K-Dramas to Look Out for This August
Come August is another whole slew of fresh and interesting K-Dramas debuting. If your favorite drama is reaching its conclusion, fret not. Here are some eye-catching titles with intriguing premises that may help you to fill the void and tide you through the weeks.
Flower of Evil
Think Criminal Minds with marriage-drama; tvN’s Flower of Evil stars K-Drama darlings Lee Joongi and Moon Chaewon in this investigation-thriller. Although Baek Sunghee (Lee Joongi) seems to be the perfect husband to homicide detective Cha Jiwon (Moon Chaewon), Chaewon finds out that her husband’s dark past may be key to a peculiar case.
The solid casting for this series should attract any long time K-Drama fans familiar with the leads. Accompanying them is director Kim Cheolkyu, who has worked on favorites such as Chicago Typewriter, Mother, and She is Wow!. Lee Joongi consistently delivers and this drama series will be a good introduction to anyone who is still not enamored by the intensity his characters bring out.
For those who are not looking to commit to a long series can consider checking out MBC’s murder-mystery and inheritance drama, Chip In, which will span eight hour-long episodes (which is short by most K-Dramas’ standards).
Yoo Bitna (Kim Hyejun) is the estranged daughter of a famous and successful painter, who owns billions of won in assets. On his 58th birthday, Bitna’s father assembles his family to share his will but passes away suddenly. A fierce battle over the inheritance takes place, with Bitna becoming involved as she becomes determined to find out the truth.
This drama’s premise is highly similar to the Academy Award-winning film Knives Out and is sure to satisfy viewers looking for a well-written mystery. The cast of characters is diverse, ranging from treacherous to comedic. Oh Nara also plays Bitna’s mother, a throwback for anyone who misses her over-the-top and hilarious character in Sky Castle.
Premiere episodes of Chip In are now available for streaming on Viki, Viu, OnDemandKorea, and KOWACO.
Stranger Season 2
Stranger, also known as Forest of Secrets, will be returning for its highly anticipated second season on August 15, two years after its initial release in 2017. It will replace It’s Okay To Be Not Okay’s Friday-Saturday timeslot on tvN.
Two years have passed since the events of the first season and stoic prosecutor Simok (Cho Seungwoo) and warm-hearted police officer Yeojin (Bae Doona) reunite under different circumstances. In the midst of a power clash between prosecutors and police, the two uncover murky secrets as they pursue a labyrinth of intertwined cases.
The first season was a success both domestically and internationally, receiving critical acclaim from various media outlets and sweeping awards in the 54th Baeksang Arts Awards. Fans of this series often praise the series for its ingenuity, tight pacing, and for being thought-provoking.
Any further attempt to hype up this series is rather redundant. Interested viewers who have not seen the first season can now binge the series on Netflix before the second season airs.
Do Do Sol Sol La La Sol
KBS’s Do Do Sol Sol La La Sol is a romantic comedy about pianist Gurara (Go Ara) who hit rock bottom. She meets the rough and mysterious Fritta Sun Woojun (Lee Jaewook), who is hiding secrets.
This drama is perfect for those who prefer the simplicity of a romance series over the seemingly convoluted plotlines in this list. Lee Jaewook will also be serving up some softboy-vibes under his tough exterior with his character—if you dig that. Meanwhile, Go Ara will portray an energetic and bright character with an exquisite fashion style that viewers can emulate.
Do Do Sol Sol La La Sol is slated to debut on August 23 and will be available for streaming on Netflix. It will air every Wednesday and Thursday.
SF8
SF8 is a crossover project between MBC and Directors Guild of Korea (DGK) to create a Korean sci-fi anthology series that explores subjects and themes including artificial intelligence, virtual reality, fantasy, superpowers, and more. There are eight episodes in total, each running around 40 minutes. Every episode is headed by a different director from DGK and can be enjoyed as a standalone.
Additionally, the cast for this project is packed with big names such as Lee Yeonhee, Super Junior’s Choi Siwon, EXID’s Hani, UEE, and Kim Bora, which should have piqued your interest by now if the otherworldly and dystopian sci-fi premise has not already done so. The series is already up on Korean OTT streaming service Wavve, but there is currently no legal way to watch this outside South Korea. Hopefully, this will change soon as it airs on MBC on August 14.
Meanwhile, check out the sick trailer which is highly reminiscent of Black Mirror, which can only mean great things for this promising series.
That’s it for the K-Dramas of interest this coming August. Let us know what caught your eye and if we missed any K-Dramas that are worth giving a shot!