Marie Claire Lists versus PopGeeks Reviews: K-Dramas on Amazon Prime

Marie Claire is a site primarily aimed at a female audience. But of course, all visitors are welcome. MC shares a lot of content about celebrity news, entertainment, etc., and like PopGeeks, has writers who specifically contribute content about Korean drama.

Why wouldn’t they? Everybody knows that Korean entertainment is taking over the globe.

As a Kdrama contributor for PopGeeks (since January 2023), I often contrast and compare my reviews with other sites that publish similar content to make sure I am keeping up!

In previous years, most of the Korean dramas on my watch list were movies and TV series found on Netflix, Viki, and Tubi TV. But for Christmas 2023, I gifted myself with subscriptions to Disney Plus/Hulu, and Amazon Prime. The lineup for Kdramas scheduled for release in 2024 was too tempting to pass up.

All of these streaming platforms are in fierce competition and the gifted subscriptions were needed because the K-dramas on my watch list were not on the other platforms.

OR … they were for Rent on one platform and included with the subscription on another platform.

OR … they were for Rent on several streaming platforms, but one platform offered me a credit for being a loyal subscriber. So obviously I took the credit.

For example, two Korean movies were available to Rent via Amazon Prime. However, for being a loyal subscriber, my account showed credits which allowed me to watch them FREE. After watching, reviews were published via PopGeeks.

• ‘Dr. Cheon and the Lost Talisman’ (2023)
• ‘Secretly, Greatly’ (2013): A Sleeper Spy Wakes Up to a Nightmare

As I said, the competition is fierce and these streaming platforms are doing their best to attract and keep Korean drama addicts like me. Isn’t that awesome?

But I digressed. Back to Marie Claire.

Quinci LeGardye is a Contributing Culture Editor on Marie Claire who covers Korean entertainment and pop culture. She keeps up with the latest K-dramas (as well as discovering underrated gems) and published her list of the best K-dramas you’ll find on Prime Video.

• It gives me great pleasure to know that from her list of “The 12 Best Korean Dramas on Amazon Prime Video”, Popgeeks has already published reviews for five (5) Korean dramas:

♦ (1) ‘Anna’ (2022); 6 episodes

“Anna” (Korean name: Yumi) is about a young girl from a poor family who told one lie to cover up her identity and once she got started she couldn’t seem to stop. She was mistreated and her anger is justifiable. But she didn’t just want to get mad, she wanted to get even. South Korean actress Bae Suzy won the 2023 (2nd) Blue Dragon Series Awards Best Actress Award for her role as “Anna”.

• Suzy’s “Anna” Tops GQ Korea’s List Of The Top 4 OTT K-Dramas Of 2022 | Kpopmap

♦ (2) ‘HeartBeat’ (2023); 16 episodes

“Heartbeat” is a horror, supernatural, rom-com perfect for TaecYeon fans. This South Korean actor plays a vampire who wants to become so that he can feel love, the kind of love one experiences when they have heartbeats.

Vampires don’t have a heart so they don’t have a heartbeat, He is told that if he sleeps in a coffin made of hawthorn for 100 years, when he wakes up he’ll be human. The problem is that someone woke him up just one day before the 100 years was complete. Now he is half-vampire/half-human. What can he do?

• 7 K-Drama Roles By 2PM’s Taecyeon That Are Unforgettable | Soompi

♦ (3) ‘Island’ (2022); 12 episodes

“Island” is adapted from a manhwa (Korean Comic), which was later published as a webtoon. This is a thriller, horror, and supernatural K-drama series. It begins with a tale of ancient Tamra (modern-day Jeju Island) when a young boy was raised to become a demon slayer.

The demon slayer unites with a Catholic priest/exorcist, and a lady who discovers that she has special powers from a past life. The three (3) of them together rid Jeju Island of lust demons. If they don’t stop them on the island, the demons will spread to the rest of the world.

♦ (4) ‘Payback: Money and Power’ (2023); 12 episodes

When will people with money and power ever realize that they are supposed to do good for others? But when they don’t how do you handle them? You fight money and power WITH money and power. A young prosecutor takes on a corruption case, and has the evidence, but does not know how to prove the money trail.

Fortunately for the prosecutor, he has an uncle who knows how to “decode” accounting books and records maintained by gangsters. His uncle can “show him the money”. But it’s not that easy because the people they are trying to convict are very dangerous.

• 8 Korean Dramas like “Payback: Money and Power” | KdropCart

♦ (5) ‘The Killing Vote’ (2023); 12 episodes

In the first episode of “The Killing Vote”, you think a violent crime is taking place. While it is a violent act, when you understand that it is an angry father attacking a man who had violated his child, you pause to think about it. Had the justice system not let that criminal walk the streets again, would the father have taken it upon himself to render justice?

Of course, the father was arrested, tried, and put in prison for the act. Because … individuals can not be allowed to commit murder, in the name of justice. But the father’s act and his subsequent imprisonment sparked outrage. Someone created an app that allowed citizens to VOTE FOR JUSTICE.

If a criminal walks free, someone kidnaps that criminal. Then they are tried again via a video that can be seen by the public. The public can then vote for the DEATH PENALTY. The criminal is publicly executed. Law enforcement, prosecutors, and political officials need to find out who is encouraging citizens to participate in The Killing Vote.

• The Killing Vote Review: Classic tale of vigilante justice gone wrong | India Today

♦♦♦ The other Korean dramas on Marie Claire’s list are on my watch list. Check back later for my PopGeeks reviews.

Comparing K-Drama Lists:

DramaSpot. “10 Best K-Dramas on Amazon Prime Video You Should Watch!” YouTube Video. YouTube, January 16, 2024. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-qFSixU2wE.‌