Promotional Art for “Sweet Home” Courtesy of Netflix
Story by Colby Turner | Contributing Writer
So, you finished the chart-topping and already critically acclaimed South Korean drama “Squid Game” just weeks after release and now you don’t know what to watch.
“Squid Game” has opened many people up to the world of international dramas, and with many amazing titles being available, it can be hard and overwhelming to find more shows that pique your interest. In honor of the spooky season, here are a few more thrilling international dramas to watch.
Alice in Borderland
Streaming on Netflix
“Alice in Borderland,” the Netflix adaptation of the manga series of the same title written and illustrated by Haro Aso, takes the viewer to modern-day Tokyo, where Arisu, a college dropout and avid gamer, is introduced. After a strange series of events, including a hot pursuit on-foot by the police, Arisu and his friends emerge from a bathroom stall to find that every single person in Tokyo has vanished, or so they think.
Once night falls, Arisu and his friends see beams of light shining into the sky from all over the city. After going to the nearest one, they find out that they have entered a game that they cannot leave, otherwise they will be killed immediately. If you win the game, you earn the playing card attached to it, but you may lose something—or someone.
The series features a cast that nods toward the characters of the original story “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” by Lewis Carroll in the foreground of a mysterious death game. Each episode leaves the viewer wanting more, and it is definitely a top pick if you enjoyed “Squid Game.” A second season is currently in production, as announced by a teaser video posted just two weeks after the first season’s initial release in December of 2020.
Sweet Home
Streaming on Netflix
“Sweet Home” is a drama with a deceptive title that follows Hyun-soo, a teen who recently lost his entire family in a tragic accident, as he moves into his first apartment alone with the money that his family left him. Hyun-soo, once a bright student, lives as a shut-in, mostly opening his door only to collect food packages.
However, Hyun-soo’s daily life is interrupted when a nation-wide Internet outage hits, causing him to be no longer able to play games or search up his increasing number of strange symptoms that he begins to have. Soon, he finds himself face-to-face with a new breed of monsters trying to wipe out humanity as he knows it.
This series, also based on a webcomic of the same name, brings a new idea to the “apocalypse” genre, and it bolsters more twists and turns than you might expect. You will be on the edge of your seat with every episode of this popular K-drama.
Girl from Nowhere
Streaming on Netlfix
“Girl from Nowhere” takes place in a multitude of high schools in Thailand, each episode following the enigmatic Nanno. With each school transfer, Nanno uncovers and exposes lies of staff and students, with the results sometimes being deadly.
The show follows themes of bullying, abuse, pedophilia, and even beauty standards, but Nanno usually finds a way to twist these situations and make the perpetrators pay for their sins in a darker manner than a viewer could ever imagine.
This series, which is the only one from this list to currently have a season two, gives haunting commentary to familiar experiences. After watching the first two episodes, you will most likely be scratching your head and thinking, “What did I just watch?” This is an awe-inspiring and jaw-dropping series that you definitely need to check out if you enjoy mind-bending titles.
