Daebak K-Rambles Podcast: K-drama Reviews

On Episode 114 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, the Drama Trio revisit one of the most iconic K-dramas of the 2000s— Princess Hours ( Goong ), starring Yoon Eun-hye and Ju Ji-hoon. Jess, Caitlin, and Liliana dive into everything that makes Princess Hours such a fascinating time capsule: the wildly elaborate palace etiquette, early-2000s fashion, Harry Potter shaggy haircuts, and a love triangle th...

Celebrating 5 years of Daebak K-Rambles Podcast with our biggest episode yet! Join Jess for a special solo anniversary episode as she ranks all 94 Asian dramas we've reviewed over the past five years—from beloved K-dramas to unforgettable C-dramas, J-dramas, and T-dramas. Which series earned an S Tier spot? Which fan favorites landed lower than expected?  From Crash Landing on You , Goblin , M...

On Episode 112 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, Jess and friend Carol from Kdramas Musings return for Part 3 of the Hot Takes series—the ongoing public roasting of K-drama Land. In this official Part 3, Jess and Carol dive into another round of controversial, spicy, and occasionally unhinged opinions submitted by listeners, Patreon supporters, and commenters from Jess's viral TikTok. They'...

On Episode 111 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, Jess and Caitlin from the NoSleep4Dramas Podcast & Blog review the haunting 2018 crime melodrama Come and Hug Me , starring Jang Ki-yong, Jin Ki-Joo, and Heo Jun-ho. Jess and Caitlin talk through this drama that blends romance, trauma, and serial killer psychology into a slow-burn thriller and romance story with an unwavering focus on atonement a...

On Episode 110 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, Jess and Nas from the Swoon Diaries Podcast to review the underrated 2023 melodrama Call It Love , starring Kim Young-Kwang and Lee Sung-Kyung. Jess and Nas talk through how Call It Love transforms a familiar revenge setup into something unexpectedly tender, introspective, and quietly devastating. From its opening—lonely silhouettes, a haunting radio...

On Episode 109 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, Jess and Carol from the Kdrama Musings Podcast tackle the complicated love stories, emotional realism, and sex of Adult K-Drama Romance. We put forth that adult K-drama romance thrives in the space where love is no longer idealized, but negotiated—messy, intentional, and shaped by regret, timing, and consequence. We unpack love stories where chemistr...

On Episode 108 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, Jess and guest Lola from Lola Pops Off About Kdramas Podcast unpack the relentless, sweat-soaked summer thriller Two Weeks , starring Lee Joon-gi, Kim So-yeon, Ryu Soo-young, and Park Ha-sun. Jess and Lola talk through this messy, melodramatic, and utterly addictive K-drama from 2013, discussing the unapologetically over-the-top performances and how...

On Episode 107 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, Jess and guest and listener Yarrow unpack the genre-blending Chicago Typewriter , starring Yoo Ah-in, Lim Soo-jung, and Ko Kyung-pyo. Jess and Yarrow talk through this 2017 drama that blends ghost story, past-life romance, and Japanese-occupation resistance narrative into one ambitious package. The duo discuss an uneven viewing experience, a surprisi...

On Episode 106 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, Jess and bestie Liliana from the Tea & Soju Podcast dive into the devastating beauty of One and Only (周生如故), a 2021 Chinese historical romance starring Ren Jialun (Allen Ren) and Bai Lu. Jess and Liliana talk through this slow-burn tragedy following a master–disciple relationship that evolves into a forbidden love defined by restraint, sacrif...

On Episode 105 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, Jess and Lola from Lola Pops Off About Kdramas Podcast—a proud crybaby and longtime K-drama watcher—tackle sad K-dramas and ask the question: If a drama made you miserable… why are you still thinking about it years later?   From classics like Autumn in My Heart and I'm Sorry, I Love You to modern heartbreakers like Twenty-Five Twenty-One , The Re...

On Episode 104 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, Jess and guests Carol from the Kdrama Musings Podcast and Lola from Lola Pops Off About Kdramas Podcast unpack Netflix’s generational tearjerker When Life Gives You Tangerines , starring IU, Park Bo-gum, Moon So-ri, and Park Hae-joon (and IU… again). Jess, Lola, and Carol talk through this sweeping 2025 Jeju-set family saga spanning decades about gri...

On Episode 103 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, Jess and Grace and Sarah from the Afternoona Asks Podcast go full 2012 time warp to review Queen In-hyun’s Man (also known as Queen and I ), starring Ji Hyun-woo and Yoo In-na. Jess, Grace, and Sarah talk through this top-tier time-travel K-drama, discussing its airtight writing, emotional payoff, and magnetic central romance. From spicy kisses in th...

On Episode 102 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, Jess and friend Carol from Kdramas Musings dive headfirst into 2025’s Dynamite Kiss , starring Jang Ki-yong and Ahn Eun-jin. Jess and Carol break down this polarizing, messy, and occasionally swoon worthy rom-com K-drama, unpacking the endless tropes, the kind-but-chronically-lying female lead, stock characters, bloated business machinations, and a r...

On episode 101 and the kick-off to season 7, Jess shares beginner-friendly Korean dramas! If you’ve never watched a K-drama—or you tried once and bounced—this episode is your starting point. This isn’t a simple list of “the best” K-dramas. It’s a guide to which shows actually teach you how to watch K-dramas : clear genres, familiar tropes, strong emotional hooks, fast rewards, and stories that don...

Celebrate 100 episodes of Daebak K-Rambles with this special solo episode! Jess counts down 100 iconic K-drama moments that made her laugh, cry, scream, and fall in love all over again. From Crash Landing on You and Goblin to Move to Heaven and The Red Sleeve , this nostalgic deep dive revisits the most emotional, funny, and unforgettable scenes in Jess' K-drama history. Whether you’re a longt...

On Episode 99 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, Jess is joined by Grace and Sarah from the Afternoona Asks Podcast to review 2018's I'm Not a Robot , starring Yoo Seung-ho and Chae Soo-bin. Jess, Grace, and Sarah talk through this delightful rom-com K-drama, discussing the preposterous plot, the sincere and earnest love story, how prescient an AI robot actually is, the FL's agency, tiny orange (or...

On Episode 98 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, Jess is joined by friend Nas from the Swoon Diaries Podcast to review 2013's That Winter, the Wind Blows , starring Jo In-sung and Song Hye-kyo. Jess and Nas talk through this melodrama K-drama, discussing the horrendous, flawed characters, the unhinged plot filled with faux-cest, suicide ideation, and random stabbings, SNL Korea-spoofed scenes and te...

On Episode 97 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, Jess and all the Certified Noonas (Natalia, Jessie, Amanda, and Sky) review Always (2011), starring So Ji-sub and Han Hyo-joo. Jess and the Noonas discuss this melodrama romance movie, talking through this cast (i.e., So Ji-sub lovefest and Han Hyo-joo praise), the complaints from Letterboxd reviewers, Rocky comparisons, favorite scenes, questions abo...

On Episode 96 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, Jess and Miguel circle back one last time to talk about the conclusion to the worldwide phenomenon:  Squid Game Season 3 , starring Lee Jung-Jae, Lee Byung-hun, Park Sung-hoon, Yim Siwan, Kang Ha-neul, and so many more! Jess and Miguel talk through the hotly debated season 3 of the Netflix thriller, including our general thoughts, Emmy considerations...

On Episode 95 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, Jess is joined by friend Lola from Lola Pops Off About Kdramas Podcast to review the oldie I'm Sorry, I Love You , starring So Ji-sub, Lim Soo-jung, and Jung Kyoung-Ho. Jess and Lola talk through this 2004 iconic melodrama K-drama, discussing the sky high ratings and legacy, the horrendous, flawed characters, the unfair portrayal of motherhood, the wi...

On Episode 94 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, Jess is joined by friends Liliana from the Tea & Soju Podcast and Becky from @dont_sue_rebecca on TikTok to review Our Beloved Summer , starring Choi Woo-sik and Kim Dami. Jess, Liliana, and Becky talk through this 2021 second chance romance K-drama, discussing the flawed characters, the dreamy, atmospheric nature of the show, the amazing OST, onl...

On Episode 93 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, Jess and OG drama bestie Miguel review Move to Heaven, starring Lee Je-hoon and Tang Joon-sang. Jess and Miguel talk through this 2021 slice-of-life drama, discussing the show’s incredible writing and performances, viewing the show through the lens of an autistic character, our favorite and most memorable scenes, a breakdown of cultural nuances (rooft...

On Episode 92 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, Jess and Mina from the Kpop Bookshelf Podcast review The Red Sleeve, starring Lee Junho and Lee Se-young. Jess and Mina talk through this 2021 drama, discussing the show’s incredible writing and performances from its cast, the true history that inspired the story, our interpretation of the ending, a breakdown of the love story, a character study of th...

On Episode 91 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, Jess and friend Carol from Kdramas Musings return for Part 2 of the Hot Takes series. In Part 2, Jess and Carol stoke the flames as they talk through more hot takes from the comments section of Jess's viral TikTok. Song Kang, Cha Eun-woo, Park Min-young, Han So-hee, tropes like childhood connection and miscommunication, old faves like rich man-poor gi...

 On Episode 90 of the Daebak K-Rambles Podcast, Jess and friend Carol from Kdramas Musings channel the anarchy with the with Hot Takes series, the first public roasting of K-drama Land. In Part 1, Jess and Carol bring the heat as they talk through the hot takes from the comments section of Jess's viral TikTok. Byeon Woo-seok, Song Joong-ki, Park Seo-joon, Lee Min-ho, Lee Jong-suk, Bae Suzy, Jo Bo-...