By Muhammed Hashim 
I was in a slump in 2024, but guess what? Korean dramas did not disappoint at all. I love the variety in themes this year, from time travel to life threatening illness to revenge. Here are my picks for the best Korean dramas of 2024.
Best Korean dramas of 2024
I find it hard to pick a favorite this year. Perhaps I would push you towards the twists and they-love-each-other-but-they-don’t-know-it-yet trope in When the Phone Rings (ongoing as I type this) or maybe I will recommend cuddling up with the sweetest feel-good love story in Lovely Runner.
1. No Gain, No Love
Wrap your head around this—Hae-yeong (Shin Min-a) needs to get married for a promotion at work! So she hires the local convenience store part-timer Ji-wook (Kim Young-dae) to be her fake husband. It is a no-brainer that they fall in love eventually, which makes this drama worth watching.
2. Mr. Plankton
Hae Jo (Woo Do-hwan), diagnosed with a rare medical condition, undertakes a journey to find his biological father. He was born because of a mix-up at an insemination clinic and has a shortlist of fathers to meet. He kidnaps his ex-girlfriend Jo Jae-mi (Lee Yoo-mi), who is engaged to the only heir Eo Heung (Oh Jung-se) of the Eo clan famiy, on her wedding day (who else would you want for company but your ex (lol). PS: It doesn’t feel as bad when you watch it on screen). Mr. Plankton is about trauma, fatherhood, broken people finding themselves, over bearing mother-in-laws, family honor, and a loving fiancé who will go to the ends of the world for his love. This is a heartwarming story, but let me warn you early on that it is the kind that leaves you crying.
3. Lovely Runner
The best feel-good Korean drama of 2024. What if you could travel back in time multiple times to save the love of your life from an untimely death? Adapted from a webtoon by Doong Doong, this is the story of former swimmer turned singer and actor, Ryu Sun-jae (Byeon Woo-seok ) and Im Sol (Kim Hye-yoon), an ardent fan of the idol. Im Sol loses her legs (and dreams) in an accident and Ryu Sun-jae’s music gives her hope. When the pop star battles depression in his stardom, Im Sol keeps alive her positive outlook and tries to help. Being a super devoted fan, she goes back fifteen years in time, to their high school life, when both of them were neighbors, to change the future. I absolutely adored this cute rom com.
4. Death’s Game
I broke down sobbing loudly after some episodes in the fantasy drama Death’s Game. It follows Choi Yee-jae (Seo In-guk) who takes his own life after battling unemployment for seven years. This invites the wrath of Death (Park So-dam) who punishes him by making him experience death twelve times in different bodies. If he survives any of the lives granted to him, he can live. It is painful to watch Yee-jae struggling to live when faced with the pain and shock of an inevitable death. I sympathized with his girlfriend, for it is the living who bear the brunt of death. Death’s Game makes you think, cry, gasp—it is a stunner.
PS: Do not watch this drama if you have a lot going on in your life; this drama might be triggering.
5. When the Phone Rings
I love a drama with twists and cliff hangers. When the Phone Rings follows a contract marriage between Baek Sa-eon (Yoo Yeon-seok), the son of a prominent political family and the presidential spokesperson and Hong Hee-joo (Chae Soo-bin ), a sign language interpreter for TV who has selective mutism. Three years into their cold arranged marriage (which is a secret to the public) where they don’t speak to one another and sleep in separate rooms, Hee-joo gets kidnapped. She manages to escape but gets hold of the kidnapper’s phone to blackmail her husband for a divorce. Both the husband and the wife have secrets to hide from one another. But threatening phone calls and conflicts make the ice melt between them and, no surprise, they realize they loved one another all along. I was at the edge of my seat for the thrilling turns, but I was disappointed with the way the drama dealt with Hee-joo conquering her selective mutism; it seemed too convenient. An entertaining drama nevertheless.
6. Judge from Hell
Holy hell! In Judge from Hell, Justita, a terrifying demon judge from hell is cursed to live as a mortal in the body of a human judge Kang Bit-na (Park Shin-hye). She must punish ten criminals in her human life to gain entry back to her own world/hell. Bit-na gives lenient judgements for the most heinous crimes, and then hunts the criminals to punish them to death. Detective Han Da-on (Kim Jae-young) notices a link between the judgements and the violent deaths of the criminals who are set free by the court, and investigates. This show is violent, bloody and makes you think about legal systems, true justice and the unfairness of it all.
7. Queen of Tears
The drama starts off with the husband Hyun-woo (Kim Soo-hyun) feeling elated on knowing that his cold-hearted rich wife Hong Hae-in (Kim Ji-won) is dying, moments before handing over divorce papers. Hae-in’s family is rich (They own the company the couple work at, she being the corporate heiress while he heads the legal department) while Hyun-woo comes from modest means. A regular couple miserable in the privacy of their home slowly change into a loving couple and remember what made them fall in love. Queen of Tears is about true love and ulterior motives with ample tropes for your drama loving heart.
9. Marry my Husband
Marry my Husband is a fun time-travel rom-com based on a webtoon. Kang Ji-won’s (Park Min-young) marriage is on the rocks because her best friend Jung Soo-min (Song Ha-yoon) and husband Park Min-hwan (Lee Yi-kyung) are having an affair. She meets with an accident (murder?) that takes her ten years into the past to set things right. She is not the only time-traveler though. Watch for cute scenes where the time travelers expose their secret because they know the famous band BTS’s music from the future. Too cute! Park Min-young steals the show with her charming ways.
9. Family by Choice
Watch one of the best Korean dramas of 2024 for a comforting, feel-good experience. A slice of life drama about two men and a woman who aren’t related but become a family. The drama beautifully explores the found family trope, fathers raising children, love, and memories.
10. Love in Contract
I had the most fun watching Love in Contract that follows Choi Sang-eun (Park Min-young) through her thirteen year career as professional contract wife. Her job is to be a fake wife (for reunions, to single men under pressure from their families, to gay men, at meetings) and end the marriage after confessing in court that the fault is her own and her husband is a good man. With a long string of clients, a collection of wedding rings, and a chain of divorces, she is living a good life. Her longest running client is a reclusive judge who asks her to dine with him three times a week. When Sang-eun decides to retire, she must find out what her heart truly wants. I enjoyed this fun drama that made no sense at several points. It does fizzle out for a few episodes after mid-mark, but also makes you think of the OG dramas that made us fall with Korean dramas in the first place. Very enjoyable!
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