K-dramas Ratings/Top Ten

49 Days – 8/8

9 End, 2 Outs – 6/6

90 Days, Falling in Love Days – 3/5

A Man Called God – 6/5

A Star’s Lover – 7/6

Age of Feeling (Inspiring Generation) – 7/6

Air City – 6/5

All In – 6/7

Answer Me 1997 – 9/9

Answer Me 1994 – 6/7

Answer Me 1988 – 8/8

Arang and the Magistrate – 6/8

Autumn in My Heart – 8/6

Bad Family – 9.5/8

Bad Guy – 5/5

Bad Love – 4/5

Beautiful Days – 9/8

Be Strong Geum Soon! – 7.5/8

Best Love (The Greatest Love) – 7.5/8

Big – 9/5

Boys Before Flowers – 7/6

Bride of the Century – 9/8

Capital Scandal – 6/7

Cheongdamdong Alice – 6/6

Chuno – 7.5/9

Cinderella Unni – 7/7

City Hall – 10/9

Coffee Prince – 7.5/9

Conspiracy in the Court – 9/10

Cruel City (Heartless City) – 10/9

Damo – 10/10

Delightful Girl Choon Hyang – 5/6.5

Dream High – 8/7.5

Dr. Jin – 5/4

Dr. Stranger – 8/6

East of Eden – 4/5

Empress Ki – 7/7

Fantasy Couple – 6/7

Fashion 70’s – 7/8

Fashion King – 3/3

Flower Boy Next Door – 8/8

Flowers for My Life – 8/9.5

Friend, Our Legend – 9/9.5

Giant – 9/9

Gloria – 7/7

God’s Gift: 14 Days – 8/7.5

Goddess of Fire Jeongi – 4/4

Goddess of Marriage – 5/6

Goodbye Solo – 9/9

Goong – 9/7.5

Gourmet – 6/8

Green Rose – 8/8

Gu Family Book – 6/6

Healer – 7/8

Heard it Through the Grapevine – 8/9

Heirs – 7/7

Hero – 7/7.5

Hong Gil Dong – 8/8

Hyde, Jekyll, Me – 5/4

I Am Legend – 5/6

I Do I Do – 6/6

I Live in Cheongdamdong – 10/10

I Need Romance – 7/7

I Summon You, Gold – 4/3

Iljimae – 6/7.5

Invincible Lee Pyung Gyeon – 7/7

Ireland – 6/7

It’s Okay, It’s Love – 9/9

Jang Ok Jung, Live in Love – 7/6

Joseon Gunman – 9/8

Joseon X-Files – 10/10

Jumong – 7/9

Kill Me Heal Me – 9/9

Kim Soo Ro – 6/7

Lie to Me – 9.5/5

Love Marriage – 8/7

Lovers – 5/6

Lovers in Paris – 5/6

May Queen – 4/5

Marriage Not Dating – 6/7

Mary Stayed Out All Night – 8/5

Marry Him If You Dare (Mirae’s Choice) – 5/4

Me Too, Flower! – 8/7

Miss Korea – 9/9

Missing You (I Miss You) – 5/6

My Fair Lady – 7/5

My Girl – 7/8.5

My Love Patzzi – 4/5

My Lovely Girl – 6/5

My Name is Kim Sam Soon – 9.5/9.5

My Princess – 7/6.5

My Secret Hotel – 7/6

New Heart – 8.5/9

Nice Guy (The Innocent Man) – 9/8

OB/GYN – 7/7

Oh My Ghost – 8/8

On Air – 8/8

One Fine Day – 5/3

Only You – 8/6

Operation Proposal – 6/6

Painter of the Wind – 7/8

Pasta – 7/6

Personal Taste – 5/5

Pinocchio – 9/8.5

Playful Kiss – 9/6

President – 9/9

Pretty Boy (Bel Ami) – 8/7

Prime Minister and I – 9/8

Protect the Boss – 8/8

Queen of Housewives – 7.5/8

Remember (Son’s War) – 7/7

Resurrection/Revenge/Rebirth – 10/9.5

Robbers – 6/6

Sang Doo, Let’s Go to School – 9.5/9

Save the Last Dance for Me – 7/7

Scholar Who Walked the Night – 6.5/6

Secret Garden – 6/8

Secret Love Affair – 9/9.5

Seodongyo – 9/6.5

She is Nineteen – 8.5/7

Sly and Single Again (Cunning Single Lady) – 7/8

Snow Queen – 8/8

Spring Waltz – 5/6.5

Spy Myung Wol – 4/4

Stairway to Heaven – 3/4

Summer Scent – 7/7

Super Rookie – 6/6.5

Surgeon Bong Dal Hee – 7.5/8

Swallow the Sun – 5.5/7

Tamra the Island – 9.5/8.5

Tazza – 6/7

Temptation of an Angel – 6/6

Temptation – 7/7

Thank You – 8/8

The Blade and Petal (Sword and Flower) – 8/7

The Devil/Mawang – 8/9

The Duo – 9/9

The Girl Who Sees Smells – 9/7

The King 2 Hearts – 9/8

The Kingdom of the Winds – 5/7

The Master’s Sun – 6/7

The Princess’s Man – 9/9

The Suspicious Housekeeper – 8/8

The Time I Loved You – 7/5

The Woman Who Still Wants to Marry – 9/9

Time Between Dog and Wolf – 9.9/9

Triple – 4/6

Two Weeks – 9/8

War of Money – 3/4

Warm and Cozy – 5/6

What Happened in Bali? – 9/9

What Star are You From? – 6/6

What’s With This Family – 8/8

When a Man Loves – 5/6

When It’s at Night – 7/6

Who Are You (Yoon Kye Sang version) – 8/8

Who Are You (Kim Jae Wook version) – 6/6

Will You Love and Give It Away? – 6/6

Winter Sonata – 7/7

Wish Upon a Star – 7/7

Witch Amusement – 4/6

Wonderful Days – 8/8

Yongpal – 7/8

You’re Beautiful – 8/8

You From Another Star – 8/8.5

Any drama I rated 8 or higher on the objective quality scale (second number) is a drama I would recommend for whatever genre it falls under.

MY TEN FAVORITE K-DRAMAS (in no particular order, and no testament to the quality of said drama – only that I liked them so very much):

– Time Between Dog and Wolf – Guns, amnesia, undercover operatives, beautiful first love, gorgeous overseas locale, stellar soundtrack, and, oh yeah, six different versions of Lee Jun Ki. I think that about sums it up. HK cops procedural combined perfectly with Korean melo-angst.

– What Happened in Bali – THE love triangle to end all love triangle debates – even the leading lady isn’t so sure who she loves. Outstanding acting by everyone involved. You won’t stop thinking about it for awhile after you finish watching it.

– City Hall – Mature, sexy, sizzling romance wrapped in a feel-good shell of a political fairy tale. The single best ending to a drama I have ever watched. It gives you everything you want, and then some more.

– Tamra the Island – Fun, poignant, dreamy – a fairy tale for young and old, innocent and jaded. Breathtaking cinematography, lyrical soundtrack, and the introduction of Team Park Kyu to the world.

– Damo – Naeuri-ahhhhhh! *collapses into a heap of tears and sobs*

– My Name is Kim Sam Soon – Not over-rated at all. Deserving of every accolade and recommendation. A romantic comedy where being unmarried and nearly on-the-shelf is not sugar-coated, but the possibility of romance is still heart-thumpingly good.

– Seodongyo – The drama that introduced me to K-dramas. You can call my love for it nostalgia, but its good on every re-watch. The one sageuk where the romance is given equal treatment with the historical intrigue. The OTP gets thrown every obstacle in the world, but you get all the ooey-gooey sweet moments and the forceful separations. In the end, you also get your happy ending.

– Beautiful Days – The only early Hallyu drama I adore to pieces. Watched it for the first time nearly ten years after it first aired, and everything worked perfectly to deliver the melodrama with the catharsis and the romance.

– Lie to Me – The qualitative absolute worst drama in this group, but quite possibly personally made me the happiest. The only drama to make me tangibly feel like I am experiencing falling in love all over again through two people onscreen.

– Sang Doo, Let’s Go To School – A story about first love, nurtured by the quiet strength of a man and the perseverance of a woman, a love story so pure and untainted that it reminds you that love is truly a beautiful thing to see.

THE TOP TEN K-DRAMAS I’VE WATCHED (again in no particular order, the best is my subjective standard of quality only, and I’m judging each drama within the standards of it’s respective genres – also, there are so very many K-dramas I have not yet watched):

– Mawang/The Devil

– Friends, Our Legend

– Goodbye Solo

– My Name is Kim Sam Soon

– City Hall

– Damo

– Joseon X-Files/Secret Investigation Record

– Giant

– Conspiracy in the Court

– Resurrection


Comments

K-dramas Ratings/Top Ten — 22 Comments

  1. Hiiii… you should watch dong yi!!! It’s korean historical drama but it is one of the best!! U like bbjx so u should like this one…

  2. Hey,
    Sorry but the heirs was the best korean drama I’ve ever seen,but intthis rating it has gotten 7/7.
    Min ho & Shin hye has also chosen as best couple.

    • One of my favorite historical Kdramas I’ve seen was DAE JANG GEUM aka Jewel in the Palace except I hated everything about Min Jeong Ho (the guy she marries). My second favorite historical drama had to be to QUEEN SEON DEOK (only up until Mishil err departure, of course). I loved Mishil so much that I even rooted for her! lol

  3. Koala-unnie!
    Don’t know if you’ve checked out Rooftop Prince yet. Just finished the marathon and it hurts so good. (Plus it’s hilarious)
    Reminds me of BBJX in reverse haha

  4. So, I juuuuust finished Prime Minister and I after marathoning it in the last 2 and a half days. What, I was home sick! Finishing a drama in 2 days is totally acceptable! Ahem, going off topic. LOL

    Anyway, since our taste in dramas are similar (City Hall…Lie to me *coughcough*), I was really curious as to how you’d rate PM and I. I loved it, and the ending fits the theme of the whole thing even if it kinda fizzed out a bit I think, but boyyy, am I a bit disappointed too. I wanted to see more actual shippy scenes between and I kept waiting for a real kiss that never came. I’m so shallow, I knooooow. *facepalm* So yeah, that’s why I’d probably give it a 7 and a half out of 8.

    On a side note, OMG I miss having epic convos with you à la LTM!

    On another note, before PM and I I started rewatching King 2 Hearts, but I had to stop before The Thing We Shall All Forget It Ever Happened. I can’t go through that again, omg! OTOH, I also wanna see the ending. IDK what to dooooo XD

  5. How come that’s the only rate for HEALER???…That’s absurd… Koala’s the ONLY one with this such kind of rating for Healer….. I’ve read a lot of bloggers and their ratings, but this one is SOOO way way out, doesn’t blend with the rest… As well, as with the other dramas, DISAGREE with those rates… Anyway, that’s Koala’s perceptions… But I have my conclusion already with the website… NEVER RELY on THIS again….

    • I liked Healer but it was nothing stellar. I thought it was a sugarcoated melodrama with the my-father-might-have-killed-your-father + the birth secrets + forgotten childhood stuff. So-so ending too. But I do understand why others loved it so much and I acknowledge its addictiveness even though I did not experience it. The adorable otp(plus ahjumma) elevated the drama.

      But then again different strokes for different folks so yeah.

  6. I will recommend you to watch six flying dragons,and all I have seen a lot of blogs,the rating for boys over flowers is low for me. although that’s for you not for me.

  7. Ugh, I watched “What happened in Bali” years ago and regretted watching it because the ending was not a happy one. The love triangle definitely ended with a triple bang! Definitely not a fan of that drama.

  8. My favourite Korean dramas: Good Doctor, Are you Human too? Jumong, Dae Jang Geum, The Princess’ Man, Grand Prince, Gu Family Book, Tale of Nokdu, Arang and the Magistrate (so far…)

  9. I love the list and I have a pick of my own favorite dramas of which Boys Before Flowers and A Man Called God tops the list. I have not seen all of them though but I know for sure that this was useful as I am planning on seeing the ones that I have not seen. I will like it if you could visit my site for something I shared recently. You can use this link to get there, I appreciate it.Thank you a lot for the list.

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