Wishing you all a very happy new year! 2026 has arrived and the first month brings a plethora of Korean dramas for us to enjoy. I’m looking forward to so many of them for different reasons. It’s time to dive into the shows that are premiering in January:

Can This Love Be Translated?

Premiere Date: January 16

Network: Netflix

Stars: Kim Seon Ho (Hometown Cha Cha Cha), Go Yoon Jung (Moving), Choi Woo Sung (Chief Detective 1958), Lee Yi Dam (The Queen Who Crowns), Fukushi Sota (Kamen Rider Fourze)

Slot: All episodes released together.

Number Of Episodes: 12

Genre: Comedy, Romance

Synopsis: A love story between a top actress and her multilingual interpreter that blossoms when they travel the world filming a TV show.

Thoughts: I’m super excited for this one! It marks Kim Seon Ho’s return to a romance drama, it is written by the Hong Sisters (Delightful Girl Choon Hyang, You’re Beautiful) who won me over again after many disappointing dramas with Alchemy Of Souls, their last drama; and it stars Go Yoon Jung who I always love in her roles.

No Tail To Tell

Premiere Date: January 16

Network: SBS, Netflix

Stars: Lomon (All of Us Are Dead), Kim Hye Yoon (Lovely Runner)

Slot: Friday & Saturday

Number Of Episodes: 12

Genre: Comedy, Romance, Fantasy

Synopsis: Imbued with the power to grant wishes, a cynical nine-tailed fox’s life takes a turn when she encounters a soccer player — altering both of their fates.

Thoughts: This will be Kim Hye Yoon’s first drama since 2024’s megahit Lovely Runner. I’m excited for her and the plot sounds fun too.

Undercover Miss Hong

Premiere Date: January 17

Network: tvN, Netflix

Stars: Park Shin Hye (The Judge from Hell), Go Kyung Pyo (Frankly Speaking), Ha Yoon Kyung (See You in My 19th Life), Cho Han Gyeol (The Haunted Palace)

Slot: Saturday & Sunday

Number Of Episodes: 16

Genre: Comedy, Period, Romance

Synopsis: A tenacious investigator goes undercover at a securities firm to expose corruption, but her mission is complicated by its new CEO — her ex. The show is set in the late 90s.

Thoughts: Another drama set in the 90s after Typhoon Family. This marks Park Shin Hye and Go Kyung Pyo’s reunion as they worked together in 2013’s Flower Boy Next Door. I’m low-key looking forward to this.

Positively Yours

Premiere Date: January 17

Network: Channel A

Stars: Choi Jin Hyuk (Miss Night and Day), Oh Yeon Seo (The Player 2: Master of Swindlers), Kim Da Som (Serendipity’s Embrace), Hong Jong Hyun (What Comes After Love)

Slot: Saturday & Sunday

Number Of Episodes: 12

Genre: Comedy, Romance

Synopsis: It follows the unexpected consequences of a one-night stand between a man and a woman who have both sworn off marriage.

Thoughts: The aforementioned consequence sounds like pregnancy. This trope has been done countless times before but still, this drama looks spirited and fun.

Recipe For Love

Premiere Date: January 31

Network: KBS

Stars: Jin Se Yeon (Bad Memory Eraser), Park Ki Woong (Pandora: Beneath the Paradise), Kim Seung Soo (Snowdrop), Yoo Ho Jeong (Twenty-Five Twenty-One), Kim Hyung Mook (The King: Eternal Monarch), So Yi Hyun (Suits)

Slot: Saturday & Sunday

Number Of Episodes: 50

Genre: Romance, Comedy, Family

Synopsis: A love story between two people who are from two families that have been in conflict with each other for past 30 years.

Thoughts: The ‘Romeo and Juliet’ trope but with a happy ending sums up this long weekend drama. Looks like your typical weekend drama with romance and family combining to provide an easy watch. This also has a reunion for Jin Se Yeon and Park Ki Woong who starred together in 2012’s highly acclaimed drama Bridal Mask (can’t believe that was almost 14 years ago!!!).

Spring Fever

Premiere Date: January 5

Network: tvN

Stars: Ahn Bo Hyun (Flex X Cop), Lee Joo Bin (Queen Of Tears), Cha Seo Won (The Second Husband)

Slot: Monday & Tuesday

Number Of Episodes: 12

Genre: Comedy, Romance

Synopsis: A love story between an emotionally cold high school teacher and a passionate man who melts her frozen heart.

Thoughts: The show seems to have reversed the ‘opposites attract’ trope that usually has cold hero and warm hearted, chirpy heroine. Fingers crossed that this one delivers a sweet, romantic ride.

To My Beloved Thief

Premiere Date: January 3

Network: KBS

Stars: Nam Ji Hyun (Good Partner), Moon Sang Min (Under the Queen’s Umbrella)

Slot: Saturday & Sunday

Number Of Episodes: 16

Genre: Comedy, Romance, Fantasy, Historical

Synopsis: A woman who unexpectedly becomes a bandit and the royal prince of Joseon switch souls while he is pursuing her. When their souls are suddenly switched, the two end up saving each other and ultimately protecting the people.

Thoughts: Sageuks with soul swapping have been done quite a few times before. I do like the setup of prince and bandit heroine, that might result in interesting hijinks. I also like Nam Ji Hyun — all this adds to my enthusiasm for this Kdrama.

The Judge Returns

Premiere Date: January 2

Network: MBC

Stars: Ji Sung (Connection), Park Hee Soon (Confidence Queen), Won Jin Ah (Hellbound), Baek Jin Hee (The Real Has Come!)

Slot: Friday & Saturday

Number Of Episodes: 14

Genre: Law, Action, Fantasy

Synopsis: A corrupt judge unexpectedly travels back 10 years into the past. Given a second chance, he decides to seek justice by punishing great evils.

Thoughts: Ji Sung seems like a perfect choice for this headlining role. The plot seems intriguing.