The Fangirls delve into their kdrama vault and come out with their favorite non-romantic dramas for Day 20 if the 30 Day Asian Drama Challenge. Did we mention your favorite?
DAY 20: Your favorite drama from the non-romance genre
KMUSE: I have tons of romance free/minimal romance dramas that I love and feel the urge to promote. Personally, I don’t think enough people give non-romantic dramas a chance. There is some amazing storytelling going on and just because there is no OTP, it is ignored. So here are my favorites in no specific order.
- Last – I know that the antics of the homeless sound like a boring topic. But this is one kick ass cutthroat drama which deserves a lot love. Who knew I would love homeless gang politics so much?
- Heartless City – This drama is all that a noir drama should be. Lots of beautiful angst, awesome fights, and enough undercover cops to create a new precinct. Sure the romance is almost non-existent but with such a strong bromance, I don’t think most people were missing it.
- Ouroboros – This drama is one of my all time guilty pleasures. Now this is how revenge should be done…. with lots of murder and a lack of empathy for those that get in the way.
- School 2013 – Who needs romance when you have Kim Woo Bin and Lee Jong Suk staring longingly at each other? Not this kaddict.
- Nirvana in Fire – Sure there is an awesome lady waiting on the side, but this drama is all about revenge, justice, and the bromance. It is a must watch in my opinion.
- Bad Guys – Serial killers get out to make amends and take down some bad guys………….worse guys……….. yes please!
CLKYTTA: I’m 100% romance and fluff. That said, I really enjoyed the web drama Infinite Power. There is a tiny bit of romance in it, but it’s really more of a story about believing in yourself and holding on to your dreams. It’s one of those subtle dramas that you have to watch twice to catch all the little nuances. The cast is awesome, it has Kim Seul Gi and Im Seul Ong in it.
Drama Geek: Oh, I’ve never heard of Infinite Power, I’ll have to check it out. We are a little lean on contributors because life is happening. 🙂 So I’m going to choose three dramas.
(1) Vampire Prosecutor: There is a touch of romance but it’s mostly just hot Prosecutor Min Tae Yeon looking vampy and sexy while fighting the bad guys. And bromancing it up with his detective bestie. If you like procedural crime dramas with a touch of paranormal this is the show for you. Both seasons are good and there is still hope they’ll some day a third one. (Crosses fingers and toes and chants to the drama gods)
(2) Liar Game: This show was soooo good. Lee Sang Yoon was the broody genius who helped the lead girl navigate through the reality show that was just a little too real for everyone’s taste. Shin Sung Rok as the totally off kilter bad guy. There was a loan shark thug who had a big heart and one of my favorite flips of enemy to ally in kdrama history. Hey, two of my all time favorite characters are Snape and Zuko. I love a character that can be remedied, if it’s done right.
(3) Signal: Last, but certainly not least. This drama was a roller coaster of emotions. From the moment it started until the very last second. It kept me guessing. It made me fall in love with all of the characters and had one of the best cross generational space time continuum bromance and romance (very light) of all time.
Phew. That is a ton of drama for everyone to check out! Did we accidentally miss any great dramas that are romance free? Let us know your favorites in the comments and check back tomorrow for more great challenge posts.
See you tomorrow,
The Fangirls
Bad Guys, Last, Signal…so good! Squad 38 may be in the same category, I hope.
The only reason I didn’t list Squad 38 is because it is still airing.
Misaeng.
Signal & Misaeng – AMAZING dramas, both of them! Vampire Prosecutor – well yeah, those yummy blue eyes lighting up ~sigh~ I also loved Achiarra’s Secret 😀
“The Village: Achiara’s Secret” was very well done, really enjoyed it and think about that drama every time I watch “Dear Fair Lady Kong Shim”….yes, I thinking about you On Joo-wan.
Humm, racking my brain. Forgive me if I ramble…..
“Detectives In Trouble” (2011) Song Il-kuk (Jang Young-sil), Lee Jong-hyuk (Bubble Gum, Dating Agency:Cyrano); Kim Jun (Endless Love,Boys Over Flowers), and actresses Song Ji-hyo (Emergency Couple); Park Sun-young (Jang Young-sil). Don’t recall any romance.
“Once Upon A Time in Saengchori” (2011) Ha Suk-jin (D-Day), Kim Dong-Yoon (Save the Family), and actress Lee Young-eun (Punch), maybe a teensy bit of romance.
“Sign” (2011) Park Shin-yang (My Lawyer: Mr. Jo), Jung Gyu-woon (Oh My Venus), and actress Kim Ah-joong (Wanted).
“Special Affairs Team TEN” (2011 & 2013) Joo Sang-Wook (Glamorous Temptation), Kim Sang-ho (Lucky Romance), Choi Woo-sik (Ho Goo’s Love), and actress Jo An (Shining Romance)
“The Devil” (2007) Actors Joo Ji-hoon (Mask), Uhm Tae-woong (Wanted), and actress Shin Min-ah (Oh My Venus)
And just two movies which I dearly loved . . .
“Detective K: Secret of the Virtuous Widow (2011) with Kim Myung-min (Six Flying Dragons), Oh Dal-soo, and actress Han Ji-min (Hyde, Jekyll, Me)
Detective K: Secret of the Lost Island (2015) with Kim Myung -min (Six Flying Dragons), Oh Dal-soo, and actress Lee Yeon-hee (Hwajung/Splendid Politics)
I enjoyed each of these immensely, but the recent drama “Signal” is by far, my favorite. The story was well-structured, the cinematography was perfect, and the cast was unforgettable.
I think The Devil is one of the best kdramas I watched so far. No romance just thrill and the perpetual debate on whether “the end justifies the means”.
My favourite kdramas are the ‘coming of age’ dramas, where the bromance (sismance?) usually overshadows the romance. I always recommend Shut Up: Flower Boy Band; I thought it was well-written and loved it. A close second in that broad category is Sassy, Go Go.
I also like ‘slice of life’ dramas, so Misaeng and the recently concluded Dear My Friends are my recommendations. Excellent writing, directing and acting. I would also put What’s With My Family in this category; I think it’s a family/ weekend drama with much more going on than the usual hijinks.
I’d recommend the later two ‘Reply’ dramas as well. I was able to ignore the ‘husband hunt’ (and Hye-ri’s bad acting, sorry) and loved each character’s story arc – apart from how the ‘second male lead’ was not given a satisfying resolution.
And of course, Nirvana in Fire. Wow. Totally enthralling for all 54 episodes. First time I’ve ever not minded just watching 2 men talk for 45 minutes!
Misaeng – it’s soooo good!
Ouroboros is such a good drama! I also loved the Japanese version of Maou (With Ikuta Toma and Ohno Satoshi). Misaeng – I did not know that a drama about business could be so good. Nirvana in Fire was one of the best dramas I’ve watched in a long time. I didn’t mind watching two men talk for 45 minutes either, the time flew by.
Wonderful choices, ladies!
I can only add Awl, Joseon X-Files (a fantasy sageuk ), The Devil (thank you, DracoMama!) and of course Dear My Friends (it will make you laugh and cry, all at the same time).
‘Signal’ -my favorite and ‘Misaeng’
The Devil and Cruel City are too favorite noir shows. A wonderful non-romantic movie is Bleak Night – oh, but it is sad, sad, sad.
Signal for obvious reasons. I never thought I would like a drama so hard when there’s no OTP to ship and it becomes my no 1 most favorite drama.
And I’m surprised no one mentioned I Remember You, sure there’s the SIG – JNR otp but it pales in comparison to the thriller/murder mystery/bromance/PBG that beautiful doe eyed puppy.
Love these:
Angry Mom
Misaeng
School 2013
Enjoyed neighbourhood lawyer though it is not my favorite
Think I’ll be trying Signal next after reading all the comments above
Signal is one of my all time favorite dramas
Misaeng!
Duel!
I love this drama. At first i think it’s just another crime drama with kidnapping and killing people but as the drama moves forward there’s something about vaccines and organ trafficking and finally all of those things leads to human cloning things in the past. I don’t expect that human clone things, i thought the drama would stop at organ trafficking case. I also love Yang Sejong’s acting as three different people. Two are clones and one is a doctor. He looks really cool in this drama.
The second drama without romance that i love is Chief Kim.
Actually i just love this drama because Nam Goong Min. He’s doing a really good job making all of the viewers laughing like crazy.
Kim Seong Ryeong’s act is unpredictable, he’s fearless even when his superiors are scolding him.
It’s amazing that he doesn’t get fired actually xD
I don’t understand anything but i watch that drama till the end because Nam Goong Min. I never knew the guy that always play villain character can be that funny. Honorable mention, i really love the rivalry between Nam Goong Min and Junho :v That kiss scene was epic :v
I love that you are revisiting some of our old blog posts! I also ADORED Chief Kim!