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Pierce Conran
Journalist, producer and consultant Pierce Conran has been based in Seoul since 2012, where he served as the Korea Executive for LA-based production company and sales agent XYZ Films and as a long-time editor of the Korean Film Council’s English website KoBiz until 2021. Born in Ireland and raised in Switzerland, he received an MA in Film from Trinity College Dublin and is currently the Korean drama critic for the South China Morning Post in Hong Kong, as well as a programming adviser for the Fribourg International Film Festival and Fantastic Fest in the United States.
Journalist, producer and consultant Pierce Conran has been based in Seoul since 2012, where he served as the Korea Executive for LA-based production company and sales agent XYZ Films and as a long-time editor of the Korean Film Council’s English website KoBiz until 2021. Born in Ireland and raised in Switzerland, he received an MA in Film from Trinity College Dublin and is currently the Korean drama critic for the South China Morning Post in Hong Kong, as well as a programming adviser for the Fribourg International Film Festival and Fantastic Fest in the United States.
Areas of Expertise:
Korean film and K-dramaLanguages Spoken:
English, French, Korean
Suspenseful and visually stunning it might be, but Gold Land so far features too vague a narrative and lacks character depth.
Gong Myung plays a star auditor humbled by Shin Hye-sun’s feared executive in this show exploring corporate dynamics in South Korean society.
Ahn Hyo-seop, of KPop Demon Hunters and Business Proposal fame, returns in Netflix’s rural romcom, Sold Out on You, alongside Chae Won-bin.
Cha Eun-woo and Park Eun-bin lead The Wonderfools, Lim Ji-yeon stars in My Royal Nemesis, and Red Velvet’s Yeri headlines Azure Spring.
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Park Hae-soo, Lee Hee-joon and Kwak Sun-young lead this engaging police procedural inspired by the serial slayings of Lee Choon-jae.
A sinister phone app grants wishes in the K-drama, blending tech horror with folklore, but it begins to lose steam in the second half.
Kim Hyang-gi stars as a high school student and BL web novel author for whom four hot teachers bring inspiration and big moral dilemmas.
We Are All Trying Here stands out from other recent film-industry-set Korean dramas with its dialogue, energy and stellar performances.
Lee Hye-ri is eyeing a role as a spy in Caution, Hazardous Wife, while Choi Hyun-wook is considering the baseball-themed Green Light.
Yumi’s Cells season 3 begins with the main character living on autopilot. Then, her life gets a jolt when a new love interest appears.
A love story about a chaebol heir and a modern-day prince, Perfect Crown follows a winning formula but is let down by unrelatable characters.
Coming to prominence in shows like Record of Youth and Strong Girl Nam-soon, Byeon Woo-seok returns this weekend in a hotly anticipated role.
Park Seo-joon has signed up for Born Guilty, while Park Eun-bin is considering The Palace is Home to Dog Flowers.
Rain shines as a fearsome boxer who runs a bare-knuckle fight club in the second season of the Netflix boxing drama Bloodhounds.
From The Scarecrow to the second season of Netflix’s Bloodhounds, here are 10 Korean dramas to watch this month.
Can The King’s Warden overtake The Admiral: Roaring Currents and Extreme Job to become the most-viewed South Korean film of all time?
Undercover High School’s Seo Kang-joon will star in Another Romance Besides You while Ju Ji-hoon is considering Buy King on Netflix.
While glossy, well acted and filled with meme-ready outbursts, ENA’s new Korean drama Climax suffers from directorial indecision.
Mad Concrete Dreams, starring Ha Jung-woo, explores South Korea’s all-too-familiar property woes through a darkly comic thriller.
Yoo Yeon-seok and Esom star in this new Korean drama about a lawyer who unwillingly takes on the cases of ghost clients.
From his musical beginnings to his breakout role in Reply 1997 to his turn in Boyfriend on Demand, Seo In-guk stands out for his versatility.
Starring Got7’s Park Jin-young and ex-Iz*one member Kim Min-ju, Still Shining is an appealing concept but is yet to reward viewers’ patience.
Lee will star in Iseop’s Romance, Song and Kim may reunite in White Scandal, and Jung Kyung-ho will lead Unshakeable Forties’ Romance.
Blackpink singer stars opposite Seo In-guk as woman dating AI-generated men in a show hampered by its adherence to the K-drama romcom model.
K-drama Siren’s Kiss borrows liberally from the soap opera playbook, but it lacks the humour that lifted similar shows like The Penthouse.
Park Sung-hoon and Lee Ki-taek play potential suitors for Han’s young professional in this show where compatibility seems to trump chemistry.
Blackpink’s Jisoo shines in Boyfriend on Demand, Park Min-young and Squid Game’s Wi Ha-joon star in Siren’s Kiss and Ju Ji-hoon leads Climax.
This romantic K-drama about a woman grieving for her boyfriend has a compelling cast but is beset with misleading omissions.
Yeonwoo and Kim Hyun-jin lead Love Phobia, a near-future K-drama about AI and relationships that suffers from poor chemistry.
