5 highest-rated Rotten Tomatoes 2023 K-dramas

This year has given K-drama fans plenty to watch, with more than a few earning global critical recognition. But only a select few 2023 K-dramas ultimately received a Rotten Tomatoes score.

From Moving to My Demon, K-dramas started and ended the year strong across multiple genres from action thrillers to steamy romances. It was an especially good 12 months for Netflix K-dramas, which typically ranked (and ranked well) on Rotten Tomatoes.

Which K-dramas found their way onto Rotten Tomatoes? There were certainly plenty of surprises. Nam Joo-hyuk’s Vigilante didn’t make the cut, but worldwide hits such as Kang Full’s Moving did. Fan favorites like Celebrity and A Time Called You also hit the platform, but weren’t among the year’s elite.

So, here’s a round-up of the best K-dramas on offer in 2023 according to Rotten Tomatoes, including breakdowns covering why each entry was so well received.

Doctor Cha – 86%

A stay-at-home mother has had enough and pursues her forgotten dream of becoming a doctor while finding herself and learning the truth about her family.

Cha Jeong-suk (Uhm Jung-hwa) has been a housewife for 20 years after becoming pregnant during her medical residency. To take care of her family, she gave up her dream of becoming a doctor and watched as her husband became a chief surgeon.

Realizing her family undervalues her, she decides to change the course of her life. She sets out to prove everyone wrong and becomes a medical resident once again to become a doctor. The big issue? Her husband and son both work at the same hospital and they must keep their family connection a secret.

That’s not the only secret, either; Jeong-suk soon learns a harsh reality about her marriage. Doctor Cha was praised by fans for its message that age is not a factor when it comes to happiness and fulfillment. Jeong-suk relearns what it means to look out for herself.

The 2023 K-drama received an 86% score from Rotten Tomatoes and is available on Netflix.

Gyeongseong Creature – 86%

A sleuth and a rich pawn shop owner find themselves venturing into Onseong Hospital, which is plagued by sinister rumors, hoping to find missing people. They soon learn it holds a much more sinister secret.

Gyeongseong Creature was the last of Netflix’s 2023 K-dramas that was a hit with fans. Set in 1945 during the Japanese occupation of Korea, it revolves around a series of missing persons cases. These cases prompt protagonist Yoon Chae-ok (Han So-hee) to visit Gyeongseong with her father to find information.

The pair are known as bounty hunters or sleuths. They excel at locating missing people and Chae-ok is highly trained in combat. In Gyeongseong, they find a wealthy pawn shop owner named Jang Tae-sang (Park Seo-joon). He’s well known for his valuable and trustworthy information.

When Tae-sang is tasked with finding a missing woman and asks for Chae-ok and her father’s help, their search leads them to Onseong Hospital. Locals claim the hospital has something to do with the missing people. But it holds a much more dangerous and monstrous government secret.

Gyeongseong Creature has received rave reviews, despite only releasing Part 1. It holds an 86% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and is a high point among Netflix’s non-English series.

Mask Girl – 100%

Tagged as one of the best thrillers of the year, Netflix’s Mask Girl sees an office worker’s online double life lead her down a dark path involving a new identity, murder, and harsher reality.

Kim Mo-mi (Lee Han-byeol) is a run-of-the-mill office worker, shamed and passed over for her undesirable looks. She’s always dreamed of being in the spotlight as a performer but society says otherwise. So, she develops an alternate persona: a cam girl named Mask Girl.

Her only joy in life is taken from her after a mistake causes her site to get shut down. She also soon learns her outcast coworker is one of her fans and has discovered her real identity. From here, Mask Girl quickly becomes a thrill ride, as Mo-mi goes through three different stages of life after a murder.

This 2023 K-drama was praised for its cinematography and art style, as well as its intriguing storyline. On Rotten Tomatoes, Mask Girl received a 100% rating.

Daily Dose of Sunshine – 100%

Another Netflix hit, Daily Dose of Sunshine stars Park Bo-young as Jung Da-eun, a nurse transferred to a psychiatric hospital, and focuses on her interactions with patients.

The November K-drama was a success with fans thanks to its heartfelt and eye-opening storyline about mental health. Da-eun has never worked in a psychiatric hospital before being transferred from Internal Medicine. Many of her coworkers are perplexed by her sudden arrival.

With no real know-how, Da-eun learns the harsh realities facing patients with mental health issues. She soon embarks on a journey of self-discovery while vowing to give her patients a dose of sunshine. The K-drama presents a realistic representation of mental health issues and their effects, such as the sensation of feeling drowned by anxiety or fear for oneself and others.

Daily Dose of Sunshine received a 100% rating from Rotten Tomatoes.

Moving – 100%

Kang Full’s Moving has been widely praised as a dynamic and visually stunning 2023 K-drama that puts a refreshing emotional twist on superheroes.

Based on a Webtoon, Moving was 2023’s biggest K-drama – and no less than Rolling Stone branded it the best of the best. It offers a new perspective on superheroes that rivaled the likes of the MCU and Prime Video’s The Boys.

Kim Bong-seok (Lee Jung-ha) and Jang Hui-soo (Go Yoon-jung) develop a strong friendship at school. But they also have something else in common: they have superpowers. Hui-soo is unbreakable and can rapidly heal while Bong-seok floats or flies (but works hard to keep himself grounded).

What neither Bong-seok and Hui-soo knows is that their parents also have powers and were once secret agents. To protect their children, they left that life behind and went into hiding. But when the government poses a threat, the boys’ parents become ruthless killers again.

Moving was praised for its emotional character dynamics and dazzling stuntwork and visuals. The K-drama is expected to receive a second season, which will reportedly kickstart a Kang Full universe. On Rotten Tomatoes, Moving received a 100% rating.

So, there you have it: Rotten Tomatoes’ highest-rated K-dramas of 2023. You can also check out Dexerto’s picks for the best K-dramas of 2023 here.