“Why Her” and other K-dramas with highest IMDb scores for the first half of 2022

The first half of 2022 is filled with exciting K-dramas, and the Top 10 below are those best regarded according to users of the review platform IMDb. 

Top 10 – Shooting Stars: 8.1

Starring famous stars Lee Sung Kyung and Kim Young Dae, “Shooting Stars” follows the superstar male lead and other people in the background who contribute to his fame. The series has both meaningful moments and hilarious sequences, and is topped with an overflowing chemistry from the main couple, thus managing to score 8.1 out of 10 on IMDb. Unfortunately, it didn’t perform well in Korea, with ratings peaking at a meager 1.7%. 

Top 9 – Again My Life: 8.1

While featuring a completely different theme, “Again My Life” also nailed a score of 8.1 on IMDb. This K-drama, where Lee Jun Ki played the male lead, revolves around a vengeful story, and provides various political schemings and mind battles, as well as stunning action sequences. “Again My Life” also did extremely well in Korea with ratings for the final episode surpassing 12%, and boasted a masterpiece level of acting. 

Top 8 – Our Blues: 8.2 

The recently ended “Our Blues” follows the simple lives of people in a fishermen village of Jeju Island, and unlike other series, is an omnibus that follows many major characters. The simple yet beautiful story-telling of this series, alongside its meaningful messages made it a true heart-wrenching yet healing piece. With a star-studded cast full of familiar names like Lee Byung Hun, Kim Woo Bin, Han Ji Min, Shin Min Ah, Cha Seung Won, and many more, this K-drama managed to steal attention from the get-go, with ratings hitting double digits in later episodes! 

Top 7 – Business Proposal: 8.2

Simple and somewhat cliché, yet “Business Proposal” truly lightened up the K-drama world with its hilarious plot and story-telling. This romantic tale has no scheming, dramas, nor evil masterminds nor plot twists, and so is a favorite pick to relax after a busy work day. Anyone can enjoy “Business Proposal”, and get immersed in its wonderful chemistry and joyful pacing.

Top 6 – Love All Play: 8.3

Despite being rather unknown in both the home country and international ground, the romance and sports drama “Love All Play” achieved a spectacular score. In this series, viewers get to see the life, dream, and romance of young badminton players, resonate with their struggles, and cheer them on. While “Love All Play” spotted viewership ratings as low as 1%, it was decent and watch-worthy, so the 8.3 score on IMDb is well-deserved. 

Top 5 – My Liberation Notes: 8.4

While “My Liberation Notes” started out with a somber atmosphere and low ratings, overtime, it has truly proven itself as a masterpiece. This K-drama, which follows the lives of the 3 Yeom siblings, expresses some very human frustrations at empty, repetitive lives that seem to serve no purpose. However, like its name, “My Liberation Notes” ended up being a liberating series, where characters stumble, learn their limits and strengths, and find their own respective happy endings. The acting performances of Kim Ji Won, Son Seok Gu, Lee Min Ki, and Lee El were also top-notch, adding to the charm of this dark horse series. 

Top 4 – Twenty Five, Twenty One: 8.7

The coming-of-age K-drama “Twenty Five, Twenty One” was a phenomenon as it aired, and such an achievement was extremely well-deserved. From Korean viewers to international audiences, everyone tuned in 2 times a week to laugh and cry over this beautiful series, which follows a group of 5, their youthful antics, dreams, aspirations, love and life. While the ending of “Twenty Five, Twenty One” received controversial reactions, the series itself is still a memorable work that managed to bring out the rawest emotions from its watchers. 

Top 3 – From Now On, Show Time!: 8.8

This entry is a rather surprising one, seeing that there’s barely any discussion regarding “From Now On, Show Time!”, both in and outside Korea. In addition, the series’ viewership only fell around the 3-4% mark, making it mostly unknown among K-drama fans. However, “From Now On, Show Time”, which follows a magician who can control ghosts and a supernatural policewoman, had its own charms and a clever sense of humor. Its storyline is also gripping and unpredictable, and so would make a great addition to your watch list. 

Top 2 – Why Her: 8.8

While just recently aired, Seo Hyun Jin and Hwang In Yeop’s law series “Why Her” has become the talk of town. This female-centric K-drama revolves around the famous lawyer Oh Soo Jae, who took years to rise to the top of her law firm, only to lose it all after a tragic incident. She ended up having to become a law professor to regain her credibility, and there, reunited with the law student Gong Chan, who had a crush on her since forever. 

With a strong female lead, intense pacing, interesting story-telling, and a brilliant portrayal coming from actress Seo Hyun Jin, “Why Her” is receiving heaps of praise from viewers and looking extremely promising. 

Top 1 – Bloody Heart: 8.9

Finally, the top IMDb scorer of the first half of 2022 is none other than the historical K-drama “Bloody Heart”, which features Lee Joon and Kang Han Na. Like its name, the series retells a tragic romance, starting with the king Lee Tae, who doesn’t want to be a political puppet, and so had no choice but to abandon his beloved.

“Bloody Heart”, which is filled with political uprising, moral debates, and tough decisions, is a heart-wrenching work that one can’t help but cry over. It is also boasting strong ratings in Korea, and receiving critical acclaim for the directing, cinematography, and of course, acting. 

This is truly a surprising ranking, which proves that unpopular works aren’t necessarily bad. In fact, there are quite many hidden gems that aren’t reflected through popularity or ratings.