Hi, it’s me, your favourite – okay maybe only – geeky Kdrama enthusiast. I know it’s been a while since the first introductory post in this series, but I bring a peace offering in the form of more shows to check out. And because we got into this all because of Squid Game, that smash hit is going to guide this selection of titles.

First though, honourable mention goes to these tonally similar movies that could be a watch for you.

Parasite

The Oscar-winning Parasite was a big push for more people to get comfortable with subtitles and Korean entertainment. Bong Joon Ho’s film is a smart, entertaining takedown of the filthy rich who don’t notice the humanity of the rest of us; not to mention the sheer desperation, and steps taken by so many of us, to escape soul-destroying poverty. Sound familiar?

Train to Busan

Train to Busan is a modern horror classic for a reason. And not just because of the now internationally recognisable faces of Gong Yoo (lead in this, but you’ll recognise him as the slappy recruiter in Squid Game), Choi Wook Shik (one of the stars of Parasite) or Ma Dong Soek (who’s killing it in the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Eternals). Train to Busan is an intense zombie survival story – and critique of capitalism – that is beautifully shot, and comes with a fair number of WTF moments and tears. You really need to watch it before the English remake gets to us.

Now to the series suggestions.

Bad Guys

Crime thriller Bad Guys may come from the 2013 – 2014 release period of Kdramas that I previously warned about due to their production quality, but this one we make an exception for.

With Bad Guys, we have a disgraced, jaded former police detective (Kim Sang Joon as Oh Goo Tak) pursuing a serial killer. That killer’s last victim was Goo Tak’s daughter, so you can understand why our hero isn’t exactly respectful of criminals’ rights. Then the Chief of Police has the idea that Oh Goo Tak must work with three brutal lawbreakers to solve this case – along with token female detective Yoo Mi Young (Kang Ye Won).

The three recruited thugs are gruff-gangster-but-secret-softie Park Woong Cheol (Eternals’ Ma Dong Soek again); the emo, oh-so-pretty-and-smart serial killer Lee Jung Moon (Park Hae Jin); and best-in-the-business assassin Jung Tae Soo (Jo Dong Hyuk). So, we have our ragtag team of bad guys off to catch other bad guys… and their adventures are filled with twists and turns, punches, and the Kdrama tradition of blurred-out weapons.

Bad Guys is among today’s batch of recommendations because, like Squid Game, there’s gore, surprises, as well as moments of seeing the absolute worst of humanity, tempered by the actions of less terrible people.

Save Me

For more “humans are just the worst” energy, there’s Save Me. This 2017 Kdrama delves into the frustrations, dangers and delusions of religious cults.

Im Sang Mi (Seo Yea Ji) moves with her family to a new town after her father’s business fails. Almost immediately, Sang Mi’s parents get pulled into a cult, which appears to consist of helpful and decent people. But before Sang Mi is withdrawn from ordinary life by her folks, she befriends Han Sang Hwan (Ok Taec Yeon) and Seok Dong Chul (Woo Do Hwan). These guys will be instrumental in trying to save our heroine from her imprisonment.

The ending of Save me will leave you satisfied but also muttering “Ah, geez, humanity!”.

Save Me is actually adapted from a webtoon (otherwise known as manhwa, AKA digital comics meant to be read on a phone). My next suggestion, Strangers from Hell, also began life as a webtoon.

Strangers from Hell

In Strangers from Hell, we have Yoon Jong Woo (played by former K-pop idol Im Si Wan), a country boy who moves to Seoul to find work. Money is tight, and he finds himself living in a cheap hostel. He may be saving some money but the trade-off is that the place is shady, and the residents more so. This includes seemingly normal dentist Seo Moon Jo (played by Goblin’s Lee Dong Wook).

Strangers from Hell has strong misanthropic leanings that come from not just Jong Woo’s horrific neighbours, but also the way this 10-episode Kdrama draws out the horror and suspense surrounding events. There’s also a lot of gaslighting. Lee Dong Wook is masterful in his role, so much so that you’ll struggle to watch him in anything else without suspecting his character of something awful.

Sweet Home

Put Sweet Home on your watch list, because after all this talk about humanity being the monsters, this apocalyptic horror show takes it to the literal and figurative extreme. And, at 10 episodes, the series makes for a good weekend binge.

In Sweet Home, the characters are stuck in their apartment building, trying to survive while something sweeps the country and turns people into monsters (created with ugly CGI that calls to mind the show’s webtoon origins).  On the plus side, the standout character in Sweet Home is Seo Yi Kyun (played by former amateur boxer Lee Si Young), a firefighter who is just amazing in ways I don’t have the right words for.  She’s one strong woman.

One final mention goes to brand new Hellbound, another webtoon adaptation. I haven’t watched it yet, but it’s about supernatural beings appearing out of nowhere to condemn people to Hell. Out of this terrifying situation emerges a shady religious group obsessed with divine justice. Yay, terrible people again.

And that’s it for this article. Hopefully you’ve found something new to try.

For now, know that all the shows I’ve mentioned can be easily watched on Netflix with subtitles or dubbing, depending on your preference. Next time in this feature series, we’ll offer a break from dark entertainment and explore the lighter side of Kdrama.