Fantasy in everyday life: K-dramas bring supernatural powers and a Joseon-era villain to modern Korea

From left, posters for SBS’ “My Royal Nemesis,” Tving’s “The Legend of Kitchen Soldier” and Netflix’s “The WONDERfools” / Courtesy of SBS, Tving and Netflix

With courtroom revenge dramas and dark crime thrillers having dominated broadcast schedules recently, fantasy comedies are now moving in, seeking to offer viewers something fresh by putting stories with offbeat premises in the hands of veteran directors.

Lim Ji-yeon plays a Joseon-era villain who transcends time and possesses the body of an unknown actor in SBS’ drama “My Royal Nemesis.” Courtesy of SBS

First to arrive is “My Royal Nemesis,” an SBS Friday-Saturday drama set to premiere on May 8. The romantic comedy centers on the stormy romance between an unknown actor possessed by the spirit of a notorious Joseon-era villainess and a ruthless chaebol heir, blending the genre with a time-transcending possession.

Shin Seo-ri, played by Lim Ji-yeon, carries the sharp edges she developed to survive. After firing back at the rude male lead with an archaic insult, she laughs and cries her way through centuries of Korean history.

Park Ji-hoon plays Kang Sung-jae, who grows into a legendary military cook with the help of a game-style choice window, in Tving’s original series “The Legend of Kitchen Soldier.” Courtesy of Tving

Throwing military life, cooking and game-like elements into one fantasy mix, Tving is set to start airing “The Legend of Kitchen Soldier” on the 11th. The series follows a fresh recruit who carries a kitchen knife instead of a rifle and wears an apron rather than a cartridge belt, as he follows instructions from a mysterious game-style choice window and levels up his cooking skills to becoming a legendary military cook.

The drama drew attention early on for being based on a popular Naver webtoon of the same name. It also marks Park Ji-hoon’s first follow-up project to the massive hit film “The King's Warden."

At a press event Wednesday, Park jokingly introduced himself as a “military otaku” and said he practiced his knife skills before shooting began. “I immersed myself in the role so the scenes with the game-style choice window would feel realistic,” he said, adding that balancing humor and charm was a key part of his performance.

The drama promises playful chemistry among its colorful military characters, from a bulldozer-like supply officer and a quietly charismatic lieutenant to a senior sergeant nearing discharge who has little interest in cooking.

Scenes from “The WONDERfools” / Courtesy of Netflix

Rounding out the lineup is Netflix’s “The WONDERfools,” a drama about offbeat superheroes. Set in 1999, as the world approached the turn of the millennium, the series follows Chae-ni, Kyung-hoon and Robin, played by Park Eun-bin, Choi Dae-hoon and Lim Sung-jae, respectively, as they unexpectedly acquire the supernatural powers of teleportation, adhesive force and superhuman strength. They soon become entangled with Un-jeong, a civil servant played by Cha Eun-woo, who has been hiding his telekinetic abilities.

The drama follows the group of clueless heroes, who know neither how they gained their powers nor how to use them, as they stumble into danger. Its witty dialogue and stylish direction add to the fun, and the chemistry between Park Eun-bin and director Yoo In-sik, who previously worked together on “Extraordinary Attorney Woo,” is also something to look out for.

The upcoming dramas appear to follow a new success formula tested this year by predecessors such as “The Art of Sarah” and “Perfect Crown,” pairing relatively fresh faces and unconventional scripts with teams of production veterans.

For “My Royal Nemesis,” rookie writer Kang Hyun-ju teamed up with director Han Tae-sup, who directed “Stove League.” The writer for “The WONDERfools," Huh Da-joong, has a famed portfolio that includes hits like "Extreme Job," but the Netflix series marks her first foray into drama.

An industry insider familiar with drama production attributed the growing number of scripts by rookie writers and adaptations of webtoons and novels to an increasingly heated race for fresh content.

“When it comes to premises and characters, they bring fresh takes that differ from existing works. Veteran directors then come in to give them the final polish,” the official said.

This article from the Hankookilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.