Korean dramas continuously deliver imaginative and engaging stories to audiences throughout the world. 2021 is a busy year for K-drama fans thanks to upcoming and ongoing shows. Although new premieres are sparse due to the pandemic, K-drama viewers can still choose from many options. Here are some of the best K-dramas you need to keep an eye out for this year.
She Would Never Know
Adapted from the 2017 web novel “Senior, Don’t Put on That Lipstick,” She Would Never Know premiered on JTBC this January. She Would Never Know is an office romantic comedy revolving around the marketing team of a cosmetics brand. At the heart of the series is a relationship between a ‘hoobae’ (junior) and a ‘sunbae’ (senior).
Won Jin-ah takes on the role of Yoon Song-ah, a senior brand marketer with a passion for her job and a dream of starting her own cosmetics company someday. Rowoon plays the role of Chae Hyun-seung, a junior brand marketer who falls for his senior and tries to win her over.
She Would Never Know is available for global streaming only on iQIYI. They provide subtitles for multiple languages including English, Vietnamese, Spanish, and many more.
Royal Secret Agent
After premiering last December, Royal Secret Agent is an ongoing television series on KBS2. Taking place during the end of the Joseon dynasty, the series is about a royal inspector who works undercover. The historical comedy and detective series centers on Sung Yi-gyeom, the secret royal inspector played by Kim Myung-soo.
Although Sung Yi-gyeum topped the state examination, he lacks ambition and has a gambling addiction. When he is caught gambling one day, he is tasked to keep an eye on corrupt government officials as punishment. With the help of fellow inspectors Hong Da-in (Kwon Na-ra) and Park Chun-sam (Lee Yi-kyung), he starts the investigation.
KBS2 broadcasts Royal Secret Agent every Monday and Tuesday at 9:30 pm KST. It is also streaming on iQIYI.
Lovestruck in the City
KakaoTV’s romantic short series centers on young individuals searching for love and happiness within a chaotic city. Lovestruck in the City is KakaoTV’s first installment to their multi-part web shows. The showrunners decided to experiment and applied an interview-style or documentary format to the series.
Lovestruck in the City tells the story of six people who talk about love and relationships in response to questions from an interviewer. The series centers on Park Jae-won (Ji Chang-wook), an architect who falls for the person who stole his camera. Meanwhile, Lee Eun-oh (Kim Ji-won) is a marketer with an alter ego named Yoon Seon-a. When she meets Park Jae-won on a beach under her false identity, she develops a crush on him.
Netflix provides streaming of Lovestruck in the City for audiences worldwide. The series also airs every Tuesday and Friday at 5:00 pm KST on KakaoTV.
Sisyphus: The Myth
The upcoming action-mystery series, Sisyphus: The Myth, was labeled as “JTBC’s 10th Anniversary Special Drama.” The series stars Cho Seung-woo, who plays a genius engineer named Han Tae-sool. Park Shin-hye will join him as Kang Seo-hae, an elite warrior who acts as his savior throughout their journey.
“The drama simultaneously covers the story of the current time in 2020 and the future of South Korea, which has fallen into ruin,” said Cho. “As the unique script and art blended well together, I had high expectations for how the two time periods could be portrayed with great artistic sense.”
With 16 episodes, JTBC will premier Sisyphus: the Myth on February 17. It will air every Wednesday and Thursday at 9:00 pm KST, replacing the time slot previously occupied by Run On.
Mr. Queen
Mr. Queen is a comedy-fantasy historical drama distributed by tvN. The series follows the story of Jang Bong-hwan (Choi Jin-hyuk), a modern-day chef whose spirit freely roams. When his spirit enters the body of Queen Cheorin (Shin Hye-sun) in the Joseon dynasty, chaos ensues within the kingdom.
The series also features King Cheoljong (Kim Jung-hyun), a deceitful King and husband of Queen Kim So-yong. Other characters include Queen Sunwon (Bae Jong-ok), who holds decision-making powers in the kingdom, and Kim Jwa-geun, her power-hungry brother.
Mr. Queen airs on tvN every Saturday and Sunday at 9:00 pm KST. The series will have 20 episodes.
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