Underrated Netflix Original K-Dramas: K-dramas are our new favourite watch that has taken over streaming services over the past few years. With global sensations like Squid Game, Crash Landing on You, and Extraordinary Attorney Woo leaving viewers hooked to their screens, audiences want more of where these came from! However, apart from the popular ones, there are several hidden gems Kdramas on Netflix that will completely enamour you with their unique storylines, fantastic performances and unconventional endings. Check out some of our favourites here –
Underrated Netflix Original K-Dramas
The School Nurse Files (2020)
For everyone who loves something offbeat and imaginative, The School Nurse Files brings something completely new and innovative to the table. Starring Jung Yu-min as the titular school nurse, she has the unique ability to see and fight sometimes cute, sometimes nightmare-ish jelly-like creatures born from different human emotions. Nam Joo-hyuk is her colleague, and the two face supernatural threats while uncovering a few skeletons in the school’s closet!
The show isn’t like your usual supernatural thrillers and leans heavily on quirky humour and surreal imagery to tell the tale. The series has a very unique charm that might not catch everyone’s fancy, and maybe it is one of the reasons why it’s so underrated. However, if you love experimental shows that are hilarious, this one’s a one-of-a-kind watch.
Also Read: Netflix’s The School Nurse Files Review: Entertaining and Absolutely Bonkers!
My Holo Love (2020)
Before AI became mainstream, Netflix brought this series that features a lonely woman struggling with face blindness who finds companionship with an AI hologram named Holo. It’s a strange love triangle between a woman, an AI and the real man behind the technology, but the series handles it with sensitivity and warmth, making this a heartfelt watch.
Furthermore, the drama delves into themes of isolation, human connection and what it truly means to love someone. The series didn’t get a lot of buzz as Netflix’s later releases, but its experimentation makes it a unique and thought-provoking watch with futuristic concepts blended with real-life human struggles.
Move to Heaven (2021)
This quiet masterpiece is a heartbreaking yet affirming watch that deserves all the love and attention from viewers! Following the story of Geu-ru, who works at his father’s company that specialises in crime scene cleanups, and his estranged uncle, who becomes his unwitting guardian, the series showcases them working together sorting the belongings of deceased individuals while uncovering stories of the lives they left behind. In doing so, it brings them closer.
Focusing on one standalone tale per episode, the series showcases the duo’s evolving relationship beautifully. It touches on themes of grief, love, family and empathy that will move your heart in more ways than one. It’s Netflix’s most underrated treasure that leaves your heart warm long after it’s over.
Extracurricular (2020)
Moving over to darker stories, Extracurricular is a teen drama unlike any other that breaks away from typical high school cliches. The series follows Ji-soo, who secretly runs a dangerous illegal business to fund his education. However, when his secret is slowly exposed, he must take drastic measures to stop his life from completely unravelling.
The series stands out thanks to its unflinching portrayal of moral dilemmas, youth desperation and societal pressure. It doesn’t glamourise crime, nor does it give us good resolutions. However, it does a great job of bringing these harsh realities to our screen without adding too much drama to the mix, making it a story about how people are sometimes forced to survive in bad ways. It’s one of the most daring Netflix originals and will leave you reeling from start to end.
The Glory (2022-2023)
Okay, maybe The Glory isn’t technically underrated, but it’s definitely one that deserves all the love that it can get. Compared to Squid Game or All of Us Are Dead, this one is a sleeper hit, but the storyline is so tense and gripping that it requires more people to watch it. The drama follows Moon Dong-eun, a woman who spends her entire adult life plotting revenge against her high school bullies who destroyed her life.
The series is a slow-burning psychological thriller unlike any you have seen before. Rich with layered characters, chilling suspense and biting social commentary on class divides and systemic failures, the drama is unputdownable. What makes it all the more thrilling is Song Hye-kyo’s performance of a revenge-driven anti-heroine – it’s one of her best performances to date. It’s, thus, sad that it never became a global phenomenon, although it completely deserved to be termed as one.
Which of these dramas are you excited to watch? Let us know in the comments below!
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