When you Love a story, you want more of it, and since we all like Doona or are obsessed with it in some capacity, it is only fair that we hunt down others who are like the series to watch until season 2 is announced. Here is a list to keep up your spirits while we wonder about Doona and Won Jun’s future.
1. Doom At Your Service
We never understood why this Drama remained so underrated. It is one of those love stories where the chemistry was so evident between the leads, and there was also a deep complexity to the characters and their journey in being able to be with each other. Park Bo Young and her expressions will always be famous, and Seo In Guk, being the stoic and lonely doom with that handsome mole on his face, made sure we kept wanting to see more of him. It is simply one of those dramas where you are not just entertained, but the story stays with you for ages after, much like Doona, where you would always find yourself revisiting the characters and their motivations throughout.
2. Nevertheless
Since we had a ‘mysterious’ woman in Doona, it is time for a mysterious man in Nevertheless. Yoo Na Bin likes Park Jae Eon right away, but both leads have a lot to unpack within themselves and each other that complicates their relationship. Much like Doona, theirs is a case of feelings getting complicated by habits, a lack of communication, and a general unawareness about their desires and their reluctance to be brave about them. It is one of those relationships that feel like a situationship until a ‘make or break’ point is reached. To put a finer point on it, it also reminds us of Taylor Swift’s famous lines from Blank Space, where she describes how things are taken way too far because the heart is still young and reckless. Just watch this drama and be driven to the edge of your seat with frustration.
3. Start Up
One of the reasons this drama became such a runaway hit was because of the actor, Kim Seon Ho. But to discuss the storyline, we see another story that is complicated by people’s perceptions of their inadequacies. Just like Won Jun struggled with feeling that his life wouldn’t fit with Doona, the characters here struggle to understand how their ambitions and personalities would be able to mesh together for a life with each other. Our advice would be to not get distracted by Kim Seon Ho’s arresting dimples and focus on the series if you want to watch something like Doona.
4. Our Beloved Summer
One reason we loved Doona so much was because of its ability to keep things lighthearted while dealing with darker issues. Our Beloved Summer toes a similar line by being a laugh riot but addressing the painful pasts of the protagonists in the background. The series feels like a bit of a roller coaster and doesn’t require much patience to want to binge-watch it. It will similarly frustrate you, but unlike Doona, the protagonists don’t immediately communicate, and most of their problems are of their own creation. Either way, this show is such an endearing must-watch, and while it was a hit, we are just disappointed that it doesn’t seem to have made its way into long-term public memory. Either way, don’t miss out on this.
5. Love To Hate You
First of all, this show gets its feminism very wrong, and we would advise you to ignore that if you plan on watching it. The reason it is on this list is because the guy is the celebrity in this while the girl is the commoner, so the dynamics of Doona have been a bit reversed. It is funny and sweet for the most part, and probably a bit rushed with some subplots. The tone of it is also very far from that of Doona, but in a sense, these are struggles that we understand, and it is a welcome change from the vagueness of Doona and Won Jun’s conflicts in the latter half of their love story. It is not a bad show to follow up after Doona.
6. See You In My 19th Life
What if the ‘mystery’ of the woman is not related to her past traumas but is something more pleasant and silly and doesn’t drive everybody else to the edge? That would be See You In My 19th Life. Ji Eum is quirky, but in a way that you like and understand, not one that irritates you. Even Seo Ha is very enjoyable with his reactions to being pursued in such a way as he is. This is a very sweet drama and a welcome break after much of the angst of Doona. There are also so many past connections between the leads of this drama that you simply know that they are destined to be together, unlike Doona, which will have you questioning that once in a while.
7. A Time Called You
‘Mystery’ and ‘character complications’ seem to be the key things we are looking for when searching for things like Doona, that can be our next watch. A Time Called You has all of that, but the one thing that sets it apart from Doona is the characters’ determination to cross hell and high water to be with each other, but these obstacles are not within themselves but are manufactured by the world and their own fates. Ultimately, what comes in their way is the decisive choice between ‘right and wrong.’ Some parallels can be drawn between Doona and A Time Called You, in the way the lovebirds always find their way back to each other, and once they fall in love, it is permanent, and nothing can change for them at any cost. This drama caused quite a stir, and we would recommend checking it out.
8. Business Proposal
After Doona, if you want to watch a series that is simple, where people are in love without personal hurdles, and you don’t have to doubt whether they will have a happy ending or not, Business Proposal is right up that list. The male lead is rather iconic due to his dialogues and attitude, and not every brooding man has managed to do that. Do give it a watch on your off day.
