It would be wonderful to help each other by listing the gems you have discovered or perhaps underrated dramas that were successful in one country and not another.
Below is my humble list and they are divided into four categories. It would be wonderful if you would also, share yours. There will be a follow up Drama Drought post listing the dramas and movies mentioned in the comments.
Drama
Surgeons (Stories Behind OR) – 外科风云 Chinese, 2017
Action/Thriller
Medical Examiner Dr. Qin 法医秦明 Chinese 2016
When a Snail Falls in Love 如果蜗牛有爱情 Chinese 2016
Signal 시그널 Korean, 2016
Memory Lost 美人为馅 Chinese, 2016
Romantic Comedy
A Love so Beautiful 致我们单纯的小美好 Chinese, 2017
Fabulous Boys 原來是美男 Taiwan, 2013
It Started with a Kiss 惡作劇之吻 Taiwan, 2005
We Married as a Job 逃げるは恥だが役に立つ Japanese, 2016
Wuxia / Xianxia / Historical (Costume Dramas)
Nirvana in Fire 琅琊榜 Chinese, 2015
Princess Agents 楚乔传 Chinese, 2017
Tribes and Empires: The Storm of Prophecy 九州·海上牧云记 Chinese, 2017
Ten Miles of Peach Blossoms 三生三世十里桃花 Chinese, 2017
Could anyone recommend any wuxia dramas that aren’t well known?
Drama Drought -> Next
Anonymous
Thanks for the list. Below are some of the show that i've watched & liked in 2017
China:
Ten Miles Of Peach Blossoms (Costume)
The Advisor Alliance (Costume)
Across The Ocean To See You (Drama)
Diamond Lover ~ Uncut Ver. (Drama)
Guardian Of Beauty (Drama)
Fiancee (Drama)
Korean:
20th Century Boy & Girl (Drama)
Live Up To Your Name Dr. Heo (Costume + Drama)
Strong Woman Do Bong Soon (Drama)
Japanese:
Nigeru Wa Haji Da Ga Yaku Ni Tatsu (Drama)
Saigo Kara Nibanme No Koi 1+2 (Drama)
Gintama (Movie)
Peach Girl (Movie)
Daytime Shooting Star (Movie)
ReLife (Movie)
One Week Friends (Movie)
March Comes In Like A Lion 1+2 (Movie)
Blade Of The Immortal (Movie)
Kiseki; Sobito of That Day (Movie)
AndreaK
Thank you for sharing your list. I haven't heard of many if those and excited to dry them during a drought.
I LOVE Day Time Shooting Star. To me the manga is even better, since you see the all the details and more of the story. If you happen to be interested, its on the MANGAZONE app under Hirunaka no Ryūsei
Unknown
I am currently watching In The Name Of The People, Advisors Alliance, Big Boss Season 2, Game Of Hunting and Love So Beautiful. Subs for Tientsin Mystic have started.
Unknown
Of the recent dramas, memorable ones were Ode To Joy and Ode To Joy 2. I also enjoyed When A Snail Falls In Love and Memory Lost. Of those based on classic novels, I like Three Kingdoms (2010 directed by Gao Xi Xi) and Journey To The West (2011 drama produced by Zhang Ji Zhong).
Unknown
I watched Legend Of The Condor Heroes (2008 starring Hu Ge and Ariel Lin). Romance Of The Condor Heroes (2014) was also memorable since it resulted in the marriage of the main actor and main actress. I watched Heaven Sword And Dragon Saber (2009 produced by Zhang Ji Zhong).
AndreaK
Thanks for listing those and they sound really good! I like that you've got some older one's listed. I only started watching C-drama in the last year or two and have missed out on the older classics and popular dramas/movies.
Anonymous
The only "underrated" drama I finished was Go Back Spouses (Korean). It was extremely popular in Korea though. A lot of dramas this year were so unappealing story and cast wise. There really isn't any diamond in the dirt.
AndreaK
That's so interesting that it is popular in Korea. I agree, most shows were bland and difficult to get into. There are some awesome Chinese ones like Oh My General & Nothing Gold Can Stay, but could find any with Eng Sub.
Kanong
My Little Princess, Mike Pirath & Zhang Yu Xi (Chinese) – Total Rom-Com. It was just very cute and nice to watch a reverse Cinderella drama.
Bu Liang Ren, Zheng Ye Cheng & Cai Wen Jing (Chinese – ZYC totally stole my heart in this drama!!! <3
Legend of the Condor Heroes 2017, Yang Xu Wen & Li Yi Tong (Chinese) – LYT portrayed a perfect Huang Rong. Plus, the main characters had very good chemistry.
Young Sherlock/Detective Dee, Bosco Wong & Qi Wei (Chinese) – Bosco Wong is hilarious as Di Ren Jie, but I just loved Ma Tian Yu's second male lead character because he was very handsome.
Soul Stitcher, Dylan Xiong & Zhu Xu Dan (Chinese) – Because I just love Dylan! <3
Tantei no Tantei, Kitagawa Keiko (Japanese) – She totally kicks ass as a detective in this drama. Super dark and melodramatic, BUT worth it to see her as a STRONG, INDEPENDENT, and KICKASS female lead.
Kanong
Forgot to add:
Legend of Mu Lan 2013, Dylan Kuo & Hou Meng Yao – HMY portrayed a beautiful, yet courageous and brave Hua Mulan. I definitely recommend this series because it really does a good job portraying Mulan's character growth as a young woman from a small village to a strong general.
AndreaK
Thank you to everyone has listed dramas/movies. There will be another drama drought post that includes the ones listed here.
Sunny
I'm a bit late to post but wanted to say I like this idea for a regular feature and also trow in my own recommendation.
One drama I'm watching right now is the web drama "Where the Lost Ones Go" (可惜不是你). I'm only on Ep. 6 and it just started airing last month so it is very new.
It seems to be under the radar in China and internationally but it is an underrated gem. It's a college campus lost love story but it is very well written, acted and directed despite the fact that there are no big stars and it has a small budget. The lead couple have incredible chemistry together and even when they are apart, music is gorgeous and the drama is a lot darker and atmospheric but realistic at the same time than most of the Chinese campus/uni love stories I've seen. Maybe that's why it's not too popular? It's a shame as it deserves much more attention. I think it's far superior to pretty much any of the much hyped youth love stories I've seen this year. It's what I hoped like "Rush to the Dead Summer" would have been and if there were any justice it would be getting the hype that damp disappointment of a drama received. Despite the lack of attention someone is very kindly subbing it in English on YT and I am so grateful! Definitely recommended.
AndreaK
That one sounds really interesting, I'm so glad you shared it since I have never come across it before. I'll be trying that one out!
Sunny
@AndreaK: Great! I hope you can give it a try. I hope I haven't hyped it up too much as I'm only part of the way through the series myself but I'm impressed so far.
AndreaK
@Sunny, I started watching it, such a nice feel, soundtrack and really good chemistry between leads. I do find the future/present plot stressful. My favorite scene so far is when the best friends starts randomly talking about Harry Potter because she it nervous lol