One of 2023’s most talked-about Netflix K-dramas was Bae Suzy’s Doona! thanks to its complex outlook on love and relationships – here are some other worthwhile K-dramas that follow the same idea.
A K-pop idol at the top of her career suddenly decides to call it quits from the spotlight. Doo-na is a global star but decides to hang up her mike and move to a share house near a college campus. Hidden behind her stardom is a young woman at the end of the road.
She soon meets an ordinary college student Lee Won-jun (Yang Se-jong). He’s kind, warm, and smart. At first, the two butt heads until Won-jun realizes the reality behind Doo-na’s fame and beauty. Over time, the two learn to lean on each other as Doo-na can’t escape her life.
They dive into a complex relationship marred by the troubles of her life as an idol. Doona! had fans invested until its cliffhanger finale. With the K-drama leaving a lasting impression, here are other K-dramas that fit the bill.
Nevertheless
The Netflix K-drama is irrevocably one of the most well-known “red flag” romance storylines – and for good reason. The K-drama pairs well with Doona!’s message on complex love stories. As well as each character’s personal issues as they look for comfort in someone else. But does a relationship based on need mean true love?
Nevertheless starred Sweet Home actor Song Kang as Park Jae-eon and GyeongSeong Creature star Han So-hee as Yoo Na-bi. Set in college life, Nevertheless unravels the somewhat destructive yet addictive relationship between Na-bi and Jae-eon.
Jae-eon is known for being a player and incredibly handsome and charming. He’s also well known for never having been in a committed relationship. Meanwhile, Na-bi is dealing with a disastrous breakup with an ex after public humiliation. The two cross paths and start a whirlwind of a steamy and complex relationship – that could or may not be love.
While one doesn’t believe in love, the other no longer wants a relationship. Na-bi sees the red flags in Jae-eon, but something keeps pulling them together.
Nevertheless is available to stream on Netflix.
Uncontrollably Fond
When it comes to complex yet heart-wrenching romances, Uncontrollably Fond is at the top of the list. Many K-drama fans would warn newbies to have a box of tissues ready. It’s one of the K-dramas that best fits Doona! Coincidentally, it also stars Bae Suzy as Noh Eul, alongside Kim Woo-bin as Shin Joon-young.
The two were pulled apart as teenagers due to a crumbling relationship. They part ways and re-meet years later as adults and at different stages in their lives. One may think the K-drama has a long-awaited and emotional reunion – but it doesn’t.
Noh Eul had a tough childhood, having to give up school after her father’s death to help her family. Meanwhile, Joon-young had his whole life planned for him. A certain event has him give up being a prosecutor and become a singer. Now adults, Noh Eul is tasked to film his documentary.
But due to unresolved issues of the past, Joon-young rebuffs her and wants nothing to do with her. Uncontrollably Fond depicts Joon-young’s harshness towards her, but as they begin to work together, their past emotions creep back in.
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Uncontrollably Fond is available on Viki.
Love Alarm
Before the global Hallyu Wave, Squid Game, and Doona!, Love Alarm was one of the first globally recognized K-dramas among fans. It was also Netflix’s first. Love Alarm is notorious as a webtoon adaptation and for making fans upset.
In this world, a dating app has become extremely popular at deciding people’s love stories and relationships. The app lets the person know when someone in their vicinity has feelings for them. Kim Jo-jo (Kim So-hyun) is a hardworking high school student who doesn’t believe in the app. Unknown to her, her best friend Lee Hye-yeong (Jung Ga-ram) has unrequited feelings for her.
But when Hye-yeong’s childhood friend returns, it causes unexpected turmoil. Hwang Sun-oh (Song Kang) is a handsome model, rich, and his Love Alarm rings non-stop. When he realizes Hye-young has feelings for Jo-jo, he also decides to pursue her.
The K-drama is known for its intense love triangle as Jo-jo falls for Sun-oh but can’t find it in herself to trust him. But Sun-oh and Hye-young become confident in their feelings for her, creating a rift. Fans were left divided on who to root for and had a K-drama first in Love Alarm Season 2.
Love Alarm is available to stream on Netflix.
Twenty-Five Twenty-One
This K-drama is a complicated love story that had every fan sobbing uncontrollably by the end. Twenty-Five Twenty-One was 2022’s biggest hit from Netflix. Set in 1998, Na Hee-do (Kim Tae-ri) learns her high school fencing club has been cut due to the IMF Crisis. Seeing it as an opportunity, she switches schools to train with her idol Ko Yu-rim (Bona).
On the other end of the crisis is Baek Yi-jin (Nam Joo-hyuk), whose family loses everything. Wanting to restore his family, he stays behind to work and save money. The two meet in a fateful encounter and strike a friendship for the ages. But as time goes on and they grow older, their feelings for each other also grow.
But Twenty-Five Twenty-One isn’t meant to be a fairy tale but a lesson on first loves and what it means to become an adult. As Yi-jin and Hee-do try to understand their love for each other, the stress and reality of life could pull them apart.
Twenty-Five Twenty-One is available to stream on Netflix.
Read more of Dexerto’s K-drama coverage here, details about Death’s Game here, Sweet Home Season 2 here, Gyeongseong Creature here, and My Demon here.