Cover Roh Jeong-eui is at the top of the hierarchy (Photo: IMDb)
Roh Jeong-eui is at the top of the hierarchy (Photo: IMDb)
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Dive into the drama, romance and rivalries that make high school K-dramas irresistibly chaotic
Everyone will agree that high school life isn’t easy. But K-dramas take it to the next level: navigating romance is more complicated thanks to an app that reveals your feelings to anyone within a 10-meter radius, bullies are literal monsters and making it to the top of the class involves martial arts moves or a sharp, strategic mind.
Whether you’re dealing with bullies, academic pressures, class struggles, first love or even zombies, these 7 high-school-themed K-dramas capture the chaotic, dramatic and sometimes heart-wrenching experience of school life.
Also read: 4 K-dramas you need to watch before they end
‘Hierarchy’
When it comes to elite private schools, nothing beats Hierarchy’s Jooshin High School, where classrooms look like fancy lounges in exclusive clubs, clothes consist of luxury designer items and couples break up by racing sports cars on an actual race track.
The over-the-top affluence is meant to underscore the struggles of scholarship students like Kang Ha (Lee Chae-min) and highlight the harsh realities of an unjust class system. Adding to the tension is a secret revenge plot and a love triangle involving Kang Ha, Jung Jae-i (Roh Jeong-eui) and Kim Ri-an (Kim Jae-won).
‘Study Group’
Yoon Ga-min, played by K-pop idol and actor Minhyun, has only one dream in life—to go to a good university. Unfortunately, no matter how hard he studies, academic success eludes him. Upon learning that going to Yusung Technical High School might give him a leg up, he enrolls at the infamous vocational school.
What awaits him is pure chaos—a school overrun with delinquents, where class ranking is based not on test scores but on how well you can fight. But straight-arrow and mild-mannered Ga-min has a secret: he’s an elite martial artist. And although he would rather hit the books than his fellow students, his special skills are crucial in forming the study group he’s always dreamed of and, in the process, finding a group of friends he never knew he needed.
Don’t miss: 6 cliffhangers that make K-drama viewers impatient for the second season of ‘Study Group’
‘All of Us Are Dead’
Nobody flips the zombie genre on its head quite like the Koreans (see: Kingdom and Train to Busan). In All of Us Are Dead, the concept of halfbies (half-humans, half-zombies) and immortal zombies are introduced, as well as a host of memorable characters and up-and-coming young actors.
Based on the webtoon by Joo Dong-geun, the drama is a post-apocalyptic zombie nightmare in a school setting. It starts off with the regular high school drama—friendships, unrequited crushes and bullies—until an unsanctioned school experiment goes awry and turns the school into the epicentre of a zombie apocalypse. While students fight to survive, they experience moments of camaraderie and heartbreak and go to great lengths to protect their friends and loved ones amidst a terrifying outbreak.
Don’t miss: Lifestyle | Entertainment Love ‘All of Us Are Dead’? Here Are 10 Korean Zombie Films and Shows to Watch
‘Love Alarm’
In the K-drama that catapulted Song Kang to fame and kickstarted his reign as the unofficial son of Netflix, high school romance is made even more complicated by an app that notifies users if someone nearby has romantic feelings for them. It also launched a love triangle that fans became passionately invested in.
In a span of two seasons, we followed Kim Jo-jo (Kim So-hyun) as she struggled to navigate love and societal pressures, and finally decide, without the help of the Love Alarm app, who between Lee Hye-young (Jung Ga-ram) and Hwang Sun-oh (Song Kang) she truly has feelings for.
See also: Song Kang: 5 Things You Need To Know About The ‘Nevertheless,’ Actor
‘True Beauty’
If you prefer light romantic comedies, then True Beauty is the high school K-drama for you. In this modern ugly duckling tale, high school student Lim Joo-kyung transforms into her high school’s goddess with the help of make-up.
But beneath the flawless facade she carefully creates every day, Ju-kyung continues to struggle with her self-esteem and fears being judged for her bare face. Enter brooding Lee Soo-ho (Cha Eun-woo) and rebellious Han Seo-joon (Hwang In-yeop), who both see past her appearance and fall for the person underneath. The drama may be a light-hearted romantic comedy but it delivers deeper messages about self-acceptance, identity and the emotional chaos of adolescence.
See also: In her ‘true beauty’ we trust: Moon Ga-young’s best looks
‘Extraordinary You’
This is no ordinary high school romantic comedy. Extraordinary You is a mix of fantasy, romance and high school drama. When Eun Dan-oh (Kim Hye-yoon) discovers that she and her classmates are nothing more than the figment of a comic book writer’s imagination (plus the injustice of not even being the main character in his tale), she sets out to rewrite her fate.
Originally written as someone with a terminal heart condition who is coldly shunned by her fiancé Baek Kyung (Lee Jae-wook), she decides to take control of her own narrative. With the help of a new and mysterious background character she calls Ha-ru (Rowoon), Dan-oh changes her comic book fate and learns that free will and identity are a matter of choice.
Don’t miss: 3 things to know about ‘Lovely Runner’
‘Weak Hero Class 1’
Weak Hero Class 1 pulls no punches in its portrayal of school violence and survival. It follows Yeon Si-eun (Park Ji-hoon), the school’s top student, whose reserved and quiet nature make him an easy target for vicious bullies. But make no mistake, although he looks like a pushover, he uses his intellect and sharp mind to fight back.
Backed by An Soo-ho (Choi Hyun-wook) and Oh Beom-seok (Hong Kyung), who form his allies, Yeon Si-eun confronts the challenges he faces head on. Weak Hero Class 1 may be a story that revolves around school violence, but it also tackles issues of trauma and the importance of friendship and loyalty.
Critics have praised the series for its unflinching portrayal of school violence as well as its cast, singling out Park Ji-hoon and Choi Hyun-wook for their stellar performances.
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