Best time travel K-dramas to watch if you like Lovely Runner
tvNLovely Runner has everyone obsessed with its time travel storyline. So, with that in mind, here are other time travel K-dramas that fit the bill.
The tvN K-drama has everything you need to make every episode worthwhile. Im Sol goes back in time to save her favorite K-Pop idol who died by suicide. Unknown to her, going back in time leads her to learn he was a part of her life all along, but she had no idea.
Armed with his watch and three chances to change his fate, she does everything possible to save him. Lovely Runner adds in the blush-worthy romance of Sun-jae having had feelings for her and her having been his first love.
Time travel adds another riveting level of mystery to the K-drama. This kind of storyline isn’t new to the genre, and there are plenty of other TV shows and movies to pick from.
A Time Called You
What’s it about: Jun-hee is still grieving the loss of her long-time boyfriend Yeon-jun. In a miraculous turn of events, she begins to see a man who looks exactly like him. She’s soon sent a mysterious tape recorder that transports her back to the year 1998. But the man she meets who looks like Yeon-jun is named Si-heon. Jun-hee must make sense of what’s happening and how it’s connected to Yeon-jun.
What do we think: A Time Called You’s timeline is complex, to say the least. So much so we had to take notes to make sense of the jaw-dropping storyline that led to a revelation no one would see coming. The K-drama is a perfect watch tied with a love story that transcends time.
Where to stream: Netflix
Marry My Husband
What’s it about: Kang Ji-won is terminally ill with cancer in 2023. She has a dead-beat husband and while undergoing treatment, Ji-won learns he’s been cheating on her with her best friend. An altercation leads them to accidentally kill her. Instead of being dead, Ji-won wakes up in 2013 well before the events of her death. Armed with her future outcome, she plans to change her fate.
What do we think: Marry My Husband is spicier and a bit darker than Lovely Runner. But it hits all the markers of a time travel K-drama. Ji-won is determined to finally live her life and let the people around her pay for what they’ve done. It’s a juicy revenge story. Along the way, Ji-won realizes someone has cared for her all along.
Where to stream: Viki and Prime Video
Twinkling Watermelon
What’s it about: Eun-gyeol has a passion for music. By day he’s a hard-working student and by night he’s a hard-core rocker. But when he stumbles into a music store, he’s transported back to the year 1995. It just so happens he meets his father but as a teenager. Eun-gyeol soon realizes he has to make sure everything goes according to plan, including the romances, so that he’s born in the future.
What do we think: Twinkling Watermelon was praised for its upbeat storyline combined with the emotions of going through someone’s teen years. A coming-of-age story if you will. Add in blossoming romance between one of the best K-drama couples, and the drama of not messing up the future, and you have a hit.
Where to stream: Viki
18 Again
What’s it about: Jung Da-jung and Hong Dae-young had fraternal twins at a young age. Over time, their marriage began to crumble with Da-jung filing for divorce. Things get worse when Dae-young loses his job and is relocated. He soon wishes he could go back to his glory years in high school. As fate would have it, he wakes up as his 18-year-old self in the present time. Through this journey, he realizes the reality of his family’s turmoil and love.
What do we think: 18 Again sounds familiar because it’s based on the 1998 movie and Zac Efron’s 17 Again. It’s a worthwhile K-drama that tackles comedy, witty antics, and the heartfelt story of not realizing what you have until it’s too late.
Where to stream: Viki
Mr. Queen
What’s it about: Hold onto your hats for this one. Jang Bong-hwan is a chef at the Blue House and a known womanizer. He pisses off a Chinese delegate with his dinner and has a near-death experience jumping into the pool trying to escape security. Bong-hwan wakes up as So-yong, the Queen Cheorin during the Joseon dynasty.
Not only must he try to pass as a woman, but she’s married to the King. She falls into rising political turmoil within the kingdom.
What do we think: Mr. Queen is a fun rollercoaster that breaks social norms. The lead character is actually a male and must try his hardest to not cause suspicion. All the while, he begins to add his own flare to the palace while trying to get back home. There’s also the bonus of the historical K-drama having the needed tension of foes after the throne.
Where to stream: Viki and Netflix
Tomorrow With You
What’s it about: Yoo So-joon is the CEO of a real estate company with a unique secret. He’s able to time travel through the subway. Along the way, he meets Song Ma-rin who becomes his wife. But he soon learns that his future self will die so he uses his abilities to make sure to marry Ma-rin to change the outcome.
What do we think: Tomorrow With You is a well-loved K-drama for its flourishing romance between the main characters. There’s some added intrigue with the time travel aspect as So-joon learns to love his wife wholeheartedly.
My Perfect Stranger
What’s it about: Yoon Hae-joon is the youngest anchor at a broadcasting station and is straightforward as a journalist. Meanwhile, Baek Yoon-young has always dreamed of becoming a writer but works for a publishing company to make money. Both find themselves traveling to 1987. Hae-joon wants the answers to a murder case, while Yoon-young tries to stop her parents’ marriage. The two realize their journeys are connected.
What do we think: My Perfect Stranger has a lot of elements that Lovely Runner fans will enjoy. Not only is there a romantic aspect, but the characters try to change the future as best they can. The murder mystery case also adds a dark level of intrigue.
Where to stream: Viki
Go Back Couple
What’s it about: Choi Ban-do and Ma Jin-joo are married with a son. But they are exhausted with Ban-do trying to manage his stressful work life, and Jin-joo feeling abandoned by her husband as a housewife. Reaching a breaking point, they both wake up back in college. Knowing their fate, they try to decide if they should move on from each other.
What do we think: Go Back Couple is an easy watch that tackles many well-known tropes and cliches, but you’ll be too enamored by the cast’s chemistry to care.
Where to stream: Viki
Lovely Runner is currently streaming on Viki. While you’re here, check out some of Netflix’s upcoming 2024 K-dramas. Or, dive into the best K-drama streaming this month, and learn about The Atypical Family.
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