Dropped K-Dramas

Not all the dramas hit for me — here are the ones I've dropped so far:

The Judge Returns

Starring: Ji Sung, Park Hee Son, Won Jin Ah

Synopsis: A judge known for corruption is murdered, but returns to the past and is given a second chance to undo his choices and redeem himself.

Review: The premise was sound. But something about it felt frenetic to me — like it was all over the place. The 1st episode was dark, and then the 2nd was comedic. So was it supposed to be a dark comedy? I continued to watch it, because I didn't want to drop the first drama of 2026 so fast, and episodes 3 and 4 were good. I stuck through 8 episodes, but it just didn't keep my interest. I thought the plot worked, but I couldn't stay invested.

To My Beloved Thief

Starring: Nam Ji Hyun, Moon Sang Min

Synopsis: A physician by day, but a thief by night — she steals from officials to help those in need, but the prince, who likes solving crimes, decides to find out who this Joseon-era Robin Hood is.

Review: I love Nam Ji Hyun and was excited to see another one of her dramas since Good Partner. The first episode introduced a ton of characters all at once, which was a bit confusing, but by episode 2 it was a little clearer and the story started to make a bit more sense. I thought they had great chemistry, and I liked her character a lot. But when they introduced the whole soul swap thing, I was over it. I don't know why I wasn't interested in it, and a part of me wonders if that soul swap was even necessary. I think it would have been a good storyline without it. I just wasn't interested in seeing how it ended.

The Practical Guide to Love

Starring: Han Ji Min, Park Sung Hoon, Lee Ki Taek, Jung Hye Sung, Kim So Hye

Synopsis: Lee Eui Young feels pressured to marry, and as her career rises, she decides she is ready to consider settling down. She starts going on blind dates, meets two potential partners, and has to decide who would be the best match for her.

Review: I was on the fence with this one. First of all, I HATE how she was styled. It aged her. I also think Park Sung Hoon's character was styled terribly, too. He looked frumpy and way too nerdy, even to the end, whereas Ki Taek was the more obviously handsome one. I get that it was necessary for the story, but I think it could have been done better.

I liked the premise of this: her going on blind dates to find a man, and how frustrating that could be, especially for women. It had a slow start for me, and I kinda found it really, really boring. I stayed as long as I did because Ki Taek was fun to look at. I understood that Park Sung Hoon's character was supposed to be awkward and a nerd, and the antithesis to the obvious hot second male lead, but it only made it more boring. I think he could have still been endgame for her if she were dating Ki Taek's character. That would have been more interesting. I lost count of how many times I rolled my eyes. The product placement for Kopiko was its kiss of death for me.

Still Shining

Starring: Park Jin Young, Kim Min Ju, Shin Jae Ha, Park Se Hyun

Synopsis: Yeon Tae Seo is a subway driver who lives to get through each day. He had big ambitions, but he had to support his family — his grandparents and his brother, who was injured in a car accident that killed their parents. He blames himself for how difficult their lives are, and he dreams of when he can become independent. He falls in love with Mo Eun A, a girl from the small town he lives in, who has big dreams and a big personality, but once they're accepted into college, they drift apart and break up. They reunite several years later, but both have experienced life in such different ways that they have changed.

Review: I love Park Jin Young, and I think he's one of the better idols-turned-actors we have. I thought they both had great chemistry in this, and although it had a very slow start, it was necessary to set the stage and introduce the characters. I love a good melo, and I think I've said this before, if it's executed well, it can be great. Otherwise, it's a snoozefest. By episode 5, it felt tedious, and I couldn't understand what the conflict was. Whatever it was, it didn't feel important enough to stick around.

Cabbage Your Life

Starring: Park Sung Woong, Lee Soo Kyung

Synopsis: A family living in the city suddenly moves to the countryside, where the dad, a successful businessman, is forced to uproot them because of a conspiracy at work. They live on a farm in a dilapidated house, where the villagers don't trust him. While trying to get them back to the city and back in his office, his wife and three sons have to deal with their own issues that only exacerbate the move.

Review: They only released one episode a week, and that was going to drag on for a while, which I didn't have the attention span for. Watch a drama for literally 4 months? No thanks.

Bloodhounds 2

Starring: Woo Do Hwan, Lee Sang Yi, Rain

Synopsis: Sequel; the two boxers join forces again to stop an international underground fight club led by Im Baek Jung (Rain).

Review: Ugh. This one made me sad to drop. I LOVED the first season so much — it was one of my top 10 for the year. I think Do Hwan and Sang Yi are so great together, and I was genuinely excited to see the sequel. But I started this one and just couldn't stay interested. I don't know if it's bad timing on my part or what. Maybe I'll come back to it later, and it'll be a TBT post one day. But unfortunately, for now, it's been dropped.