flawed, they were a lovely family

Both Deok Chul and Seong San felt they had to give up on their dreams in order to financially provide for their families, and similarly Eun Ho originally felt that she didn’t have time to find what she wanted to do in life as she was under so much pressure to begin building a career. It was interesting to see how the ideologies filtered down though the generations, and how as Deok Chul became more free and content in his pursuits, his son and granddaughter were also freed up to follow what they wanted to do. The directing in the drama was done well also. It’s not something I usually notice, but I think the water and the director worked well together to bring out the most of the emotions in the drama. In particular the scene on Chae Rok dancing in the snow to prompt Deok Chul’s memory was such a perfect culmination of smaller parts in the show.

CINEMATIC PERFECTION

It was one of Deok Chul’s first big moments where his memory fried him in a public setting, and the inclusion of having Ho Beom there linked back to a previous scene of Deok Chul telling Ho Beom that Chae Rok is not the kind of man that can be forced to dance wherever because he is a star who will soar. In that moment, with the snow falling and Ho Beom watching, Chae Rok soared for one of the first times in the show. It wasn’t because he was on a famous stage or performing in front of thousands, but because he was dancing with all the emotion he had for someone he dearly loved. Everyone in the audience watching could tell what a special moment this was, and this was reflected in Ho Beom, who had never really seen Chae Rok dance before. It was a perfect tying together of multiple scenes and multiple ideas that was just *chef’s kiss* perfection. 

What Was Great:

Relationships:

I touched briefly on the fact that this show doesn’t have a lot of actual plot going on, but that there was still plenty happening in the drama. A lot of the development was stemming from all the relationships the show had going on.

There was a lot of love going around

 Many of the relationships existed before the start of the show- Deok Chul and his family, Ho Beom and Chae Rok, but many new relationships started to form once Deok Chul and Chae Rok started to interact. The most noticeable of these was of course Deok Chul and Chae Rok themselves. Their relationship was the heart and soul of this series, and so much relied on this strange and unusual pairing being able to grasp and maintain the interest of the audience. There was great chemistry between the two actors, and watching Chae Rok come to rely on Deok Chul was lovely. The relationship took another turn during the season as Chae Rok learned of Deok Chul’s illness and in turn became an increasing support for Deok Chul, always worrying about his safety and ensuring his family were around to take care of him. This relationship was at the centre of the show, and it was such an innocent and selfless relationship that was so endearing to watch play out. Each of Deok Chul’s family members also had a unique relationship with their father. The show didn’t go into each and every one in depth, but I appreciate that it gave each of the three sibling special moments with their Dad so that we could see the different impact that Deok Chul had on each of their lives. Similarly, I really enjoyed the parts of the show that showcased the relationship Deok Chul had with his wife, Hae Nam. It’s not the usually fluttery romance that we get in K-Drama, but the support that they gave each other was beautiful.

Couple goals

I loved how Hae Nam just accepted Chae Rok when Deok Chul brought him home and basically treated him as their youngest child or new grandchild. She provided a caring warmth that Chae Rok had been craving since his mother’s death, and it was lovely to see how Hae Nam was able to help Chae Rok a similar way Chae Rok was helping Deok Chul.

Off, my heart

I was surprised when the show brought in more scenes of Eun Ho as I didn’t think that she would be a major character going in, but I really enjoyed the character growth she was given. A lot of her growth stemmed from her relationship with her grandfather and with Chae Rok, both who encouraged her to take the time to find what she wanted to do in life. I adored that the sow gave a little hint of possible future romance between Eun Ho and Chae Rok, but am glad that we never had anything concrete come out of it. Chae Rok was already a part of the family, and while it would have been adorable for him to officially join the family as Eun Ho’s partner, I’m equally glad that for at least the duration of this drama, Chae Rok’s main tie within the Shim family was through Deok Chul. This show was absolutely jam packed with emotions, and all of those emotions came from the detailed characters that populated the show, and the deep, poignant relationships they all shared.

What Wasn’t:

Just Gonna Gloss Over That Child Abuse Huh?:

Okay, so the only thing that really didn’t like a chord with me and is what prevented me from giving this show a 9.5 (the highest I ever rate anything) was the way Chae Rok’s Dad’s character and story line was developed.

Like, c'mon guys- that's a full on baseball bat he's whacking them with...

At first there wasn’t anything that seemed like it could hurt the show- Chae Rok’s Dad went to prison and in doing so resulted in the closure of the school’s football club. It did take a detective to figure out that the most likely chain of events there is that Chae Rok’s Dad was hitting some of the students. And sure enough, that’s what was happening. The loss of a father figure was an crucial part of Chae Rok’s character and was an important factor in the relationship that was formed between Chae Rok and Deok Chul.

Cute ballet Alzheimer's gramps is way better than...this guy

Deok Chul started to fill a void in Chae Rok that Chae Rok didn’t want to even admit was there, and it was a beautiful and bittersweet thing watching Chae Rok learn how it felt to have an unconditional support and to always have someone in his corner. The issue I have with Moo Young’s character is that they centred more on the fact the he unwittingly ruined the soccer club rather than that he…beat the shit out of children? With a baseball bat? Like that’s not something small. The reconciliation between Chae Rok and Moo Young was nice enough, but it always felt like it had this looming shadow behind this nice scene of Moo Young not really being all that regretful that he smacked the sh*t out of these kids. Even in his apology to Ho Beom he was very much ‘I’m sorry I ruined your dream by having the club disbanded so scouts never saw you play’ rather than ‘I’m sorry I was misguided in my methods and thought beating you was a suitable motivator.’ And then after he handed out some shoes everyone was all happy to move on with life. It felt strange and unresolved and I cannot say that I was satisfied or comfortable in the way that story line was resolved.

He did poor Ho Beom so dirty

I think it was a delicate subject that the show touched on, and unfortunately I Just don’t think it was handled well. If the show was going to choose to focus on the fallout of the club rather than the actual abuse itself, then I wish that they would have come u with a better reason for Moo Young to be arrested. I mean, seriously, a man who has just been released from prison for child abuse is then given a job in a…school? With more children? Seriously?

Recommend?

Yes. Everyone should watch this drama.

This show is an absolute friggin' masterpiece

Sunbae, Don't Put On That Lipstick

 Sunbae, Don’t Put On That Lipstick

7/10

Sunbae, Don't Put On That Lipstick

Genre:                                   Episodes: 16                         Year: 2021

Romance

Comedy

Melodrama

Synopsis:

Yoon Song Ah works in marketing for a successful cosmetic company. Her junior, Chae Hyun Seung, has a one-sided crush on her, but she refuses to date anyone in the same company as it causes career issues.

Cast:

Won Jin Ah (Yoon Song Ah)

Ro Woon (Chae Hyun Seung)

Lee Hyun Wook (Lee Jae Shin)

Lee Joo Bin (Lee Hyo Joo)

Lee Gyu Han (Lee Jae Woon)

Wang Bit Na (Chae Ji Seung)

Ha Yoon Kyung (Chae Yeon Seung)

Park So Yi (Kang Ha Eun)

Choi Jung Won (Ryu Han Seo)

Lee Dong Ha (Kang Woo Hyun)

General Thoughts:

Well that was fun. I feel like in the last year every drama I watched that had a good romance was also really heavily melodramatic. And sometimes a girl just wants to watch a nice cute couple without having an unbearable amount of angst, you know? Not to say that ‘Sunbae’ didn’t have angst or melodrama, because it certainly did, it just came in small, manageable doses in-between all the cute main stuff.

Woo bring on the cuteness

Initially it took me a little while to warm up to Song Ah, and I guess I kind of only really ended up liking her because Hyung Seung did, but she was a bit difficult at the start. I think it’s always a tricky thing for a romance drama when it starts itself off with one of the main leads in a relationship with someone who is…not the hero of the show. While I did sympathise with Song Ah’s situation, because no one deserves to be led on and lied to, the way she reacted to Hyun Seung revealing the truth to her was a bit sh*t (but then he also told her in a way that was pretty sh*t too).

I kinda don't get why she was so popular with the lads

While it was understandable of Song Ah to not jump right from Jae Shin to Hyun Seung, the way she took all her anger and frustration out on Hyun Seung when it was Jae Shin who had cheated on her was pretty lame. Next to Song Ah, Hyun Seung was just this perfect little ball of charm and wonderfulness. I admit, he was potentially a little too perfect, but as this is a simple rom-com I’m pretty happy to let that slide. Hyung Seung was the perfect blend of responsible, goofy and romantic and it made him an easy character to root for. Even though Song Ah didn’t seem that exceptional, I wanted her to end up with Hyun Seung simply because he wanted her so badly. Once the drama got past its opening set up with Song Ah dumping Jae Shin and starting to date Hyun Seung, I think that’s where it really hit its stride. The story may have been pretty simple, but sometimes, when you’re in the right mood, it can be really nice just watching how a couple that are really into each other interact and deal with their day to day lives. Thinking back, I can’t actually remember a great deal of what the actual plot was. I know there wasn’t a lot going on and many of the plot points centred around Song Ah and Hyun Seung’s workplace. Which sounds like it should be super boring. But weirdly it wasn’t. The drama didn’t focus so heavily on their workplace that it became lifeless and boring, but instead filled the office space with fun and interesting characters.

I weirdly loved the work group

Watching Jae Shin’s inferiority complex about Hyun Seung was interesting to watch play out, and I loved seeing how Hyun Seung took everything in stride and really worked to turn every situation into something positive, or at least a learning experience. Song Ah started to shine as her own character in these scenes as well. So often in dramas we are told about a female character being a competent worker but never actually see them do anything competently (I’m looking at you ‘Was It Love’), so Song Ah did start to grow on me as the drama showed the she actually was quite good at her job.

Was anyone rooting for Jae Shin? I think not...

Having a romance in the workplace also did great favours for Song Ah, as she was able to look out for Hyun Seung and guide him with her experience, and of course with her ever growing affection. The show did a good job at balancing Song Ah in the workplace- while it was clear that she was always ready and willing to help him, she was also happy to let him take the lead and make mistakes on his own, and only step in when absolutely necessary. I also loved the way the main couple tried so hard to hide their office romance, but we were shown that everyone in the office already knew about them. The office scenes were surprisingly sweet and I enjoyed them more than I expected to. The only thing in the workplace I didn’t enjoy is Jae Shin. I know that we needed his character for conflict and so Song Ah’s character could develop and what not, but jeeeez what a complete and utter lameo. A man with a massive victim-complex if ever I saw one. Honestly, his situation wasn’t even that bad. Sure his parents were deadbeats, but he had a friend who really cared for him (and was super rich to boot) and a sweet girl who was completely in love with him. Yes, the way he was guilted into marrying Hyo Joo was not cool, but he never really even made an effort to get out of the situation properly before he blew-up and self-destructed. He thought the best way to deal with the situation (for two whole years!) was to date a girl he really loved on the side and just…hope she never noticed when he got married? He added a lot of plot and interest to the story that’s for sure, but there was just no way to make Jae Shin into a likeable character. Not that the show didn’t try.

Can we just forget him and move on?

In the last moments they made a last-ditch effort to have Jae Shin have nice clean forgiveness scenes with everyone, which fell super flat for me. This drama didn’t really have a ‘villain’ character, so as the most unlikable character on the show, Jae Shin sort of naturally fell into that role. Which is fine. Someone has to be the least liked character. But when Jae Woon forgave him after he trampled all over Jae Woon’s long friendship it really made me want to barf. At least Hyo Joo just had the good sense to tell him she was doing so freaking well in her life that seeing him didn’t even bother her.

Now I want more good romance 

Like, absolute yes- loved that scene so much. The acting for all the characters was pretty so-so all around. This drama didn’t require particularly difficult emotions from anyone, so it was a pretty breezy one for the actors. You could tell a lot of them were having a good time filming the show, but due to the limited emotions of the story, no one really stood out that much. Ro Woon is certainly a great up and coming actor, and he did a good job here in what I believe is his first leading role. He picked a great character to have as his first lead, and delivered all the swoony, heart-fluttery moments every good rom-com leading man needs. Similarly, Won Jin Ah wasn’t a stand out as the leading lady, but did a good enough job that she sold the character she was playing and all the emotions that went with it. I think she had to do a bit more of the emotional scenes than Ro Woon did, and I thought that she carried those well, and did well at transitioning Song Ah from being broken-hearted one episode to starting to realising she had some sort of feelings for Hyun Seung in the next. ‘Sunbae’ is a pretty show with a plot that centres more around the characters than events, and while it isn’t the greatest rom-com I’ve ever seen in my life, it was certainly a breath of fresh air in this current rom-com drought. 

What Was Great:

Side Stories:

Seeing as this was a story that was so driven by its characters, it’s just as well that this drama had so many of them. Some got more screen time than others, but ‘Sunbae’ was a show that was well populated with detailed, likeable characters. Hyun Seung’s family took up a lot of the spotlight, but they were fun to watch and I enjoyed the trajectory of both his sisters’ stories. Ji Seung was a fabulous character and I was surprised at just how much I loved seeing her romance with Hyun Seung’s boss blossom.

I weirdly love this

Their relationship was definitely one of the lighter, more comedic storylines of the show, and I just loved the dynamic between these two characters. They were both a little dorky in their own ways, and it was lovely to see Jae Woon's heart in his eyes and his bumbling, slightly strange attempts to woo the classy and elegant Ji Seung. But what was better was seeing how these weird bumbling methods worked! It was super cute and lovey to watch play out on screen. A cup for every saucer indeed. The middle sister, Yeon Seung, had a storyline that took a little longer to get going, and while not as entraining as Ji Seung’s romance, was still an interesting story to watch play out.

Sad but not surprising

Having seen a couple divorce due to the husband being closeted (in ‘My Unfamiliar Family’), I can’t say I found the reveal of Yeon Seung’s husband being gay to be quite as shocking and twisty as I think the writer was aiming for. While not having the intended shock value, I still think the emotions of this story played out really well. Yeo Seung had always been the most confident of the siblings, so exploring her vulnerabilities and feelings of exclusion, both in her marriage and with her siblings was impactful and quite sad. However, the most emotional part of this plot-line was surely seeing how the deterioration of her parents’ marriage impacted Ha Eun. Park So Yi was a charming little actress and brought so much to the show, and I actually think she had some of the most emotionally heavy scenes, and she handled them so perfectly. Outside of Hyun Seung's family we had another couple in Jae Shin and Hyo Joo. While I wouldn’t say I liked the romance/showmance between Jae Shin and Hyo Joo, it was interesting to watch it all play out. It added a lot of depth to Jae Shin’s character (even though I didn’t like him any more for it), and thought that this was a great way to flesh out not only Jae Shin as a character, but Jae Woon as well. Jae Woon had a soft spot for his little sister and was very caring towards her, so this also flowed through a bit to his romance with Ji Seung.

I live for this sibling friendship

At the start of the show it was hard to get a read on Jae Woon and what sort of person he was, so having him be such a great support for his sister as she was struggling helped to emphasise how he could end up being a reliable and trustworthy partner for Ji Seung in the future. It was interesting seeing how each of these three separate scenarios weaved through the lives of all our main characters and impacted them differently. 

What Wasn’t:

That Whole End Bit:

What are two things I hate in romance dramas? 1- time skips. I hate time skips in any drama. Rarely are they used effectively, and often they detract from the emotion, relationship and story that the show has been building up for its entire run. 2- forced separation. This usually occurs when one member of the couple are forced to go overseas for whatever reason. There are usually two main reasons for this. Work/school, and magical medical cures that exist outside of Korea. And this drama, well it had both.

Yeaaaaahhhhh

This show nearly completely lost me in its last couple of episodes simply for pulling in these two completely unnecessary plot devices and trying to magic tension out of nothing. This story didn’t need tension. It was character based and emotion driven. Because the drama had also managed to go for most of its run while avoiding cliches and typical K-Drama tropes, I was even more disappointed when the writers opted for these two cheap ways to create friction in their story. I thought we had happily avoided sending one of our characters overseas for work experience as Song Ah toyed with the idea early on in the show, and early on in her relationship. It was a big step for her to realise that she was happy, comfortable and confident with her life the way it was, and she didn’t actually need that added experience of working in a foreign country.

Hyun Seung > Europe, and you're a moron if you can't figure that out

 It felt like a bit of a developmental step back for Song Ah to suddenly change her mind and go to Europe when there was no real need. Personally, I feel a better progression for her would have been staying in Korea and working to fill the Manager role that Jae Shin vacated when he left. I kind of hate that stories always feel the need to push the characters for more, more, more. I feel that realising that the place in life you are in currently can be the best place for you is an important lesson to learn, and one that dramas (particularly K-Dramas) tend to overlook. You don’t always have to have the biggest house, highest paying job, most successful spouse. It felt like at the end of the show Song Ah was too focused on the future that she gave up on her present happiness. She was in a good spot in both her work and personal life and she gave that up for…for what exactly? And that’s kind of where the time skip comes in. As a viewer I feel like Song Ah had a terrible time in Europe because the only parts we saw were her being exhausted at work and pushing Hyung Seung away to do more work. She could have had the best three years of her life in Europe but I wouldn’t know it and I wouldn’t believe it because I didn’t see it play out on my screen. For a time skip to work well, the audience has to really be filled with confidence and be able to imagine on their own all the things that took place during the time they don’t see on screen. And that use didn’t happen here. The relationship we watched being developed for 14 episodes completely deteriorated in a weird distant place that we didn’t get to see.

This drama for real nearly threw away everything it had going for it

We are detached from the emotions the characters feel, and are left feeling a bit out of the loop on what events have taken place. We don’t get to see the good parts of moving to Europe that Song Ah must have seen (and experienced because she stayed there for three years), all we see is her throwing away a very precious relationship that she and Hyun Seung worked very hard to build. Which is frustrating to say the least. The writer did an okay job salvaging the relationship with Hyun Seung making Song Ah work hard to win him back, but by that point so much of the damage had been done and so many emotions in the story had been lost.

Recommend?

There has been a bit of a lack of quality rom-coms in K-Dramaland over the last year or so. While I wouldn’t say ‘Sunbae’ is heavy on the comedy, it did have a light-heartedness I haven’t had in a drama recently. If you’re looking for a nice, simple romance with a good story but low stakes, I would recommend this for you.

Song Ah's lipstick actually has less importance in this drama than the title would lead you to believe