10 family-centered dramas to watch in Lunar New Year
Lunar New Year traditions often revolve around reunion dinners, red envelopes, and rituals meant to invite prosperity.
It is also a time when conversations naturally circle back to family, whether through stories from older generations or playful debates among cousins.
Lunar New Year is known as “Seollal” in South Korea.
Rakuten Viki has curated a watchlist of family-centered dramas that offer layered portrayals of relationships shaped by loyalty, pressure, growth, and change.
Here are the 10 binge-worthy picks in Viki that revolve around family relationships:
1. Reply 1988
Often regarded as a benchmark in slice-of-life storytelling, this series follows five childhood friends and their parents in a tight-knit 1980s Seoul neighborhood. Academic competition, first love, and career dreams unfold alongside scenes of mothers sharing side dishes and fathers quietly worrying about finances. It captures sibling dynamics, generational expectations, and the comfort of growing up surrounded by people who know your history.
2. Go Ahead
This emotional yet balanced drama centers on a widowed father who raises two boys from troubled homes alongside his daughter. The unconventional household they build becomes a portrait of a chosen family, exploring how shared childhood experiences can define adulthood. As the characters reconnect years later, the series revisits unresolved tensions and enduring loyalty.
3. Please Be My Family
A practical marriage between two single parents begins as a solution for their children’s needs. Over time, daily routines and shared responsibilities gradually transform their relationship. The drama balances light romantic moments with realistic portrayals of parenting, compromise, and the work involved in building stability.
4. Radiant
What begins as a fantasy twist evolves into a reflective look at time, aging, and gratitude. As a young woman suddenly finds herself in the body of a 70 year old, the story shifts toward appreciating relationships and reconsidering personal ambition. It is thoughtful without being heavy, and emotionally resonant without melodrama.
5. My Mister
A restrained and deeply affecting drama about a middle-aged engineer burdened by family obligations and a young woman navigating financial strain. Their quiet connection highlights empathy, responsibility, and resilience. The storytelling is subtle but powerful, offering an honest portrayal of adult pressures.
6. Hello, My Twenties!
Five university students share a house while balancing studies, part-time jobs, and complicated relationships. Their friendship becomes a support system that functions like family. The series captures the messiness of early adulthood with humor and realism.
7. Miracle That We Met
A supernatural body-swap premise sets the stage for a story about accountability within marriage and household life. As one man inhabits another’s body, he is forced to confront strained relationships and reassess his priorities. The drama blends fantasy with grounded domestic conflict.
8. A Hundred Memories
Set in 1980s South Korea, this series follows two bus conductors navigating ambition, romance, and family expectations. It combines period detail with personal growth, examining how friendships are tested when love and economic pressure enter the picture.
9. Last Summer
A coming-of-age story shaped by separated siblings, childhood bonds, and unspoken feelings. As the characters grow older, their relationships shift under the weight of time and unresolved emotion.
10. SKY Castle
Sharp, dramatic, and socially observant, this series focuses on elite households consumed by academic ambition. It exposes the intense parental pressure placed on children and the emotional toll of relentless competition.
Runners-up
“Our Golden Days” delves into long-standing friendships disrupted by resurfacing emotions. "Love Me" centers on healing within a guarded household. “I Don't Want To Be Brothers With You” offers a lighter exploration of reluctant sibling dynamics, while “Ms. Incognito” blends suspense with themes of reinvention and belonging.
As Lunar New Year traditions place emphasis on relationships, reconciliation, and shared time, these dramas reflect the many dimensions of family life. From warmth and humor to tension and accountability, each title offers a distinct lens on the connections that shape everyday experience.
