7 K-Dramas With Leads Who Are Only Figuring Life Out In Their 30s

written by Alex Hartley

March 20, 2024 9:00 am

7 K-Dramas With Leads Who Are Only Figuring Life Out In Their 30s — Image credit: jTBC

Uplifting K-watch.

Sometimes it feels like we are late to the big party called life. People younger than us are building entire business empires or raising amazing families while we feel stuck and hopeless. But that's just a superficial FOMO feeling fueled by a ruthless social media culture.

In reality, it is never too late to start a career, find a purpose in life, or enter a new relationship. As long as you breathe, anything is possible. Here are seven K-dramas to prove it.

Hello, Me! (2021)

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IMDb rating: 7.3/10

Where to stream: Netflix

The drama is about the lead trying to find a new beginning in her mid-thirties. Ban Ha-ni is single, shy and unhappy. Her job is a joke and she doesn't see any reason to wake up in the morning. That's when her fiery 17-year-old self materializes before her eyes and demands change.

She Would Never Know (2021)

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IMDb rating: 7.5/10

Where to stream: Prime Video, Netflix, iQIYI

Yoon Song-ah has big dreams and a weird secret affair with her boss. When a new colleague joins the office and falls in love with Song-ah, she discovers an ugly truth about her life that sets her free and allows to grow both professionally and personally.

Doctor Slump (2024)

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IMDb rating: 7.5/10

Where to stream: Netflix, TVING

This is the newer drama that just aired its finale. Its main characters are feuding doctors who lose their jobs and their purpose in life for different reasons. Surprisingly, they end up living together and trying to navigate their love-hate relationship, mental health, and careers as a duo.

Thirty-Nine (2022)

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IMDb Rating: 7.7/10

Where to stream: Netflix, TVING

The drama focuses almost entirely on the deep friendship of three women approaching their forties, as they figure out their personal and professional lives. While it's not exactly lighthearted (the drama has a heavy theme of loss), it's well made, very touching, and guaranteed to hit you right in the heart.

Something in the Rain (2018)

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IMDb rating: 8.1/10

Where to stream: Netflix, Prime Video, Viki

Yoon Jin-ah has always found it difficult to maintain a relationship with a man due to her slightly clumsy personality. That's why, at the age of 35, she ends up dumped by a boyfriend and miserable. Luckily, the younger brother of Jin-ah's best friend comes along and opens the way to an amazing character development for her.

Because This Is My First Life (2017)

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IMDb rating: 8.1/10

Where to stream: Netflix, Apple TV, Viki

At the age of 30, the drama's protagonist, Yoon Ji-ho, has never dated and has a career crisis that makes her rethink her whole life. She enters into a contract marriage with an awkward IT guy, which makes things even more complicated. As a bonus, a lot of screen time is given to Ji-ho's female friends who are also going through self-discovery.

My Liberation Notes (2022)

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IMDb Rating: 8.2/10

Where to stream: Netflix

This slow-paced slice-of-life drama revolves around three siblings (two sisters and a brother) in their 30s who feel stuck in life and their dead-end neighborhood. When they befriend a mysterious new neighbor, their journey of life-discovery begins.