Happy End of the Year! Which means it is time for our best, worst, wtf, and most eye rolling dramas for 2019. We didn’t watch as many dramas this year as we would have liked, but we did get enough in to have an opinion. We even watched a few Korean movies that we can add to the list!
In this list are our favorites of the year all the way to our most rage inducing dramas of the year. We also have fun tidbits like the best endings, worst endings, and gUiLty pleasures. So let’s get into it!
FAVORITE DRAMA
Hands down, it has to be The Crowned Clown. Best story, best cinematography, and Best acting. Y’all, this show may as well be a religion because it lifted me to a spiritual level with its acting and directorial choices. I mean, that beach scene alone hit me so in the heart that I needed to take a break from my gushing all over the internet about it. So Good.
Runner Ups: The Tale of Nokdu (so fun, a wonderful adventure!)
WORST DRAMA
Sorry to say it, but Melting Me Softly. What were they even thinking? Nothing was consistent in this show. One scene to the next wasn’t even consistent. I mean, one moment they are waking up deep in the hills on the outskirts of the city, and the next they are stumbling along the streets of downtown Seoul? And the walked there! Plus, it may as well be a drama that was filmed in all flashbacks, because that was their go to editorial choice. The second episode was a-a-all flashbacks. I was confused AND bored which is no easy feat.
Runner Ups: Kill it (though I strangely loved watching it)
FAVORITE ROMANCE
The Tale of Nokdu! Not only a favorite romance, it is also a favorite historical drama and favorite of the year right along with The Crowned Clown. I love how this couple was put through hilarious moments and then heart clinging moments and it all ended in a happy ending that felt earned! One of our favorite dramas of the year, though since that spot is taken by The Crowned Clown, it has to settle on our favorite romance which isn’t a bad spot to be in.
Runner Ups: all I can say is The Crowned Clown, even though that is not really a romance.
WORST ROMANCE
Extraordinary You (I know, I know, what happened!). Extraordinary You is the worst romance because these characters are stuck in a world that gives me anxiety and has no real solution on how to make it better. There wasn’t really a happily ever after for them, it was just a happily-for-right-now-hopefully type of ending. The opening 4-6 episodes were amazingly fun, but then it started to write itself into a corner and never was able to get out of it.
Runner Ups: When the Camellia Blooms (not a romance at all)
MOST ANTICIPATED DRAMA WINNER
This has to go to Hotel Del Luna which had all star writers (The Hong Sisters) and one of the biggest stars in Korea in IU. It was hyped due to being a Hong sister’s Drama and hyped because IU was attached and hyped because Yeo Jin-gu was coming right off of The Crowned Clown that was universally loved. Good thing it lived up to the hype! The ending epilogue was choose your own adventure style, so just ignore that and you are good.
Runner Ups: Arthdal Chronicles (not a ratings winner, but I loved it)
MOST ANTICIPATED DRAMA FAIL
How can anyone say that it isn’t Vagabond? I mean, if that shows ending wasn’t a cluster F* then perhaps this show would have been an okay win. But the price per episode + the craziness of the entire show + with how far back its air date kept being pushed + that ending = WTF? Which is what makes this drama the most anticipated and biggest fail of 2019.
Runner Ups: Flower Crew Marriage Agency (what even was this show?)
BEST ENDING OF THE YEAR
This might go to The Tale of Nokdu because everything I wanted to happen in the ending actually happened! My heart was so warmed, y’all. The ending to this show made me so happy and basically made this drama my newest #1 recommend to newbie Korean drama watchers.
WORST ENDING OF THE YEAR
There are so many contenders. But I think Vagabond is right up there for the worst ending of all time because it basically ended the show on the opening shot of the show. I mean what? That ending was so horrible that I laughed for days.
Runner Ups: Kill It (also laughed hysterically), Arthdal Chronicles (not really their fault as they were not green lit for a season 2 and they had a nice epilogue to let us know what they had planned), He is Psychometric (hated it!).
MOST WELL DONE DRAMA
VIP has to make this list because it is so well done. From the flashbacks to the acting to the cool blue tones of it, it is really great. I also liked being a fly on the wall of the rich elite in Korea and their debauchery. The ending was thoroughly annoying, but it was also something that I could see possibly going that way in real life, so I will give it a pass. I will also give it a pass because our heroine came out on top. What what!
Runner Ups: Strangers From Hell (wonderfully scary)
MOST RAGE INDUCING DRAMA
He is Psychometric, ugh. The entire show was great until that ending came and made me want to burn my computer to forget I ever watched this show at all. So yeah, it should be locked up in jail for inciting arson.
Runner Ups: When the Camellia Blooms (a depressing depress fest disguised as a romantic-comedy)
GUILTY PLEASURE WATCH OF 2019
Kill It! Gah, I don’t even know what they were thinking when they made this show. It is all kinds of wrong and yet they are acting as if it is the most important thing ever which makes it satirical in a way, and then that ending sent it up into la la land which made it even better? I don’t know. It is not a recommend at all, but I actually loved watching it. Don’t tell anyone.
FAVORITE MOVIE
Parasite, of course. I mean that basically goes without saying as it is the movie that was blessed throughout the world for being amazing. I am in the group that loved it even though I don’t think I will ever watch it again. But I would happily watch it again with a newbie so I can see their reactions! A second recommend would be Exit, which was a lot of fun.
Runner Ups: Sabaha (a good scary watch), Exit (so fun!),
WORST MOVIE
This is not a crowded list as we only saw five Korean movies combined this year (Parasite, The Divine Fury, Exit, Sabaha, Trade Your Love, and Tune in for Love), but even so, I think Tune in for Love makes the worst list with how it ended and in how bored I was while watching some parts of it. We watched this with our live watch and I have to say I spent most of my time chatting than watching because I was so bored out of my mind. Then the ending happened that confused us all.
Runner Ups: The Divine Fury (good with a group), Trade Your Love (more like a streaming movie)
And that is our Best, Worst, & WTF dramas of the year! It wasn’t really the best year for drama watching to me, though I also did not watch that many dramas so that probably ties into it. I heard that there were some really good ones over the summer that we missed.
So, let us know your best, worst, and most eye rolling dramas of the year! We would love to know!
Opposite for me. The only make sense the tale of nokdu ending is Nokdu abandoning his bio father. Everthing is too sugarcoated and doesn’t has emotional character consistency for me. In terms of politics, Yulmu becoming the king with his smirk at the of the drama and showing the fan servicefor about 30 min happiness piss me off the most.
@missjb
You got to chill. I see you posting similar comments on almost every drama site from mydramalist to koalaplayground and etc. it’s just a show, not everyone in the world needs to know that you hate tales of nokdu. I’ve never seen so much energy spent hating on a show by going through so many portals. I’ve beginning to think you have a vendetta against someone in the show or something, did they kick your mom or something? What a waste of energy on disliking something so much.
Well… I just want to vent my frustation through this forum who already spent my 16 hours of my life watching tale of Nokdu, and that ending it’s pissing me so much. I’m not exagerating like fly to Korea and bomb the writers house or or something.
It’s not I hate happy ending. But that 30 min of happiness is too jarring and ignoring emotional attach the character has to get through. It’s just like a different drama all together. Talk ending talk about lazy writing. Like time jump can solve everything cards and can change everyone motivation.
Author
We welcome all vents. Lord knows I have had mine! 😉
Thank you so much dramamilk for all the recaps and commentary, it always makes my day! Happy New Years!
Author
Thank you so much, Jo! And Happy New year! We hope to get even more recaps in this year!
Happy year to all!!! I agree with almost all your comments and preferences but I must recognize that the drama that has been most caught, reading your anticipations, watching the Korean drama waiting for the subtitled video and reverting it again: it’s V.I.P.2019. The most disappointing was Vagabond followed by Melting Me Softly.
Thank you very much for your work!
PS .: don’t forget that this is just fiction hahahaha
Author
Right! It is all fiction 🙃. Happy New Year!
I LOVE HE IS PSYCHOMETRIC’S ENDING!! I guess each show really has their own audience. I am so in love with the ending LOL I thought it wrapped up very nicely.
My favorites this year gotta be Arthdal Chronicles, Be Melodramatic, WATCHER, The Lies Within, Kingdom and He is Psychometric!
Author
I am so glad you loved the ending to He is Psychometric! That entire show was amazing, but I hated the ending, so that made me dislike the whole show with a passion. Which is a pity, sigh. I need to check out Be Melodramatic! I heard good things about it. And The Kthree raves about The Lies Within, so now that you mention it as well, I think I need to check it out!
I’ve got to second Watcher and The Lies Within!! I feel like with both these dramas I’m constantly trying to come up with my own theories, rather than most of them where I just let the story run its course 😛
I feel like I’ve never had someone share Kill It’s opinion with me, but damn you are spot on! I loved watching the drama for the actors (even though there were complaints of Nana always being typecasted and not showing any new sides etcetc), I actually enjoyed it even with the horrible ending and a questionable progression through its plot.
Author
Right! It is such a strange show. Not a recommend and yet I liked it 🙃.
The Tale of Nokdu was my best for 2019! I was so much into saeguks last year that even if you didn’t like Flower Crew: Joseon Marriage Agency, I liked it a lot. Another period drama of 2019 that I loved was Rookie Historian Goo Hae Ryung. All of them had addicting storylines.
Long live historical K-dramas!
Author
I need to watch Rookie Historian, I heard good things!
I agree with you 100% when it comes to Melting Me Softly, I usually don’t drop dramas but with this one, I felt myself losing brain cells with each new episode. I hope Ji Chang Wook’s next project goes a lot better. As for Vagabond, I made an attempt to watch an episode with a friend but dropped it as action centred shows bore me. Judging from the reviews I’ve been seeing, I daresay that was a good decision haha
Also, Tale of Nokdu was the highlight of my 2019, it brought me out of a year-long drama slump, The chemistry was A++ and I even watched episodes live for the first time because I couldn’t wait for subs. My only gripe is that the last few episodes had a bit too much fighting for my liking but other than that I enjoyed every minute.