10 Best K-Dramas of the 2010s, Ranked

From 2010 to 2020, South Korean dramas began the Hallyu Wave, which refers to when South Korean music, TV, or movies grew in popularity in Western countries, like the U.S.A. or Europe. Korean dramas have shaped entire generations of teenagers, and people still consider the 2010s to be the golden era of Korean dramas.

Titles like Boys Over Flowers, and Dream High have been giving success to their country for decades. They were the ones that began the first of many Hallyu Wave (television-wise). The second one was Squid Games, in 2020, on Netflix. After gaining some Korean entertainment knowledge, if you ever wanted to begin watching K-Dramas but don’t know where to start, these are the 10 Best 2010s Korean Dramas, Ranked.

10 ‘My Secret Romance’ (2017)

Directed by Kang Cheol-woo

South Korean dramas have a variety of genres. But the most famous one has to be romance, as the playboy changes his flirty ways for the quirky and kind main protagonist he falls in love with, and settles down. This is what My Secret Romance is, in a nutshell. Following the story of Jin-Wook (Sung Hoon), a man who is the son of an important chairman/a well-known playboy, and Yoo-Mi (Song Ji-Eun), who is at a resort for the wedding of her mother, the two meet at the same location and have a one-night stand. As a twist of fate, they meet three years later, while they both work for his father’s company, beginning a push-and-pull love story that will ultimately end with them falling in love.

The fantastic acting of both main characters showcases the pair’s flawless chemistry.

My Secret Romance is such a simple yet sweet love story. The fantastic acting of both main characters showcases the pair’s flawless chemistry, yet it misses something more that could make this drama even greater. It’s a truly underrated Korean drama and it deserves better. Still, if you are a fan of bad boy and good girl clichés, the romantic moments of the pair and the hilarious one-liners make this K-Drama a good way to start diving into this genre.

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9 ‘Blood’ (2015)

Directed by Ki Min-Soo and Lee Jae-hoon

A fantasy Korean drama in this ranking was needed. Blood focuses on Park Jisang (Ahn Jae-Hyun), a talented vampire surgeon and medical researcher at Taemin Hospital, and Yoo Ri-Ta (Koo Hye-Sun), an arrogant and entitled female human surgeon, as they navigate the good and evil of the medical field. Humans turn to vampires with the help of a virus named VBT-01. As the story goes on, the pair realize they have known each other in the past, but at the same time, they have to save the world from an evil clan of vampires trying to prey on the hospital’s patients.

This medical drama is well-written, and the plot, with the actors’ chemistry, is fantastic.

This medical drama is well-written, and the plot, with the actors’ chemistry, is fantastic, as an enjoyer of supernatural stories myself. This Korean drama is low in the ranking, just because some parts of the episodes did not make sense, and the FX was not the best. Blood is severely underrated, which is even more reason you should check out this hidden gem.

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8 ‘Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo’ (2016)

Directed by Kim Kyu-Tae

Historical dramas and romance? Such a great combination! This concept was used a lot in South Korean dramas during the 2010s. Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo also focuses on the theme of time travel, so that is what makes it even more interesting. Focusing on Ha-Jin (IU), who mistakenly travels back 1000 years before the present, during the Goryeo Dynasty, her soul is now stuck inside the body of a young princess named Hae-Soo. As she tries to figure out a way to go back to the present, she becomes involved in a love triangle between two princes: the tormented yet impulsive Wang So (Lee Joon-Gi), and the kind-hearted yet heroic Wang Wook (Kang Ha-Neul).

Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeois captivating and exciting. It showcases the themes of friendship, love, and family in unison, all at the same time. It’s low in this ranking because the ending made this Korean Drama deserving of a second season, which wasn’t given. But the excellent soundtrack (in Korean, the soundtrack of a drama is called OST) and every single one of the main characters is very well-written, so it’s truly worth it for someone who likes this genre of K-Dramas.

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7 ‘Hwarang: The Poet Warrior Youth’ (2016)

Directed by Yoon Sung-Sik and Kim Yeong-Jo

Melodrama and brotherhood. This is what Hwarang: The Poet Warrior Youth is all about, following the lives of an elite group of young males in the ancient Kingdom of Silla, as they navigate through the themes of love, friendship, and family. This drama was based on the true story of King Jin Heung, who recruited this group of male youth, and they became the best military commanders in history.

Hwarang: The Poet Warrior Youth
is truly a great historical piece of Korean television.

Hwarang: The Poet Warrior Youth is truly a great historical piece of Korean television. This drama has a fantastic soundtrack and gut-wrenching performances by Kim Taehyung (BTS) and Park Hyung Sik. But the rest of the cast also had very great performances as well, and the storyline is such an emotional roller-coaster ride. A very great watch, highly recommended.

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6 ‘Dream High’ (2011)

Directed by Lee Eung-Bok

Fighting for your dreams in an entertainment industry like South Korea’s is truly hard and filled with many obstacles, as there is only a 1% chance of getting into an important music company to become a trainee. In Dream High, six talented young, yet poor, teenagers try to defy these odds. This series, as stated beforehand, has become a huge international success, contributing to the Hallyu Wave.

This Korean Drama is truly fantastic and very well-written, as it teaches young people to not give up on their dreams, even if the way to them is filled with people telling you that you won’t make it.

This Korean Drama is truly fantastic and very well-written, as it teaches young people to not give up on their dreams, even if the way to them is filled with people telling you that you won’t make it. With most songs sung by the main cast (Taecyeon, Wooyoung, Suzy Bae, Kim Soo-Hyun, IU, Lim Jeong-Hee), this show’s soundtrack is something that should be added to history books for how phenomenal it is. Dream High is such an emotional watch that pulls the heartstrings and makes you want to become a K-pop star just like them.

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5 ‘Playful/Mischievous Kiss’ (2010)

Directed by Hwang In-Roi and Kim Do-Hyung

Another South Korean romantic comedy with a cliché heartthrob who falls for an unpopular girl. Despite having many obstacles between them, mostly being him ignoring her, they eventually develop a full-blown love story. Playful Kiss focuses on a high school girl who has the worst grade in her class but also has a crush on the most popular guy in school, since the first time she laid eyes on him in her freshman year.

It features hilarious moments that will make the viewer yell at the screen for Seung-Jo to stop being so stubborn and start dating Ha-ni already.

Playful Kiss will remind viewers of a Wattpad high school fan-fiction, but is worth the watch because of the fantastic chemistry between the two main leads: clumsy and kind high school girl Oh Ha-ni (Jung So-Min) and the introverted yet handsome Baek Seung-Jo (Kim Hyun-Joong). It features hilarious moments that will make the viewer yell at the screen for Seung-Jo to stop being so stubborn and start dating Ha-ni already. This Korean drama will make you giggle, yet point out the Wattpad-like one-liners, but it is highly recommended.

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4 ‘Boys Over Flowers’ (2011)

Directed by Jeon Ki-Sang

Boys Over Flowers was the true beginning of the phenomenon known as the Hallyu Wave and made the main leads Lee Min-Ho and Ku Hye Sun famous worldwide. That is because this drama became very popular inside and outside of Korea, thanks to the breathtaking chemistry between the pair. This Korean drama focuses on the story of Geum Jan-Di (Sun), a poor girl who gets accepted into an important yet prestigious school because she saved a student from harm. As she enrolls in school, she meets the popular male group named F4 and gets entangled in a dramatic love triangle between two of the members: Troublemaker yet impulsive Gun Ju-Pyo (Min-Ho) and the artistic yet introverted Yoon Ji-Hoo.

Since Boys Over Flowers is considered a blueprint for romantic Korean Dramas, it inspired the creation of two remakes: one in China, named Meteor Garden, which also gave stardom recognition to the main lead, Dylan Wang, and F4: Thailand, made in Thailand. Boys Over Flowers features many hilarious one-liners and is a beautiful blend of love, friendship, and drama. Lee Min-Ho has fantastic acting and his emotional moments in the series feel like a punch in the gut from how phenomenal he is. Meteor Garden was able to recreate it perfectly; but F4: Thailand seemed bland in comparison to the other two. There is always discourse on social media about which one of the three is the best, but there is only one thing clear: No remake is better than the original. This drama is an exceptional watch and will keep you at the edge of your seat till the last moment, leaving you torn about which part of the love triangle deserves to be endgame.

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3 ‘Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo’ (2016)

Directed by Oh Hyun-jong

A good old friends-to-lovers trope, but it’s comedic yet wholesome! Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo focuses on the story of Kim Bok Joo (Lee Sung-Kyung), a weightlifting student, and Jung Joon Hyung (Nam Joo Hyuk), a competing swimming student, at the fictional Haneul Sports University of Seoul (in real life its true name is Inha University). They fatefully meet after 13 years by mistake, and, as the series goes on, they navigate through the themes of friendship, love, and sports before they graduate.

This drama is truly tear-jerking yet endearing, all thanks to the fabulous acting skills of the two main leads, which make you fall in love with them instantly. Featuring one-liners and English slang that will make the viewers laugh out loud for hours, Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo is a perfect coming-of-age drama that will tug your heartstrings and make you wish to have a man like Jung Joon Hyung by your side.

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2 ‘Strong Woman Do Bong Soon’

Directed by Lee Hyeong-Min

A woman with superhuman strength and a talent for videogame animation, and the rich CEO of the company she ends up working for. This is what Strong Woman Do Bong Soon focuses on. Both are stubborn, yet filled with courage and determination. Furthermore, after the rich CEO Ahn Min-Hyuk (Park Hyung Sik), sees Do Bong Soon (Park Bo-Young)‘s strength, hires her to be his bodyguard because of threatening letters he has been receiving. At the same time, Seoul is terrorized by a criminal who abducts women, and it’s up to the hilarious main leads to figure out who the culprit is.

Strong Woman Do Bong Soon
blends perfectly the genres of fantasy,
romance, comedy, and mystery
.

Strong Woman Do Bong Soon blends perfectly the genres of fantasy, romance, comedy, and mystery. The outstanding performances of the two main leads make the drama flow so well. The crime and investigation scenes in the police precinct are very well done. The emotional performances of Park Bo Young and Park Hyung Sik in episodes 13 and 14 were outstanding. The phenomenal storyline will keep you guessing who the culprit is till the last minute.

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1 ‘The Heirs’ (2013)

Directed by Kang Shin-hyo Boo

Two strangers, with different social backgrounds (she is poor, and he is the rich son of an important Korean company), meet in Los Angeles and end up becoming the most tragic yet beautiful love story that anyone has ever witnessed in a Korean drama. But what is The Heirs actually about? It focuses on multiple young teenagers’ stories that come together in one, all being the future heirs of their families’ companies and their families deciding for them because of their social status.

This Korean drama is perfect in every sense of the word.

Because of this series’ rising overseas popularity, Min-Ho received a “Star of Korean Tourism” award in 2015 at the Korean Tourism Awards, which is one of the most prestigious achievements a Korean actor can receive (the only Korean pop group to receive a Merit Cultural Award after him was BTS in 2018). This Korean drama is perfect in every sense of the word. It has a love triangle that will pull the heart’s strings, and Min-Ho’s outstanding performance gives chills to your spine. This is the best 2010s K-Drama!

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Keep Reading: The 13 Best K-Dramas of All Time, Ranked