“It’s Okay to Not Be Okay” (사이코지만)

“It’s Okay to Not Be Okay” is an unconventional love story that also focuses beautifully on mental health. It depicts how the aftermath of abuse and abandonment affects the psyche, but reaffirms that no one is a lost cause — and that seeking help is self love.

“Prison Playbook” (슬기로운 감빵생활)

“Prison Playbook” is a dramedy I never wanted to watch. But I’m so glad I did, because it handled social injustice in a way that was palatable to digest, while offering a satisfying ending.

“Hospital Playlist” (슬기로운 의사생활): Season 1

The masterminds behind the superb “Reply” anthology produced another hit series with “Hospital Playlist,” centering around a quintet of long-time friends who are all doctors for the same prestigious hospital.

“Crash Landing on You” (사랑의 불시착)

A couple months after the series finale aired, I still find myself missing the characters in the superb K-Drama, “Crash Landing on You.”

“Chicago Typewriter” (시카고 타자기)

“Chicago Typewriter” takes place in modern-day Seoul, but some of the best storytelling occurs during flashbacks to the 1930s, when Korea was under Japanese occupation. There, we learn about three resistance fighters whose lives and friendship will set the tone for the 21st Century arc.

“Signal” (시그널)

“Signal” makes you ponder the consequences of altering life. Is it fate for a person to die at a certain time, no matter how horrific that death might be? And knowing that saving someone’s life in the past could create catastrophic results in the future, would you still take that chance?

“My Ahjussi” (나의 아저씨)

“My Ahjussi” is a satisfying K-Drama focusing on Dong-Hoon, a mid-level engineer who lives a mundane life. He works hard, hangs out with his brothers every evening and goes home to a house where his wife is rarely there. And if she is, she holes away in her home office and ignores him. It can’t be a coincidence that the set designer chose an apartment complex that looks more like a prison than a home for their residence.