Television series
Splash Splash Love
A high school student stressed about her college entrance exam tumbles through time into Joseon-era Korea, where she meets a young king determined to prove himself. This romantic fantasy is a breeze to watch—warm, gently funny, and structured like a perfect long movie rather than a sprawling series. It's for anyone who enjoys time-travel romance with historical colour and zero pretension.
Should you watch it?
Watch it if you enjoy a time-slip romance where a stressed modern teenager collides with Joseon court formality, and you're happy to let the premise run on a brisk, compact clock.
Skip it if the period setting is a backdrop rather than a deep study, and the romance leans on a far-fetched premise, so anyone wanting rigorous history or slow-burn development will feel shortchanged.
What it asks of you: Two short episodes, about seventy minutes in all, so it moves quickly and needs little commitment; you'll need to accept a time-slip premise without much explanation.
Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.
If you liked this
Descendants of the Sun2016
Another Korean romance that balances genuine stakes with swoon-worthy charm. Two leads with real chemistry navigate danger and duty in a fictional war zone, and it has the same instinct for making you care deeply about two people finding each other.
But It commits harder to the melodrama than Splash Splash Love does—longer, more serialized, and occasionally heavy in ways this show avoids.
Romance Is a Bonus Book2019
A warm, grown-up romance about second chances and self-discovery. It has the same gentleness and genuine wit, with leads who feel like real people rather than archetypes, and it makes you root for them without manipulating you.
But No fantasy or time-travel element—purely contemporary. If that imaginative spark is what you're after, this trades it for something quieter.
My Love from the Star2013
A 400-year-old man falls to Earth in the present day and meets a modern actress. It's playful and romantic with that same time-displacement energy, and the chemistry between leads carries everything on its back beautifully.
But Slightly longer and more interested in celebrity satire than Splash Splash Love, which might feel like tonal whiplash if you just want the romance.
Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Splash Splash Love
The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
The Apothecary Diaries2023
Both use historical/fantasy settings to let their heroines step outside normal constraints. Both feature a woman learning to trust someone after the world has made her suspicious. Both are exactly the right length and never waste a frame.
A brilliant poison expert is sold into the imperial palace and uses her knowledge to solve mysteries. Fantasy and history converge in something genuinely original—gorgeous animation, intricate plotting, and a heroine who solves problems with her mind rather than love. Chinese, but it scratches the exact same itch.
But It's deliberately slow and cerebral. There's romance in the margins, not the center. If you want the love story to be the engine, look elsewhere.
More like this (8)
Mr. Sunshine2018
A sweeping historical Korean drama with real romantic stakes. Beautiful cinematography, morally complex characters, and a love story that matters because the world around it matters. Go if you want the Joseon setting to feel consequential.
But Fifty episodes of serious, sometimes dark colonial history. This is not a breezy watch—it asks for real commitment and emotional endurance.
100 Days My Prince2018
A crown prince loses his memory and falls in love with the woman who saved him. It's got that same tone of romantic destiny meeting real danger, with strong performances and a plot that genuinely surprises you.
But Amnesia plot can feel thin if you've seen it before. The pacing occasionally drags as it stretches to fit its episode count.
Abyss2019
A woman who dies in an accident is given a second chance at life by a grim reaper, and they fall in love while saving people. Fantasy romance with real heart, and it finds ways to make the supernatural premise feel earned.
But More serious and melancholic than you might expect from the premise. Tonal shifts between romance and genuine tragedy can feel jarring.
The Scholar Who Walks the Night2015
A scholar in Joseon Korea and a vampire find each other across centuries. It's got the historical setting you're craving with a darker, moodier romance that still has real sweetness underneath.
But Lean toward Gothic and atmospheric rather than warm and funny. If you want brightness, this goes dimmer.
Alchemy of Souls2022
Two mages with opposite powers meet in a fantasy world that feels lived-in and rules-based. The romance builds naturally alongside genuine world-building, and both leads do excellent work with complex, wounded characters.
But High fantasy can feel baroque and overstuffed if you prefer simplicity. The first arc ends on a cliffhanger that demands a second season commitment.
Tale of the Nine Tailed2020
A nine-tailed fox from the past meets a woman in the present day. Atmospheric, mythologically rich, and seriously committed to its supernatural premise with moments of real tenderness between leads.
But Slower pacing and more focused on mystery and folklore than romance. If you're here for the love story first, this deprioritizes it.
Run On2020
Both understand that the best romances come from two people genuinely knowing and choosing each other. Both are built around moments of recognition rather than grand gestures. Both are shorter and more distilled than they need to be, which makes them perfect.
A sprinter and a translator from a multilingual family fall in love while learning to communicate with each other. It's about language, patience, and two adults deciding to move toward each other despite their fears. No magic, no time travel—just genuine connection built on specificity and detail.
But Slower and more meditative than Splash Splash Love. Contemporary and grounded where the other was fantastical. If you want spectacle or plot momentum, this privileges quiet understanding instead.
Phoenix2014
Like Splash Splash Love, it's about a woman who feels trapped by the life she's supposed to live and finds freedom through displacement. Both trust their leading actresses completely. Both suggest that the thing that saves you might not be what you expect—might be someone's kindness, might be your own stubbornness, might be waking up different.
A woman wakes from a coma after a suicide attempt and reconstructs her life in Seoul. It's intimate, searching, and unexpectedly hopeful about second chances. Hancinema gem that nobody talks about but absolutely should.
But Not a romance, though connection is at its heart. Serious, sometimes bleak, about recovery and self-reclamation. No fantasy or time-travel—this is modern reality grappling with pain.
