When Life Gives You Tangerines, K-drama: Missing When Life Gives You Tangerines? Here are 5 tear-jerker K-Dramas to watch instead

One of the biggest hits on Netflix this year, When Life Gives You Tangerines, tells a heart-warming story that resonates with every generation. Each episode of the show was so moving that it gave the audience something to cry about, literally. If you are looking to shed tears with such memorable stories, the world of Korean drama offers plenty and more.

From the forbidden love between two people in Snowdrop to dealing with the hard realities of life in Twenty-Five, Twenty-One, K-dramas have given some of the more touching and tear-jerker moments with their brilliant stories and acting, which stay with you even after the show is over.

Expand Tweet

Here are 5 tear-jerker K-Dramas to watch if you are missing When Life Gives You Tangerines

1) It's Okay to Not Be Okay (2020)

Where to Watch – Netflix

Cast - Kim Soo-hyun, Seo Ye-ji, Oh Jung-se, Park Gyu-young, Jang Young-nam

The show explores the stigma around mental health that can stir up unexpected challenges. It's Okay to Not Be Okay follows Moon Gang-tae (played by Kim Soo-hyun), a psychiatric hospital caregiver who takes care of his autistic brother, Moon Sang-tae (played by Oh Jung-se).

Moon Sang-tae has a child-like personality and is mesmerized by a children’s book writer, Ko Moon-young (played by Seo Ye-Ji), who is famously anti-social. Fate brings the three together as they set on a journey of self-discovery. The show explores subjects such as childhood trauma, disability, and mental health. The show has several heart-wrenching moments set in an almost fairy-tale like backdrops, which will leave you sobbing.

2) Twenty-Five, Twenty-One (2022)

Where to Watch - Netflix

Cast - Nam Joo-hyuk, Kim Tae-ri, Choi Hyun-Wook, Kim Ji-yeon

This coming-of-age drama follows the story of a sports reporter, Baek Yi-jin (played by Nam Joo-hyuk), and a fencing high school champion, Na Hee-do (played by Kim Tae-ri). Baek Yi-jin’s family went from riches to rags after his father was involved in some unexpected financial dealings. He takes up small jobs to support his family, which ultimately leads him to become a sports reporter.

Baek Yi-jin befriends Na Hee-do, who dreams of representing her country in fencing. They form a deep and meaningful relationship. While you will keep rooting for the two to end up together, their destiny had other plans. The show gives you a reality check about how real-life problems can ultimately make you make decisions that will be much different from what you initially presumed.

3) Guardian: The Lonely and Great God (2016)

Where to Watch – Prime Video / Viki

Cast - Gong Yoo, Kim Go-eun, Lee Dong-wook, Yoo In-na, Yook Sun-jae

The supernatural drama follows Kim Shin aka Goblin (played by Gong Yoo), a Joseon Dynasty-era officer, who is betrayed by his King and is cursed for eternity. His immortal soul will only be set free when he finds the prophesied bride. Enter the bubbly, young, modern-day girl Ji Eun Tak (played by Kim Go-eun).

Despite the many memorable and lighter moments throughout the show, the audience is aware of the impending doom that looms over Goblin’s fate. His bromance with the Grim Reaper (Lee Dong Wook) also adds to the fascinating storyline. The soundtrack of the show is one of its more haunting aspects. Get ready to shed some happy and sad tears with this one.

4) Snowdrop – 2021

Where to Watch - Disney+

Cast - Kim Jisoo, Jung Hae-in, Kim Hye-yoon, Kim Min-kyu

Set in 1987, Snowdrop follows the story of a mysterious Lim Soo-ho (played by Jung Hae-in) and a graduate student at a university, Eun Yeong-ro (played by Kim Jisoo). When Eun Yeong-ro finds a bleeding Lim Soo-ho in her dorm room, she hides him and tends to his wound. She initially assumes he is a student but later learns he is a North Korean agent. What follows is a bloody, all-out fight inside the university, where the two end up falling in love with each other. But their relationship was doomed from the get-go.

Set against the backdrop of the 1987 Democracy Movement, which saw several South Korean students fight for fair elections, the story of Lim Soo-ho and Eun Yeong-ro makes you believe that no matter where you are from, humanity can bind people together. The ending of the show will leave you heartbroken.

5) Youth Of May 2021

Where to Watch – Netflix

Cast – Lee Do-hyun, Go Min-si, Lee Sang-yi, Keum Sae-rok

The show is set against the background of the Gwangju Uprising in 1980, one of the most harrowing parts of Korean political history. The story revolves around a group of friends whose ordinary lives are turned upside down due to the tragedy.

The romance between a medical student, Hwang Hee-tae (played by Lee Do Hyun), and nurse Kim Myung-hee (played by Go Min-si) is the heart of the story. Amidst protests and violence, the romance between the two shines bright, only for all to come crashing down. Don’t forget to grab a tissue for your tears with this one.

ALSO READ: Boyfriend On Demand: Netflix in works for upcoming rom-com K-drama with Blackpink vocalist Jisoo