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When it comes to carrying the burden of humor, K-Dramas are traveling light. Romantic leads might trade silly banter, and even a serial killer could fall victim to an Ajumma—but these moments vanish as quickly as they appear. In fact, finding comedy K-Dramas free of genre dilution is harder than spotting deodorant in Seoul.
Sure, we have gems like “Welcome to Waikiki” or “Seoul Busters,” but comedy in K-Dramas remains a banchan (side dish) on the script’s platter. As we dive into the quirks of their humor, the ghost of sitcoms, and attempts at satire, let’s uncover why comedy still struggles to take center stage in Korean entertainment.
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The Elephant in the Room: Lack of Comedy K-Dramas
First of all, let’s get this straight: K-Dramas can do comedy. “Pegasus Market” seamlessly adapted the quirks of a webtoon; “Chicken Nugget” straight-faced slapstick was simply out of their world, while “Mr. Queen” blended classic sageuk (historical drama) with gender-bending chaos. Despite the success, these shows are outliers in a sea of romance, crime, and revenge sagas.
Han Cinema
The reason is straightforward: comedy is a risky business. Unlike love, hate, and greed—which are universal languages—humor is culturally coded. What’s hilarious in Seoul might not tickle viewers in Genova. Therefore, when networks are already juggling tight budgets and fierce streaming competition, they prefer to make safer bets. Why gamble on a gag-heavy script when you can layer it with an unlikely love story?
Even comedies like “Sound of Your Heart” or “Modern Farmer” lean on drama to cushion their punchlines. They’re a sort of hybrid, including part sitcom and part drama. As one now-deleted Reddit account noted, “K-Dramas include so many funny sequences that some of them can easily be edited into sitcoms such as “Guardian: The Lonely and Great God," "True Beauty,” and more.”
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