In recent years, countless entertainment fans have been introduced to the world of Korean cinema and television. While many viewers' gateway Korean dramas come courtesy of K-dramas on Netflix (see Squid Game, Crash Landing on You, The Glory, and more), Rakuten Viki has long been a go-to streamer for its wide selection of shows and films produced in Asian countries. There's something for everyone on the site, from classic shows that populate several must-watch k-drama lists, to some recent, record-breaking hits. Read on for the rom-coms, crime thrillers, and fantasy epics you can currently catch on VIki.
'Goblin (Guardian: The Lonely and Great God)'
Start off your journey through Viki with maybe the best-known K-drama in the world (whether it's your first time watching or your seventh). Gong Yoo stars in this fantasy series as an immortal goblin who needs a human bride to end his cursed life. When he meets Eun-tak (Kim Go-eun), the pair are faced with several supernatural obstacles that jeopardize their romance. Come for the central pair, stay for the second legendary love story between a grim reaper (Lee Dong-wook) and a mortal woman (Yoo In-na).
'Happiness'
Fans of Korea's zombie survival genre (see Train to Busan, Kingdom, and All of Us Are Dead) will love this inventive drama following an outbreak in modern-day Seoul. Officer Yoon Sae-bom (Han Hyo-joo) and Detective Jung Yi-hyun (Park Hyung-sik) are longtime friends who seem set for happiness when they move into a newly-built high-rise. However, after the building's residents are quarantined following the spread of a new type of infectious disease, the pair have to navigate their suspicious and nefarious neighbors while trying to survive.
'True Beauty'
This beloved teen rom-com—based on the popular webtoon of the same name—is a coming-of-age story centered on an epic love triangle. High-schooler Im Joo-kyung (Moon Ga-young) has always been bullied for her looks, but after she learns makeup artistry from YouTube, she is considered a "goddess" and becomes more popular at school. While navigating her new popularity, she catches the attention of both mysterious Lee Su-ho (Cha Eun-woo), the only person who recognizes her through her makeup, and his former best friend Han Seo-jun (Hwang In-youp).
'Weak Hero Class 1'
This acclaimed drama is very intense, as it depicts school violence at an all-boys high school through a brutal, realistic lens. Top student Yeon Si-eun (Park Ji-hoon) sees his tormentors as an obstacle towards reaching academic success and getting a scholarship to Seoul National University. He eventually finds unlikely allies (and maybe even friends?) in fellow class outcast Oh Beom-seok (Hong Kyung), and the school's best fighter An Soo-ho (Choi Hyun-wook). Fair warning, the eight-episode drama has major twists and a devestating ending.
'My Love From the Star'
Viewers exploring the wider world of dramas must check out this multi-genre fantasy romance. Do Min-joon (Kim Soo-hyun) is a handsome alien who landed on Earth 400 years ago during Korea's Joseon era and has been waiting for a chance to return to his home planet for centuries. When he has three months left on Earth, he gets a new neighbor, Hallyu star Cheon Song-yi (Jun Ji-hyun), who resembles a young woman from his past. As Song-yi slowly changes Min-joon cynical stance on love, circumstances put him in danger of being exposed to the world.
'Coffee Prince'
This classic k-drama follows the unlikely love story between Ko Eun-chan (Yoon Eun-hye), a tomboy who has been the breadwinner of her family since she was 16, and Choi Han-gyul (Gong Yoo), the irresponsible heir to a conglomerate with a popular chain of coffee shops. Mistaking Eun-chan for a girl when they first meet, Han-gyul hires her to pretend to be his lover to get out of the blind dates his grandmother sets up. Later, after receiving an ultimatum from his grandmother, Han-gyul takes over a derelict coffee shop, renamed Coffee Prince, with the plan of only hiring good-looking male employees. Eun-chan decides to keep up her gender charade to get a job at the cafe.
'Yumi's Cells'
This ultimate comfort drama takes place in two worlds: the outer day-to-day life of aspiring writer Yumi (Kim Go-eun), and the inner machinations of her cells, a group of adorable animated characters who live in her brain and control her feelings (including the Rational, Emotional, Love, Hunger, Anxiety, Fashion, and Naughty Cells). Years after experiencing a devastating breakups, Yumi meets a new guy on a blind date and begins to fall for him. Come for the cells' responses to the small joys and heartbreaks of dating, stay for Ahn Bo-hyun and GOT7's Jinyoung as Yumi's love interests.
'Reborn Rich'
This acclaimed time-bending melodrama follows Yoon Hyun-woo (Song Joong-ki), the devoted secretary to the chaebol family behind the conglomerate Soonyang Group. When Hyun-woo is betrayed and murdered by one of founder Jin Yang-cheol's (Lee Sung-min) children during a succession battle, he wakes up in the body of the youngest member of the family, Jin Do-jun. With his new position, the vengeful, reincarnated employee forms a plot to take over the company and discover the identity of the family member who killed him.
'Suspicious Partner'
This legal rom-com tells the story of successful lawyer Noh Ji-wook, (Ji Chang-wook) and suspect Eun Bong-hee (Nam Ji-hyun), who is wrongfully accused in a murder case. Despite their polar opposite personalities, the two find common ground as they fight to prove Bong-hee's innocence, and eventually end up falling in love.
'W'
This fantasy-action dramedy puts a new spin on the adaptations that bring webcomics to life. Medical resident Oh Yeon-joo (Han Hyo-joo) is the daughter of Oh Sung-moo (Kim Eui-sung), the artist behind the popular webtoon W, who goes missing the day his final chapter is due. While searching for clues in his office, Yeon-joo suddenly gets sucked into the comic itself, where she saves the life of its hero Kang Chul (Lee Jong-suk). She then emerges back in his office, with the webtoon chapter having finished itself based off her actions. The rest of the series follows Yeon-joo and Kang Chul's unlikely romance, as they try to save him from her father, who's determined to kill his creation off.
'Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joo'
If you're in the mood for a cute college romance or an inspiring coming-of-age story, look no further. Kim Bok-joo (Lee Sung-kyung) is a collegiate weightlifter training for the Olympics, while Jung Joon-hyung (Nam Joo-hyuk) is a swimmer at the same school who's recovering from a psychological problem. The two athletes start out as reluctant friends when they meet, but their slow-building love story is full of adorable moments.
'The Red Sleeve'
Warning: You will need tissues while watching this epic historical romance, based on the real-life Joseon-era monarch King Jeongjo and his royal consort Uibin Seong. Aloof prince Yi-san (Lee Jun-ho) wishes to be a benevolent and kind leader, though he's still traumatized after the death of his father. He falls in love with Sung Deok-im (Lee Se-young), and asks her to be his concubine, but the strong-willed woman knows that the demanding role would restrict her freedom to live a life of her choosing. In addition to the main romance, the show also depicts the intricacies and machinations of life as a court lady.
'Hit the Spot'
This explicit, sex-positive rom-com is a refreshing change of pace for all those romances where the leads don't kiss until past episode 10. Besties and co-workers Hee-jae (Hani) and Mi-na (Bae Woo-hee) are the new hosts of a podcast offering frank discussions about sex and relationships. Hee-jae has never explored her own sexuality beyond routine sex with her boyfriend of five years, while Mi-na only seeks out no-strings-attached hookups. As they're both thrown into new dynamics while hosting the podcast, the friends re-examine what they want from their love lives.
'Tale of the Nine Tailed'
Let's look at another fantasy drama where Lee Dong-wook plays a legendary creature from Korean folklore. Here he plays Lee-yeon, a gumiho—a mythical, immortal nine-tailed fox—who adjusted to city life centuries ago. In the present-day, he meets Nam Ji-ah (Jo Bo-ah), a headstrong producing director who is determined to track him down as she feels he's connected to the death of her parents. It turns out the pair were lovers in a past life, and as they work together to solve Ji-a's parent's mysterious deaths, the two also rediscover their love for each other.
'The Penthouse: War in Life'
You haven't seen a truly over-the-top Korean melodrama until you've taken a tour of the Penthouse (unless you caught Temptation of Wife back in the day). The soapy three-season series centers on Hera Palace, the ultra-luxury complex that's home to several of Korea's richest families, led by ruthless mothers who are constantly competing to secure advantages for their spoiled children. However, things are thrown for a loop when Oh Yoon-hee (played by Eugene), who comes a humble background, upsets the status quo by sending her daughter to her alma mater Cheong-ah Arts School, where she rivaled against Cheon Seo-jin (Kim So-yeon). The power struggle between ambitious mothers gets much more serious when someone winds up dead.
'Fight For My Way'
This dramedy follows a quartet of friends as they chase their dreams in their late twenties. Choi Ae-ra (Kim Ji-won) works at a department store, but she decides to finally pursue her lifelong ambition of becoming a television anchor. Ko Dong-man (Park Seo-joon), a former teenage athlete, overcomes his traumatic past to become a rookie MMA fighter. Meanwhile, their best friends Kim Joo-man (Ahn Jae-hong) and Baek Seol-hee (Song Ha-yoon) have been dating for six years, and now face a new challenge to their relationship. The hilarious and heartwarming friends-turned-lovers arc between Dong-man and Ae-ra is well worth the watch
'The Forbidden Marriage'
This historical dramedy follows the unlikely relationshoip between Lee Heon (Kim Young-dae), the king of Joseon, and Ye So-rang (Park Ju-hyun), a con artist who claims to sense marriage compatibility. Since his beloved wife died seven years ago, Lee Heon has refused to remarry, while the nation has lived under a ban on all single women marrying during this time when the king has not married. When So-rang is arrested and jailed, she claims that she can channel the spirit of the king's late wife. After So-rang's brought to court and Lee Heon falls for her ruse, the scammer has to keep up the ruse to ensure her survival.
'Strong Woman Do Bong-soon'
This Korean thriller-crime/rom-com centers on tiny yet mighty Do Bong-soon (Park Bo-young), who has inherited a unique familial gift: All the women in her family possess superhuman strength, but only if they use their power for good. One day, gaming CEO Ahn Min-Hyuk (Park Hyung-sik) sees Bong-soon's power and hires her as a bodyguard, since he's been receiving threatening letters. If that premise wasn't intriguing enough, a serial killer begins threatening Bong-soon's neighborhood, as she continues to hide her power from her longtime crush, rookie detective Guk-du (Ji-soo).
'I Am Not a Robot'
Chaebol CEO Kim Min-kyu (Yoo Seung-ho) is wealthy and successful, but he suffers from a "human allergy", preventing him from normal interactions with other people. He becomes interested in a robotic project headed by Hong Baek-gyun (Uhm Ki-joon), who modeled the advanced humanoid robot Aji-3 after his ex-girlfriend Jo Ji-ah (Chae Soo-bin), a struggling inventor who also works as a personal shopper to make ends meet. When the robot malfunctions right before Min-kyu's test run, Baek-gyun offers to pay Ji-ah to take its place and pretend to be Aji-3. Things become complicated as Min-kyu and the "robot" Ji-ah get closer.
'Semantic Error'
This college-set web drama is one of the most acclaimed BL (or "Boys Love") dramas to come out of Korea. Chu Sang-woo (Jae-chan) is a junior and computer science major who prizes reason and rules above all else. When members of a group liberal arts project leave him to do all the work, he turns in the assignment in only his name, unknowingly hurting the academic prospects of popular senior Jang Jae-young (Park Seo-ham). At first Jae-young just wants to get revenge on Sang-woo, but when they're forced to work together again, a strange attraction starts to develop between them.
