9 new K-dramas to watch in October 2022: Glitch on Netflix, Curtain Call, Bargain and more

The K-drama line-up for October includes sci-fi, comedies and survival dramas, a cheerleading movie and a series about life after death
Jin Sun-Kyu and Jeon Jong-seo star in organ harvesting and earthquake survival series Bargain, while Han Ji-hyun takes the lead role in Cheer Up

K-drama news

Pierce Conran

Published: 1:15pm, 29 Sep, 2022

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From sci-fi comedy to survival drama, October will see a broad selection of new K-dramas to satisfy all tastes.

Here’s our preview of next month’s nine hottest offerings.

1. Cheer Up

After exploding onto the scene as the spoiled high-society teenage queen Joo Seok-kyung in hit drama The Penthouse, Han Ji-hyun tackles her first leading role in the SBS cheerleading drama Cheer Up.

Han plays Do Hae-yi, a hardworking student at Yeonhee University who focuses more on money than grades, owing to her family’s dire financial straits.

This leads her to join the illustrious Teyia cheerleading squad, where she mingles with other students, including Park Jung-woo, played by Why Her?’s Bae In-hyuk. (SBS, starts October 3)

2. Bad Prosecutor

October will welcome yet another prosecutor to the screen, but Jin Jung is no ordinary prosecutor. Despite his conscious and deep belief in justice, his methods are far from standard practice.

Do Kyung-soo (aka D.O.), a member of K-pop boy band EXO last seen on screens four years ago in 100 Days My Prince, returns as the hot-tempered Jung, his first role in a TV drama series since doing his mandatory Korean military service.

Bad Prosecutor is a new series from Kim Sung-ho, the filmmaker who crossed over to the drama world last year when he debuted on the small screen with the Netflix series Move to Heaven. (KBS2, October 5)

3. Love Is for Suckers

Veteran variety show producer Gu Yeo-reum (The Beauty Inside’s Lee Da-hee) has suffered a series of quick cancellations and needs her next show, Kingdom of Love, to be a hit.

Her long-time friend and neighbour Park Jae-hun (Super Junior K-pop group member Choi Si-won, My Fellow Citizens), a bored plastic surgeon, helps her out by appearing on the show. But rather than fall for another contestant, Park develops unexpected feelings for Gu. (ENA, October 5)

4. Glitch

Hong Ji-hyo ( Vincenzo’s Jeon Yeo-been) may or may not have been abducted by aliens as a child; now her long-term boyfriend disappears under similar circumstances. Ji-hyo teams up with friend Heo Bo-ra (Nana of Oh! Master) and her UFO club buddies to track him down and look into a mysterious cult.

This sci-fi action comedy marks the drama debut of acclaimed film director Roh Deok, known for Very Ordinary Couple, and was penned by Jin Han-se (Netflix’s Extracurricular). (Netflix, October 7)

5. Yonder

Set in the year 2032, Yonder focuses on reporter Jae-hyun ( Beyond Evil’s Shin Ha-kyun), who struggles to move on from the death of his wife Yi-hu (Han Ji-min, Our Blues).

Out of the blue he receives a message from Yi-hu asking him to meet in ‘Yonder’. Jae-hyun goes to meet her at this mysterious place beyond death, which she signed up for shortly before her demise.

This sci-fi melodrama marks the drama debut of hit filmmaker Lee Joon-ik, known for The King and the Clown. (TVING, October 14)

6. The Queen’s Umbrella

Following the Netflix legal drama Juvenile Justice, Kim Hye-soo headlines her second show of the year as the lead of The Queen’s Umbrella. She plays Queen Hwaryeong, who is constantly flummoxed by her troublemaking sons.

Seeing as it’s high time for them to become presentable crown princes, Hwaryeong abandons protocol as she seeks to educate these wayward youths.

Much like the recent smash hit Mr Queen, The Queen’s Umbrella presents us with a protagonist who is prone to bad language and hot tempers in a court usually dominated by manners. (tvN, October 15)

7. May I Help You

In the MBC drama May I Help You, K-pop idol Lee Hye-ri of Girl’s Day ( My Roommate Is a Gumiho) returns with her third leading role in three years as Baek Dong-ju, a funeral director with an unusual gift.

Dong-ju has the ability to see and communicate with the dead, who ask her to grant their final wishes. If she refuses, her day becomes filled with bad luck.

Helping her is Kim Jib-sa (Lee Jun-young of the Kpop group U-Kiss), who works for an errand service that fulfils the slightest whims of its clients. (MBC, October 19)

8. Curtain Call

Ha Ji-won plays Park Se-yeon in a still from Curtain Call.

Despite his poor background, struggling actor Yoo Jae-heon (Kang Ha-neul, When the Camellia Blooms) has a sunny disposition. His life changes one day when he is asked to play the grandson of Ja Geum-soon (Go Doo-shim, Our Blues), an old woman who defected from the North decades ago. Now she runs Hotel Paradise, Korea’s leading hotel chain.

This star-studded show also features Ha Ji-won (Secret Garden) as Geum-soon’s granddaughter Park Se-yeon. Kwon Sang-woo (Queen of Mystery) and Sung Dong-il ( Jirisan) co-star. (KBS2, October 31)

9. Bargain

No Hyung-soo (Jin Sun-kyu) visits Park Joo-young (Jeon Jong-seo, Money Heist: Korea – Joint Economic Area) in a seedy motel room looking for a good time but is shocked when he is trapped by a group of people who’ve come to buy his organs.

Before the haggling over his organs is complete, an earthquake strikes, collapsing the building. Now this desperate collection of individuals struggle to survive.

Bargain is a remake of a short film of the same name by Lee Chung-hyun, director of The Call, in which Jeon also starred. (TVING, October)

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