Following the big hit of Squid Game in 2021, Netflix Korean dramas have continued to draw viewers in the first half of 2022. Here is an introduction to seven wonderful shows ranging from romantic comedies to zombies.
Top 7 Netflix Korean Drama 2022
Our Beloved Summer (๊ทธ ํด ์ฐ๋ฆฌ๋)ย
- Release date: 2021.12.06 โ 2022.01.26
- Episodes: 16
- Watch Show: SBS / NETFLIX / WAVE
- Cast: Choi Woo-shik ์ต์ฐ์(Choi Woong ์ต์ ) Kim Da-mi ๊น๋ค๋ฏธ(Kook Yeon-soo ๊ตญ์ฐ์) Kim Sung-cheol ๊น์ฑ์ฒ (Kim Ji-woong ๊น์ง์ ) Roh Jeong-eui ๋ ธ์ ์(NJ ์์ ์ด) Park Jin-joo ๋ฐ์ง์ฃผ(Lee Sol-yi ์ด์์ด)ย
A lovely Korean drama about the youthful romantic chemistry between Choi Woo-shik of โParasiteโ and Kim Da-mi of โItaewon Classโ. The story begins when Kim Da-mi (Kook Yeon-soo), the smartest girl in the school, and Choi Woo-shik (Choi Woong), the last place in school, make an unexpected documentary. The two are teenagers who come from completely opposite groups. Yeon-soo and Woongโs high school days are just like Tom and Jerry. Though they look like theyโre at odds with each other, they have amusingly adorable chemistry.
Although time passed, the two remained true to their first love. Ten years later, when their high school videos became popular, they started filming again. They seem to hate each other, but they confirm that they loved and missed each other.
As it has always been high-ranked on Netflix, this drama is funny, touching, andย gives inspirationย for ourย everydayย life. In particular, I was impressed with the subtitles of each episode because they are from famous movie titles!
The movie-like videos are so pretty, and the OST of Our Beloved Summer is so perfect. Among the OSTs, BTS Vโs โChristmas Treeโ feels like a warm hug that clearly expresses the hearts of Yeon-soo and Woong. Each episode presents an epilogue, which also makes watching the drama more enjoyable. Definitely perfect for binge-watch!
All of Us Are Dead (์ง๊ธ ์ฐ๋ฆฌ ํ๊ต๋)
- Release date: 2022.01.28
- Episodes: 12
- Watch Show: NETFLIX
- Cast: Park Ji-hoo ๋ฐ์งํ(Nam On-jo ๋จ์จ์กฐ) Yoon Chan-young ์ค์ฐฌ์(Lee Cheong-san ์ด์ฒญ์ฐ) Cho Yi-hyun ์กฐ์ดํ(Choi Nam-ra ์ต๋จ๋ผ) Lomon ๋ก๋ชฌ(Lee Su-hyeok ์ด์ํ) Yoo In-soo ์ ์ธ์(Yoon Gwi-nam ์ค๊ท๋จ) Lee Yoo-mi ์ด์ ๋ฏธ(Lee Na-yeon ์ด๋์ฐ) Lee Eun-saem ์ด์์(Park Mi-jin ๋ฐ๋ฏธ์ง)
With the Korean movie โTrain to Busanโ and the Netflix drama โKingdom,โ Korea has already been recognized worldwide for having powerful zombie series. Following these series, I would like to write a brief review of โAll of us are dead,โ which is based on a webtoon and has ranked No. 1 on Netflix in 2022. The main story shows the desire of those who want to survive and fight for their friends amongst the horrible invasion of the zombie virus.
I enjoyed watching episodes 1 to 3, making me think that there will be a message in the next story. However, as the episodes progressed, it was difficult to shake off the feeling of boredom. Even the military in the show seemed to intervene and fix things, but their incompetent response was very disappointing.
The most impressive actor Yoo In-soo, who played the villain, perfectly performed like a real psychopath. All the actors, including On-jo, Cheong-san, and Su-hyeok, also showed natural acting for their respective roles. It didnโt live up to my expectations due to the lack of a story, but itโs definitely worth watching if you like zombies.
Twenty-Five Twenty-One (์ค๋ฌผ๋ค์ฏ ์ค๋ฌผํ๋)
- Release date: ย 2022.02.12 โ 2022.04.03
- Episodes: 16
- Watch Show: TVN / NETFLIX / TVING
- Cast: Kim Tae-ri ๊นํ๋ฆฌ(Na Hui-do ๋ํฌ๋) Nam Joo-hyuk ๋จ์ฃผํ(Baek Ijin ๋ฐฑ์ด์ง) Bona ๋ณด๋(Ko Yurim๊ณ ์ ๋ฆผ) Choi Hyun-wook ์ตํ์ฑ(Moon Ji-woong ๋ฌธ์ง์ ) Lee Joo-myung ์ด์ฃผ๋ช (Ji Slung-wan ์ง์น์) Seo Jae-hee ์์ฌํฌ(Shin Jae-gyeong ์ ์ฌ๊ฒฝ) Kim Hye-eun ๊นํ์(Yang Chan-mi ์์ฐฌ๋ฏธ)
Twenty-Five Twenty-One is set in the 1998 IMF in Korea. Due to this economic crisis, the male title roleโs house collapsed when he was 22, and the female lead, who was a fencer, lost her team when she was 18. This drama depicts their pure yet fierce growth turning twenty-five and twenty-one. During this period, the Republic of Korea stole their dreams, money, and their families, and the ordeal of the times gave them to despair and defiance. However, as they look at each other they learn happiness. A youthful romance that shows the growth of friendship between young people and the feelings of fresh and sincere first love.
Above all, the fact that the main character appears as a fencer is quite refreshing. Moreover, all the episodes remind me of pleasant memories that bring up various emotions within me. I have enough to say that this is my all-time favorite drama. The five main characters have different characteristics making everyone smile. ๐
The role of โNa Hee-doโ was so perfect that no one other than actress Kim Tae-ri could do it to her extent. The role of a high school student did not feel awkward at all and was perfectly recapped. Furthermore, it would not be an exaggeration to say that she was a national fencing player! Perhaps because of the well-thought-out script and the organically intertwined power of the story were enough to captivate viewers. Twenty-five Twenty-one was both fun and touching, this is the most enjoyable drama Iโve seen in the first half of 2022.
Juvenile Justice (์๋ ์ฌํ)
- Release date: 2022.02.25
- Episodes: 10
- Watch Show: NETFLIX
- Cast: Kim Hye-soo ๊นํ์(Shim Eun-seok ์ฌ์์) Kim Mu-yeol ๊น๋ฌด์ด(Cha Tae-joo ์ฐจํ์ฃผ) Lee Sung-min ์ด์ฑ๋ฏผ(Kang Won-joong ๊ฐ์์ค) Lee Jung-eun ์ด์ ์(Na Geun-hee ๋๊ทผํฌ)
The current reality is that serious juvenile crimes are taking place as much as adult crimes. While the argument that the punishment for this should be strengthened and the other that the focus should be on the edification of teenagers are mixed. It was enough to become an issue even before the drama โJuvenile Justiceโ was released. This is the story of juvenile crimes and the people surrounding them. It starts when Shim Eun-seok, a judge who hates juvenile criminals, is appointed to the juvenile department of the district court. The phrase โI hate juvenile offendersโ in the trailer was very impressive.
Unbelievably, the cases introduced in this drama show that they are not based on fiction, but on a true story that shook the world. The motif of events had a big social impact, such as the death of โbrick throwโ in Yongin, Gyeonggi-do in 2015, the murder of an elementary school student in Incheon in 2017, and the group sexual assault of a middle school girl in Miryang. Still, they are controversial because of weak punishment and remarks from the offenderโs parents.
The performances of the actors who took on the roles of juvenile offenders stood out very well. While watching it, anger rises at their confidence, showing no sign of remorse, and the arrogance of the offenderโs parents. Even after committing a crime behind the law of protective disposition, the juvenile offenders smile, and their abuse of the law is expressed in a disgustingly realistic way.
It made me think about Juvenile criminals and how it will be difficult to improve if the family education, the environment, the attitude of the person concerned, and the social system are separated from each other. This drama shows that everyone needs continuous interest and concern. The daring crimes of young juvenile offenders may seem a little uncomfortable, but watching it is worth trying to improve the dark side of society.
Business Proposal (์ฌ๋ด๋ง์ )
- Release date: 2022.02.28 โ 2022.04.05
- Episodes: 12
- Watch Show: SBS / NETFLIX / WAVE
- Cast: Ahn Hyo-seop ์ํจ์ญ(Kang Tae-moo ๊ฐํ๋ฌด) Kim Se-jeong ๊น์ธ์ (Shin Ha-ri ์ ํ๋ฆฌ), Kim Min-kyu ๊น๋ฏผ๊ท(Cha Sung-hoon ์ฐจ์ฑํ) Seol In-ah ์ค์ธ์(Jin Young-seo ์ง์์) Lee Deok-hwa ์ด๋ํ(Chairman Kang ๊ฐ๋ค๊ตฌ) Kim Kwang-kyu ๊น๊ด๊ท(Shin Joong-hae ์ ์คํด) Jeong Young-jou ์ ์์ฃผ(Han Mi-mo ํ๋ฏธ๋ชจ)
If you are looking for a light, fun drama, I recommend Business Proposal. Itโs a rather childish and obvious subject, probably because itโs based on a webtoon. But itโs a fun office romance between a handsome male actor and a pretty actress. This romantic comedy is about Hyo-seop Ahn (Tae-moo), the president of a large corporation. He is super good-looking and has great abilities (of course none that would not exist in real life). He and Kim Se-jeong (Ha-ri), meet at the request of a friend. Ha-ri lies about her identity but that didnโt hide Tae-moo from falling in love.
What I felt most unique while watching this drama was the PPL(Product Placement). The advertisements in many dramas wither upon excessive PPL, catching viewersโ eyes. But in Business Proposal the main character works for a food company, naturally presenting Korean food. Through the actual product of Bibigo (a well-known food brand for Mandu, Korean dumplings), traditional Korean pot-shaped pottery, and Kimchi are shown explaining their efficacy. As Netflix is airing all over the world, I think it can clearly inform the traditional culture and food of Korea.
Another attraction of Business Proposal is the sweet romance of another sub couple, Min-gyu Kim and In-a Seol. Their chemistry makes it fun to watch. In addition, CG containing various cartoon imaginations are a bonus. The story progresses quickly with 12 episodes so you will not get bored watching it.
Green Mothersโ Club (๊ทธ๋ฆฐ ๋ง๋์ค ํด๋ฝ)
- Release date: 2022.04.06 โ 2022.05.26
- Episodes: 16
- Watch Show: JTBC / NETFLIX / TVING
- Cast: Lee Yo-won ์ด์์(Lee Eun-pyo ์ด์ํ) Kim Gyu-ri ๊น๊ท๋ฆฌ(Seo Jin-ha ์์งํ) Choo Ja-hyun ์ถ์ํ(Byeon Chun-hee ๋ณ์ถํฌ) Jang Hye-jin ์ฅํ์ง(Kim Yeong-mi ๊น์๋ฏธ) Ju Min-gyeong ์ฃผ๋ฏผ๊ฒฝ(Park Yun-ju ๋ฐ์ค์ฃผ)
This drama is based on the elementary school community that no mother can avoid. It is a popular series that formed a deep sympathy for Korean mothers. The fierce battles of mothers surviving in the community and their psychological warfare to keep their secrets make viewers constrained to the show. The undercover story of mothers and the events that arise in their relationship get entangled and out of control.
Green Mothers Club is an elementary schoolโs Mothersโ Club. As they want to send their kids to the gifted class, they undergo tests at various academies. It is very sad to see elementary school students who do not have time to eat (due to classes in academies) so they just eat Gimbap in the car. Moreover, the scene where children suffer from mental illness and receive psychological treatment because of their parentsโ greed is so heartbreaking. I will omit the content because there is a risk of spoiling it.
After many twists and turns, the drama closed with a delightful ending. Mothers who have gone through many events finally find their happiness in their own way. Moreover, not only did the subject of childrenโs education caught my eye but also the passionate performances of the actors. They expressed the strange psychological relationship of mothers in a commendable way. However, towards the end of the drama, the story became a little disappointing.
My Liberation Notes (๋์ ํด๋ฐฉ ์ผ์ง)
- Release date: 2022.04.09 -2022.05.29
- Episodes: 16
- Watch Show: JTBC / NETFLIX / TVING
- Cast: Lee Min-ki ์ด๋ฏผ๊ธฐ(Yeom Chang-hee ์ผ์ฐฝํฌ) Kim Ji-won ๊น์ง์(Yeom Mi-jeong ์ผ๋ฏธ์ ) Son Sukku ์์๊ตฌ(Mr. Gu ๊ตฌ์จ) Lee El ์ด์(Yeo Gi-jeong ์ผ๊ธฐ์ ) ์ฒํธ์ง(์ผ์ ํธ) Lee Ki-woo ์ด๊ธฐ์ฐ(Jo Tae-hoon ์กฐํํ) Jeon Hye-jin ์ ํ์ง(Ji Hyun-ah ์งํ์)
Itโs been a while since Iโve seen a really unusual drama. Itโs calm, but itโs not. It seems boring, but it has an impact. This strange drama begins with the story of three siblings living at the edge of Gyeonggi-do, the countryside. One day, the three brothers and sisters reach the limit of frustration, boredom, and mediocrity. In this drama, ordinary daily life becomes the main thing. The story is so realistic that it makes me think again about the meaning of family and home. The word โ์ถ์,โ which became popular because of this drama, is not used a lot in our daily life. However, ์ถ์ or revere is referred to many times in this drama.
There is Lee Min-ki, who finally starts to go his own way. Kim Ji-won learns to love herself. Son Seok-goo, changes little by little to find happiness in life. Lee El and Lee Ki-woo, continue to be pleased, taking one step at a time from a painful life. Their change is filled with overwhelming emotions and you will surely be touched.
Cheon Ho-jin and Lee Kyung-seong, who play the roles of father and mother of the three siblings stand out in particular. They look like their real parents. Parents, who live with three grown-up siblings, work diligently throughout the day without taking a single break. The realistic daily life of factory work and field work is shown through their great acting. This drama conveys to people the emotions they feel in everyday life. They show them the โ5-minute way to be happyโ whenever they lose the reason to live. I think it is a story that gives deeply touching, sympathetic, and positive energy.
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