13 Dramas Like Youth Of May You Should Watch

The 2021 South Korean melodrama Youth of May, starring Lee Do-hyun, Go Min-si, Lee Sang-yi, and Keum Sae-rok, was set in 1980 during the Gwangju Uprising. Set during this time, Youth of May follows a medical student and a nurse who could’ve lived an entirely normal life if not for this conflict. However, the show’s focal point isn’t the uprising; rather, it concentrates on other human emotions, such as love and friendship, along with a bit of fate and destiny, of course.

It’s been a couple of years since the show aired, but we understand if you want to find something new that resonates with you and your emotions. Here are some shows that you can watch after you’ve watched Youth of May.        

A Piece Of Your Mind

A Piece of Your Mind literally translates into Half of a Half. The show follows Moon Ha-won, an AI programmer and founder of AH company, and Han Seo-woo, a classical music recording engineer. Despite all the hardships life has thrown her way, Seo-woo is a positive person who might remind you of all things sunshine.

Ha-won has had a crush on Ji-soo, his childhood friend, for ten years and can’t forget her even today. A chance meeting leads them to meet each other, but slowly, as they learn from each other, both of them begin to heal the wounds of the past that life has left on them.

 

• Number of Episodes: 12
• Where to Watch: Viki

Born Again

If you’re a person who believes in reincarnation and fate, or if you enjoy shows like Doom At Your Service and Goblin, then this show should definitely be on your radar. This show follows three reincarnated souls that have been woven together in one story in the present by the greatest power in the world: fate. In the 1980s, Gong Ji-Chul used to be a lone wolf determined to defy his evil father, Jung Ha-eun, who was suffering from a heart disease, used to own a bookstore, and Cha Hyung-bin was a detective.

In the present, they are living a completely different life. Ji-chul is an elite medical student, Ha-eun is an archaeologist, and Hyung-bin is a prosecutor. Their present lives are upended when they collide with each other and find themselves in a love triangle that transcends time and death.

 

• Number of Episodes: 32
• Where to Watch: Viki

Call It Love

The drama follows Woo-joo, whose life takes an unexpected turn after she learns a shocking truth about her father. After he dies, Woo-joo is kicked out of her family home by her father’s secret mistress. Stunned as well as homeless, she hits rock bottom at the revelation of her father’s infidelity. But she isn’t the one to give up easily.

Our female lead decides to take revenge and set records straight. However, that plan goes astray when she falls in love with Dong-jin. Love is not a crime, but what is she supposed to do when she finds out that the guy is none other than the son of the mistress of her late father?

• Number of Episodes: 16
• Where to Watch: Disney+, Hulu

Fates & Furies

This 2018 series, Fates & Furies, follows Goo Hae-ra, a smart and beautiful girl who is sadly in an unfortunate situation after her older sister attempted suicide and her father died. Hence, to survive in a materialistic world, she desperately needs money, even quickly if possible.

She decides to tackle this problem by approaching Tae In-joon. The second son of a Chaebol family, In-joon, has his problems to deal with. But amid the chaos, he pursues Hae-ra, considering her his fate, and falls in love with her.

Love is messy and comes with its own set of complications. However, the real mess unravels when secrets are spilled, and people from their pasts and presents try their best to ruin their future. Will they succeed at seeking revenge or securing their future? Well, that’s a question we can’t answer for you before you’ve watched the show.

• Number of Episodes: 40
• Where to Watch: Viki

Love Rain

Love Rain is a television series set in the 70s and the present day. It tells a love story over two generations, taking “sacrificing your love for a good deed” to another level.

Seo In-ha and Kim Yoon-hee were young and shy when they first met in the 70s. They both are university students, yet they aren’t comfortable with voicing their feelings out loud. Gradually, they grow enough to put their feelings into words, but some unexpected events take place, breaking them apart.

Years later, they are living different lives, but fate steps in, making them cross each other’s path once again. It’s a great intervention by fate, but is their love strong enough to survive all the obstacles they might face in their path for a second time?

A sweet and simple slow-burn romance, this show perfectly portrays the complexity of love, families, and friendships.

• Number of Episodes: 20
• Where to Watch: Viki

Melancholia

Everything begins and ends with love; it’s the root of all things. We might not know it, but everything is connected, and love is at the center of it all. The series Melancholia talks about love, as all the shows do.

But what’s different is it’s not a regular love story between a girl and a boy. It’s about the love for money, the love for lies, the love for secrets, gossip, and hurting others, or, in simple terms, corruption, power, revenge, and betrayal.

When Ji Yoon-soo, a math teacher who loves math, meets a troubled student at the bottom of the class, she tries to help him. Baek Seung-yoo has potential in math, and Yoon-soo sharpens it until he shines like he’s supposed to.

What began as something innocent turns into something scandalous, tainted with lies, and leads to Yoon-soo losing her job. Years later, the teacher and the student meet as adults and unite to expose the truth that’s hiding in plain sight.

• Number of Episodes: 16
• Where to Watch: Netflix, Viki

Rain Or Shine

This show follows two people tied together by a tragic accident. In the past, they lost their loved ones to an accident, and they have been trying to move on with their lives, hiding their pain from the world. When they stumble upon each other by chance, they begin to learn to lean on others and feel their feelings.

A sad and realistic melodrama, this show surely focuses on deep and dark issues, but that’s what makes it a must-watch for all of us. Additionally, the OST really adds a great touch to the whole vibe of the show, tying it up nicely for the viewers.

• Number of Episodes: 16
• Where to Watch: Netflix, Disney+

Secret Love

For the people who love mysteries and murders, this show’s just for you. Secret Love is a 2013 show that follows a rich “bad boy” who falls in love with a tenacious woman. She has been sentenced to five years in prison after taking the blame for her boyfriend’s ‘hit and run’ murder case, but all is not what it seems here.

There are many hidden layers and secrets that will unravel as time passes. A woman hungry for revenge, a man who has been hurt by love and people trying to sabotage each other’s lives – that surely piques our interest. Plus, the show also features the “rich boy, poor girl” trope. So, if you are looking for something well-written with a compelling plot that will keep you glued to your seats, then you should not miss this show.

• Number of Episodes: 16
• Where to Watch: Viki

She Would Never Know

Based on the web novel Senior, Don’t Put on That Lipstick by Elise, the show She Would Never Know features the famous trope – office romance! It’s a fun and sweet romantic drama which also focuses on the junior-senior dating relationships.

Yoon Song-ah is a marketer for a cosmetics brand and doesn’t wish to date younger men. Chae Hyun-Seung is a fellow marketer who is attracted to her and tries to pursue her. However, his determination to have a workplace relationship with his senior isn’t so easy to achieve.

Real life differs from the fantasies we all have grown up watching, but maybe, with enough passion and love, this story might have a happy ending for Hyun Seung. Or not?

 

• Number of Episodes: 16
• Where to Watch: Netflix

Tempted

Loosely based on Les Liaisons Dangereuses by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos, Tempted is a romance melodrama that aired in 2018. Woo Do-hwan, Park Soo-young, Kim Min-Jae, and Moon Ga-young starred in the lead roles in this show.

Tempted follows Choi Su-ji, the student president; Kwon Si-hyeon, eldest heir of the JK Group; and casanova Lee Se-ju. These three have been best friends since they were kids, but things begin to shake when one mistake leads to another.

It all begins with Su-ji’s boyfriend, who breaks up with her based on ridiculous assumptions, causing another problem for the trio. An engagement announcement brings a stranger into the trio’s lives, and bitter feelings lead to more trouble until their friendship is put to the test.

Filled with abundant revenge, drama, and romance, this show will, for the most part, entertain you, if not make you weep or laugh.

• Number of Episodes: 32
• Where to Watch: Disney+

When My Love Blooms

This 2020 television series is for the lovers of slow-paced, beautiful romances who are not in a rush to get to the end. Starring Yoo Ji-tae, Lee Bo-young, Park Jinyoung, and Jeon So-nee, When My Love Blooms is a sweet romance melodrama that portrays first love and second chances perfectly while also covering the other important facets of life.

The show follows Han Jae-hyun and Yoon Ji-soo, who first met when they were still university students. Young and naïve, they both fell for each other without thinking about repercussions. Now, twenty years later, they get another chance to right the wrong.

Their paths cross, and as expected, they are unrecognizable. While Jae-hyun is a successful businessman who loves wealth and honor, Ji-soo is a mother and a contract worker. Their lives are completely opposite from each other, but this golden second chance isn’t granted to all, so they must decide what they want.

These characters will make you root for them and fall in love with them. They will also soften your heart and make you feel for them, as well as for the challenges that come with falling in love.

• Number of Episodes: 16
• Where to Watch: Viki, Netflix

When The Weather Is Fine

The show, When The Weather Is Fine, is said to be based on the 2018 novel of the same name by Lee Do-woo. In the show, Park Min-young and Seo Kang-Joon starred as the lead actors. This is a slow-paced drama that might appeal to viewers who like shows focusing on trauma, murder, abuse, and the like.

In the show, Mok Hae-won, a cellist, quits her job and decides to return to Bookhyun Village. The cellist lived there briefly when she was in high school, but the place left a mark on her heart.

When she arrives, she meets Im Eun-seob, her former classmate and neighbor. Now, he’s all grown up and owns a bookstore in the neighborhood. As the two escape real life together, they find comfort in each other and begin to heal from their invisible past wounds.

A story about forgiveness, letting go, moving on, and ultimately healing, this might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but we’ll still suggest you watch it at least once.

• Number of Episodes: 16
• Where to Watch: Viki

Why Her

Last but not least, we have Why Her for you. It’s a mystery, legal drama with a dash of romance for all the hopeless romantics out there. Starring Seo Hyun-jin, Hwang In-Youp, Huh Joon-ho, and Bae In-hyuk in lead roles, this 2022 drama is a well-written show with a strong female lead and a perfect balance between mystery and romance that makes it a must-watch for everyone.

Oh Soo-Jae is an exceptional lawyer who is driven by her strong desire to win cases and her self-righteous principles, which have never disappointed her till now. When Soo-jae, the youngest partner at TK Law Firm, gets involved in an unexpected case, she finds herself in a strange position.

She is demoted to work as a professor at a law school. She starts her journey at the law school, where she ends up meeting Gong Chan, a student with a painful past and a heart so warm it could melt ice.

Chan falls for her, but he doesn’t know there are invisible players in this game who would do anything to achieve their goals, even if it’s wrong and illegal. Despite all the hardships, Soo-jae will rise, and that’s a journey you might not want to miss.

• Number of Episodes: 16
• Where to Watch: Viki

These are the top 13 dramas we recommend you should watch if you liked Youth Of May. We hope you found your next show to binge-watch tonight/ today. These shows will hook you from the start, and by the end of it, you’ll end up wanting more and more!