First and foremost, K-dramaland is synonymous in many people's minds with the romance genre. There seems to be a love story for every age and preference on South Korean television.
But over the past few years, Korean showmakers have been dipping their toes in the waters of all other genres and have made quite a bit of progress. Take Squid Game, for example. The global success of this thriller is hard to overestimate.
In addition, K-drama makers know their audience very well and niche their projects perfectly. That's how we ended up with a number of amazing coming-of-age thrillers set on school campuses. Here are seven fan-recommended examples.
Duty After School (2023)
IMDb Rating: 6.8/10
Where to stream: Viki
Finals are a stressful time for any high school student, but for the characters of Duty After School, a sudden alien invasion makes things even worse. Now they must not only study hard, but also train to fight off the insect-like creatures that threaten to take over Earth.
Night Has Come (2023)
IMDb Rating: 7.2/10
Where to stream: Netflix, Viki
A high school class field trip turns into a nightmare when the students are forced to play a real-life game of mafia. Survival mode brings out the worst and best in former friends and classmates. No one is safe.
Solomon's Perjury (2016)
IMDb Rating: 7.4/10
Where to stream: Netflix, Viki, Disney+
When a student falls from the school's roof, the police conclude it was a suicide. But soon another student begins claiming murder and gets killed in a car accident. While the adults continue to dismiss this as a coincidence, the classmates of the murdered decide to hold their own trial, in which they act as counselors, judges, and jurors.
All of Us Are Dead (2022)
IMDb Rating: 7.5/10
Where to stream: Netflix
A school science experiment has shocking results: the lab becomes a ground zero for a zombie outbreak. As the virus spreads rapidly, a group of students must survive the immediate threat and hold out until help arrives.
Revenge Of Others (2022)
IMDb Rating: 7.6/10
Where to stream: Disney+, Hulu
A brave and determined shooting champion, Ok Chan-m, decides to transfer to her brother's school after his death. The reason is that the police concluded that the tragedy was a suicide, and the girl cannot believe that her brother could have killed himself. The sleuthing investigation leads to revenge.
Class of Lies (2019)
IMDb Rating: 7.8/10
Where to stream: Viki
Gi Kang-jae is a top lawyer whose career was ruined by a high school murder case. To get his reputation back, Kang-jae poses as a teacher and goes to work in the same class the murdered girl was in. There he discovers that the reality is much darker than he thought.
Weak Hero Class 1 (2022)
IMDb Rating: 8.5/10
Where to stream: Prime Video, Viki, Kocowa, Wavve, iQIYI
This gloomy and excellent drama deals with the issue of school bullying. Yeon Si-eun is a top student and seems weak, but with his knowledge of physics, logic and psychology, he manages to fight off the violence inside and outside of school.