8 of the best new K-drama series in September 2023: A Time Called You and Song of the Bandits on Netflix, The Worst of Evil on Disney+ and more
- Ahn Hyo-seop leads timeslip drama A Time Called You on Netflix, while Ji Chang-wook and Squid Game’s Wi Ja-hoon star in Disney+ thriller The Worst of Evil
- On Netflix, Song of the Bandits is a Western set in Manchuria and starring Seohyun and Kim Nam-gil, and mythical series Arthdal Chonicles returns
There are a number of K-drama productions launching in September, among them some high-concept shows, including a Manchuria-set Western and two time-travel romantic dramas.
We preview eight of the best series debuting during the month.
1. A Time Called You
Lead cast: Ahn Hyo-seop, Jeon Yeo-been
The classic Korean timeslip romance gets a new twist in the coming Netflix melodrama A Time Called You.
One day, she finds herself transported back to 1998, into the body of high school student Kwon Min-woo. At Min-woo’s school she meets student Nam Shi-heon, who looks eerily like her late lover, and is beloved by all at school.
With cassette players, bike rides during summer showers and tender youthful romance, A Time Called You is awash in nostalgia. (Netflix, September 8)
2. Arthdal Chronicles: The Sword of Aramoon
Lead cast: Lee Joon-gi, Shin Se-kyung, Jang Dong-gun, Kim Ok-vin
Arthdal Chronicles, once the most expensive Korean drama of all time, returns with a new season.
Set eight years after the first season (and shot four years later), The Sword of Aramoon will continue the story of Eun-seom (Lee), who fights for his tribe in the mythical land of Arth. (Netflix, September 9)
3. Han River Police
Lead cast: Kwon Sang-woo, Kim Hee-won, Lee Sang-yi, Bae Da-bin
Next month, Disney+ will run the action comedy Han River Police. The series will follow a police squad that tackles cases that take place on and along the Han River bisecting South Korea’s capital.
4. The Day
Lead cast: Yoon Kye-sang, Park Sung-hoon, Yu-na, Kim Shin-rok
On the way to do the job, he accidentally hits Ro-hee. She loses her memory and they begin living together – she thinks Myung-joon is her father. Myung-joon wants to return her to her parents, but stumbles into a deep and dark mystery. (ENA, September 13)
5. 7 Escape
Lead cast: Um Ki-joon, Hwang Jung-eum, Lee Joon, Lee Yoo-bi, Shin Eun-kyung, Yoon Jong-hoon, Jo Yoon-hee
The title refers to seven characters who become connected following a girl’s disappearance. Among them are The Penthouse veterans Uhm Ki-joon, Shin Eun-kyung and Yoon Jong-hoon as tech kingpin Matthew Lee, OB-Gyn Cha Ju-ran and Cherry Entertainment CEO Yang Jin-mo respectively.
6. Song of the Bandits
Lead cast: Kim Nam-gil, Seohyun, Yoo Jae-myung, Lee Hyun-wook, Lee Ho-jung
Kim Nam-gil returns in the action-packed Netflix spectacle Song of the Bandits. Echoing the modern film classic The Good, The Bad, The Weird, the show takes place in Manchuria and follows Korean characters who move there during the Japanese colonial occupation of northeast China for different reasons.
7. Twinkling Watermelon
Lead cast: Ryeoun, Choi Hyun-wook, Seol In-a, Shin Eun-soo
Ryeoun (The Secret Romantic Guesthouse) appears in this youth romance drama as Eun-gyeol, a student born to deaf parents who possesses a musical gift.
Yi-chan has a crush on Se-kyung, who is a cello prodigy. (TvN, September 25)
8. The Worst of Evil
Lead cast: Ji Chang-wook, Wi Ha-joon, Im Se-mi
The series is co-directed by filmmakers Han Dong-wook (Man in Love) and Park Geum-num (Girl on the Edge) and written by Secret Reunion scriptwriter Jang Min-su. (Disney+, September 27)