Sports of all kinds have given plenty of inspiration to K-drama writers. Here are five of the best. You may disagree; you may even curse at the screen. And you may wonder why there’s no cricket or soccer – and it’d be reasonable to do so – but for whatever reason, those sports haven’t inspired that many K-dramas. Somewhat surprisingly, fencing and dancing have arguably led to better TV shows…
Twenty-Five Twenty-One
Branching themes of love, sacrifice, motherhood, and plenty more, Twenty-Five Twenty-One ran for just 16 episodes but won a Baek Sang Art Award. Kim Tae-ri and Choi Hyun-wook were both nominated, with Tae-ri taking the prize. The pair play a young couple who fall in love a few years after meeting. The woman’s fencing career is as important to the show as the romance.
Run On
Run On might not be what you think of as a typical sports classic – in fact, it almost certainly isn’t. Based largely on the friendship and romance of a translator (played by Shin Se-kyung) and former sprinting great (Im Si-wan), the two-season, 16-episode drama was loved by both English speakers and Korean speakers.
Navillera
Navillera is one of the most acclaimed shows to come out of Korea in recent years. Running only in 2021, the Jimin and Hun created series has been called “absolutely heartwarming” and one of the best dramas ever by reviewers. Another unconventional show, Navillera follows an elderly man (Park In-hwan) being taught to dance by young ballerino Lee Chae-rok (Song Kang).
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Stove League
Stove League starred Namkoong Min as the new general manager of The Dreams, a struggling baseball team. A recurring theme among these acclaimed series, Hot Stove League ran for just one season. Nevertheless, it picked up awards for best drama, best actor and best actress. The latter was one of several won in a long career for Park Eun-bin, who has gone on to star in series like The King’s Affection and Extraordinary Attorney Woo.
Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joo
Chosen not entirely for the title, Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joo is a coming-of-age story (arguably, like a few of these shows) who find love and grow in the process. It has been described as “quirky” but that might undersell its smart writing and acting. Lee Sung-kyung, one of the stars, is a prolific actress, but this might be one of the biggest fan favorites of her career.
Last word
There are many other series that could have made this list – Fight For My Way, Like Flowers in Sand, and Dream to name a few – but there is only so much space on the page. And unfortunately for many K-drama fans, there is only so much time to watch all the classic TV shows.