The 5 Best Korean Dramas to Watch on Netflix This Fall

Netflix’s most-watched TV series of all time — Squid Game – may not return until the holiday season, but that doesn't mean the fall schedule isn't full of Korean drama series that delight, scare and heal.

Gyeongseong Creature is ready to return with the consequences of the time jump twist at the end of the first season. The Hometown Cha Cha Cha The screenwriter-director team has reunited for a romantic comedy that looks to be just as heartwarming as their 2021 hit. And Baeksang Prize-winning director Mo Wan-il (The world of the married) leaves us all guessing what awaits us with the mysterious trailer for the exciting thriller The Frog. Without further ado, here are five K-dramas to watch and keep an eye on in the coming months.

Release date: 10 August – 19 September
Number of episodes: 12
Recommended for fans of: Unknown family, Vincenzo, Crash course in romanceSHINee

Korean dramas tend to tell stories across multiple generations and with a focus on the community better than American television, and Romance in the house is the latest example. Son Na-eun (Apink, Ghost Doctor) plays Byeon Mi-rae, a junior manager at a large supermarket who wrote off her bankrupt father years ago. Mi-rae is the main breadwinner in her family, pays for her younger brother's college, and ends up in the hospital due to overexertion in the first episode. When her father, Byeon Moo-jin (Jewel in the PalaceWhen Mi-rae (SHINee's Ji Jin-hee) returns from the dead as a handsome middle-aged multimillionaire and buys the apartment building the family calls home, could things change? And will Mi-rae and the rest of her family accept it? SHINee's Minho (Yumi's cells) plays Mi-rae's workplace lover, Nam Tae-pyeong, and Kim Jee-soo (Hwarang) plays hard-working mother Geum Ae-yeon who never stopped loving her ex. So far, this show is a delight and another recent example of an international K-drama giving ample screen time to a complicated romance between middle-aged characters.

Release date: 17 August – 6 October
Number of episodes: 16
Recommended for fans of: Hometown Cha-Cha, Because It's My First Life, Crash Course in Romance

Hometown Cha Cha Cha Author Shin Ha-eun and director Yoo Je-won (also known for Crash course in romance) reunite for Love next doora romantic comedy about two childhood enemies who come back together in adulthood. The main roles in the series are played by Jung Hae-in (Netflix' DPDisney Plus Connect) as Choi Seung-hyo, a young aspiring architect, and Jung So-min (Alchemy of Souls, Playful kiss, Because it is my first life) as Bae Seok-ryu, a product manager who returns home after a failed attempt at starting over, Hallmark-movie style. Naturally, the move brings the two back together in a messy way, with banter ensuing that brings deep and complicated feelings from the past to light. With such a strong team in front of and behind the camera, this is one of the most entertaining K-dramas of the late summer/early fall.

Release date: 23.August
Number of episodes: 8
Recommended for fans of: The Legacy, The World of the Married, scary rural crime series

There are K-dramas that work for K-drama fans, and there are K-dramas that find a wider audience. The Frogthat comes from The world of the married Director Mo Wan-il is the latter. The dark psychodrama, which is set in a rural area of ​​South Korea, captivates unsuspecting viewers with its thrilling story of serial killers and small-town secrets in eight episodes. Kim Yoon-seok (The hunter, another child) and Yoon Kye-sang (K-Pop Boyband God, Street Number One) play two men who run lakeside holiday homes in a sleepy part of Korea. Giving away too much of the plot would be a mistake. Additional bonus: Go Min-so also plays a role, but in a completely different role than the former ballerina Lee Eun-yu in the monster drama Sweet home.

Release date: To be announced
Number of episodes: To be announced
Recommended for fans of: The Story of the Nine-Tails

Note: This article contains major spoilers for the ending of the first season of “Gyeongseong Creature.”

The first season finale of Gyeongseong Creature wrapped up most of the supernatural storylines well enough in its setting of Seoul under Japanese occupation — then there was a stunning mid-credits scene. In it, we see someone who looks remarkably like Park Seo-joon's Tae-sang living in modern-day Seoul and not looking a day older than he did in 1945. Although he has a different name — Ho-jae — the scar on his neck suggests that this is indeed the same man. Given the star potential of season 1 co-star Han So-hee, we can expect Yoon Chae-ok, who apparently died in a fatal attack by her monster mother while protecting Tae-sang, to be back in season 2 as well. Will the two finally have a chance to live peacefully in love? And did Chae-ok become a monster like season 1 hinted? And how the hell did Tae-sang stay young over the course of 80 years? Gyeongseong Creature is the rare K-drama with a jaw-dropping cliffhanger in the first season. Although the show didn't always make the most of its killer premise and star-studded cast, the second season is another chance for this series to become a cult series.

Release date: To be announced
Number of episodes: 10
Recommended for fans of: Strong Girl Namsoon, It's okay not to be okay

Nobody wants to live a life as a plankton. But that's how Hae-jo (Oh Jung-se) exists – well, not literally. According to the Soompi synopsis for this romantic dramedy, Hae-jo “dreams of a colorful future far from his plankton-like life, where he feels like he doesn't belong anywhere and has no one to care about.” Will things change when he embarks on a journey with Jo Jae-mi (Squid Game And We are all dead's Lee You-mi), his ex and an unhappy bride-to-be? Let's hope so. Mr. Plankton may have a silly name, but it was written by It's okay not to be okay Author Jo Yong, which suggests a lot of fear of a possible happy ending. Also in the lead role Grey's Anatomy And Station 19Alex Landi in a rare crossover moment between Hollywood and Korean drama!