Today, I will share with you a few of my favorite crime thriller dramas that will have you on the edge of your seat. Beware, as there are spoilers in here, but I will not give a deep-level spoiler.
1. Blind (2022)
This drama is one of my top go-to crime thrillers. This is about detective Ryu Seong-Jun, with the help of his brother, Ryu Sung-Hoon, and community center advisor, Jo Eun-Ki, working together to catch a serial killer that seems to be targeting the jury trial members. In these 16 episodes, there are so many plot twists left and right. In essence, kids who were orphaned and abused when they were at Hope Welfare Center have carefully orchestrated a plan where the jury trial members were people who were involved in the abuse that happened to them. Little by little, a serial killer is killing off the Jury Trail member children, as a way, in my opinion, to teach them a lesson. But emotions get high, and detective Ryu Seong-Jun is close to discovering the truth, causing so many changes and leaving you flabbergasted at the events that unfold.
The downside of this movie is the number of plot twist which is why I took a point off. The plot twist soon became so overstimulating that I quickly just stopped trying to figure out what would happen next because, I swear, it was hard. This is coming from a seasoned crime thriller watcher, but this is definitely recommended.
2. Karma (2025)
This 6-episode drama’s whole essence is a plot twist. We see four different plots with 6 six different people come together, miraculous actually. I really applaud the writer of this show because I could never write a show of this magnitude. I can not really explain this show without confusing you guys, so I will definitely recommend this series to watch on Netflix. The fact that it is 6 episodes is a very fast-paced drama, but it does not go so fast that you are confused about stuff. The first four episodes will leave you confused, but eventually, starting with the 5th episode, the writer starts to tie things together, making everything make sense.
3. D.P. 1 & 2 (2021, 2023)
This 2-season series brings us insight into how the actual Korean military is operated. Soldier An Jun-Ho is selected to be added to the D.P. soldiers who catch “deserters”, which are people who have fled from the military base and not completed their military service. Every episode, we learn stories of each deserter and the abuse they went through while in the military. This tear-jerking series is a good watch.
4. Signal (2016)
This 16-episode drama follows a criminal profiler, Park Hae-Young, who has distrust towards the police because of a classmate of his who was kidnapped and found dead. He had witnessed the girl getting taken away by a woman, but when he went to the police, he was dismissed, and the case was never solved. Also, the police participated in framing his brother, Park Sun-Woo, for a rape case he never committed. So instead he used his expertise to give reporters news on celebrities, which resulted in him getting arrested, and upon getting released, he discovers a walkie that allows him to communicate with detective Lee Jae-han from the time 2000’s. Together they work together to solve cases that were once cold in Park Hae-Young era. But I watched this series over 3 years ago, and it has a huge cliff-hanger. But good news, after a whole decade, it seems they will be renewing a new season.
5. The Glory (2022- 2023)
This is another revenge arc series. This 8-episode series is about Moon Dong-Eun and her revenge plan unfolding. In her teens, she became a victim of school bullying, which caused her to drop out; not even the teachers stepped in to help her. After she dropped out, she lived a miserable life until she saw her bullies flourishing in life, so she started to hatch a revenge plan to get back at them. This revenge plan unfolds beautifully before our eyes.
6. Flower of Evil (2020)
This 16-episode series is another plot-stricken series. We are following the life of a Cha Ji-Won, who has a supposed dark past but tried to bury it. His wife, Beak Hee-Sung, a police detective who only believes in what she sees, starts to learn about her husband’s past and decides to dig deeper to learn about his past and lies. This series is not specifically heavy-laden with plot twist but it does hold a big one.
7. Weak Hero Class 1 & 2 (2022, 2025)
This is one of my favorite dramas, honestly. I remember watching the first season when it was just released because I had nothing to watch and Netflix suggested it. For months, I was searching for a new season to come out and eventually gave up. This thriller series is a masterpiece. Like The Glory, we are given a door into Korean school bullying around a kid named Yeon Si-Eun, a smart kid who always scores at the top of his class. In both seasons, he uses his knowledge to find plans to fight against the violence he experienced in school. Although he can not fight, he learn to find allies to help him.
8. Parasyte: The Grey (2024)
If you liked the drama series Sweet Home, this is a good series to watch. A parasitic life enters the earth that feeds off a human host. We follow the life of a store clerk, Jeong Su-in, who is plagued by a parasite that takes over her mind, and they develop a symbiotic relationship. Su-in and her parasite friend, with gangster Seol Kang-Woo, work together to fight against these aliens that are trying to overtake Earth.