Several of the best known K-dramas fall into the romance or thriller genre, but there are a handful of friendship-centered series that deserve praise. Friendship is a universally understood concept and can be portrayed in countless stories. — from the collaborative sports team at Boys Racket to the close-knit neighborhood in Reply 1988. The best friendship K-dramas focus on a variety of relationships, including childhood duos and a group of roommates. Most of the time, the platonic relationships seen in these K-dramas are lighthearted.
However, these series have some emotional moments that are sure to touch the hearts of the audience. Although there are some series that follow friends in older stages of life, those that follow teenage characters narrate life’s achievements and difficulties. The best friendship K-dramas have a balanced amount of humor and heartand, in addition to critical acclaim, they managed to connect with the public.
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Racket Boys (2021)
A run-down sports team gets into shape
Boys Racket is an inspiring sports story about a high school badminton team on the verge of being shut down. That is until father and son from the city move to the country and work to turn the team around. Similar to Hot Stove League, Boys Racket sees your on-screen sports team working together as friends for the good of the future of the sport. The show’s athletic characters have committed to thorough training to perfect their badminton form and technique. All over Racket BoyIn the 16 episodes, the young characters grow as people and badminton players.
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Welcome to Samdal-ri (2023-2024)
Two friends meet again after years and become something more
Unlike most K-dramas about friendship, Welcome to Samdal-ri follows the rekindling of a friendship that initially ended after unfortunate circumstances. The series revolves around Cho Yong-pil (Ji Chang-wook) and Cho Sam-dal (Shin Hye-sun), two childhood friends who reunite in their hometown. Despite the abrupt end of their friendship, the two quickly establish themselves as friends. As sweet and convincing as the platonic connection between Yong-pil and Sam-dal is, a romance begins to blossom between the two, making Welcome to Samdal-ri an underrated best friends to lovers narrative in K-dramas.
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Sparkling Watermelon (2023)
A man travels through time and meets a younger version of his father
Sparkling Watermelon begins as a family drama about a father and son who disagree with the latter’s dream of becoming a musician. However, Sparkling Watermelon quickly turns into a unique time travel K-drama when the son, Ha Eun-gyeol (Ryeoun), is transported back to the mid-90s when his parents were young. During that time, Eun-gyeol bonds with his bandmates and his father (Choi Hyun-wook), who doesn’t know he’s talking to his future son.. Sparkling Watermelon highlights moving themes about seeing parents in a different light, better understanding their life decisions, and empathizing with the person they become.
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Dear My Friends (2016)
Longtime friends share life stories
Unlike the familiar story of teenagers or young adults navigating their lives with their best friends by their side, Dear my friends is centered on a group of people aged 60 and over. Throughout the series, each friend tells an anecdote about their life with Park Wan (Go Hyun-jung), the 40-year-old daughter of one of the friends. Dear my friends includes a beloved mix of funny and heartfelt stories from a group of old friends and puts into perspective the reality of aging and the beauty of lasting connections.
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Be Melodramatic (2019)
Explores the work and personal lives of three friends
Be melodramatic is centered on three best friends in their 30s. Each friend, Lim Jin-joo (Chun Woo-hee), Hwang Han-joo (Han Ji-eun), and Lee Eun-jung (Jeon Yeo-been), work in the entertainment industry as a screenwriter, marketer, and documentary filmmaker. director, respectively. During the show’s run, the three friends are placed in different circumstances that allow the program to address more themes in addition to its central focus on friendship. Mental health, workplace obstacles, and romantic relationships are explored in the show-within-a-show.
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Thirty-Nine (2022)
Three women face obstacles that come with age
Three friends about to turn 40 are at the center of Thirty-nine. The series chronicles women’s failures and successes in various areas of life, including work, romance and friendship. Just like other friendships portrayed in K-dramas, those in Thirty-nine are light-hearted and relatable to audiences, especially those in the same age group. However, Thirty-nine isn’t afraid to hit the audience with an emotional scene every now and then. Together, the three women overcome the pain and do so adequately as a result of their unbreakable bond.
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Welcome to Waikiki (2018)
Three friends operate an inn
Currently one of the funniest K-dramas on Netflix, Welcome to Waikiki follows the unpredictable adventures of three friends trying to make their dreams come true. Three friends want to work in the film industry as a film director, actor, and writer, so they run the titular inn in hopes of making money from their work. The series is a light-hearted watch full of comedic moments like friends overcome difficult situations, proving that they are well equipped and qualified to manage their businesses. Additionally, occasional emotional moments are included to highlight the friends’ passion and desire to succeed.
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Hot Stove League (2019-2020)
One of the worst teams in baseball struggles to win
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Drawing many similarities with programs like Ted Lasso, Hot Stove League is an inspiring sports drama that follows an underdog team determined to prove their worth. Namkoong Min leads the series as Baek Seung-soo, a successful general manager hired by a baseball team called Dreams. Despite Seung-soo’s inexperience in baseball management, he uses several external resources at his disposal to make the Dreams win their first championship in four seasons. Hot Stove League sees teammates working together as friends to strengthen their team and avoid others who wish to see them fail.
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Fight for my way (2017)
Four friends grow in their personal and professional lives
A common theme in many K-dramas about friendship is that of young adults struggling together in their quest for success, and such a theme is present in Fight for my way. The K-drama follows a group of friends known as the Crazy Fantastic Four. Each member of the friend group dreams of successful careers, but starts the series underqualified in their desired areas of work. Throughout the series, friends grow in both their professional and personal lives, staying by each other’s side. Fight for my way also features a captivating romance between Park Seo-joon’s Dong-man and Kim Ji-won’s Ae-ra.
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Youth Age (2016-2017)
Five roommates help each other through the transition years
Youth Agealso known as Hello, my twenties!begins by introducing each of the series’ five roommates, detailing the events that led them to live under the same roof. The rest Youth Age sees women come together to help each other through the growing pains of being a 20-something. Despite their different backgrounds and interests, the roommates always show up for each other. Although many of the topics covered Youth Age can be understood by audiences around the world, the series has received much praise from young audiences in South Korea, who feel understood by the pressures and struggles portrayed in the show.
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Reply 1994 (2013)
The day-to-day life of roommates at the boarding house
Acting as the second installment of To respond series, Reply 1994 is set during the titular year, which brought a multitude of culturally significant events to South Korea. These events are depicted in the K-drama and help immerse the audience in the series’ setting. Reply 1994 follows six college students who move into a boarding house together. The show has a non-linear narrative, which shows the characters in the present day leading up to one of the characters’ wedding. Just like the other portions of the To respond series, Reply 1994 portrays their on-screen friendships in a convincing manner, which allows the audience to feel like they are part of the group of friends.
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Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joo (2016-2017)
Young adults hope to achieve their athletic goals
The love story is the main focus Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joobut the series also works as a touching coming-of-age story. The K-drama centers on the titular student (Lee Sung-kyung), a skilled weightlifter who hopes to make it onto a college team. The main friendship in the series is between Bok-joo and Jung Joon-Hyung (Nam Joo-Hyuk). The latter helps his friend connect with his older brother, forming the K-drama’s central love triangle. Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joo presents a certain group of friends who seek to make their dreams come truegaining a cult following for its relatable story.
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Hospital Playlist (2020-2021)
Five doctors find a connection at work
The main characters in Hospital Playlist are a group of doctors in their forties who have been friends since medical school. Each character works in a different department, but regularly interacts with each other in each episode. The on-screen dynamic between the friends in the slice-of-life K-drama is lively and relatable, as they often lean on each other during their personal struggles and when hospital work becomes tiring. Hospital Playlist combines captivating musical performances, comedic moments and heartfelt interactions, creating an engaging series about friendship.
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Twenty Five Twenty One (2021)
A look back at adolescence in the 90s
Transporting the audience back to the end of the 1990s is Twenty-five twenty-one. The 2022 series is set during the 1997 Asian financial crisis, which heavily impacted many of its teenage characters. Through these difficult times, the group of friends in the K drama lean on each other and learn valuable lessons about the unpredictability of life and the importance of having ambition for the future. Having received high levels of praise since its release, Twenty-five twenty-one is often considered a masterpiece as it offers a realistic and heartfelt story about teenage romance in addition to its depiction of friendship.
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Response 1988 (2015-2016)
The daily lives of residents of a Seoul neighborhood
The third installment of the beloved To respond series is Reply 1988. The slice-of-life K-drama takes place in a neighborhood in northern Seoul where friends and family live their everyday lives. The most compelling part of the series is the friendship between young characters who have distinct, relatable personalities that the audience can identify with. However, Reply 1988 also includes many stories focused on adult characters, ensuring there is something for everyone. During their lived experiences, the characters in Reply 1988 learn important lessons about one’s life and purpose.