As a long time K-Drama lover, I will say there are some things that just don’t make sense to me in K-dramas. However, it’s not that these things do not actually make sense in their context, but it seems so to me because I am a foreigner, however from the angle of a Korean, it's fine and normal, and if you are Nigerian or from another country aside Korea, then we might as well be in the same boat.

However, some things that make the world interesting are these differences and dynamism. I mean, we get to learn new things every day, but there are some things most of us still find difficult to understand in K-Dramas and here are those things.

Modern K-dramas

There are two things we don’t really understand in modern K-dramas; they are stocks/ conglomerate discussions and the Constitution, so let’s break them down.

Stocks and Conglomerate Discussions

I can’t be the only one who is always confused with how the Korean Chaebol world works (well, I am not one, I can’t relate). A very good example is the K-Drama ‘Queen of Tears,’ it took me almost forever to understand why two strangers could have the opportunity to send out a whole conglomerate family to the gutters (that was massive). Another thing that baffles me is how a CEO or chairman will be in a crisis or have a scandal and it will be affecting the stock price of the company (or am I the only one who’s always asking these questions?) To be honest, I know all these things make sense in the conglomerate world; I mean, every company has their own shareholders and all but thinking about it from the standpoint of someone who knows nothing about these things, it’s always confusing

The Korean Constitution

As a non-Korean, it’s justifiable that we hardly understand how their constitution works and it’s totally fine. For me, one Korean law that I have learned from subsequently watching legal dramas and that baffles me is the law that states that ‘illegally obtained evidence is not admissible in the court.’ Although this law is a valid one in most countries of the world but I am sure I am not the only one who gets angry at that law, especially when things are not favoring our favorite character, but the fact remains that it is the law.

Sageuks

Moving on to historical dramas, here are things we hardly understand.

The Royal Laws

The first of these things is the royal laws. To be honest, the major reason we don’t really understand these things is because we are not Koreans. However, for royal laws, it is more than confusing. As a matter of fact, it can be annoying. Let’s talk about one of my much loved sageuk ‘Under the Queen’s Umbrella,’ tell me I was not the only one who didn’t understand why a concubine’s child should be entitled to the throne just because the officials think the remaining children of the queen does not qualify? Apart from the things seen in this series, another thing that bothers me in Sageuk is the ‘guilty by association’ law. Why does the whole family of a person have to suffer for the person’s sin? It’s actually exasperating, but then again, it’s the law!

The Hierarchy of the Royal Court.

Finally, we all know how confusing the hierarchy of the Korean court can be. I mean, starting from the officials to the royal family and other entities that make up the royal court. It can be challenging to know who is who.

However, this is just a tip of the iceberg. You can check out our pieces on the hierarchy of the Joseon court and the Royal Family.

PS: I am not trying to downgrade the Korean culture and laws. Just me making a random rant about things that frustrate me about them, especially in K-dramas.

As a Nigerian K-enthusiast, I am sure I touched some things that confuse you too, right? Tell me about it in the comments.

Also, let me know what else I did not talk about. Ciao.