If you are a trueK-dramaaficionado, then you have probably been hooked on the ongoing tvN dramaMarry My Husband. The storyline has us laughing one minute and crying the next, as the complex and flawed characters navigate time travel, love, and revenge.
The show stars Park Min-young, Na In-woo, Lee Yi-kyung and Song Ha-yoon as the main leads, and it centers around one woman’s fight to reinvent herself after being killed by her husband and her best friend, who are having an affair.
The drama isbased on a webtoonand is written exceptionally well. It showcases the medium’s capacity for crafting emotive stories with unexpected twists. From its charming leads to its lighthearted humor,Marry My Husbandhighlights everything that’s great about the genre.
Obviously, the world isn’t new to the obsession with K-dramas. Their ability to connect with the audience and spread entertainment has made Korean dramas a global phenomenon. So much so that fans find themselves counting down the days until a new episode will premiere. For fans ofMarry My Husbandwho are craving something to watch to ease the wait between episodes, here is a list of 20 K-dramas that focus on similar topics of romance, time travel, revenge, second chance stories, and marriage.
20Marry Him If You Dare (2013)
A drama that got lost in a flurry of other shows at a time when time-travel and romance weren’t mainstream,Marry Him If You Daretakes viewers to the fast-paced world of television broadcasting and introduces you to Na Mi-rae, a strong and opinionated woman who marries news anchor Kim Shin.
Unsatisfied with the marriage, she suddenly is sent back in time to when she was 32, and seeks to prevent herself from making the mistake of marriage and forging a different, more fulfilling path for herself instead.
How It Compares To Marry My Husband
In the same vein asMarry My Husband,Marry Him If You Daretrades time travel for fixing one’s mistakes. Starting off with a promising storyline and thriving on twists and surprises to keep the viewers guessing, the series also offers an exploration ofhealing through a healthier romance.
Despite having a refreshing narrative, the show also makes its messy entanglements impossible to dismiss and leads to a disappointing end. But actors Yoon Eun-hye, Lee Dong-gun and Jung Yong-hwa make it an interesting watch.
Stream Marry Him If You Dare on Kocowa
19Nine: 9 Times Time Travel (2013)
InNine: 9 Times Time Travel, Lee Jin-wook plays the main lead, Park Sun-woo, an anchorman at a TV broadcast station who is infatuated with a brilliant and kind-hearted reporter, Joo Min Young.
However, Sun-woo carries deep-seated trauma of losing his family at a very young age. When he obtains nine incense sticks that allow him to travel 20 years back in time and alter the events that lead to his family’s death, he faces the risk of changing the future of the love of his life.
Extremely popular in South Korea because of its ambitious storyline and flawless execution,Nine: 9 Times Time Traveldraws parallels withMarry My Husbandby placing the protagonist in a situation where they discover that some decisions, once made, cannot be rewritten without consequences. Both dramas affirm that love is the only force strong enough to heal people. But the former also has a lot of fluffy romance, plot twists, and heartbreaking moments.
Stream Nine: 9 Times Time Travel on The Roku Channel
18Go Back Couple (2017)
Being married for a very long time comes with its complications. Love fades, resentment can worm its way into the heart, and all you want is to go back to where it all started.Go Back Couplerevolves around Choi Ban Do and Ma Jin Joo, who have been married for over a decade and are constantly arguing in their thirties.
When they suddenly wake up one day as their twenty-year-old selves, they see a chance to redo their relationship and change their flawed dynamic by experiencing the past differently this time.
Related:The 20 Best Time Travel K-Dramas
LikeMarry My Husband,Go Back Couplealso features a witty dynamic between the charming leads. Actors Jang Na-ra and Son Hu-jon inject deep emotion and hilarity into their rocky romance.
As an added bonus, it also starsMarry My Husband’sLee Yi-kyung in the supporting role. Overall, the drama serves up all the feel-good themes about rediscovery and romance thatMarry My Husbandis building up towards.
Stream Go Back Couple on Kocowa
17My Perfect Stranger (2023)
Although a little heavier in terms of emotion,My Perfect Strangeris just what its title promises. We’re first introduced to Yoon Hae Joon, a young and accomplished TV anchor who is quite passionate about his career.
Then there’s Baek Yoon Young, a beautiful woman with a complicated home life who is stuck working at a publishing company. Strangers to one another, they find out that their lives are interconnected when they both travel back to the year 1987 for different reasons.
While most time travel Korean dramas center on one character accidentally traveling into the past,My Perfect Stranger, likeMarry My Husband, takes two leads back in time and entwines their fates in the most beautiful ways.
It navigates layered narratives and focuses more on mystery-solving and trauma-healing than romance. But the sophisticated chemistry between Kim Dong-wook and Jin Ki-joo is palpable.
Stream My Perfect Stranger on Rakuten Viki
16The Glory (2022)
When Moon Dong-eun was younger, she was bullied to the point of having to drop out of school; her dreams of becoming an architect brutally crushed. Now, having had years to plan the perfect revenge, she rises from the ashes and gets herself hired as an elementary school teacher. Inserting herself into the life of Park Yeon-jin and her double-faced minions, she also meets Joo Yeo-jeong, who becomes her sole supporter.
Despite being both extremely disturbing and clever,The Gloryis the perfect watch for fans ofMarry My Husbandbecause in both the dramas, the female lead has suffered at the hands of detestable characters.
They’re both motivated by personal vendettas and the great pursuit of justice. It also helps thatThe Gloryhas a great storyline, outstanding production design, and a stellar cast that includes Song Hye-kyo, Lee Do-hyun, Jung Ji So and Shin Ye Eun.
Stream The Glory on Netflix
15The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract (2023)
The Story of Park’s Marriage Contractis a well-balanced drama that follows Park Yeon Woo, a newly married woman from the 19th century who finds herself devastated when her husband reveals the truth about his heart disease and dies shortly after their marriage.
After kidnappers find her and throw her in a well, Park Yeon Woo wakes up in the 21st century, where Kang Tae Ha, a man who bears a striking resemblance to her late husband, saves her life.
Starring Lee Se-young and Bae In-hyuk as twoabsolutely charming leads, this 10-episode Korean drama has its loopholes, but that does not diminish the fact that it is highly bingeable. Watching how love eventually sprouts between two cynical souls acting merely out of necessity at first, with each having their own motives, has great appeal to it. Moreover, the series has enough time travel elements and romance to keep fans ofMarry My Husbandentertained.
Stream The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract on Rakuten Viki
14Queen and I (2012)
Set against thebackdrop of the glorious Joseon era,Queen and Ifollows Kim Boong Do, the noble-born scholar who became the only supporter of Queen In Hyun after she was overthrown and assigned a lower rank.
Determined to reinstate her, he uses a talisman and accidentally time-travels to present-day Seoul, where he meets Choi Hee Jin, an up-and-coming actress who is playing the role of Queen In Hyun in a TV drama.
A celebration of destiny,Queen and Iis a poignant and heartwarming drama with a compelling narrative. MatchingMarry My Husbandin its time travel and romance angle, the show charts away from the norm by delivering a fish-out-of-water scenario packed with humor, tenderness, social commentary, and a bunch of tears as the characters come to terms with changing times. Ji Hyun-woo and Yoo In-na powerfully portray the two star-crossed lovers who end up together despite the odds.
Stream Queen and I on Prime Video
13Splash Splash Love (2015)
The plot ofSplash Splash Lovecenters around Dan Bi, a relatable high school student who hates math and is unenthusiastic about taking the KSAT for college. When a freak rain shower catches her on the day of the exam, she finds herself transported to the Joseon era, a time when kingdom politics and betrayals were rising.
She meets King Lee Do, who wishes to learn mathematics. Dan Bi realizes that her 21st-century knowledge of the subject is relatively greater than many people of the time, and agrees to teach him the basics.
Related:20 Korean Dramas You’ll Be Thinking About Long After They End
More a fantasy and minimal in drama because of its 2-episode stint,Splash Splash Loveis an interesting one to watch. Kim Seul Gi takes up the lead role with such poise and innocence, and complimenting her in charm and nuance is Yoon Doo-joon. Despite being a fantasy and having a runtime as long as a movie, its resemblance toMarry My Husbandcomes from the delightful will-they-won’t-they chemistry.
Stream Splash Splash Love on Kocowa
1218 Again (2020)
Based onthe 2009 film17 Againby Jason Filardi, this adorable Korean drama follows Jung Da Jung and Hong Dae Young, a couple that has been married for over 20 years and have raised their twins together.
However, their married life isn’t without difficulties, and when Dae Young loses his job, Da Jung reaches her breaking point and files for divorce. The next morning, Dae Young magically wakes up in the body of an 18-year-old. He enrolls into high school and gains a brand-new perspective on life.
Much likeMarry My Husband,18 Againplays with the idea of redefining yourself and learning to grow into a wiser and bolder version of yourself. For all its laughs and emotional resonance, the drama utilizes its time travel premise extremely well. The actors Kim Ha-neul, Yoon Sang-hyun, and Lee Do-hyun are phenomenal in their roles, coupling each of their characters with equal parts charm and passion.
11Tomorrow, With You (2017)
Unlike other time travel dramas on the list,Tomorrow, With Youfeatures a protagonist who can jump between the future and past whenever he wants, simply by taking the subway.
Despite being a well-established CEO of a real estate company, when Yoo So Joon foresees that his future self is going to be depressed, lonely, and pathetic, he is determined to change his fate. To save his doomed reality, he marries Song Ma Rin, a kind-hearted and cheerful photographer.
Tomorrow, With Youis not only the perfect escape for fans ofMarry My Husband,but also a delight for those who loved Shin Min Ah inHometown Cha-Cha-Cha. The series plays with the idea of alternate realities and falling in love even when it seems impossible.
Min Ah’s on-screen chemistry with Lee Je-hoon lights up the screen and adds weight to the richly developed narrative,which is filled with plot twists, suspense, and a good deal of emotion.
