K-drama city boys turned country boys in ‘Merry Berry Love’, ‘Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha’ and more

The first time audiences meet Hong Du-sik (Kim Seon-ho) in tvN’s romantic comedy Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha, a hit K-drama on Netflix, he is already a beloved fixture in the small coastal town of Gongjin. Affectionately known as Hong Banjang, or Chief Hong, he is the community’s go-to handyman, ready to lend a hand with just about anything. His skills range from real estate and fish auctions to barista work, plumbing and carpentry, much to the surprise of big-city transplant Yoon Hye-jin (Shin Min-a).

What Hye-jin—and viewers—eventually learn is that although Du-sik is a born-and-bred country boy, he has spent time in Seoul as a hotshot fund manager before returning home to Gongjin. Following a personal tragedy that left him weighed down by guilt and grief, he returns to his hometown to heal. With the support of the townspeople and Hye-jin, Du-sik learns to confront his past and move forward.

See more: 10 K-drama and K-pop heartthrobs to watch in Korean variety shows, from Lee Jun-ho to Byeon Woo-seok

In the KakaoTV rom-com K-drama Once Upon a Small Town, available to stream on Netflix, Seoul-based veterinarian Han Ji-yul (Choo Young-woo) rushes to the countryside after receiving an alarming call from his grandfather, who runs a veterinary practice in Huidong. Upon arriving, however, he discovers that his grandfather has gone on a cruise and was never in any danger. The supposed emergency was a ruse to get Ji-yul to take over the practice in his absence.

Left to care for the village’s animals, Ji-yul must adjust to a rural routine far removed from his city life. As he gets to know Huidong’s residents, including local police officer Ahn Ja-young (Joy), his reluctant stay becomes an opportunity to embrace small-town life and find romance along the way.

So Baek-ho (Kang Tae-oh) isn’t exactly the sort of man you’d expect to find among potato crops. A rigid, analytical Wonhan Retail executive, he arrives at a rural research institute with a brief to streamline operations and decide whether it deserves to stay open. That puts him at odds with Kim Mi-kyung (Lee Sun-bin), a researcher who has spent 12 years at the potato lab and treats it as a safe haven.

For Baek-ho, life at the institute proves more complicated than he anticipated, particularly as he becomes drawn to Mi-kyung. What begins as a business audit soon becomes a more personal experience, giving this city slicker a reason to see the countryside—and the people who call it home—differently.

In Deokpung Village, Matthew Lee (Ahn Hyo-seop) is known to all as Mechoori, or “Quail”, a handsome CEO and farmer devoted to cultivating the white-flowered nuri mushroom, a highly coveted skincare ingredient. His routine is upended by Dam Ye-jin (Chae Won-been), a shopping network star determined to bring him around to working with French cosmetics brand L’Étoile.

Matthew may be well settled into rural life, embraced by the community despite his gruff nature, but few know he once lived as Lee Hae-seok, a high-powered corporate researcher at Gojeuneok Bio. After a major scandal ruined his career and reputation, he withdrew to Deokpung. With time, his neighbours’ support and Ye-jin by his side, Matthew finds a way to heal and rebuild. 

The K-drama trope of city girls turned country girls offers a new angle on the urban-to-rural romance. Like Lee Yu-bin in Merry Berry Love and Matthew Lee in Sold Out on You, these female leads leave the fast pace of city life behind, finding love and new perspectives in the countryside.

After walking out on her Seoul dental clinic and being blacklisted by the city’s dental community, Yoon Hye-jin (Shin Min-a) decides to open her own practice in Gongjin. An urbanite through and through, she takes pride in her designer shoes and bags and struggles with small-town life, where everyone makes it a point to know everyone else’s business. But with help from Hong Du-sik (Kim Seon-ho), Gongjin’s resourceful handyman, and the warmth of the townspeople, Hye-jin gradually finds her footing and discovers there is more to life beyond the city.

Cho Sam-dal (Shin Hye-sun) grew up in Samdal-ri, a village on Jeju Island, with her sights firmly set on Seoul. She made the move after high school, spending years working her way up in Seoul’s fashion photography world as Cho Eun-hye until a former assistant’s allegations brought it all down.

With her career derailed, Sam-dal returns to the village she tried so hard to outrun, where she must face her neighbours and Cho Yong-pil (Ji Chang-wook), the childhood sweetheart she stopped speaking to. In the JTBC K-drama Welcome to Samdal-ri, Ji Chang-wook swaps the city boy of Merry Berry Love for a village boy waiting for the love of his life to return to him.

Oh Dong-baek (Gong Hyo-jin) leaves the big city for the small town of Ongsan, where she opens a bar and raises her son, Pil-gu (Kim Kang-hoon), on her own. In the award-winning K-drama When the Camellia Blooms, her new start in the countryside is far from ideal. As an unmarried single mother running a bar, she becomes the subject of local gossip, with the town’s residents quick to judge her choices. Yet Dong-baek finds allies among her neighbours, particularly Hwang Yong-sik (Kang Ha-neul), an earnest local police officer who falls for her and refuses to let the community’s prejudice define her. As she navigates small-town scrutiny, a budding romance and a dangerous mystery, Dong-baek begins to find the confidence to stand up for herself and build a life on her own terms.

From Merry Berry Love and Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha to Once Upon a Small Town, The Potato Lab and Sold Out on You, these K-dramas put a fresh spin on the city-boy-turned-country-boy trope. Whether their rural detours are prompted by career setbacks, unexpected assignments or a desire to start over, the characters discover that life outside the city can challenge their assumptions about work, relationships and themselves. And as Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha, Welcome to Samdal-ri and When the Camellia Blooms show, the journey works just as well for women building their lives away from the urban world.

NOW READ

7 Mio Imada dramas and films to watch, from ‘Merry Berry Love’ to ‘My Happy Marriage’

6 K-drama actresses to watch this October, from Kim Ji-won to Seo Hyun-jin

8 K-drama actresses who surprised fans with unexpected genre switches, from Son Ye-jin in ‘The Scandal’ to Song Hye-kyo in ‘The Glory’