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Korean TV dramas are a significant cultural export. They sell widely in Asian countries and also in the Middle East, and are increasingly available in legal DVD versions with English subtitles - though at prices in the region of $80 for a series you need to be a dedicated fan to pursue this particular interest.
I’m open to any views and contributions here, because it’s not a field I’m terribly familiar with. For people new to the genre I would recommend the following three K-dramas, all of which are now available from YesAsia with English subtitles
- Winter Sonata - probably the TV drama that most epitomises the Korean Wave. It gave rise to the superstardom in Japan of Bae Yong-jun, aka Yonsama; and you can do Winter Sonata holiday tours of Seoul. Here’s a link to an essay explaining Winter Sonata’s popularity in Asia.
- Sandglass - historically important for its controversial backdrop - the Kwangju uprising in 1980. This series was very big in its day (1995). I’m hoping someone will give it to me for Christmas.
- Jewel in the Palace - OK, this is on the list because I like Lee Young-ae, its star, but I’ve also heard good reviews of it. Alice Bennell has started a campaign to get the BBC to buy this series and is also running a blog on the subject, while UKfan has started a comic relief bulletin board devoted to DJG comic strips.
The Korean Tourist Board has an English language site, Hello Hallyu, which gives an introduction to some of the more recent K-dramas, and encourages you to visit some of the locations where they were filmed. And recognising the growing interest in Korean TV dramas, Darcy’s Koreanfilm.org now has an ever-growing page devoted to reviews of them.
For dedicated followers, there’s www.clubbox.co.kr, which I understand enables you to download episodes of your favourite serial, sometimes subtitled by other dedicated followers. I understand it takes several hours to download one episode, so I don’t intend trying it out. I don’t know whether it’s legal either, though that may not be a bother to some. It’s in Korean, so you need to know how to work it. There are some links here which might help.
For the serious addict there’s d-addicts.com, and a burgeoning Wiki site, http://wiki.d-addicts.com/Main_Page on Asian drama of all nationalities.
