K-DRAMA NEWS - June 2025
By Sharon Stern
This month’s dramas trend towards the more somber and darker, but there are a couple of lighter ones as well. The streaming platform for two dramas that look interesting have not been announced yet and we will include those when the information is available.
Second Shot At Love - 금주를 부탁해
Viki – Starring: Choi Soo-Young, Gong Myung, Jo Yoon-Hee
Genre: Rom-com
Han Geum-Ju (Choi Soo-Young) is an auto mechanic and good at her job. She likes socializing with colleagues and believes herself to be a moderate drinker…until she is diagnosed as an alcoholic. She decides to get sober and runs across her best friend from high school, Seo Ui-Jun (Gong Myung), who has moved from the countryside to Seoul and is heartless towards her and unsympathetic about her desire and journey to change. She wants to understand why he is so cold to her, when they were best friends.
Mercy for None (also known as Plaza Wars and Gwangjang) – 광장
Netflix – Starring: So Ji-sub, Huh Joon-ho, Gong Myung
Genre: Action, crime, film noir, revenge
Gijun (So Ji-sub) wins a battle that ends the long power struggle between Seoul's gangs. But when his brother Giseok becomes a high-ranking member of an enemy group, Gijun decides to slash his own heel and leave the “business” to not have to fight him. 15 years later, Giseok is mysteriously ambushed and killed in cold blood. Filled with rage, Gijun sets off alone to track down everyone involved in his brother's death. This looks like a pretty action-packed and bloody series.
The First Night with the Duke – 남주의 첫날밤을 가져버렸다
Viki – Starring: Seohyun, Taecyeon, Kwon Han-Sol, Seo Bum-June, Ji Hye-Won
Genre: Fantasy, romance, imaginary history
June 11 | A very average college student (Seohyun) is reading a Joseon-era romance novel and one night is transported into the body of a minor character in the novel, and spends the night with the handsome leading character (Taecyeon). The leading lady of the novel (Ji Hye-Won) is her principal rival and has a villainous side to her. And the duke’s best friend (Seo Bum-June) is a highly educated, gentle contrast to the duke’s gruff exterior. This looks like a bit of a silly historic rom-com, but could be cute.
Our Movie (also known as Our Film) - 우리 영화
Disney+/Hulu – Starring: Namgoon Min, Jeon Yeo-Been, Lee Seol, Seo Hyun-woo
Genre: Melodrama, romance
June 13 | Our Movie tells the story of a film director (Namgoon Min) and an aspiring actress (Jeon Yeo-Been) who are both dealing with personal health issues, thinking their time is running out, and are questioning life’s meaning and death’s finality. They also question whether love lasts beyond the current lifetime. As they work together in filming, they start to fall in love with each other. This has the potential to be a serious and poignant exploration of the core of life’s meaning.
Hunter with a Scalpel – 메스를 든 사냥꾼
Disney+/Hulu - Starring: Park Ju-hyun, Park Yong-woo, Kang Hoon
Genre: Horror, crime, psychological thriller
June 16 | This is the second of Disney’s back-to-back streaming dramas in June. This drama tells the tale of a forensic pathologist, Seo Se Hyun (Park Ju-hyun) with antisocial personality disorder, haunted by her father (Park Yong-woo), who was a serial killer. She thought he had died, but when working on a case, she recognizes his signature murder method. The father has a seemingly kind façade and runs a drycleaning business, but his hidden evil side is hiding behind the façade. Kang Hoon plays the chief of the special crimes unit where Seo Se Hyun works. This one will keep you on the edge of your seat and searching for clues along with the characters.
Head Over Heels (also known as Gyeonwoo and the Fairy) – 견우와 선녀
Prime Video – Starring: Cho Yi-Hyun, Choo Young-Woo , Cha Kang-Yoon
Genre: Fantasy, romance
June 23 | Based on a webtoon by the same name, this drama is about a high school girl by day, Seung A (Cho Yi-Hyun), and a shaman at night and because she can see the future, sets about trying to protect her first love, Bae Geun-Woo (Choo Young-Woo) by changing the path of his deadly fate. No one at school knows Seung A’s secret and she really wants to keep it that way. When Geun-Woo, an archery ace, transfers to her school, she falls for him, but she can also see that he is fated to die young. She does everything she can to change that fate and their lives end up intertwined. Alongside is Seung A’s bestie, Pyo Ji-ho (Cha Kang-Yoon), there to help, but always ready with deeply sarcastic sound bites. The age-old question of whether love can change fate is the central theme here.
Squid Game 3 – 오징어 게임 3
Netflix – Starring: Lee Jung-jae, Lee Byung-hun, Wi Ha-joon, Im Si-wan, Kang Ha-neul, Park Gyu-young, Park Sung-hoon, Yang Dong-geun, Kang Ae-shim, Jo Yu-ri, Lee David, Roh Jae-won
Genre: Dystopian, survival, thriller, horror
June 27 | The third and final season of Squid Game will launch at the end of the month. Originally, the writer was going to finish the story in two series, but couldn’t finish the story he wanted to tell and needed more episodes. What is there to say here? The games become deadlier and more sinister. In-ho welcomes the VIPs and his brother continues his search for the island, unaware there is a traitor in their midst. If you loved Season 1 and 2, I’m certain this one will thrill too! If this drama has been a bit too brutal for you, this series is going to get even more intense.
