5 Netflix K-Dramas To Watc
Khadija Yusra Sanusi
Nigerians are currently obsessed with K-Dramas. But why? 25-year-old student Solum from Anambra state has been watching K-Dramas since 2018. She told Leadership “I am pretty sure I watched over 100 dramas because that’s the primary form of television I watch.” For her, K-Dramas stand out from Hollywood shows because they are usually one season; there’s no need to wait a whole year after being left on a cliff hanger. She also finds them refreshing. “My favourite genre is romantic comedies and what I noticed with American TV was how everything was highly sexualized. It got to the point where the whole plot centred around sex and for me, I just thought there is more to life than that. Because of how conservative Korean media is, storylines have a wider focus; they touch on things like life, Korean society, friendship, growing up, the education system, etc.” Solum does not find the characters relatable, but she does relate to the underlying themes of the shows: transition from school to working, work-life balance, class disparity and relationships.
Despite the language barrier, Solum has picked up a lot of Korean words and phrases from the shows she’s been watching and wouldn’t be lost at all without subtitles. She has also learnt a lot about Korean culture, like “the heavy weight of seniority”, cultural norms like bowing, and formal and informal ways of speaking Korean. This is especially helpful because she loves traveling and learning about new cultures; her trip to Korea was particularly delightful because she understood key words and phrases and “knew exactly what I wanted to see, eat, and had some sort of guide from the shows.”
Aisha Almustapha Muhammad, a 25-year-old teacher from Zamfara state, is also a fan. She has also watched at least 15 K-Dramas in two years and likes them because they are comfortable to watch around underaged kids without the fear of explicit content. Despite the fact that she does not find their storylines or characters relatable, she loves their tradition, wants to try their food and learn their language, and “the way their ladies express love without the fear of being rejected.” By watching K-Dramas, she is picking up a few words even though she still relies heavily on subtitles.
Like Solum and Aisha, many Nigerians love watching K-Dramas. Leadership spoke to some Nigerians about a few highly rated Netflix K-Dramas and how they would rate them.
My Name
Plot
A girl’s father, a gangster, is killed in episode one. She sets out to find his killers for revenge and ends up joining his gang. When she discovers he was killed by a policeman, she goes undercover and trains in the force to find out who killed him and avenge his death.
Review
Idris Muhammad, a 26-year-old man from Nasarawa state, has been watching K-Dramas since 2014 and has watched over 50 series and movies now. Because it is “so real and relatable”, he would rather watch it than Hollywood. “They are quite detailed, strategic and photography is perfect, plus the audio work. It’s a perfect piece of art,” he told Leadership. Because of K-Dramas, he has learned “a bit of Korean” and can translate the speech without seeing the subtitles, leaving the people around him in awe. He also loves Asian culture (especially Korean) but unfortunately, the lack of black characters in their series leaves the impression that they may be racist. But he understands that the lack thereof may be because not many black people understand the language.
For My Name, his favourite character is Yoon Ji-won because she was determined; she challenged societal norms and was able to unearth the secret behind her father’s death and who he really was. He didn’t find the movie relatable because “we, as Nigerians, are not so into the revenge business” but nevertheless, it was fun and gratifying to watch.
Rating
9/10
Mouse
Plot
A police officer and his partner, Go Moo-chi, set out to discover the truth behind psychopathic behaviours. But it comes with a major twist…
Review
For 25-year-old student Solum, she found Jeung Ba Reum’s character interesting because it shows that the mind of a psychopath is hard to understand; he was killing people who followed God’s teachings, because of his unanswered prayers. She doesn’t relate to any of the characters, but she emphasized with Go Moo-Chi’s journey to catching the serial killer.
Rating
10/10
Itaewon Class
Plot
A boy, Park Sae Ro Yi, transfers to a new school and fights a bully, Jang Geun Won (who’s rich). He gets expelled, his dad dies in a hit and run; and when he finds out the bully was behind all that, he assaults him, but ends up in jail. He decides to go for revenge, so he builds himself up from nothing and becomes the bully’s company’s competitor.
Review
Khadija Musa, a 20-year-old student from Kano state, has been watching K-Dramas for six years because the actors are funny and dramatic. “Whenever I start watching an episode from a season, I get engrossed and will just binge them,” she told Leadership. “I love the fact that they have a love culture; they appreciate and give love – at least, that’s what they portray.” From watching K-Dramas, she has picked up many Korean words. Through she may not be fluent, she would not be lost without subtitles. It has also helped her understand aspects of their culture and makes her eager to visit the country.
For Itaewon Class, she finds the storyline relatable because it portrayed how the rich stumble upon the poor in society; it also tells the story of unrequited love. Jo YI Seo is her favourite character because of how bold and strong she is; “she knew to go for what she wanted even though it seemed farfetched.”
Rating
8/10
Vincenzo
Plot
Mafia lawyer comes back to get gold in an apartment building, then gets tangled up with a company who murdered one of the residents. He teams up with some of the residents to take them down, while trying to keep the gold for himself. During all this, he falls in love with the daughter of the company’s victim.
Review
25-year-old pharmacist from Zamfara state, Abdulrahman Mustapha, finds K-Dramas interesting, the writing superb and the storylines enthralling. Watching them, he has observed the respect they have for their elders and the culture (like their food), which make him want to visit the country.
He didn’t find the Vincenzo storyline relatable, but his favourite character was Vincenzo because of his endless fight with the pigeon that sits outside his window and how that relationship became less hostile as he made the pigeon his pet and named it Inzaghi.
Rating
9/10
Happiness
Plot
Two people get tangled up in a zombie outbreak so they pretend to be married to live in an apartment block. It suddenly becomes the danger zone for the outbreak, which was apparently caused by pills. Now, it’s a government issue.
Review
25-year-old student Attahir Sabo Joji has been watching K-Dramas since 2009. The Bauchi state indigene loves their tradition and finds the content to be PG. In addition, he is picking up a lot of things from the shows and is now eager to go to Korea and learn the language because of his love for their culture.
For Happiness, he doesn’t find the storyline relatable (it’s sci-fi) but there are many relatable characters. His favourite character in the movie is Yi Hyun (Park Hyung Sik) because of his acting and facial expression. “Everything was on point,” he told Leadership.
Rating
9.5/10
K-Dramas are educating Nigerians on Korean culture, language, food, and lifestyle. By watching these shows, they are becoming more open-minded and more knowledgeable in the Korean culture. It is an easy, refreshing, non-tasking way of learning.
