K-drama

A K-drama is a Korean television drama series: tightly plotted romances, thrillers, family sagas and historical epics, very often wrapped up in a single season.

What K-drama means

The term covers any scripted Korean TV series, from romantic comedies to crime thrillers to historical dramas, which Koreans call sageuk. Fans love them for slow-burn romance, cliffhanger episode endings and big soundtracks, and many binge them on streaming services with subtitles.

Fans have their own vocabulary for the genre. “Second lead syndrome” means rooting for the lovable character who you know won’t end up with the lead.

Examples

• “I said one episode. It’s 3 a.m. and I’m on episode nine. K-drama life.”
• “Any K-drama recommendations? I need a good rom-com.”
• “My second lead syndrome is out of control with this K-drama.”

Where it came from

Korean dramas have been made since the early 1960s. According to Wikipedia, they were mostly watched at home until the Korean Wave, or hallyu, took off in the 1990s, first in China and Japan. Streaming then carried them worldwide; Netflix began releasing and funding Korean series, culminating in the 2021 global hit Squid Game.

Related terms

• Hallyu: the Korean Wave.
• Oppa: older brother, or a heartthrob.
• Noona: older sister, used by men.
• Webtoon: the digital comics many K-dramas are based on.

More Korean pop culture words are in our K-pop slang guide.