15 Best K-Dramas of 2025, From ‘Made in Korea’ to ‘When Life Gives You Tangerines’
The best K-dramas of 2025 tackle an array of relevant topics that made us cheer, scream, and cry this year. Get ready to binge. My latest for Teen Vogue.
Category: Reviews
10 Moments That Defined K-pop’s Huge Year
“Kpop Demon Hunters” ruled the world, Blackpink kept getting bigger, and new artists broke rules. My latest for Rolling Stone magazine.
“The Manipulated”
“The Manipulated” is a film-to-series adaptation of the 2017 action film Fabricated City. Both share the same creative (Park Kwang-hyun) and leading man (Ji Chang-wook).
The 100 Best Albums of 2025
For Rolling Stone’s year-end list of best albums of 2025., I reviewed Hannah Bahng’s “The Misunderstood EP” and Chaeyoung’s “LIL FANTASY vol. 1.”
“Dear Juno,” Persimmons, and Language Loss
How a children’s book reflects on the profound impact of losing your first language
“As You Stood By” (당신이 죽였다)
“As You Stood By” examines domestic abuse and how people are reluctant to help victims — most often because they are afraid of how their actions could be detrimental to their own lives (which is also a subplot in Our Unwritten Seoul).
What is Happening with South Koreans in Cambodia?
The 2nd season of “Taxi Driver” depicted a fictional storyline that is eerily similar to what is happening now in South East Asia.
The 250 Greatest Songs of the 21st Century So Far
I was one of the critics asked to review songs for Rolling Stone’s lastest list: 25 years of classic hits from all over the musical map and every corner of the globe.
“Bon Appétit, Your Majesty” (폭군의 셰프)
Bon Appetit, Your Majesty is a delicious mashup of sageuk (or historical dramas), time travel, and mukbang. But basing the fictional king on a real-life despot has been controversial.
How to watch “Reborn Rich,” “Lovely Runner,” & “Study Group” for free
VIKI is celebrating its third annual K-Drama Day by removing the paywall from 10 popular shows on the streaming site.
Hannah Bahng’s Lush, Lowkey Self-Discovery
Korean Australian singer-songwriter Hannah Bahng delivers a great introspective indie-pop on her “The Misunderstood EP.” My latest Rolling Stone review.
Beyond the Bar (에스콰이어: 변호사를 꿈꾸는 변호사들)
“Beyond the Bar” does such a great job of creating complete characters who don’t need a partner to be whole, leaving viewers satisfied with either choice, because we’re confident they will all be OK.
OMEGA X’s Kevin Talks About “My Bias is Showing!”
One of 11 members of the group OMEGA X, Kevin (born Park Jin-woo) is making his leading man debut in the Boys’ Love (BL) K-drama “My Bias Is Showing!” You’d expect him to portray the K-pop idol of everyone’s dreams in this series, right? Nope. Here, Kevin tackled the role of a high school teacher who’s also Si-yeol’s biggest fanboy.
“The Rose: Come Back to Me”
The best documentaries will give you a peek into the subject’s life and present something new. But it will also take what’s already known and add a unique element. “The Rose: Come Back to Me” does exactly this.
“Law and the City” (서초동)
One of the elements I loved the most about this series was watching the friends eat together in every episode. Delicious jiggaes (stews), grilled meat — it was like a legal mukbang!
Every BTS Solo Song Ranked
Together BTS is a pop music force of nature. As solo artists RM, Jin, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V, and Jung Kook have created an equally amazing catalog. My latest for Rolling Stone magazine.
‘KPop Demon Hunters’ is a viral smash that crushes the songs
NPR invited me to talk about “KPOP Demon Hunters” on their “Pop Culture Happy Hour” podcast.
The ‘Squid Game’ finale answers questions, then raises one more
NPR invited me back on their Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast to discuss the third and final season of the Korean series “Squid Game.”
Not Every Korean Actor Can Sing and Dance — It Just Feels Like It Sometimes
By Jae-Ha Kim Substack July 1, 2025 The past few days have been disgustingly hot (and humid). None of that dry heat for us in Chicago. So…it just felt like the right time to share […]