Thankfully, 2020 and the popularity of Crash Landing on You helped us all be more prepared and organized as 2021 saw a number of hugely popular dramas, including the first truly mainstream drama which everyone seemed to be watching: [Squid Game](https://mydramalist.com/40257-round-six). Suddenly, your friends, classmates or co-workers were discovering the world of Korean dramas and movies, believing Squid Game perfectly encapsulates the whole entertainment industry. The two issues this caused for the less informed viewers was that either Netflix would recommend them to follow up Squid Game with Bride of Habaek which was a pretty terrible idea, or they’d start watching Alice in Borderlands as their next drama and then cause you a conundrum as they kept calling it a kdrama.
Thankfully, the programming schedules slowly returned to normal and the kdrama industry settled down a bit after the crazy 2020 investment spree. Quality began being more important than quantity, but individual drama investments showed that there was still plenty of money to be invested into high quality productions, if more selectively.
The drama of the year was [**Move to Heaven**](https://mydramalist.com/49231-move-to-heaven), a beautiful and touching slice-of-life drama that combines the two most prominent 2020 trends, character-driven plots and mental health. It deals with grief, so expect tears, though quite a few of them will be tears of happiness as it is one of the most emotional and hear-warming dramas out there.
**Life** dramas held on strong, but were not the largest trend to come out of 2021 (more on that later). [Hospital Playlist Season 2](https://mydramalist.com/57173-hospital-playlist-2) continued in a more upbeat fashion than the first season and set new standards for car kiss scenes, as well as ever longer episode runtimes. Those looking for a more youth-oriented dramas really enjoyed [Racket boys](https://mydramalist.com/75433-rocket-boy-squad), a wholesome drama centered around a middle school badminton team.
Those looking for a wholesome, heart-warming drama should look no further than [Navillera](https://mydramalist.com/59381-navillera) about a 70 year old grandpa learning how to dance ballet with the help of a 23 year old who’s trying to recover from the loss of his family. A lighter youthful alternative might be [At a Distance, Spring Is Green](https://mydramalist.com/22160-seen-from-a-distance-green-spring), while those wanting to focus on a family bond might want to consider [Uncle](https://mydramalist.com/60409-uncle), though your mileage might vary.
Life dramas with a side of romance lovers were well served with [Run On](https://mydramalist.com/58651-run-on). Do you like slower, more realistic dramas and romance that is comforting and healthy, with no toxic relationships? Give it a try. As a close alternative, those with less time on their hands and who enjoy beautiful cinematography and good couple chemistry should probably navigate to [Lovestruck in the City](https://mydramalist.com/65277-love-way-of-urban-man-woman).
Looking for more historic vibes? Travel to the 1980’s with [Youth of May](https://mydramalist.com/74275-youth-of-may), but maybe make sure to follow-up on your history knowledge, as the Gwangju massacre is the main driver influencing the plot. Melodrama fans could have enjoyed [Melancholia](https://mydramalist.com/695723-melancholia) and those up for another confusing thriller/romance genre mix had to rely on [You Are My Spring](https://mydramalist.com/70879-you-are-my-spring).
Other lovely life dramas include [The Witch’s Diner](https://mydramalist.com/61491-come-to-witch-s-restaurant) which feels like the spiritual successor of 2020 Mystic Pop-Up Bar), [Lost](https://mydramalist.com/62093-human-disqualification), [Idol: The Coup](https://mydramalist.com/695625-idol) (your drama about a group of friends struggling to make it though in the kpop industry) and [On the Verge of Insanity](https://mydramalist.com/67305-not-crazy).
Still, there were two major new kdrama trend developments in 2020, the first of which is **comedy dramas** finally being given time to shine, as comedy was back mixing not only with romance, but also family, law, crime, mystery, action and thriller genres. For example, two very different family dynamics were explored in the family-comedy [Somehow Family](https://mydramalist.com/54985-somehow-family) and the thriller-comedy [Cheat On Me, if You Can](https://mydramalist.com/58595-when-the-wind-blows-and-dies).
Want a drama with great acting and action scenes, superb villains, mafia killers and unexpected plot-twists, but also want it to be fun and cozy? Then you need to watch [Vincenzo](https://mydramalist.com/61371-vincenzo), if you haven’t already. Which you really should have, it’s great. Want to lean more into the thriller/horror vibes and fancy exorcists over the mafia – [Sell Your Haunted House](https://mydramalist.com/71995-daebak-real-estate) is a wonderful choice. Those opting for a more pacifistic approach could enjoy [Hush](https://mydramalist.com/57239-hush).
Not interested in corporate law? Don’t worry, there was a whole court in session in 2020 with comedy as a sub-genre. If you would like the executioner to be a judge, feel free to join the dystopian nightmare that is [The Devil Judge](https://mydramalist.com/62087-the-demon-judge). Those rooting for the prosecutor and liking the amnesia trope could watch [One the Woman](https://mydramalist.com/683767-wonder-woman), while the other side was well represented by the public defenders in [Delayed Justice](https://mydramalist.com/61331-delayed-justice). And of course, the case wouldn’t be presented without the hard work of [Inspector Koo](https://mydramalist.com/686409-a-wonderful-sight) and, if we’re being honest, most grunt work is eventually carried out by the policemen, fresh out of the [Police University](https://mydramalist.com/684865-police-academy) (this last one is a good trash watch, but otherwise not good).
Not looking for comedy in your law drama? Three was always [Law School](https://mydramalist.com/62623-law-school) and [The Goddess of Revenge](https://mydramalist.com/60861-channel-o-hara-revenge).
And we’ve reached the inevitable rom-coms, which really shone through this year with stellar and unique concepts, as well as refined character-driven plots. There were three major ratings juggernauts in 2021. [Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha](https://mydramalist.com/683929-mr-hong), a lovely seashore village drama about life and moving on with two leads that bicker, heal, eat and discover the beauty of life together, the webtoon-based [True Beauty](https://mydramalist.com/38627-true-beauty) which checked off all the required kdrama tropes and basically took My ID Is Gangnam Beauty and made it somehow even more pretty (let’s be honest, we watched this one for the eye candy, not the plot), and finally, [Doom at Your Service](https://mydramalist.com/61489-destruction) with a truly stellar cast and concept and, admittedly, a wonky execution.
Looking for a more fresh take on the romcom genre? 2021 delivered with the absolutely adorably unhinged [Dali and the Cocky Prince](https://mydramalist.com/687131-dali-and-gamjatang) that you simply have to watch to understand how it takes a true power couple to pull off those outfits. Likewise, [Yumi’s Cells](https://mydramalist.com/60627-yumi-s-cell) was a breath of fresh air in the webtoon adaptation genre and was part lovely romcom part Pixar movie. Want more adorable romcoms? [Hello, Me!](https://mydramalist.com/61327-hi) would like to debate herself about some wrong life choices they’ve been doing, and [Mad for Each Other](https://mydramalist.com/79527-the-crazy-guy-in-the-district) lulls you in with comedy before pulling some pretty good emotional punches.
Fantasy romcom lovers should also seriously consider [My Roommate Is a Gumiho](https://mydramalist.com/62151-frightening-cohabitation), the best gumiho drama since My Girlfriend Is a Gumiho. Other, non fantasy romcoms include the long awaited [So I Married an Anti-Fan](https://mydramalist.com/30519-so-i-married-an-anti-fan), business webtoon adaptation [She Would Never Know](https://mydramalist.com/58511-sunbae-don-t-put-on-that-lipstick), watch-out-for-that-ending [Monthly Magazine Home](https://mydramalist.com/59909-monthly-house), kpop industry inspired [Imitation](https://mydramalist.com/75831-imitation), Mental illness/urology drama [You Raise Me Up](https://mydramalist.com/696959-you-raise-me-up) and a by-the-numbers [Casting a Spell to You](https://mydramalist.com/23113-mojito).
Second major trend in kdramas was the return of the **thriller** genre, which was lurking for the past few years as we were all seeking entertaining dramas.
Best thrillers of 2021? That’s easy, it’s undoubtedly the psychological thriller[Mouse](https://mydramalist.com/58953-mouse) and the gripping bromance of [Beyond Evil](https://mydramalist.com/60911-monster). Other close contenders for the role are [One Ordinary Day](https://mydramalist.com/685203-that-night), [Jirisan](https://mydramalist.com/57749-jirisan) about national park rangers (much better than it sounds, plus great scenery), the chaebol women-led power thriller [Mine](https://mydramalist.com/75937-blue-diamond) and the action-thriller [Awaken](https://mydramalist.com/53875-day-and-night).
Horror lovers enjoyed the thriller [Hometown](https://mydramalist.com/688745-hometown), while monster fans gravitated towards [Dark Hole](https://mydramalist.com/53097-dark-hole). other notable thriller dramas included [Voice Season 4: Judgment Hour](https://mydramalist.com/76615-voice-4), [Undercover](https://mydramalist.com/59121-undercover) and [The Road: The Tragedy of One](https://mydramalist.com/684039-birth-of-tragedy).
Of course, in a year with so many thrillers, some ended up being boring and repetitive, but if you’re a fan of the genre and have nothing to watch (and refuse to watch a different genre), these dramas also aired: [L.U.C.A.: The Beginning](https://mydramalist.com/52269-luca), [Reflection of You](https://mydramalist.com/76617-nobody-loved), [Times](https://mydramalist.com/62235-times), [Show Window: The Queen’s House](https://mydramalist.com/696043-queen-s-house) and [Chimera](https://mydramalist.com/34042-chemistry).
On the fringes of the thriller genre, the **action/mystery** genre had a strong showing, mainly with [The Uncanny Counter](https://mydramalist.com/62085-a-wonderful-rumor), a gripping demon hunting webtoon adaptation drawing its strengths from an ensemble of talented actors portraying diverse characters. Those looking for some covid-realness enjoyed [Happiness](https://mydramalist.com/690709-happiness) and [Taxi Driver](https://mydramalist.com/52921-model-taxi) was disappointingly not about taxis in Seoul, but instead a solid revenge-by-hire drama. Speaking of revenge, there was [My Name](https://mydramalist.com/65391-nemesis) and [D.P.](https://mydramalist.com/59001-d-p-dog-day), while [The Veil](https://mydramalist.com/680385-black-sun) satisfied secret agent fans and [Hellbound](https://mydramalist.com/57415-hell) divided opinions – but featured very impressive SFX.
We all love a good comeback story, and the biggest winner was **sageuks** which returned with a new king (or should I say [Mr Queen](https://mydramalist.com/58365-queen-cheorin)). Chemistry, romance, fantasy, comedy – this drama had it all, even for those who dislike the genre. A close second is [Secret Royal Inspector](https://mydramalist.com/62153-new-secret-royal-inspector). [Lovers of the Red Sky](https://mydramalist.com/22680-hong-chun-gi), [The King’s Affection](https://mydramalist.com/683673-affection) and [Secret Royal Inspector & Joy](https://mydramalist.com/685971-eosajoidyeon) were also here for lover of contemporary-ish sageuk romances.
On the other hand, those who love more historically accurate sageuks enjoyed (in the order from best to least good) [Bossam: Steal the Fate](https://mydramalist.com/63267-bossam-stealing-destiny), [The King of Tears, Lee Bang Won](https://mydramalist.com/707971-taejong-yi-bang-won) and [River Where the Moon Rises](https://mydramalist.com/68055-cut-to-heart).
Another unexpected resurrection happened to long-form dramas, which experimented with airing schedules and achieved shocking popularity with foreign viewers by diversifying from the makjang genre by mixing in some thriller or mystery. The very best example for this was [The Penthouse: War in Life](https://mydramalist.com/53535-penthouse) and its [second](https://mydramalist.com/680959-the-penthouse-season-2) and [third season](https://mydramalist.com/681515-the-penthouse-season-3), as well as [Love (ft. Marriage and Divorce)](https://mydramalist.com/71059-untitled-im-sung-han-project) and it’s [second half](https://mydramalist.com/688007-marriage-lyrics-for-divorce-music-2). those looking for a good family long-form drama should stick to [Be My Dream Family](https://mydramalist.com/683765-dreams-even-if-behind) and maybe consider [Homemade Love Story](https://mydramalist.com/58203-samgwang-villa-lovers) or [Revolutionary Sisters](https://mydramalist.com/66527-revolutionary-sisters), while makjang lovers will probably like [A Man in a Veil](https://mydramalist.com/63479-the-secret-man).
Still, this was not really enough to save the dailies – most were either boring ([No Matter What](https://mydramalist.com/64539-no-matter-what-anyone-says), [Phoneix](https://mydramalist.com/63425-phoenix), [The All-Round Wife](https://mydramalist.com/704533-national-team-wife), [Red Shoes](https://mydramalist.com/698837-without-blood-or-tears), [Miss Monte-Cristo](https://mydramalist.com/680367-miss-montecristo)), or fascinatingly bad ([My Wonderful Life](https://mydramalist.com/60779-my-perfect-life), [Amor Fati](https://mydramalist.com/694833-amor-fati), [A Good Supper](https://mydramalist.com/79797-be-a-meal)).
Thankfully, as most production companies and investments seemed to favour quality over quantity, Netflix was here to bring back the beloved 2019 category of kdramas called **OH HELL NO NETFLIX**. Starting with a strong contender, there’s [Nevertheless](https://mydramalist.com/72855-i-know-but) which began as a semi-strong viewing and had great actors and then.. sort of.. fell off a cliff in slow motion? The reviews are great fun, though! Not to be outdone, [Love Alarm Season 2](https://mydramalist.com/51007-love-alarm-season-2) also aired in 2021 and you have to wonder how upset everyone was waiting 2 years for the writers and producers to cook up this undeserving follow-up.
In the thriller arena, Netflix bought the rights to [Sisyphus: The Myth](https://mydramalist.com/43827-sisyphus-the-myth) which started off great and then disintegrated plot-wise as characters started behaving out of character, and produced [The Silent Sea](https://mydramalist.com/53487-the-silent-sea) which is very obviously a high-budget drama with impressive CGI and amazing actors that couldn’t save it from being mediocre. Also, those suffering from insomnia could look forward to [Artificial City](https://mydramalist.com/682225-duke-city)
Though it’s not like other streaming services didn’t invest in dumpster fires: those up for a romcom fantasy with a great cast might make it through a few episodes of [Oh My Landlord](https://mydramalist.com/69915-oh-master), lovingly brought to you by iQiyi, while AppleTV bought the rights for [High Class](https://mydramalist.com/680961-high-class) a thriller-wannabe snooze fest.
However, none of these dramas were truly worthy to be crowned as the biggest kdrama flops of 2021. Those looking for some real kdrama blunders and industry horrors should look no further than [Genesis](https://mydramalist.com/703407-clone-man), a drama which was announced in 2017 changed producers, started filming, stopped filming, went bankrupt, got sued and finally four years later released a messy 6-episode collage of disjointed scenes attempting to be a kdrama. Fun fact, by the time it got released, it was 3 years after Nana officially quit the main role and she was still somehow the female lead of the drama.
Luckily, Genesis had a relatively small impact as it was aired on a streaming platform, reserving the true worst blunder of 2021 for SBS, which produced, approved and started airing [Joseon Exorcist](https://mydramalist.com/60373-joseon-exorcist) (Park Sung Hoon and Jang Dong Yoon in a sageuk – yes, please) only to showcase a historical figure, king Taejong slaughtering innocent civilians and using Chinese props in Joseon. After a wildly popular petition and a barrage of complaints to the regulator, and with most major sponsors including Samsung and LG distancing themselves from the drama, SBS pulled the drama from air after only two episodes.
[번역 오류]
— 출처: https://www.reddit.com/r/KDRAMA/comments/1kfqqnz/rkdrama_and_the_dramas_that_stole_our_hearts_2021/
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