In progress

Familiar Wife

(아는 와이프) 2018 tvN

Joo-Hyuk (Ji Sung) is married to Woo-Jin (Han Ji-Min), and they have two children, but they both work too hard, trying to pay off debts and support their parents. Joo-Hyuk is increasingly unhappy with his wife, who is always really really angry. One day Joo-Hyuk has a Sliding Doors moment, and uses a magical coin (and a magical toll booth) to transport himself to an alternate timeline, where he is instead married to the wealthy and beautiful Hye-Won (Kang Han-Na), on whom he had a crush at University. Fate, however, has a way of forcing his destiny back into place…

K-Drama Bingo Score

Using the Modern K-Drama set

Toggle descriptions Toggle spoilers

(Dis)possession
(2 pt)
Notes
Ghosts, spirits inhabiting bodies, or body- or identity-swapping

S01
Full reality-shifting, à la Sliding Doors
Korean Standoff
(1 pt)
Notes
Two principal characters have a serious, sometimes emotionally confrontational, conversation while standing at least 1m apart

Unmatched Bingo Spaces

Childhood friends forgotten
Characters knew, or at least encountered, each other in childhood, but somehow forgot
Vehicular tragedy
Someone is/was hit by a car, truck, bus, or motorcycle
Bullying
Be Best, Korea
Cartoony FX
Animal or cartoon visual and sound effects to reinforce behavior or mood
Chicken & Beer
치맥, anyone?
Cramped quarters
Sleeping in a repurposed closet, or on a balcony, or in insane tiny student housing
Crushing Debt
Characters are motivated by their debt (or a family member's), including the threat of foreclosure
Finger hearts
Any use of finger hearts by a character
Memorial service
Funerals and memorial services
Middle-of-the-Road Soliliquy
Verbal musings on deep existential questions and/or tragicomic situations while in the middle of the street
Piggyback
Someone gives someone else a piggyback ride
Pinky swear
Two characters doing a pinky swear

Touching thumbs at the end is not a thing in America (based on my terrible polling), so that gets an easy bonus point for any wannabe K-drama.
Rumble tummy
Audible stomach rumbling to indicate hunger
Shamans & Talismans
Yellow paper talismans, written in calligraphic red ink; visits to a shaman for fortune-telling or body transfers
Son Hyeung Min
Mentions of Son Hyeung Min, or staying up to watch Tottenham Hotspur play
The Playground
Any scene taking place in a neighborhood playground
Thumbs up
Two thumbs up for "Good job!"
Wrist grab
Dramatically grabbing someone by the wrist as they walk away
강한나 (Kang Han-Na)
The presence of Kang Han-Na makes everything at least 1 point better
내 친구 ("My friend…")
A character tells a story about "My friend" that is actually about themselves
한국어학교 (Language lessons)
Specifically linguistic wordplay, discussions about spelling, pronunciation, or Chinese root words