South Korean movies and shows exist in many genres, often bending the rules and combining multiple in one show or film. K-dramas in particular have the freedom to depict stories that make the most unconventional combos, with more episodes and material. Coming-of-age dramas especially tend to embark on this multigenre journey, showing the growth of their main characters through different stories and hardships.
Coming-of-age stories often hit differently—they’re all about growth, friendships, first loves, and the messy and magical in-betweenmoments that make life so wonderful. The ten best coming-of-age K-dramas will make you laugh and shed a few tears, but they’ll also remind you of youth and help you relate to some universal life moments.
10’Who Are You: School 2015' (2015)
Written by Kim Min-jung and Im Ye-jin
The bizarre name for a show,Who Are You: School 2015, might make you opt out of watching it, but hear me out.This is a classic drama set in a high school, but it introduces a mystery twistby having identical twins as the leads. It can get emotional and heart-wrenching, but it’s a wild ride nevertheless.Who Are Youwas praised for great writingand acting, and many international K-drama fans claim it as their first ever K-drama that got them into it.
Who Are Youfollows identical twins Eun-bi and Eun-byul, both played byKim So-hyun. As teenagers, Eun-bi lives in an orphanage and attends a school where she’s constantly bullied, while Eun-byul was adopted as a child and now attends an elite high school. The twist happens when the two get mistaken for each other and get a taste of each other’s lives; there are storylines of school bullying and a love triangle, and the show is bound to make you feel all sorts of things. In that respect, it’s a typical coming-of-age drama.
9’Dear. M' (2022)
Written by Lee Seul
Dear. Miskind of an underrated K-dramabecause of its controversial aftermath; the leading actress,Park Hye-su, was uncovered as a former school bully, which canceled the show’s airing onKBS, its native network. However, the show later aired and became an unexpected hit. It’s in a college setting, and it has all the moments and qualities of a heartwarming coming-of-age drama. There aretypical themes of growing pains and romantic slow burns, making it also a typical K-drama for fans of the genre.
Dear. Mfollows four students on the campus of Seoyeon University, where a mysterious confession was left on the university’s online forum. Their quest to find the poster of the confession causes entanglement but also leads the characters on a path of self-discovery. If you can get over the off-camera controversy,Dear. Mis a great and cozy watch; fans of K-pop groupNCTwill be ecstatic to seeJaehyunin one of the leading roles.
8’Extraordinary You' (2019)
Written by In Ji-hye and Song Ha-young
In a sea of interesting premises,Extraordinary Youdeserves praise for its creative one. WritersIn Ji-hyeandSong Ha-younggave the series a unique twist that’s clever, funny, and endearing.Extraordinary Youhas, of course, some sweet, innocent romance, butit’s an exploration of fate and identity more than anything. It more or less asks, “what if you could rewrite your own story?”
Extraordinary Youfollows a high school girl, Dan-oh (Kim Hye-yoon), who realizes she’s a character in a comic book. But she’s not the main character or someone admirable - she turns out to be just a side character with a pretty lame storyline. Dan-oh decides to change her fate, find the love of her life, and fill her existence with more substance and meaning. The meta twist is kind of like when your Sim inThe Simswaves at you, but their autonomy levels are cranked up to “unpredictable.“Extraordinary Youis emotionally packed and well-written, the perfectK-drama for a cozy weekend binge.
Extraordinary You
7’At Eighteen' aka ‘Moment of Eighteen’ (2019)
Written by Yoon Kyung-ah
At Eighteenis a heartfelt series that feels authentic, soft, and cozy. It’s a bit slow but has a strong emotional payoff, mainly due toOng Seong-wu’s vulnerable and touching performance.Universally acclaimed and loved among K-drama fans,At Eighteenwill not leave you dry-eyed, but you could watch it with friends without feeling embarrassed, as everyone will be bawling their eyes out.
At Eighteenfollows transfer student Joon-woo (Ong), who arrives at his new school after accusations of committing a violation. Joon-woo is innocent but is used to being a loner and an outcast. Facing some mockery and bullying, the story follows him slowly coming out of his shell when the most popular girl in school, Soo-bi (Kim Hyang-gi), starts noticing him. Ong won several Best Actor awards in South Korea for his performance in this series, praising him for a brilliant portrayal of a teen learning how to be unapologetically himself.
Moment at Eighteen
6’Reply 1997' (2012)
Written by Lee Woo-jung, Lee Sun-hye, and Kim Ran-joo
Nostalgia was rampant whenReply 1997came out, perfectly capturing the ’90s fan culture that emerged with the first wave of K-pop groups.Sechs KiesandH.O.T.are technically the first bands in the initial wave of Korean pop that began in 1996, andReply 1997encapsulates that hysteria and excitement. The show goes back and forth between 1997 and 2012, showing the characters as adults and as teens. It’s set in Busan, and its main themes are very coming-of-agey: love, family, and friendship.
Reply 1997’s protagonist is Shi-won (Jung Eun-ji), obsessed with H.O.T., a terrible student but charming and likable; she’s best friends with Yoon-jae (Seo In-guk), Joon-hee (Hoya), and Yoo-jung (Shin So-yul). Fun fact: the leader of the group Sechs Kies,Eun Ji-won, stars as Yoo-jung’s love interest Hak-chan; Yoo-jung also openly loves Sechs Kies, which leads her to some bickering with her best friend Shi-won.TheK-drama is often hilariousand nails the teen experience.
Reply 1997
5’Dream High' (2011)
Written by Park Hye-ryun
Dream Highis, like, the crème de la crème of K-pop stars in one K-drama. Its main cast are predominantly stars who were majorly popular at the time, likeSuzy,Taecyeon,IU,Wooyoung, andKim Soo-hyun, but the show also has some stellar cameos by other famous K-pop stars, like the entirety of2AMandmiss Aparticipating in a flash mob.Dream Highis a show for the K-pop superfans, but it’s more than just an array of famous names. It’s a story of ambition, growth, and motivation.
Dream Highfocuses on six talented students pursuing stardom at an arts high school. Their shared dream is to become K-pop idols and learn how to develop their singing, songwriting, and dancing skills, all while going through personal problems that come with being a teenager.Life lessons are aplenty in this series, and characters strugglewith success and failure while discovering their own voices. So, it’s full of stars and wholesome? Say no more.
Dream High
4’Twenty-Five Twenty-One' (2022)
Written by Kwon Do-eun
Twenty-Five Twenty-Onewas one of the most-watchedtvNdramas of 2022 and got a huge surge in viewership after landing onNetflix.Kim Tae-riandNam Joo-hyuk, the show’s leading stars, were the most popular South Korean actors domestically during the show’s eight-week run (it aired on weekends).The show is gorgeously written, balancing youthful idealism and heartbreakwith sincerity; the leads are phenomenal in their roles, andtheir K-dramas rarely miss.
Twenty-Five Twenty-Onecovers the lives of five people from 1998 to 2021 but focuses on two protagonists more than the rest: a high-school fencing star, Hee-do (Kim), who dreams of a career in her favorite sport, and Yi-jin (Nam), whose family life is upended during the South Korean IMF crisis. Hee-do and Yi-jin are both affected by the crisis and must learn how to move forward by doing their best. This drama gets sad quite often, but it’s still heartwarming; it depicts the struggles and the coming-of-age elements that come with hardship with style and poise, without too much melodrama.
3’My ID is Gangnam Beauty' (2018)
Written by Choi Soo-young
My ID is Gangnam Beautyis also just known asGangnam Beauty, and it’s an atypical and yet totally typical coming-of-age drama. It tackles identity and beauty standards head-on, boasting surprising emotional depthand judgment of superficial trends. Considering South Korea is known for normalizing plastic surgery and teens often getting treatments as presents, the show does a great job of actually saying something about that trend rather than making a silly rom-com out of it.
Gangnam Beautyis about a girl, Mi-rae (Im Soo-hyang), who is bullied for her looks in high school and unhappy with herself. Before enrolling in college, she decides to get full facial surgery and become a standard beauty. However, even the pressures of being beautiful force her to rethink her decision, and Mi-rae soon realizes self-esteem isn’t simply skin-deep.Gangnam Beautyis very fun and easy to watch—you’ll likelybinge-watch it in a dayor two.
2’Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joo' (2016)
Written by Yang Hee-seung
Another series starring Nam Joo-hyuk,Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joo, shows college athletes fighting for their dreams. The show is wholesome, empowering, and full of joy, and Bok-joo (Lee Sung-kyung) is a lovable coming-of-age heroine. She’s awkward, bubbly, strong, and unforgettable, which her best friend, Joon-hyung (Nam), clearly knows very well. This show was incredibly popular when it came out, and people felt that its cast alsomatured through portraying their characters; the young forces of acting were proving themselves and becoming better with each episode.
Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joofollows the titular character, Bok-joo, who is an aspiring female weightlifter, highly talented and skilled at the sport. Her best friend is Joon-hyung, a talented swimmer, and Bok-joo is in love with his older brother, Jae-yi (Lee Jae-yoon). Joon-hyung first helps Bok-joo win over his brother,but things become complicated between them. The show will make you giggle and kick your feet while also making you remember all the times you had to fight for what you wanted. The perfect blend for a wholesome binge-watch.
Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joo
1’Reply 1988' (2015–2016)
Written by Lee Woo-jung
Reply 1988is the third series in the Reply anthology, coming after the stellar success ofReply 1997andReply 1994. As much as the previous two were successful,Reply 1988is the standout series of the pack. It’s one of the funniest K-comedies, awholesome family K-drama, and a show that’s, easily, perfect from start to finish. Nothing captures the bittersweet beauty of growing up like this show, which is a coming-of-age story but also a slice-of-life series depicting family members growing together through experiences.
Reply 1988follows five friends and their families in a 1980s Seoul neighborhood. The main protagonist is Deok-sun (Lee Hye-ri), who grows up with her parents, brother, and sister and goes through school as the only girl in her group of five friends. During the show’s airing on tvN, it garnered high viewership, becoming the most-watched K-drama of its time. It also caused a nationwide boom of retro fashion and music, often referred to as “newtro.”
