From “Descendants Of The Sun” to “Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo”, 2016 saw a score of K-Dramas that received rave reviews. With so many current favourites coming to an end (such as “Goblin” and “Hwarang”), we need new ones to become couch potatoes for.
Unlike American television series or sitcoms, K-Dramas mostly run only one season, spanning across 12 to 30 episodes. Although a majority of the series are rom-coms or melodramas, we love how the plot thickens when something unexpected happens and oh, don’t get us started with the amount of eye candies :)
If you don’t know what to watch this year, fret not, because we’ve got the right list for you. Aside from “Saimdang” (사임당), which stars Lee Young Ae and Song Seung Heon, here are 9 new dramas to obsess over this new year:
1. Defendant (피고인)
- Premiere Date: 23rd January 2017
- Network: SBS
- Cast: Ji Sung, SNSD Girls’ Generation’s Kwon Yuri, Uhm Ki Joon, Oh Chang Suk
Thrilling, dark, and filled with secrets, “Defendant” is a crime drama that stars Ji Sung (from “Kill Me, Heal Me”) as Park Jung Woo, a prosecutor at Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office who is falsely accused of attempting a treacherous deed and is sentenced to death. Meanwhile, idol-turned-actress Yuri portrays Seo Eun Hye, an unlucky yet sincere public defender who ends up helping Park with his case. Penned by “City Hunter” writer Choi Soo Jin, the drama follows Park’s attempt to prove his innocence.
2. Good Manager aka Chief Kim (김과장)
- Premiere Date: 26th January 2017
- Network: KBS
- Cast: Namgoong Min, Nam Sang Mi, 2PM’s Lee Jun Ho, Jung Hye Seong, Park Young Gyu
Based on writer Park Jae Bum’s (of “Good Doctor” and “Blood” fame) original script, “Good Manager” is a slice-of-life office drama that combines touching storylines with a lighthearted twist. It tells the story of Kim Sung-ryong (played by Namgoong Min), an accountant-turned-office manager, and his struggles to save a failing company as well as his efforts in fighting for his staff’s fundamental rights.
3. Tomorrow With You (내일 그대와)
- Premiere Date: 3rd February 2017
- Network: tvN
- Cast: Lee Je Hoon, Shim Min Ah, Kang Ki Doong, Park Ju Hee, Baek Hyun Jin, Kim Ye Won
If you are a fan of unorthodox K-Drama romance, this series is for you! Starring “My Girlfriend Is a Nine-Tailed Fox” actress Shim Min Ah and “Signal” star Lee Je Hoon, “Tomorrow With You” tells the love story of a time traveller cum investment firm CEO Yoo So Jun and his optimistic wife, Song Ma Rin, whom he married after dating for only 3 months. The TV show will be replacing tvN’s current Friday-Saturday drama, “Goblin”.
4. Strong Woman Do Bong Soon (힘쎈여자 도봉순)
- Premiere Date: 3rd February 2017
- Network: JTBC
- Cast: Park Bo Young, Park Hyung Sik, Ji Soo, Shim Hye Jin, Yoo Jae Myung, Jun Suk Ho
“Strong Woman Do Bong Soon” is a romance comedy that sees Do Bong Soon (played by Park Bo Young), a strong woman who was born with Herculean strength, falling in love with An Min Hyuk (played by Park Hyung Sik), a cold and hostile young CEO who built his own company from scratch. Besides that, it was revealed that Park will be doing some martial arts scenes. In a recent interview, the 26-year-old actress said, “I feel happy to be able to greet everyone with a good project. I worried a lot on how to portray Do Bong Soon, a girl you can’t find anywhere else in the world, and I’ve been really immersing myself into the role.”
We can’t wait to see the gentle actress kick some butt ;)
5. Man To Man (맨투맨)
- Premiere Date: March 2017
- Network: JTBC
- Cast: Park Hae Jin, Kim Min Jung, Park Sung Woong, Yeong Jeong Hun, Chae Jung An, Cheon Ho Jin
“Man To Man” is a pre-produced drama that centres around the budding bromance between a superstar named Yeo Woon-gwang (played by Park Sung Woong) and his bodyguard, Kim Seol-woo (played by Park Hae Jin), a mysterious man who is trained in special investigations. Expectations for the series are high as the script is written by Kim Won Suk, the 2nd writer for last year’s hit drama “Descendant of the Sun”. On top of that, Song Joong Ki will be making a special cameo appearance!
6. My Sassy Girl (엽기적인 그녀)
- Premiere Date: May 2017
- Network: SBS
- Cast: Joo Won, Oh Yeon Seo, Kwak Hee Sung, Lee Jung Shin, Shim Hyung Tak, Jung Da Bin
“My Sassy Girl” is the TV adaption of Cha Tae Hyun and Jun Ji Hyun’s 2001 hit movie of the same name. However, it comes with a “saeguk” (historical drama) twist. Set in the Joseon Dynasty era, Gyun Woo (played by Joo Won) is a cold-hearted scholar dubbed “Joseon’s national treasure” who falls in love with the lovely and mischievous Princess Hye Myung (played by Oh Yeon Seo).
7. The Package (더 패키지)
- Premiere Date: May 2017
- Network: JTBC
- Cast: Lee Yeon Hee, CN Blue’s Jung Yong Hwa, Choi Woo Sik, Yoon Park, Ryu Seung Soo, Jeong Gyoo Soo
Primarily filmed in Paris, France, “The Package” is JYP Pictures’ (a subsidiary of JYP Entertainment) first pre-produced TV series and it is arguably one of 2017’s most expensive shows. The highly-anticipated drama revolves around a tour group guided by Yoon So So (played by Lee Yeon Hee). Each member of the tour has an interesting story to tell: Kim Gyung Jae (played by Choi Woo Shik) is an office employee who has dated his girlfriend for 10 years; San Ma Roo (played by Jung Yong Hwa) just got dumped by his lover; while Yoon Park plays a mysterious young man who chases after Yoon.
8. Ruler: Master of the Mask (군주-가면의 주인)
- Premiere Date: May 2017
- Network: MBC
- Cast: Yoo Seung Ho, Kim So Hyun, Infinite’s L (real name Kim Myung Soo), Yoon So Hee
“Ruler: Master of the Mask” has been gaining a large amount of attention due to its resemblance to “Moonlight Drawn by Clouds”. Both dramas are set in the Joseon Dynasty era and both sets of young male and female leads were born in the same year (Yoo Seung Ho and Park Bo Gum were born in 1993; Kim So Hyun and Kim Yoo Jung are 1999’ers). The drama tells the story of Crown Prince Lee Sun (played by Yoo Seung Ho) and his fight against a powerful organisation that controls the country behind the scenes due to its monopoly of the nation’s water supply. With the help of the woman he loves (played by Kim So Hyun), Lee overcomes hard challenges and becomes a fair king.
9. While You Were Sleeping (당신이 잠든 사이에)
- Premiere Date: TBA
- Network: SBS
- Cast: miss A’s Bae Suzy, Lee Jong Suk
Written by Park Hye Ryun (of “Dream High” and “Pinocchio” fame), “While You Were Asleep” follows a woman (played by Suzy) who can see unfortunate events that will befall others in her dreams and a prosecutor (played by Lee Jong Suk) who does everything he can to prevent her dreams from coming true. The drama will be helmed by “My Love From The Star” director Oh Choong Hwan and it is expected to air in the first half of 2017. We think that the pair will make a cute onscreen couple :)
So many shows, so little time. Which of the above K-Dramas are you looking forward to watching the most? Are there any upcoming K-Dramas that you think we should be adding to the above list? Feel free to drop us a note in the comments below!
Sources: Soompi, Drama Beans, Asian Wiki, iTech Post, Koreaboo, Wikipedia, My Drama List, Kdrama Kisses.
