Our Mondays and Tuesdays will never be the same again. To tide us over to the next great romance k-drama like Lovely Runner, here are GwenchaNoona’s recommendations.
Photos from tvN, MBC / HanCinema
Twinkling Watermelon (2023) | A Time Called You (2023) | More k-dramas with time-travel elements | The Story of Park's Marriage Contract (2023) | See You in My 19th Life (2023) | More k-dramas with couples with intertwined fates | Reply 1997 / Answer Me 1997 (2012) | Her Private Life (2019) | True Beauty (2020) | Flower of Evil (2020) | Sh**ting Stars (2022) | Nevertheless, (2021) | Ultimate Weapon Alice / Alice, The Final Weapon (2022) | Salon Drip Season 2 Bonus Episode (2024) | Viki Exclusive Interview (2024) | CJ ENM Drawing Interview (2024) | OFF AIR Interview (2024) | Byeon Woo-seok's works | Hyeri's Club Episode 16 (2024) | Kim Hye-yoon's works | Whenever Possible Episode 7 (2024)
If you want more time-travel series...
Twinkling Watermelon (2023)
Available on Viu (territories and periods vary)
A child of deaf adults (CODA), high school student and guitarist Ha Eun-gyeol (Ryeoun, 18 Again) finds himself traveling back to 1995. He bumps into a student his age—his father, Ha Yi-chan (Choi Hyun-wook, Twenty-Five Twenty-One)! But his future dad is crazy about Choi Se-kyeong (Seol In-ah, Business Proposal), not his would-be mom Yoon Cheong-ah (Shin Eun-soo, SF8). Will he find out why he must travel back in time before his time is up? The k-drama sheds light on the plight of people who can't hear or speak. It also raises questions about fate vs. choice, and trust vs. responsibility, as the time-traveling protagonist attempts to alter the future through the past.
See our full review.
A Time Called You (2023)
Available on Netflix (territories and periods vary)
This 12-episode thriller and romance drama stars Ahn Hyo-seop (Business Proposal), Jeon Yeo-been (Vincenzo), and Kang Hoon (The Red Sleeve). The series focuses on Han Joon-hee who travels back to 1998 and meets a high school student resembling her late boyfriend. The series is a remake of the classic Taiwanese romance Someday or One Day.
If you want more couples with intertwined fates...
Check out how fate and other elements are used in these fantasy romances in our special feature.
The Story of Park's Marriage Contract (2023)
Available on Viki, Viu (territories and periods vary)
Lee Se-young (The Red Sleeve) returns to the Joseon era, partly, in this time-travel romance. The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract sees her character, Park Yeon-woo, travel 200 years into modern-day Seoul, where she will somehow end up in a contractual marriage with bachelor Kang Tae-ha (Bae In-hyuk, Cheer Up).
See You in My 19th Life (2023)
Available on Netflix (territories and periods vary)
This 12-episode romance-fantasy series stars Shin Hye-sun (Mr Queen) as Ban Ji-eum, a woman who remembers all her previous lives. In her 19th life, she sets out to find Moon Seo-ha, played by Ahn Bo-hyun (Military Prosecutor Doberman), whom she met in her 18th life before it was tragically cut short.
If you want more idol-fan series...
Reply 1997 / Answer Me 1997 (2012)
Available on AppleTV, Prime Video, Viki, Viu (territories and periods vary)
The k-drama that started it all for Reply fans! The first of the Reply series aired in 2012 and anchored itself around six main characters and their lives in Busan. The story jumps between 1997, when the six friends are navigating their senior year in high school, and 2012, when they have all gathered for a reunion. The hook is that their 2012 selves have a newly engaged couple in their midst, but the big reveal doesn’t happen until the very end. What stands out in this anthology are the unlikely love triangle, the revelation of someone’s gender identity, and the nod to the intensity of idol fandom at a time when K-pop was starting to take hold in pop culture.
Her Private Life (2019)
Available on AppleTV, Netflix, Prime Video, Viki, Viu (territories and periods vary)
It’s super fun to see Park Min-young (Marry My Husband) as a closeted fan of fictional character Cha Shi-an (Jung Jae-won). Clad in a black hat and carrying ultra expensive cameras, she maneuvers her way in and out of fan meets and airports to get the perfect paparazzi shot. But by day she is a respectable curator of an art gallery where she must deal with temperamental artist Ryan Gold (Kim Jae-wook, The Last Princess).
If you want more from the Lovely Runner creative team...
True Beauty (2020)
Available on Netflix, Viu (territories and periods vary)
Based on a popular webtoon, True Beauty is another one of those k-dramas that generated a lot of online buzz despite its modest ratings. This 16-episode youth-oriented show is well-loved by its fans for tackling the concerns of high school students (especially those affecting their mental health) and for featuring a non-toxic male character and healthy friendships. This series was also written by Lovely Runner scriptwriter Lee Shi-eun.
Flower of Evil (2020)
Available on AppleTV, Netflix, Prime Video, Viki, Viu (territories and periods vary)
In this modern marital thriller also directed by Yoon Jong-ho, Lee Joon-gi (Again, My Life) plays a loving husband and father with a murky past. But when strange things start to happen, his wife — who is a detective — grows more suspicious of him by the day. Could her very own husband be the killer she has been tracking down all this time? And if he were indeed the killer, would she bring him to justice, or break the law to save him for herself?
If you want more of Lee Seung-hyub...
Lee Seung-hyub, leader of the South Korean band N.Flying in real life, earned praises for depicting Baek In-hyuk, the charismatic leader of the fictional band Eclipse and Ryu Sun-jae's best friend.
Sh**ting Stars (2022)
Available on Netflix, Viki, Viu (territories and periods vary)
Well-respected and hardworking, PR team lead Oh Han-byeol (Lee Sung-kyung, Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joo) is always on call and has almost no time to date. As a master communicator, she has established a good rapport with other industry professionals, within and outside her agency. She is committed to maintaining the squeaky-clean image of her agency's actors, especially that of Gong Tae-sung (Kim Young-dae, Penthouse), South Korea’s most sought-after male lead with a massive global fan base. Lee Seung-hyub played Kang Si-deok, a restaurant owner whose life takes a turn when he is scouted and begins a new career as an actor.
Check out our full review.
Nevertheless, (2021)
Available on Netflix (territories and periods vary)
Song Kang (Navillera) plays Park Jae-eon, an art student at Hongseo University’s Sculpture Department who thinks relationships are a bother but likes to flirt. He meets Yoo Na-bi (Han So-hee, Soundtrack #1), a heartbroken woman who no longer believes in love but wants to go out on dates. The two of them start a friends-with-benefits relationship but soon develop deeper feelings for each other. Lee Seung-hyub portrayed Jung Joo-hyuk who fell in love with Yoon Sol (Lee Ho-jung, Song of the Bandits) at first sight. His amazing chemistry with Lee has delighted viewers and left a lasting impact.
If you want more of Song Geon-hee...
Song Geon-hee further expanded his fan base after portraying Kim Tae-sung, Baek In-hyuk's bandmate and Im Sol's adorable ex-boyfriend (in at least one timeline).
Ultimate Weapon Alice / Alice, The Final Weapon (2022)
Available on Viki (territories and periods vary)
Trained as a mercenary from a very young age, Han Gyeo-wool or "Alice" (Park Se-wan, Doona!) has had enough of her bloody life as a trained killer abroad and has now returned to South Korea to live life as a nondescript high school student. There, she meets Seo Yeo-reum (Song Geon-hee), a troubled young man with his own set of issues. Soon, they strike up an unlikely friendship, and for a while it seems that Gyeo-wool has a solid shot at the normal life she’s always wanted. That is until other mercenaries discover her whereabouts and put everyone she now knows and loves at great risk. Will Alice be able to defend her newfound life and love from a psychopathic madman, or will she have to make the ultimate sacrifice to keep them all free?
Read our full review.
SKY Castle (2019)
Available on Disney+, Netflix, Prime Video, Viki, Viu (territories and periods vary)
SKY Castle remains the fourth highest-rated cable TV k-drama of all time. In this satirical high-society takedown, Song Geon-hee portrayed Park Young-jae, a former student of elite tutor Coach Kim (Kim Seo-hyung), credited with his admission to Seoul National University. Meanwhile, his Lovely Runner co-star Kim Hye-yoon played high school student Kang Ye-seo, who is hellbent on also getting into Seoul National University’s medical school to follow in her father’s footsteps — even if it means following the tyrannical ways of Coach Kim.
If you want more of SolJae...
See full episodes of the couple's interviews with English subtitles below.
Salon Drip Season 2 Bonus Episode (2024)
Available on YouTube
Viki Exclusive Interview (2024)
Available on YouTube
CJ ENM Drawing Interview (2024)
Available on YouTube
OFF AIR Interview (2024)
Available on YouTube
If you want more of Byeon Woo-seok...
Check out his other works (20th Century Girl, Strong Girl Nam-soon, etc.) here and the full interview of his Moonshine co-star Hyeri below.
Hyeri's Club Episode 16 (2024)
Available on YouTube
If you want more of Kim Hye-yoon...
Read about her other k-dramas (Extraordinary You, Snowdrop, etc.) here and see the trailer of her interview with Baeksang Daesang (Grand Prize) winner Yoo Jae-suk below.
Whenever Possible Episode 7 (2024)
Available on Viu
Which of these are you watching next?
Twinkling Watermelon (2023) | A Time Called You (2023) | More k-dramas with time-travel elements | The Story of Park's Marriage Contract (2023) | See You in My 19th Life (2023) | More k-dramas with couples with intertwined fates | Reply 1997 / Answer Me 1997 (2012) | Her Private Life (2019) | True Beauty (2020) | Flower of Evil (2020) | Sh**ting Stars (2022) | Nevertheless, (2021) | Ultimate Weapon Alice / Alice, The Final Weapon (2022) | Salon Drip Season 2 Bonus Episode (2024) | Viki Exclusive Interview (2024) | CJ ENM Drawing Interview (2024) | OFF AIR Interview (2024) | Byeon Woo-seok's works | Hyeri's Club Episode 16 (2024) | Kim Hye-yoon's works | Whenever Possible Episode 7 (2024)
