Boys Over Flowers: 10 Years Later

2008 feels like a lifetime ago. It was the dawn of K-pop’s Golden Age, and entire careers have begun and ended in that ten-year span. 2008 saw the…

Suicide in K-Dramas: How Have They Changed?

South Korea ranks at one of the highest suicide rates in the industrialized world, and even held the number one place for 8 consecutive years up until …

Sticks and Stones: School Violence in K-Dramas and Reality

This article contains discussions of bullying and violence, and some references to sexual assault. Recently, a graphic photo of a girl kneeling on t…

4 Incredibly Addictive Dramas

We all have those weekends. The ones where you wake up with a pounding headache and dry mouth, wondering what happened because in your memory everythin…

Plain Jane and Why She’s Tolerated

Oh, lord, Plain Janes. In dramas, female characters have a choice to make. Pretty or principles. Good looks or a good person. A stunning body or a swee…

The Heirs to Boys Over Flowers

Filming recently began on the set of The Heirs, possibly the most highly anticipated K-drama of 2013. With Lee Minho in the leading man role, and as se…

Dramas, Cliches, and Overused Plotlines

We open with a shot of our poor, stupid and/or clumsy heroine. She wears little to no makeup, has zero fashion sense and is thus deemed ugly. She falls…

Don’t Call Them Second Best: K-Drama’s Most Memorable Secondary Couples

You don't have to be a K-drama's main couple to set off fireworks. While viewers go gaga over the ridiculously angsty journey that the one true pairing…

Cinderella Stories Don’t Exist: How K-dramas Got it All Wrong

"We seek the girl with one shoe," they shouted as they elbowed the palanquin through the crowd. "It's [Pear Blossom]!" Peony pointed at her sister. …

What’s in an OST?

A Korean drama without a suitable OST (official soundtrack) is like a scary movie without the sound effects: pointless. Most K-drama watchers are famil…