LIST: Mind-blowing mystery-thriller Korean dramas with details

Updated (May 23)

Watching movies and dramas are what we usually do in our free time as a form of entertainment. It is quite our nature to draw some fiction in our life to have some break from reality.

And speaking of, have you already asked yourself what to watch next after finishing another drama? But before you answer that, you should know your genre preferences first in order to satisfy your drama pleasure.

Are you fond of watching romance-comedy dramas? Sci-fi dramas? Melodramas? Or are you into mystery-thriller dramas that gets excited in solving crimes, mind-blowing twists, and gruesome scenes?

Well, if you are looking for the latter, then you are in the right path as I made this list for you with the help of our ever-active members in Annyeong Oppa Group!

The listing below goes from the newest to the oldest Korean dramas. Details, posters, and trailers are also included for better reference:

Born Again (2020)

Status: Ongoing

Born Again starring Jang Ki Yong, Jin Se Yun, and Lee Soo Hyuk tells the story of 2 men and a woman who met in 1980’s and their path have crossed again in the present time (32 years after their deaths).

They embark on a new journey as a prosecutor, archaeology instructor, and a medical student who are fighting their own fate.

Watch the trailer below:

Rugal (2020)

Episodes: 16

Rugal is based on a webtoon with the same name that tells the story of an elite detective who loses everything he holds dearly; his wife and both of his eyes, when he attempts to bring down a nationwide criminal organization named Argos.

With his plan to take down Argos, he become a member of Rugal, an organization build by NIS with special powers created through biotechnology.

And through that biotech, he receives two artificial eyeballs with a special ability.

Watch the trailer below:

Memorist (2020)

Episodes: 16

Memorist starring Yoo Seung Ho and Lee Se Young is based on the webtoon with the same title written by Jae Hoo.

It tells a story of an elite criminal profiler and a telepathic detective who can read minds by simply touching his subjects. They both came across with a mysterious serial killings and were team up to solve the said case.

Watch the trailer below:

365: Repeat the Year (2020)

Episodes: 24 (35 mins each)

365: Repeat the Year starring Lee Joon Hyuk, Nam Ji Hyun, and Kim Ji Soo is based on the 2004 novel Repeat by Japanese writer Kurumi Inui.

The drama revolves around ten individuals who get an opportunity to travel back one year into the past. They are able to reset their lives according to their will and in hopes to have a better future for themselves.

However, mysterious happenings take place as they are start dying one by one. It is now an intense survival game where they fight against their destiny.

Watch the trailer below:

Nobody Knows (2020)

Episodes: 16

Nobody Knows starring Kim Seo Hyung, Ryu Deok Hwan, and Park Hoon tells the story of a detective who is still traumatized because of the murder happened to her childhood friend 19 years ago.

The killing methods of the serial killer has been dubbed as stigmata serial killings and when the serial killer case begins again after 19 years, the detective vows to catch the culprit no matter what happened.

Watch the trailer below:

Tell Me What You Saw (2020)

Episodes: 16

Tell Me What You Saw starring Jang Hyuk, Choi Soo Young and Jin Seo Yun is about a bad-tempered genius criminal profiler and a rookie detective with photographic memory that team up to solve series of serial murders which include the profiler’s fiancee.

Watch the trailer below:

Extracurricular (2020)

Episodes: 10

Extracurricular starring Kim Dong Hee, Park Joo Hyun, and Jung Da Bin is a Netflix drama series that revolves around a role-model high school student who commits serious crime just to pay his university tuition. Unfortunately, his classmates find out his doings and now involved in his crimes.

Watch the trailer below:

The Game: Towards Zero (2020)

Episodes: 32 (35 mins each)

The Game: Towards Zero starring Ok Taecyeon, Lee Yeon Hee, and Lim Ju Hwan tells the story of a man who have a prophet like ability. When he looks into someone’s eyes, he sees the exact moment of their death, but except for the woman detective who he falls in love with.

Moreover, he works with that detective in the investigation of the disappearance of a girl that might involve the notorious Midnight Killer.

Wondering why he is unable to see her death, he come up with an answer that maybe because he is responsible for it.

Watch the trailer below:

Class of Lies (2019)

Episodes: 16

Class of Lies starring starring Yoon Kyun Sang, Keum Sae Rok and Choi Yu Hwa is about a lawyer with high winning rate who deals with the murder case in an elite high school.

He is assigned to defend the accused and in order to win the case, he temporarily work as a teacher in the said school. And then he tries to reveal the secrets of the students and uncover the truth by infiltrating the school.

Watch the trailer below:

Watcher (2019)

Episodes: 16

Watcher starring Han Suk Kyu, Kim Hyun Joo and Seo Kang Joon revolves around three individuals who had an unfortunate incident 15 years ago that completely changes their lives.

Together, they form a police internal investigation team consists of detective, lawyer, and police officer that aims to uncover the mysteries that had happened in the past.

Watch the trailer below:

The Lies Within (2019)

Episodes: 16

The Lies Within also known as Everyone’s Lie starring Lee Min Ki and Lee Yoo Young tells the story of a woman who joins the National Assembly and teams up with a detective to unveils the truth behind her father’s death and missing husband.

Watch the trailer below:

Strangers From Hell (2019)

Episodes: 10

Strangers From Hell also known as Hell is other People and Others are Hell is based on the popular horror-thriller webtoon of the same name written by Kim Yong Ki.

The drama tells the story of a guy in his 20s who arrives in Seoul from the countryside and stays in the small apartment that shares the kitchen and bathroom with the other residents. He then faces strange happenings in that place.

Watch the trailer below:

Doctor Prisoner (2019)

Episodes: 32

Doctor Prisoner is a drama about a skilled doctor in a university hospital who gets involved and wrongfully accused of a medical malpractice incident that leads him to quit his job.

Moreover, he starts working as a doctor in a prison’s medical facility with the goal of acquiring personal connections with all the high-profile inmates so he can take revenge against the hospital that kicked him out.

Watch the trailer below:

Psychopath Diary (2019)

Episodes: 16

Psychopath Diary starring Yoon Si-Yoon, Jung In-Sun , and Park Sung-Hoon revolves around a guy who lost his memories in an accident while he is fleeing in the murder scene he witnesses.

He accidentally picks up a diary with a detailed record of the murder’s crime that belongs to the psychopath serial killer. And because of the diary in his possession, he is mistakenly accused as the serial killer.

Watch the trailer below:

He is Psychometric (2019)

Episodes: 16

He is Psychometric starring Jin Young and Shin Ye Eun is a drama about a man who has a special psychometric ability wherein he can read the person’s memory by simply touching their skins.

He teams up with a woman who is hiding a deep secrets, to solve the mystery about the fire incident happened in the past and that changed both of their lives.

Watch the trailer below:

Vagabond (2019)

Episodes: 16

Vagabond starring Lee Seung Gi and Bae Suzy tells the story of a stunt man who dreams of becoming a world famous actor. But everything’s changed when his nephew’s flight to Morocco crashes.

On the other hand, an NIS agent who is currently working undercover at the Korean embassy in Morocco teams up with him and ends up discovering a national corruption scandal in the process.

Watch the trailer below:

Children of Nobody (2018)

Episodes: 32

Children of Nobody starring Kim Sun Ah and Lee Yi Kyung centers the story of a child counselor whose life changes because of an accident and she is very intent to solve a mystery. She then meets a detective who firmly believes criminals should be punished by the law.

Watch the trailer below:

Less than Evil (2018)

Episodes: 32

Less than Evil also known as Bad Detective starring Shin Ha Kyun and Lee Seol is a drama remake of the BCC TV series Luther.

It tells the story of a lonely skilled detective who focuses solely on solving cases. He crosses path with a female psychopath who he cannot be arrested due to lack of evidence.

It is a psychological battle between a brilliant psychopathic murderer and a detective.

Watch the trailer below:

Sketch (2018)

Episodes: 16

Sketch starring Rain, Lee Sun Bin, and Lee Dong Gun revolves around a two detective who works together to capture the murderer of the mysterious incident.

The woman detective has a special ability wherein she can see three days into the future and immediately sketches what she sees.

Watch the trailer below:

Life on Mars (2018)

Episodes: 16

Life on Mars starring Jung Kyoung Ho, Park Sung Woong, and Ko Ah Sung is a South Korean drama based on UK television series with the same name.

It revolves around a man who leads a crime investigation team who went back to 1988 after an accident while he is investigating a serial murder case.

In the year 1988, he is a detective who appointed to work at a police station. And in order to be back in the present time, he tries to unravel the serial murder case.

Watch the trailer below:

Partners for Justice (2018)

Episodes: 32

Partners for Justice starring Jung Jae Young and Jung Yoo Mi is a drama about a forensic doctor and rookie prosecutor who work together to solve a case.

It has season 2 that was completed in 2019.

Watch the trailer below:

Criminal Minds (2017)

Episodes: 20

Criminal Minds is based on the long-running American series Criminal Minds that follows the story of a group of highly-trained profilers that investigate cases from the perspective of the criminals to deliberately solve the crimes.

Watch the trailer below:

Tunnel (2017)

Episodes: 16

Tunnel starring Choi Jin Hyuk, Yoon Hyun Min, and Lee Yoo Young tells the story of a detective who desperately tries to catch a serial killer and goes to a tunnel where it’s 30 years into the future.

He teams up with a detective and a professor of criminal psychology in that time period to catch the culprit who still resumes the killings that began 30 years ago.

Watch the trailer below:

Voice (2017)

Episodes: 16

Voice starring Jang Hyuk and Lee Ha Na revolves around a popular detective whose wife was murdered by a serial killer and a professional voice profiler whose father was also killed.

They team up together to catch the serial killer who is responsible for the deaths of their family member.

Moreover, due to the popularity of this drama, season 2 was produced in 2018 and followed by the season 3 in 2019.

Watch the trailer below:

Save Me (2017)

Episodes: 16

Save Me follows the story of four young men who come to rescue their former classmate whose family has been involved with a religious cult. The woman says, “Save me”.

This drama has season 2 that is based in 2013 animation movie The Fake.

Watch the trailer below:

Innocent Defendant (2017)

Episodes: 18

Innocent Defendant centers the story of a prosecutor at Seoul Central District Prosecutor’s Office who temporarily lost his memories and falsely accused of a crime in which he is sentenced to death.

In order to prove his innocence, he struggles to find the truth behind his condition.

Watch the trailer below:

Doubtful Victory (2017)

Episodes: 40

Doubtful Victory also known as Oh, The Mysterious starring Yoon Gyun Sang and Jung Hye Sung revolves around a man who was framed for murder and received death penalty but he breaks out of the prison and takes the identity of a detective. He then joins a team of detectives in solving cases.

Watch the trailer below:

Duel (2017)

Episodes: 16

Duel starring Jung Jae Young is a drama about a police detective whose daughter got kidnapped by a mysterious human clone. He meets a human clone that is looks exactly like the kidnapper and got involved in a shocking case. It is a battle between human clones.

Watch the trailer below:

Circle (2017)

Episodes: 12

Circle starring Yeo Jin Goo and Gong Seung Yeon sets the story in the present time (2017) and in the year 2037.

In the present time, a student investigates mysterious happenings while aliens invade the planet. The alien believes that the human’s emotion should be controlled.

Meanwhile in 2037, a detective investigates a murder in the alien-controlled Smart Earth.

Watch the trailer below:

Stranger (2017)

Episodes: 16

Stranger follows the story of a prosecutor who lost the ability to feel empathy after his brain surgery when he was a kid.

He teams up with a Police Lieutenant to uncover the real identity of the serial killer. While in the process of solving the case, he fights the corruption inside the police department who undermines investigations.

Stranger has season 2 and will be released sometime in 2020

Watch the trailer below:

Signal (2016)

Episodes: 16

Signal starring Kim Hye Soo, Jo Jin Woong, and Lee Je Hoon tells the story of a cold-case profiler in 2015 and a detective in 1989 who teams up together to solve a series related murders over the three decades.

They used a special walkie-talkie to communicate each other and to catch the serial killer.

Watch the trailer below:

Squad 38 (2016)

Episodes: 16

Squad 38 starring Ma Dong Seok, Seo In Guk, and Choi Sooyoung tells the story of a task force chief teaming up with a con artist who uses skills in fraud to catch tax invaders.

Watch the trailer below:

Neighborhood Hero (2016)

Episodes: 16

Neighborhood Hero also known as Local Hero is a story about an ex-secret agent who is well-trained human weapon portrayed by Park Si Hoo.

After he left his job, he runs a bar named Neighborhood and gets close to the regular customers. Moreover, he meets a young man who wants to become a police officer. He then trains that man to be a secret agent and they team up to fight against evils.

Watch the trailer below:

Hello, Monster (2015)

Episodes: 16

Hello, Monster starring Seo In Guk and Jang Na Ra revolves around an excellent criminal profiler who returns to South Korea after working in New York City. He meets an elite detective who he works together with on solving cases.

Watch the trailer below:

My Beautiful Bride (2015)

Episodes: 16

My Beautiful Bride starring Kim Moo Yul and Ko Sung Hee follows the story of a man whose fiancee suddenly disappears. He desperately tries to find her and finds himself in a deep crime where no one can be trusted.

Watch the trailer below:

Gap Dong (2014)

Episodes: 20

Gap Dong is based on a true mystery story about a detective whose father was falsely accused in the Gap Dong serial murder case that results to his father killing his own life. He then sets out to catch the real killer Gap Dong.

Watch the trailer below:

God’s Quiz (2010)

Episodes: 10

God’s Quiz also known as Quiz from God starring Ryu Deok Hwan and Yoon Joo Hee revolves around the top forensic medical examiner and skilled detective.

The examiner leads a medical crime investigation team to probe the strange events and mysterious deaths occur in a hospital.

God’s Quiz has 5 seasons and a total number of 62 episodes. God’s Quiz 2 was aired in 2011, God’s Quiz 3 in 2012, God’s Quiz 4 broadcasted in 2014, and God’s Quiz: Reboot in 2019.

Watch the trailer below:

Let us now start to binge-watch the above mentioned mystery-thriller dramas!

Prepare yourself mentally and emotionally because we are going to help the characters in finding who the real culprit is!

Note: I will update this article from time to time, if there are dramas that I forgot to include please comment it below. Thank you!