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Ends hard

K-dramas with sad endings

48 titles. Bittersweet and tragic endings, flagged in advance. Some nights that is exactly what you want, and it is a terrible surprise on any other night.

How this list is built: Ending labelled bittersweet or tragic. Set by hand, checked against the full run, never generated on request. Our method.

48 titles · Written by Yuna · reviewed 15 September 2026

Karma

2025 · 6 ep · ~5.5h

Brisk pace · Devastating · Tragic

Slow start

Squid Game Season 3

2025 · 6 ep · ~6h

Brisk pace · Devastating · Tragic

Mask Girl

2023 · 7 ep · ~7h

Steady pace · Devastating · Bittersweet

Slow start

The Good Bad Mother

2023 · 14 ep · ~16h

Steady pace · Devastating · Bittersweet

The Worst of Evil

2023 · 12 ep · ~11h

Brisk pace · Devastating · Tragic

Thirty-Nine

2022 · 12 ep · ~16h

Slow pace · Devastating · Tragic

Slow start

Weak Hero Class 1

2022 · 8 ep · ~5.5h

Brisk pace · Devastating · Tragic

Beyond Evil

2021 · 16 ep · ~17h

Slow pace · Devastating · Bittersweet

Slow start

D.P.

2021 · 6 ep · ~5h

Brisk pace · Devastating · Bittersweet

My Name

2021 · 8 ep · ~6.5h

Brisk pace · Devastating · Bittersweet

Squid Game

2021 · 9 ep · ~9h

Brisk pace · Devastating · Bittersweet

Youth of May

2021 · 12 ep · ~14h

Steady pace · Devastating · Tragic

Strangers from Hell

2019 · 10 ep · ~10h

Steady pace · Devastating · Tragic

The Light in Your Eyes

2019 · 12 ep · ~12h

Slow pace · Devastating · Bittersweet

Slow start

Mr. Sunshine

2018 · 24 ep · ~32h

Slow pace · Devastating · Tragic

Slow start

Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo

2016 · 20 ep · ~20h

Steady pace · Devastating · Tragic

Slow start

Gold Land

2026 · 10 ep · ~10h

Brisk pace · Heavy · Tragic

Slow start

Notes from the Last Row

2026 · 6 ep · ~6.5h

Slow pace · Heavy · Bittersweet

Dear Hongrang

2025 · 11 ep · ~11h

Slow pace · Heavy · Bittersweet

Mercy for None

2025 · 7 ep · ~5h

Fast pace · Heavy · Tragic

Nine Puzzles

2025 · 11 ep · ~11h

Steady pace · Heavy · Bittersweet

Weak Hero Class 2

2025 · 8 ep · ~5.5h

Fast pace · Heavy · Bittersweet

When Life Gives You Tangerines

2025 · 16 ep · ~17h

Slow pace · Heavy · Bittersweet

Captivating the King

2024 · 16 ep · ~19h

Slow pace · Heavy · Bittersweet

Slow start

Doubt

2024 · 10 ep · ~12h

Steady pace · Heavy · Bittersweet

Mr. Plankton

2024 · 10 ep · ~10h

Steady pace · Heavy · Bittersweet

Nothing Uncovered

2024 · 16 ep · ~19h

Slow pace · Heavy · Bittersweet

The Whirlwind

2024 · 12 ep · ~10h

Fast pace · Heavy · Bittersweet

D.P. Season 2

2023 · 6 ep · ~5h

Steady pace · Heavy · Bittersweet

Slow start

Revenant

2023 · 12 ep · ~14h

Slow pace · Heavy · Bittersweet

Slow start

All of Us Are Dead

2022 · 12 ep · ~12h

Brisk pace · Heavy · Bittersweet

Revenge of Others

2022 · 12 ep · ~12h

Brisk pace · Heavy · Bittersweet

Twenty-Five Twenty-One

2022 · 16 ep · ~20h

Steady pace · Heavy · Bittersweet

Navillera

2021 · 12 ep · ~13h

Slow pace · Heavy · Bittersweet

The Red Sleeve

2021 · 17 ep · ~23h

Slow pace · Heavy · Bittersweet

Slow start

Hi Bye, Mama!

2020 · 16 ep · ~19h

Steady pace · Heavy · Bittersweet

Hotel del Luna

2019 · 16 ep · ~20h

Steady pace · Heavy · Bittersweet

Slow start

Stranger

2017 · 16 ep · ~19h

Steady pace · Heavy · Bittersweet

The K2

2016 · 16 ep · ~16h

Brisk pace · Heavy · Bittersweet

Uncontrollably Fond

2016 · 20 ep · ~20h

Slow pace · Heavy · Tragic

Slow start

Genie, Make a Wish

2025 · 13 ep · ~13h

Steady pace · Moderate · Bittersweet

Uncle Samsik

2024 · 16 ep · ~12h

Slow pace · Moderate · Bittersweet

Slow start

Doom at Your Service

2021 · 16 ep · ~17h

Slow pace · Moderate · Bittersweet

The Devil Judge

2021 · 16 ep · ~20h

Steady pace · Moderate · Bittersweet

A Korean Odyssey

2017 · 20 ep · ~27h

Steady pace · Moderate · Bittersweet

Slow start

Chicago Typewriter

2017 · 16 ep · ~19h

Steady pace · Moderate · Bittersweet

Goblin

2016 · 16 ep · ~20h

Slow pace · Moderate · Bittersweet

Slow start

The King: Eternal Monarch

2020 · 16 ep · ~19h

Slow pace · Easy · Bittersweet

Slow start

Full write-ups from this collection

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Other moods

Slow and quietNothing hurries. The payoff is cumulative.Ends kindlyYou can commit twenty hours without dread.One weekendAbout fourteen hours or less. Start and finish it.Push throughSlow first hours, then it clicks.Nothing heavyFor when you cannot take one more sad show.Wreck meHeavy on purpose. Clear your evening.Romance firstThe couple is the plot, not the subplot.Put it on againRewatchable at any episode, any mood.