December 25, 2023 @ 9:00 AM
Gone are the days when K-dramas almost exclusively meant love stories, period pieces and family dramas. Today, South Korea produces some of the most chilling and outrageously violent TV shows you’ll ever see—while also continuing to release the more traditional, wholesome fare that longtime K-drama fans fell in love with years ago.
The diversification of genres in recent years can largely be attributed to the rise of global streaming platforms like Netflix and Disney+. In the past, most K-dramas were aired on broadcast TV, which comes with certain guidelines around what can and cannot be shown (no sex or excessive violence, for example). By contrast, streamers aren’t bound by such rules around content.
The result? More extreme and graphic K-dramas, with Korean original series on OTT services like Netflix, often featuring plenty of gore and violence, and sometimes some sex and nudity as well. This year saw a host of Korean thrillers and horror series, and here we’ve compiled 12 of the best ones for you to check out, in no particular order. From crime-fighting vigilantes to superhuman spies to paranormal creatures, these K-dramas will show you a bloody hell of a good time. And if you thought Squid Game was violent, wait till you watch some of these.
(Disney)
Enter Vigilante (비질란테) – An action thriller that was all the rage in Korea when it aired in November, becoming the #1 show in the country across all OTT platforms upon its release.
From crime-fighting vigilantes to superhuman spies to paranormal creatures, Vigilante stars K-drama heartthrob Nam Joo-hyuk (Start-Up, Twenty Five Twenty One) as Kim Ji-yong, a top police academy student who leads a double life as a vigilante, hunting down and punishing criminals during his free time to make up for the shortcomings of Korea’s justice system.
From its opening scene, in which we see the life-altering tragedy that sets Ji-yong on his path, Vigilante grabs your attention and never lets go. It’s dizzyingly fast-paced, with nonstop action and suspense that’ll keep you on the edge of your seat. Just don’t forget to breathe.
Read more about Vigilante on Hulu and Disney+.
“Mask Girl” (Jun Hea-sun/Netflix)
Mask Girl (마스크걸) was a huge hit among domestic and international audiences earlier this year, nabbing the top spot on Netflix’s Global Top 10 list of the most-watched non-English language shows shortly after its premiere. Over the course of just seven episodes, a sweeping, decades-spanning saga unfolds through the eyes of anti-heroine Kim Mo-mi.
Get more details about Mask Girl by clicking here or Read More
