u/dyutiparna

Full disclaimer : NOT an ordered list, these are just my favourite individual performances in shows I've watched, so it is strictly my opinion only.

I'm not necessarily a fan of all these shows as a whole (I did like most of these), but they all include acting performances I really enjoyed on its own, and which I felt elevated the material as well; although these are most certainly my favourite performances from the show. These are not all lead performances either, in fact a couple will most probably count as guest or supporting roles, but they stood out for me nonetheless so I've included them.

Did you watch these shows? What did you think of their performances? What are your favourite acting performances in the Korean TV landscape?

1. Ryu Seung-Ryong - Kingdom

2. Park Hae-Joon - When life gives you tangerines

3. Lee Je-Hoon - Move to heaven

4. Yoo Jae-Myung - Stranger season 1

5. Cho Jin-Woong - Signal

6. Park Gyu-Young - Squid Game season 3

7. Yeom Hye-Ran - Mask Girl

8. Park Ji-Hoon - Weak Hero

9. Jeon Yeo-Been - Be Melodramatic

10. Jeon Yu-Na - The Kidnapping Day

11. Park Hee-Soon - Moving

12. Park Hae-Soo - Squid Game season 1

13. Bae Doona & Ryoo Seung-Bum - Family Matters (they played off each other so well that it's hard to not include both of them together)

I have been looking for a new show for a while now, in between watching "Widow's Bay" (I like watching multiple shows at once lol), accidentally found "Family Matters" and wanted to give it a go because I love everything Doona Bae does. I binged over an entire day and my mind is positively blown. It's so playful but complex at once, filled with little character moments and absolute proper edge. I spent my college days watching extreme Korean cinema of the early 2000s and I have always missed the edge, the complexity and the absurd tragicomedy of those films in Korean shows (I understand that they are very different but a girl can dream haha), but barring a few I have not seen the same in the TV landscape. "Family Matters" reminded me so much of those films that I love, with an extremely good pacing and little to no fillers, and economic storytelling. Doona Bae is of course wonderful as always, but I also loved Ryu Seung-Bum in this, I saw him in a couple of films like "The Unjust", "Good News" etc and always found a manic but layered energy in his performances, this one is not an exception. Him and Bae Doona also have wonderfully lived-in chemistry in this.

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Waiting for season 2 now (although it's a bummer that Ryu Seung-Bum won't be back.)