No fast forwarding or dropping halfway through here!
My preferences are for quirky characters, romance, witty dialogue, strong female leads and personal growth of at least one of the main lead characters.
This list is continually being updated as I find or complete them. Some are also not available in my region or I haven’t realised the alternative name - Lol! 
Cover image is from Where Stars Land (2018).

Dramas that I’ve watched and liked

Lee Soo Yeon (Lee Je Hoon) was forced to give up on his dream of becoming a pilot due to his poor vision. Dejected, he instead takes a job in the planning department at Incheon International Airport. He also has a secret that keeps him distant from his coworkers. Everything changes for him when the cheery but clumsy Han Yeo Reum (Chae Soo Bin) becomes a passenger service agent. Yeo Reum strives for perfection at work, but her emotions sometimes get the better of her. This puts her on a collision course with Soo Yeon, and they clash on several occasions. Can these two very different colleagues settle their differences... and allow love to take flight? This 2018 South Korean drama series was directed by Shin Woo Cheol.

Where Stars Land

I Believe I Can Fly

Bae Ta Mi (Im Soo Jung), a brilliant tech director at search engine platform Unicon, sees her career crash after being betrayed by her mentor, Song Ga Gyeong (Jeon Hye Jin). Desperate to repair her reputation, she joins rival company Baro, although their director Cha Hyeon (Lee Da Hee) often comes across as a contrarian. As she navigates corporate politics and romantic interest from Park Morgan (Jang Ki Yong), a talented video game music composer, Ta Mi must determine if she can balance the thrill of revenge with the complexities of love. This 2019 South Korean drama was directed by Jung Ji Hyun and Kwon Young Il.

Search: WWW

Team Connected

Kim Tan (Lee Min Ho)’s wealthy parents have been grooming him to take over the lucrative family business, the Empire Group, since he was just a young boy. His jealous older half-brother Kim Won (Choi Jin Hyuk) – already a successful executive at the firm – is a constant thorn in Tan’s side. Tan, meanwhile, is engaged to an heiress, Rachel Ryu (Kim Ji Won), the scion of a powerful, hotel-owning family. But while he is studying in the United States, Tan meets and falls for Cha Eun Sang (Park Shin Hye), unaware that she is the daughter of his family’s housekeeper. As super-rich families hatch plans for their children’s future, could love put an end to their ambitious schemes? This 2013 South Korean drama series was directed by Kang Shin Hyo and Boo Sung Chul.

Heirs

The Heirs Team

No Ji Wook (Ji Chang Wook) is a successful public prosecutor whose life changes suddenly after intern Eun Bong Hee (Nam Ji Hyun) joins his team. The duo becomes close, but things get chaotic when Bong Hee is wrongly accused of murdering her ex-boyfriend. Ji Wook pulls out all the stops to help Bong Hee – jeopardizing his stellar career in the process. Ji Wook and Bong Hee realize that the only way out of this mess for both of them is to track down the real killer. But will they close the net in time? And could they find love together as they hunt this cunning criminal?

Suspicious Partner

The Suspicious Team

Dragon TV

Tong Nian (Yang Zi) might be a brilliant IT programming student, but when it comes to love, her score is anything but perfect. Having fallen for Hang Shang Yan (Li Xian), one of the best pro gamers in the world, Nian tries everything she can think of to get Shang Yan’s attention. Sadly, no matter how hard she tries, she always ends up failing miserably. Will she ever find a way to catch the eye of a man who never seems to notice anyone? Based on the novel “Stewed Squid with Honey” by Mo Bao Fei Bao, this 2019 Viki Original Chinese romantic comedy series was directed by Li Qing Rong and Xiang Xu Jing.

Go Go Squid!

🍯 Honey Stewed Squid! 🐙 

SET TV

Ji Wen Kai (Aaron Yan) and Zhong Yu Tang (Joanne Tseng), childhood rivals with contrasting academic performances, find their roles dramatically reversed years later. After Yu Tang excels at MUSE Cosmetics and becomes a top secretary poised for promotion, Wen Kai, who previously struggled academically, returns as the company's new CEO after working abroad. Their unexpected reunion sparks tension as Wen Kai becomes Yu Tang's demanding boss, challenging her professional capabilities. Their competitive history and current power dynamics create a complex workplace relationship filled with potential romantic and professional challenges. As they navigate their new roles, they must confront their past perceptions and current professional expectations. This is a 2016 Taiwanese romantic comedy series that explores workplace dynamics and personal growth.

Refresh Man

The Marvelous Rivals

Tencent TV

Seventeen-year-old high school friends and neighbors Chen Xiao Xi (Shen Yue) and Jiang Chen (Hu Yi Tian) have grown up together. Although they share a close bond, they’re very different: Xiao Xi is easygoing and doesn’t like to study much, while Jiang Chen is known as an A student and is well-liked because of his good looks. Despite their differences, Xiao Xi has a secret crush on her childhood friend, and Jiang Chen pretends he doesn’t notice or care, but his feelings for his neighbor aren’t entirely platonic either. As they begin the transition into adulthood, will they finally have the courage to take their relationship out of the friendzone? This 2017 Chinese drama series was based on the novel “To Our Pure Little Beauty” by Zhao Gang An and was directed by Yang Long.

A Love So Beautiful

Pure Love Team

JTBC

Once bullied for her looks, Kang Mi Rae (Im Soo Hyang) undergoes a dramatic transformation through plastic surgery, only to face new challenges in college when people ridicule her for altering her appearance. Reconnecting with Do Kyung Suk (Cha Eun Woo), who values inner beauty over appearances, Mi Rae finds herself caught between external judgment and internal growth. As Kyung Suk stands up for her against harsh labels and superficial commentary, Mi Rae starts to reclaim her confidence and realizes that true beauty is about who you are on the inside… and starts to sense that she and Kyung Suk might become more than just friends. This 2018 Korean drama was adapted from the webtoon of the same name by Maenggi Ki and was directed by Choi Sung Bum.

My ID Is Gangnam Beauty

The Beauty Lovers

JSTV

Computer science major Bei Wei Wei (Zheng Shuang) wants to become a leading video game developer who is known for her skills, not just her good looks. She spends her free time on a role-playing video game, but is in for a complete shock one day when her “online husband” dumps her. In another twist, the game’s leading player makes her an “online proposal.” She accepts, and the duo draws close in the virtual world. However, she soon learns that her new online “spouse” is someone she knows in real life: her college senior Xiao Nai (Yang Yang). The pair begin to spend time together both online and in the physical world. Could their online chemistry lead them to romance in the real world, too? This 2016 Chinese drama was based on the novel of the same name by Gu Man and was directed by Lin Yu Fen.

Love O2O

The Love O2O Team

Nam Sae Hee (Lee Min Ki), a socially awkward IT employee in his early 30s, has exhausted his savings buying a house, leaving him financially strained. Yoon Ji Ho (Jung So Min), a struggling writer in her 30s, finds herself homeless and struggling to make ends meet. When Ji Ho becomes a tenant in Sae Hee's house, their unexpected living arrangement sets the stage for a unique relationship. As they navigate their personal, familial, and financial challenges together, they begin to discover unexpected connections and support in each other's lives. Their journey raises questions about love, survival, and personal growth in difficult economic circumstances. This is a 2017 South Korean drama series directed by Park Joon Hwa.

Because This Is My First Life

The Scrimp & Scrape Team

Born from a long line of women gifted with monumental strength, Do Bong Soon (Park Bo Young) is far from ordinary. Only able to use her power for good, Bong Soon agrees to work as a bodyguard for Ahn Min Hyeok (Park Hyung Sik), the recently endangered chaebol heir and CEO of gaming company Ainsoft. With dreams of developing a video game of her own, Bong Soon hopes that by working with Min Hyeok, she’ll find a way to turn her dreams into reality. Meanwhile, her childhood friend, Detective Gook Doo (Ji Soo), is on the hunt for a kidnapper whose path soon crosses with Bong Soon. Using her gifts for the greatest good, will Bong Soon find her life full of everything she’s dreamed of and more? This is a 2017 South Korean romantic comedy series directed by Lee Hyung Min.

Shows