It's raining oppas this month, with Kim Min-jae in a comedy sageuk, Ji Chang-wook in a healing drama, Yoo Ah-in and Go Kyung-pyo in a car-chase movie, Joo Won in an intense action film, and Lee Seung-gi in a legal rom-com.
Get ready to mark your calendars, because August is jam-packed with exciting titles, some of which we've been anticipating since the start of the year. Which one are you adding to your watchlist?
Aug. 1: Poong, The Joseon Psychiatrist
Once a leading physician to royalty, Yoo Se-pong (Kim Min-jae, Dali and the Cocky Prince) now finds himself expelled to the small village of Gyesu, where he realizes he might have a new calling as a doctor of broken hearts.
Under the guidance of Kye Ji-han (Kim Sang-kyung) and a friendship with Seo Eun-woo (Kim Hyang-gi), Se-poong might just find that being thrown out of the royal palace might be the best thing that’s ever happened to him.
The 12-episode series is based on a novel that won the Excellence Award in the 2016 Korea Story Contest.
Where to watch: Viki, Viu, starting on Aug. 2
Aug. 1: Hunted
The four-episode MBC thriller follows a missing-person case in a village. When a boar is thought to have damaged their crops, middle-aged Young-soo (Park Ho-san, Today’s Webtoon) and the other villagers decide to hunt for it in the mountains. Young-soo’s wife, Chae-jung (Kim Soo-jin, Hospital Playlist 1 & 2), is warm-hearted and popular among the villagers. But when her son goes missing on the same day her husband goes hunting, she suffers a mental breakdown.
Ok-soon (Ye Soo-jung, Link: Eat, Love, Kill) lives with her grandson after her son and daughter-in-law perished in a fire. She suspects some of the villagers are behind their death. As the mystery unravels, will the villagers’ secrets be revealed as well?
Where to watch: Coupang Play
Aug. 5: Carter
Hyped as possibly one of the most intense action films this year, this Netflix original will feature Joo Won (Good Doctor — really, it’s the same guy!) transformed into a man with no memories who gets tasked with a crucial mission: find and transport a child who could be the key to saving humanity from a deadly mutant virus.
Promising non-stop action, the film’s trailer teases intense gravity-defying scenes bound to keep us on the edge of our seats for its 133-minute running time.
Where to watch: Netflix
Aug. 10: If You Wish Upon Me
A troubled past leads Yoon Gyeo-ree (Ji Chang-wook, The Sound of Magic, Suspicious Partner) to volunteer at a hospice. There, he and the rest of the staff attempt to fulfill the last wishes of dying patients.
Inspired by a real foundation in the Netherlands that fulfills the dying wish of cancer patients, the story looks to be both hopeful and heartbreaking. Veteran actor Sung Dong-il (Ghost Doctor, Hospital Playlist) and Choi Soo-young (So I Married The Anti-Fan) join the cast of this healing drama.
Where to watch: Viu, Viki
Aug. 12: A Model Family
On paper, they’re the perfect family. In reality, the father Dong-ha (Jung Woo, Mad for Each Other), a professor, is on the brink of bankruptcy and divorce. When he comes across a car with dead bodies and tons of cash, he gets dragged into a dangerous entanglement with a drug ring in this Netflix original.
With Gwang-cheol (Park Hee-soon, My Name), the number two guy in the drug gang, and detective Joo-Hyun (Park Ji-yeon, Hospital Playlist 2) both after him, can he untangle himself within the show’s 10 episodes?
Where to watch: Netflix
Aug. 12: Stock Struck
Get your bets ready: This 12-episode tvN comedy drama is about five people who secretly pool their money together to invest in the stock market.
Yoo Mi-seo (Han Ji-eun, Bad and Crazy) is about to get married. A rookie investor, she has so far had negative returns. Despite being a convenience store part-timer, 33-year-old Choi Sun-woo (Hong Jong-hyun, Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo) drives an expensive car. Also a part-time worker, Kang San (Jung Moon-sung, Haechi) doesn’t care much about work or success, as long as he is happy. Jung Haeng-ja (Kim Sun-young, Crash Landing on You) is not an employee but has her own pork feet restaurant. Finally, Kim Jin-bae (Jang Gwang, Remarriage and Desires) decides to start investing in the stock market after retiring.
Will they accumulate massive returns, or realize something more important in life and love?
Where to watch: TVING
Aug. 24: Good Job
An ENA romance mystery, series follows the adventures of Eun Sun-woo (Jung Il-woo) and Don Se-ra (Kwon Yu-ri), who find themselves working on a case and, of course, falling in love.
Athletic and smart, Sun-woo runs the Eunkang group (Korea’s biggest chaebol) by day and, secretly, a detective agency by night. On the other hand, Se-ra is not well off, but she possesses super vision. She helps others around her and wears thick eyeglasses to hide her hyper-acuity.
The 16-episode series will take over the Wednesday-Thursday slot of Extraordinary Attorney Woo, which ends on August 17. Jung Il-woo and Kwon Yu-ri reunite after starring in the MBN sageuk romance Bossam: Steal the Fate (2021).
Where to watch: Viki
Aug. 26: Seoul Vibe
It’s 1988 and old school hip-hop music is blaring on the radio as excitement heats up for the Olympic Games in Seoul. But on opening day, a ragtag team of talented drivers and mechanics find themselves entangled in an operation to move VIP slush funds across the city.
Yoo Ah-in (Hellbound) will lead the Sanggye Supreme Team in this intense 138-minute car-chase film, along with Go Kyung-pyo (Strongest Deliveryman) and Lee Kyu-hyung (Happiness, Prison Playbook). Park Ju-hyun (Extracurricular) and Ong Seong-wu (Would You Like a Cup of Coffee?) complete the team who will be recruited by prosecutors to help investigate the operation.
Where to watch: Netflix
Aug. 26: Unicorn
Welcome aboard the ship McCom, a fictional company navigating the tumultuous ocean of Korean start-ups! Captain of the ship is the unhinged CEO Steve (Shin Ha-kyun, Beyond Evil) while one of its smartest sailors is innovation team member Ashley (Won Jin-ah, Hellbound).
The highly anticipated Coupang Play sitcom is directed by Kim Hye-young (Be Melodramatic), with Lee Byeong-hun (Be Melodramatic, Extreme Job) serving as its creative director. It is written by Yoo Byung-jae (Saturday Night Live Korea: Season 3) and In Ji-hye (Extraordinary You).
Where to watch: Coupang Play
Aug. 29: The Law Cafe
Hwayugi' co-stars Lee Seung-gi and Lee Se-young reunite in this adaptation of the hit web novel “Love According to the Law.”
In this legal rom-com, Lee Seung-gi plays Kim Jeong-ho, a genius former prosecutor who now owns a building that houses a law firm and a cafe. Lee Se-young gets to flex her comedic chops as Kim Yu-ri, an eccentric lawyer who quits her job at a top firm to open a cafe in Jeong-ho’s building.
The 16-episode series takes over Café Minamandang’s Monday–Tuesday night time slot on KBS2.
Where to watch: Viu, Viki (in selected territories)
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