Have you watched all of our best Korean dramas this year? Check out our top shows of 2024 – from "Lovely Runner" to "Family by Choice," you'll definitely find a new favorite.

BEST KOREAN DRAMAS of 2024

Im Sol (Kim Hye Yoon) is devastated by the sudden and tragic death of her favorite star, Ryu Sun Jae (Byun Woo Seok), a former swimmer turned K-pop idol. But in the midst of her anguish, she magically time slips back to 2008 – when Sun Jae is still only 19 years old! Delighted that she has a chance to help him avert his unhappy future fate, Sol makes it her mission to change the future... and maybe find love along the way. Will her efforts to divert the course of the past prove successful – or could they have unexpected consequences? This 2024 South Korean drama was adapted from a web novel named “The Best of Tomorrow” by Kim Bbang and was directed by Kim Tae Yeop and Yoon Jong Ho.

Lovely Runner

✨ The Marvellous ✨ team

JTBC

Once a convict, Seo Ji Hwan (Um Tae Goo) is now a successful, albeit overly cautious CEO, who has yet to experience any of life’s more enjoyable pleasures: namely falling in love. But all that changes when fate brings beloved children’s content creator Go Eun Ha (Han Sun Hwa) into his life. The unlikely pair find love most unexpectedly but Eun Ha’s longtime fan, Prosecutor Jang Hyeon U (Kwon Yool) isn’t ready to let her go without a fight. Directed by Kim Young Hwan and Kim Woo Hyun, this 2024 South Korean romantic comedy series was adapted from the web novel “The Woman Who Plays” by Park Soo Jung.

My Sweet Mobster

Barbie Girl in a Mobster World

Go Young (Nam Yoon Su), a gay Korean man, lives with Mi Ae (Lee Soo Kyung), a straight woman. Through Mi Ae's eyes, Go Young embarks on a journey of personal growth. He struggles with his relationship with his mother, who's in denial about his sexual orientation, and is forced to part ways with his lover Gyu Ho (Jin Ho Eun) due to societal pressure. Recovering from his breakup, Go Young takes a trip to Thailand with a stranger, and manages to learn more about himself in the process. Can Go Young reach the personal enlightenment he desires? This 2024 Korean drama features Heo Jin Ho, Hong Ji Young, Son Tae Kyeom, and Kim Se In as directors for different episodes, based on the novel of the same name by Park Sang Young.

Love in the Big City

🌈 Closets are for Clothes

Cha Eun Gyeong (Jang Na Ra), a star lawyer with 17 years of experience, is renowned for her no-nonsense approach and dedication to her firm’s success. However, her personal life begins to unravel, adding new layers of complexity to her professional challenges. Amidst this turmoil, she encounters Han Yu Ri (Nam Ji Hyun), a rookie lawyer with a strong sense of justice and a fresh perspective. Unlike Eun Gyeong, Yu Ri prioritizes her clients’ needs and is determined to fight against injustice, leading to frequent clashes with the veteran lawyer. Despite their differences, the two women gradually learn to draw strength and inspiration from each other, transforming their initial friction into a powerful partnership. Kim Ga Ra directed this 2024 South Korean law office series.&nbsp;

Good Partner

Despite not being biologically related, Kim Sanha (Hwang In Youp), Yoon Juwon (Jung Chaeyeon), and Kang Haejun (Bae Hyeonseong) share a close bond with each other. The trio spent their adolescence raised by Juwon's father Jeongjae (Choi Won Young) and Sanha's father Daeuk (Choi Moo Sung), who did their best to give them a happy childhood as they healed from past trauma. Upon reaching adulthood, however, Sanha and Haejun sought out their biological families, leaving Juwon behind. Ten years later, the five members of their found family reunite, but things aren't the same as they used to be – Juwon holds some resentment after feeling abandoned by Sanha and Haejun, while the two boys are struggling with new romantic feelings for Juwon and their own familial issues. Can these chosen siblings work out their feelings with each other, and will romance form between them? This drama was adapted from the 2020 Chinese drama "Go Ahead."

Family by Choice

Heartfelt Family Team

Five years after her time studying abroad in Japan, Choi Hong (Lee Se Young) works at her father's publishing company in Korea. Unexpectedly, she ends up running into her ex, Jungo Aoki (Kentaro Sakaguchi), who's now a successful author visiting Korea to promote his new book... that happens to be about their previous relationship and all the things Jungo wished he told Hong. Taken aback, Hong remains cold and distant with Jungo, not wanting to let their reunion stir up painful memories. Jungo, however, sees their encounter as an opportunity to try again and vows to do things differently this time around. Can these two heal the wounds of their past and write a new happy ending for themselves, or has the book closed for good on their relationship? This 2024 Korean drama was directed by Moon Hyun Sung and adapted from the novel of the same name by Gong Ji Young and Hitonari Tsuji.

What Comes After Love

Nostalgic

Former special forces member turned liquor salesperson Chae Yong Ju (Kim Se Jeong) is her company's top seller, known for her energetic personality and incredible strength, although she tends to put her own feelings aside to help others. However, when her company branch is at risk of closing down, Yong Ju is willing to do whatever it takes to keep it open. She decides to recruit Yun Min Ju (Lee Jong Won), an up-and-coming brewmaster who makes incredible beer, but the task is harder than it looks: Min Ju lives a quiet, rural life, keeping to himself to avoid becoming overstimulated by others' emotions. Can these two opposites find a way to work together – and will learning how to let each other in lead them to love? This 2024 Korean drama was directed by Park Seon Ho.

Brewing Love

🍺 Craft Love 🍻 Team

KBS2

Cha Jeong Woo (Lee Min Ki) is one of the best plastic surgeons in the country, possessing great anatomical knowledge and surgical skill. However, his bedside manner is sorely lacking, and he's known for his poor communication towards patients. His reputation comes crashing down when a suicide case was linked to his refusal of a patient's surgery. To rehabilitate his image, Jeong Woo starts working on a new group of patients – victims of violent crimes who need reconstructive surgery. In the process, Jeong Woo crosses paths with homicide detective Lee Min Hyeong (Han Ji Hyeon), and while they initially butt heads, they begin to respect each other as Jeong Woo helps Min Hyeong solve crimes. However, during their investigations, an old mystery resurfaces: is there something more behind the incident that cost Jeong Woo's past lover her life?

Face Me

The lives of Seok Ji Won (Ju Ji Hoon) and Yun Ji Won (Jung Yu Mi) have always been connected: their families, feuding for generations, both had children on the same day and named them both "Ji Won." Growing up, they appeared to defy their family history by falling in love in high school, but the relationship ended badly when Seok Ji Won moved away from their hometown. Now, as adults in their 30s, they've unexpectedly reunited at their alma mater – Seok Ji Won is the high school's new chairman, while Yun Ji Won works as a P.E. teacher. Their reunion brings anger, resentment, and buried emotions back to the surface, and the two are forced to confront both each other and their unresolved past. Can they manage to find love again, or is their relationship best left in the dust?

Love Your Enemy

💓Friends or Foes Team💔

The Crown Prince Yi Geon (Suho) is betrothed to Myeong Yun (Hong Ye Ji), the Royal Physician's daughter, but she's afflicted with a curse that dooms her to becoming a widow. To try and circumvent this, the Royal Physician decides to kidnap a random man to marry her instead – but he accidentally snags Yi Geon himself while the Crown Prince was sneaking out of the palace. When the two awaken mid-ritual, Myeong Yun, unaware of Yi Geon’s true identity, helps him escape. Upon returning to the palace, Yi Geon finds the court in turmoil and learns he is now a target of the Queen Dowager. With no one left to trust, he flees once more – this time turning to Myeong Yun for help. Can he uncover the truth behind the power struggle threatening both his life and the throne? This series is a spin-off of the 2021 drama "Bossam - Steal the Fate."

Missing Crown Prince

Abducted by love Team 💕

Lee Han Shin (Go Soo), a former lawyer turned parole examiner, is dedicated to preventing inmates from exploiting the parole system through money, connections, or deceit – however, he's compassionate to people who are unjustly imprisoned, helping them whenever possible. Han Shin teams up with ace detective An Seo Yun (Kwon Yu Ri) and unexpected ally legendary loan shark Choi Hwa Ran (Baek Ji Won) with the ultimate goal of confronting Ji Myeong Seop (Lee Hak Joo), a second-generation family business heir who believes he's above the law. Can this unlikely group succeed in its battle against corruption?

Parole Examiner Lee

Guardians of Justice Team

Ju Eun Ho (Shin Hae Sun) is a fourteen-year veteran news announcer who struggles to make an impact at work due to her reserved personality, especially compared to her ex-boyfriend Hyun Oh (Lee Jin Uk), who became a star announcer shortly after joining the station. However, Eun Ho has a secret double life – after her sister's mysterious disappearance and her difficult breakup after an eight-year relationship with Hyun Oh, she developed an alternate dissociated identity named Hye Ri, a happy-go-lucky parking attendant. Things get even more complicated when Kang Ju Yeon (Kang Hoon), a former military officer turned newbie announcer, falls in love with Hye Ri at first sight, not knowing the whole truth about her identity. Eun Ho must balance her need to find out what happened to her sister with navigating her complicated relationship with Hyun Oh and Hye Ri's budding romance with Ju Yeon – is there any way she can find happiness and closure for herself? This 2024 Korean drama was directed by Jung Ji Hyun and Han Seok Won.

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