The 15 best school K-dramas of all time, from Dream High and Boys Over Flowers to Weak Hero Class and Twenty-Five Twenty-One
- High-school dramas are a mainstay of Korean television, with teen romance often a theme – examples include The Heirs, starring Lee Min-ho, and Love Alarm
- Often, bullying is part of the storyline, as in Weak Hero Class and Boys Over Flowers; other social problems get a look-in too, as well as youthful ambitions
One of the mainstays of the Korean drama landscape is the high-school drama.
Teen romance series, with love triangles aplenty, generally lead the way, but over the years the genre has become more complex, welcoming several exciting variations, particularly now that we’ve entered the streaming era.
Below is our ranking of the 15 best high-school K-dramas.
15. Love Alarm
Lead cast: Kim So-hyun, Song Kang, Jung Ga-ram
Based on the hugely popular webtoon of the same name, Love Alarm was one of the first Korean drama successes for Netflix. The show adds to the already heady world of teen romance with its fantastical concept of a dating app which lets you know if someone near you has feelings for you.
This plunges a high-school student into an epic love triangle with two handsome friends from very different social backgrounds.
14. Dream High
Lead cast: Bae Suzy, Ok Taec-yeon, Kim Soo-hyun, Lee Ji-eun
Peak Nielsen rating: 17.9 per cent
