Many popular webtoons have inspired South Korean dramas over the years, and most of these series have garnered positive responses. Some webtoon-based K-dramas 2024 include Lovely Runner, High School Return of a Gangster, Marry My Husband, and My Sweet Mobster.
While My Sweet Mobster is still airing, the other three have concluded. Marry My Husband grabbed K-drama fans’ attention at the beginning of the year, making it an instant hit. The Hallyu wave further spread worldwide with Byeon Woo-Seok’s series, Lovely Runner. Furthermore, High School Return of a Gangster attracted the fandom because of its genre change.
Let’s dive deep into the best webtoon-based K-dramas 2024:
Lovely Runner
Lovely Runner is the super-hit webtoon-based K-drama of 2024 titled The Best of Tomorrow or Tomorrow’s Best. The time-slip romance comedy series revolves around Ryu Sun-Jae (Byeon Woo-Seok), a K-pop idol of the boy band Eclipse. He changed Im Sol’s (Kim Hye-Yoon), a regular girl, life. Thus, she is his ardent fan. However, things go upside down when her idol suddenly dies. While grieving, she mysteriously travels back to her high school days.
Im Sol learns that Sun-Jae is her neighbor and a swimmer. She decides to save his life by changing some events in the past. Throughout the drama, she travels through different timelines to protect her true love. Meanwhile, Sun-Jae has always loved her. So, do they end up together? The K-drama is available to watch on Viki.
High School Return of a Gangster
High School Return of a Gangster is a 2024 K-drama, which ended recently on June 19, 2024. Starring Yoon Chan-Young, Bong Jae-Hyun, and Lee Seo-Jin, the series revolves around gangster Kim Deuk-Pal. One day, he sees Song Yi-Heon attempting suicide. Mysteriously, the 47-year-old gangster’s spirit possesses the 19-year-old teenager’s body.
At high school, Deuk-Pal learns that the boy is a victim of bullying. While deciding to punish the bullies, he befriends Choi Se-Kyung. They form a close bond and protect Se-Kyung from his abusive father. The K-drama grabbed fans’ attention because it was inspired by a BL (Boys Love) webtoon. However, the makers of the drama turned it into a friendship and bromance storyline.
Marry My Husband
Marry My Husband premiered in January 2024, starring Park Min-Young and Na In-Woo in lead roles. It is based on a webtoon by Seong So-Jak that tells the story of Kang Ji-Won. She is a married woman suffering from cancer who finds out about her husband and best friend’s affair. During the argument, they accidentally kill her.
When Ji-Won wakes up, she has time-traveled back to ten years. She grabs the opportunity to change her life’s story and seek revenge on her husband and best friend. On her journey, her boss Yoo Ji-Hyeok supports her. Marry My Husband also stars Lee Yi-Kyung, Lee Gi-Kwang, and Song Ha-Yoon. It is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video.
My Sweet Mobster
My Sweet Mobster is the ongoing K-drama, based on a webtoon A Woman Who Plays by Park Soo-Jung. It tells the story of a former convict Seo Ji-Hwan who has changed his life and becomes a CEO. He helps ex-convicts choose the right path. One day, he bumps into Go Eun-Ha and realizes she is his childhood friend. Eun-Ha is a content creator for children, popularly known as “Mini Sister.”
She can see through Ji-Hwan’s rough exterior and reach his soft side. Will the old buddies become more than friends? Only time will tell. My Sweet Mobster airs new episodes on Wednesdays and Thursdays on JTBC and Viki. Consisting of 16 episodes, the webtoon-based K-drama is directed by Kim Young-Hwan and Kim Woo-Hyun.
Aside from the aforementioned series, a few other webtoon-based K-dramas 2024 include Dare to Love Me, Love Song for Illusion, Wedding Impossible, and more.
