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Family is a funny thing. One minute, you're arguing about someone leaving the toilet seat up for the thousandth time; the next, you're cry-laughing together as you watch a silly cat video. It's a fact of life that even the most loving households are populated by flawed individuals doing the best they can with the cards they've been dealt, because we're all just trying to navigate a dysfunctional world. Likewise, it's vital to never confuse the term "family" with "love." Unspeakable scenarios exist within familial-coded structures, like irreparable conflict, grief and loss, and abuse.
Families exist in all shapes and forms: blood, adopted, blended, large or small, and, most importantly of all, a group of people forging their found unit. The only thing that determines a truly happy family is who you love, and what your chosen group make of it. With that in mind, here are the top 10 best family-focused K-Dramas, ranked.
10 'Strong Girl Nam-soon'
Cast: Lee Yoo-mi, Kim Jung-eun, Kim Hae-sook
Image via Netflix
Like every woman in her family, Gang Nam-soon (Lee Yoo-mi) has superhuman strength the likes of which no one could achieve — unless you have her family's matrilineal gift, that is. But unlike every woman in her family, Nam-soon also possesses an arsenal of powers impressive enough to rival The Flash and Superman. Raised in Mongolia for most of her childhood by her adoptive parents (whom she adores), Nam-soon wants to explore her birth culture in Korea. Finding her blood relatives will be difficult, but once she does, threats from a violent crime lord make their situation even trickier.
A spin-off of 2017’s hit drama Strong Girl Bong-soon, Strong Girl Nam-soon hits similar beats. A slapstick comedy and a crime-action drama with romance sprinkled throughout, Strong Girl Nam-soon is ultimately about the power of families, be they chosen and randomly decided by DNA. Nam-soon is a chipper and engaging heroine thanks to Lee, who made history as the first Korean actress to win the Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series for Squid Game Season 1. Yet the biggest delights, arguably, are the older generations: Nam-soon's birth mother, Hwang Geum-joo (Kim Jung-eun), a CEO by day and a crimefighter by night, as well as Nam-soon’s grandmother, Gil Joong-gan (Kim Hae-sook), whose mere presence is enough to frighten off potential enemies.
Strong Girl Nam-Soon
Release Date October 7, 2023
Finale Year November 30, 2022
Cast Lee Yoo-mi , Kim Hae-sook , Ong Seong-wu , Kim Jeong-eun , Minae Noji , Byeon Woo-seok , Yuuki Luna , Anzu Lawson
Seasons 1
9 'Family By Choice'
Cast: Hwang In-youp, Jung Chae-yeon, Bae Hyun-sung
Image via SLL
Kim San-ha (Hwang In-youp), Yoon Ju-won (Jung Chae-yeon), and Kang Hae-jun (Bae Hyun-sung) aren’t related, but they are siblings of one another's hearts. During their adolescence, all three were parented by the unconventional joint efforts of two of their fathers. That situation gave the trio the unconditional love and support they needed as teenagers as well as enough guidance to face the world as adults. After spending ten years apart, the three reunite and discover how their dearest friends have changed while rediscovering what remains the same: their enduring affection.
It's wonderful to watch two separate men assume the exhausting and thankless role of a primary caregiver yet "adopt" two more lonely kids with open arms.
Family By Choice is a heartwarming and moving exploration of what constitutes a genuine family. The trio forging their own unit is lovely enough, but it's the dads— Yoon Jeong-jae (Choi Won-young), father to Ju-won and a noodle restaurant owner, and Kim Dae-wook (Choi Moo-sung), San-ha’s father and a police officer — who nearly steal the show. It's wonderful to watch two separate men assume the exhausting and thankless role of a primary caregiver yet "adopt" two more lonely kids with open arms. Ju-won, San-ha, and Hae-jun experience heartbreak and trauma, but they emerge unscathed because Jeong-jae and Dae-wook provided them with as much warmth, safety, and love as they could.
8 'Little Women'
Cast: Kim Go-eun, Nam Ji-hyun, and Park Ji-hu
Image via tvN
Loosely inspired by Louisa May Alcott’s novel, Little Women turns the beloved historical classic into a modern-day, class-conscious suspense thriller. Abandoned by their absent mother, the three Oh sisters — In-joo (Kim Go-eun), In-kyung (Nam Ji-hyun), and In-hye (Park Ji-hu) — know no greater enemy than poverty. They’ve spent their lives hounded by never-ending bills and haunted by the independence and protection they can’t afford to enjoy, let alone the opportunities their financial insecurity prevents them from pursuing. When one of In-joo’s only friends leaves the eldest daughter with a fortune of embezzled cash, In-joo faces more than a moral quandary about reporting the crime versus keeping the money — she learns up-close, not just from afar, that Korea's richest and most corrupt family will stop at nothing to maintain their stranglehold over the status quo.
Conducting this fraught tale about generational wealth is none other than two women: Vincenzo director Kim Hee-won and screenwriter Jeong Seo-kyeong, the latter best known for her collaborations with Oldboy director Park Chan-wook. Some romantic tension sizzles between In-joo and the enigmatic Choi Do-il (Squid Game’s Wi Ha-joon), but everything comes back to the Oh sisters — three women born into a class category that demands they sacrifice everything for capitalism’s gain, and those women are as heart-stoppingly captivating as their series is harrowing. Their realistic love for one another includes grounded hallmarks like clashing perspectives, fierce protectiveness, guilt, and self-sacrifice.
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Little Women
Release Date September 3, 2022
Finale Year November 30, 2021
Cast Kim Go-eun , Nam Ji-hyun , Park Ji-hu , Wi Ha-jun , Uhm Ji-won , Uhm Ki-joon , Kim Mi-sook , Kang Hoon , Jeon Chae-eun , Gong Min-jeung , Cho Seung-yeon , Park Bo-kyung , Oh Jung-se , Kim Byung-nam , Jeon Jin-oh , Lee Min-woo , Lee Do-yeop , Kim Myung-soo , Park Ji-young , Nam Kee-ae , Park So-yi , Hong Seo-hee , Song Joong-ki , Adrian Pang
Main Genre Drama
Seasons 1
7 '18 Again'
Yoon Sang-hyun, Kim Ha-neul, and Lee Do-hyun
Image via JTBC
Hong Dae-young’s (Yoon Sang-hyun) life didn’t turn out the way he had hoped. He doesn’t regret marrying his high school sweetheart, Jung Da-jung (Kim Ha-neul), or raising their twins — but Dae-young sacrificed his dreams of a basketball career to support Da-jung through her teen pregnancy, and his career hasn't improved since. Now 37 years old, he loses his job as an appliance repairman, his kids keep avoiding him, and Da-jung files for divorce. Dreaming of the life he could’ve had instead of this mess, Dae-young inexplicably reverts into his 18-year-old body (Lee Do-hyun). This magical do-over gives him another chance to pursue the sports scholarship he left behind, but he’s also afforded the opportunity to understand his family’s hopes, their fears, and their own unfulfilled goals.
Despite the series' comedy beats, 18 Again is a deeply tender fable about how a loving family gradually breaks apart, and the ways maturity and empathy — not fate — sews them back together.
Based on the 2009 teen comedy 17 Again starring Zac Efron, don’t let any biases you might have about that string of words fool you. Despite the series' comedy beats, 18 Again is a deeply tender fable about how a loving family gradually breaks apart, and the ways maturity and empathy — not fate — sews them back together. Dae-young confronts his shortcomings with grace, while Da-jung receives equal screen time as a woman who adores her children but finds her dreams slipping away because of ageism. Twins Hong Shi-ah (Roh Jeong-eui) and Hong Shi-woo (Ryeoun), meanwhile, grapple with self-esteem, bullying, and financial hardship. 18 Again showcases several kinds of familial love as well as how fleetingly precious life is, and how easily we disregard what we value most.
6 'Sky Castle'
Cast: Yum Jung-ah, Yoon Se-ah, Lee Tae-ran
Image via HB Entertainment
Education has never been more cutthroat than in the suburban neighborhood of SKY Castle. Populated by some of Korea’s richest families, four different matriarchs try to secure their children’s futures by scheming, lying, blackmailing, crushing other families beneath their boots, and even courting the possibility of murder. If it means placing their progeny within the country’s most elite colleges and on the most affluent career paths, then basic morality is out the window. After all, wouldn't you do anything for your family, no matter the price your ambition cost?
Starring Yum Jung-ah, Yoon Se-ah, Lee Tae-ran, and Oh Na-ra as SKY Castle’s four main mothers and Kim Seo-hyung as the enigmatic tutor whose services they covet, Sky Castle currently ranks as the fourth-highest-rated cable K-Drama in history. Despite its classification as a satire making Sky Castle an outlier where this list is concerned, its fraught tension is inseparable from its family-focused slant. The characters' relationships aren't healthy, and their individual actions range from questionable to sinister, but that's the point — Sky Castle's brutally sly commentary highlights the damaging downsides of a competitive educational system. Even those at the top ruthlessly scramble for power, their actions fracturing relationships and affecting the mental health of the very children they claim to provide for. These "perfect" families are only enviable from the outside; Sky Castle peers behind the glossy and deliciously dramatic curtain.
SKY Castle
Release Date November 23, 2018
Finale Year November 30, 2018
Cast Yum Jung-ah , Lee Tae-ran , Oh Na-ra , Kim Seo-hyung , Yoon Se-ah
Rating
Seasons 1
Writers Kim Seo-hyung , Moon Bomi
5 'Under the Queen’s Umbrella'
Cast: Kim Hye-soo, Kim Hae-sook, and Choi Won-young
Image via How Pictures
Queen Hwa-ryeong (Kim Hye-soo) is the mother of the Joseon nation and the mother of several rambunctious sons. Despite how frustrating they are, Hwa-ryeong hasn’t instructed them on proper royal protocol, instead devoting that education to the Crown Prince (Bae In-hyuk). However, when the Crown Prince contracts a potentially deadly illness, the court erupts into the chaos only a succession crisis can bring. Ambitious politicians and the Queen Dowager (Kim Hae-sook) alike hope to increase their power by manipulating their chosen heirs onto the throne, a tactic that involves tossing Hwa-ryeong and her sons to the metaphorical wolves. Facing danger on all sides, the queen vows to protect her children and make them worthy of the Crown Prince title.
Under the Queen’s Umbrella might flaunt the grandeur expected from a historical costume drama, but this sageuk isn't as concerned with political machinations as it is with highlighting a mother’s willpower. Hwa-ryeong isn’t accustomed to the life-threatening scenarios that follow her firstborn's illness, but she adapts as rapidly as these exterior forces demand. It would be easy for her badassery to stem from just her political acumen, but although Hwa-ryeong possesses that trait in abundance, what makes her compelling is how her love for children, her survival instinct, and her defiance intersect. The affection between Hwa-ryeong and her sons powers the series' beating heart.
Release Date October 15, 2022
Cast Kim Hye-soo , Moon Sang-min , Chani , Choi Won-young
Seasons 1
Main Genre K-Drama
4 'Our Blues'
Cast: Lee Byung-hun, Shin Min-a, Cha Seung-won
Image via Netflix
For each individual, what does it mean to build a community yet lack a true home? Shedding the format associated with traditional dramas, Our Blues unfolds across its 20 episodes like an interconnected, slice-of-life anthology. Set in the city of Seogwipo on Jeju Island, the series' tapestry of relationships includes Lee Dong-seok (Squid Game and Mr. Sunshine’s Lee Byung-hun), an unassuming merchant, and his distant relationship with his mother, Kang Ok-dong (Kim Hye-ja), a respected figure within Seogwipo's community. There’s also the cheerful fish store owner Jeong Eun-hee (Lee Jung-eun), who stumbles upon potential happiness when she's reunited with her childhood love, Choi Han-soo (Cha Seung-won); newly minted ocean diver Lee Young-ok (Han Ji-min) and ship captain Park Jeong-joon (Kim Woo-bin); as well as long-term residents, single parents, high school students, and more.
Families form, fall apart, and come back together, and almost every character craves to be truly seen with affection and truly loved without judgment.
"Slice-of-life" can sometimes translate to "soft and heartwarming," but Our Blues is a superbly constructed drama with brutally pragmatic depth and impact. All of Seogwipo’s residents are flawed, some severely, if not unforgivably, so — evidenced by the series' mature approach to topics as sensitive as child abuse, suicide, financial inequality, and disability, among others. Families form, fall apart, and come back together, and almost every character craves to be truly seen with affection and truly loved without judgment. Our Blues depicts humanity in its bitter truths as well as its precious hopes.
3 'My Liberation Notes'
Cast: Kim Ji-won, Lee Min-ki, Son Suk-ku
Image via Netflix
Siblings Yeom Chang-hee (Lee Min-ki), Yeom Mi-jeong (Kim Ji-won), and Yeom Ki-jeong (Lee El) work in Seoul and live with their parents in the city’s Sanpo, Gyeonggi-do suburb. None of the three are happy with their lives, be it their employment or personal situations. Mi-jeong is disrespected at her office job, Chang-hee enthusiastically leaps from idea to failed idea in pursuit of whatever it is he truly wants, and the lonely Ki-jeong desires nothing more than romantic love. Each dissatisfied sibling seeks a slution to their daily monotony, and, as the title hints, their liberation — whatever that concept looks like.
Every character feels realistic enough to walk off of the screen, and the Yeom's dynamics register as equally relatable — like a well-worn sweater that needs mending.
There are no heroes or villains in My Liberation Notes, only a handful of imperfect humans desperately searching for self-actualization and happiness. To whit, this methodical, thoughtful series masterfully captures that despairing sensation of feeling trapped in an endless cycle. That stress complicates the Yeom family's relationships with one another but doesn't ruin them; they argue about issues both important and inconsequential, toss out thoughtlessly biting remarks, and fiercely love one another despite it all. Every character feels realistic enough to walk off of the screen, and the Yeom's dynamics register as equally relatable — like a well-worn sweater that needs mending.
2 'Life is Beautiful'
Cast: Kim Hae-sook, Kim Yeong-cheol, Song Chang-eui
Image via SBS
Compared to Our Blues, this long-running classic is a wholesome take on families living in Jeju Province — one blended, multi-generational family, to be precise. Life is Beautiful chronicles how married couple Kim Min-jae (Kim Hae-sook) and Yang Byung-tae (Kim Yeong-cheol), their five children, several grandchildren, and further extended family navigate life’s daily ins-and-outs. Sometimes matters are as routine as Min-jae somehow keeping the house clean and whipping up a delicious dinner. Other times, the situations are as groundbreaking as Yang Tae-sub’s (Song Chang-eui) romance with another man. No matter how big or small, one thing is guaranteed: this family overcomes everything together.
The award-winning, highly-rated, and easy-going series is the perfect example of media that's comfortably low-stakes.
Life is Beautiful ran for 63 episodes in 2010, so it won’t be for everyone’s patience level. That said, the award-winning, highly-rated, and easy-going series is the perfect example of media that's comfortably low-stakes. The warm-and-fuzzy feelings it engenders don't feel fully equivalent to an escapist fantasy, thanks to the consistently excellent writing and the cast's delightful, empathetic performances. The arguments that arise during their everyday concerns never instill doubt about how ride-or-die supportive this family really, truly is.
Life is Beautiful is currently not available to stream in the US.
1 'Reply 1988'
Cast: Lee Hye-ri, Park Bo-gum, Ryu Jun-yeol
Image via tvN
Opening in 1988 and spanning several years, Reply 1988 follows five childhood friends on the cusp of adulthood. Said five could hardly be more different, but as they navigate the seemingly countless trials, tribulations, and nostalgic joys associated with adolescence, their bond proves unbreakable. Eventually, they will grow up and move out of their family homes, and those realities aren't far from their minds. But before the wider world takes over, they form a lasting chosen family who savor their fleeting youth and prepare for their bittersweet futures together.
Reply 1988’s main characters might be the main quintet (who are just as charming as they should be), but this bright, balm-to-the-soul modern classic wouldn't hit quite as hard without the group's distinctly characterized families and their wider community. Every familial unit looks different and faces different challenges, even when their circumstances (and their living spaces) overlap. Some of the teens have happily married parents, while others' parents are widowed. Some comfortably share their fears and hopes with their loved ones; some are more introverted. Some enjoy relative financial comfort, and others demonstrate high independence because both parents work full-time to keep a roof over everyone's heads. But no matter what, no one hesitates to share a warm, home-cooked meal or enthusiastic conversation. It would make many circumstances easier if everyone were rich, but for these families, the richness comes from within.
Release Date November 5, 2015
Finale Year November 30, 2015
Cast Lee Hye-ri , Ryu Jun-yeol , Go Kyung-Pyo , Lee Dong-hwi , Ryu Hye-young
Seasons 1
Creator(s) Lee Woo-jeong
Main Genre Comedy
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English (US) ·