Three (3) Standout Hulu Original Korean Dramas

(1) Light Shop (2024)

GENRE: Fantasy, Supernatural, Crime, Mystery, Thriller, Suspense; 8 episodes

Main Characters:

• Jung Won-Young (played by Ju Ji-Hoon)
• Joo Hyun-Ju (played by Shin Eun-Soo)
• Lee Ji-Young (played by Seol Hyun)

This supernatural mystery explores a strange store that offers customers a chance to revisit moments from their past.

• Memorable Quote: “Everyone carries a light inside them. Some burn bright, some flicker, but none are ever truly extinguished.”

A mysterious young woman appears human but may be something far more dangerous. No one knows her name or where she comes from, only that encounters with her rarely end well. A young man notices her sitting at the same bus stop every night with a suitcase, not moving. One rainy evening, he offers her help, unaware that her intentions may be far from innocent.

Nearby, Jung Won-young runs a small light shop at the end of a dark alley. He claims to see “strangers”—supernatural beings that move in darkness. A schoolgirl, Joo Hyun-ju, often stops by his shop, drawn to its safety and light. Jung Won-young warns her that if she ever encounters a stranger, she must pretend nothing is wrong to survive.

When Joo Hyun-ju finally faces one of the “strangers”, she escapes by reaching the light shop. It becomes clear that the light shop is protection, and darkness is danger. The light shop owner Jung Won-young is also mysterious. He may be guarding more than just the store. Maybe he's a “good stranger”???

OFFICIAL TRAILER: Hulu. “Light Shop.” YouTube, 2 Dec. 2024, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nUTranui_uY.

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(2) Tempest (2025)

Genre: Action, Romance, Political Thriller, Conspiracy Drama; 9 episodes

Main Characters:

• Seo Mun-Ju (played by Gianna Jun)
• Chae Kyung-Sin (played by Kim Hae-Sook)

A high-stakes political thriller centered on a former UN Ambassador whose life spirals after her husband’s mysterious assassination.

• Memorable Quote: “Peace is not the absence of conflict. It’s the courage to face it without losing yourself.”

Seo Munju was a highly respected UN ambassador with a successful career and clear aspirations of her own. She probably could have run for president. But at her husband’s request, she stepped away from her post so she could support his plan to run for president. Though the sitting president warned her that her husband’s ideas—especially reunifying North and South Korea—were dangerous, she chose to be loyal to her husband.

Before the campaign could begin, her husband was assassinated during a speech at a church. Seo Munju tried to shield him from the shooter and nearly died herself. But a bystander, Baek San-ho, tackled the gunman and saved her life. Before committing suicide, the assassin claimed her husband was a spy. A spy? Clearly, a false accusation. There was no way her husband was a spy. But how can she prove it? Her husband and the shooter are dead. Where does she begin?

It turns out that Baek San-ho, the man who saved her, is a former special agent. He saved her, but can he be trusted? Seo Munju decides to start with him. Or rather, he makes sure that she decides that she can trust him. As their relationship develops, he reveals evidence suggesting a larger conspiracy, including suspicious phone calls and footage linking the assassin to Seo Munju’s brother-in-law. Her own brother-in-law? He may have killed his own brother? Realizing she was in danger, Seo Munju agreed to work with Baek San-ho to uncover the truth behind her husband’s death.

OFFICIAL TRAILER: Hulu. “Tempest.” YouTube, 20 Aug. 2025, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YEz4SuMI1-Q.

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(3) Hyper Knife (2025)

GENRE: Medical Drama, Crime, and Thriller; 8 episodes

Main Characters:

• Jung Se-Ok (played by Park Eun-Bin)
• Choi Deok-Hee (played by Sul Kyung-Gu)
• Seo Young-Joo (played by Yoon Chan-Young)
• Han Hyeon-Ho (played by Park Byung-Eun)

A stylish, action-packed medical drama thriller that blends crime and suspense.

• Memorable Quote: "I saved one person so I killed another."

Jung Se-ok is a brilliant young brain surgeon mentored by the renowned Choi Deok-hee. Their close professional relationship collapses after Jung commits an unforgivable act in the operating room—and refuses to admit fault. Enraged, Choi ensures her medical license is revoked, effectively ending her legal career. For Jung, surgery is her entire identity, and losing it feels like a death sentence.

Refusing to give up, she turns to the underground world of illegal medicine, performing surgeries for patients who cannot risk real hospitals. She also runs a small pharmacy, proving resourceful and determined to survive.

Years later, Choi tracks her down—not to save her, but because he needs brain surgery himself. Ironically, Jung is the only surgeon he trusts. He offers to protect her from the police in exchange for the operation. But Jung has not forgiven him. Faced with the man who destroyed her life, she delivers her answer without hesitation: no mercy, no forgiveness.

OFFICIAL TRAILER: Hulu. “Hyper Knife.” YouTube, 17 Mar. 2025, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JY73T7jgex8.

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Why Add These Korean Dramas to Your Watch List?

Are you drawn to psychological thrillers, supernatural mysteries, or dark medical dramas? Hulu’s catalog of original Korean dramas might be able to satisfy your mood.

Thank you for reading.