Come Back Ahjussi Korean Drama - Rain

That’s pretty much how I feel about the popular streaming channel Hulu recently removing hundreds of Korean dramas from its streaming library.  Hulu used to boast the largest selection of kdramas among the big streaming channels by far.  But the recent removal of so many dramas has put them closer to the number of offerings available on Netflix.

New kdramas had not been added to the Hulu library for the past several months, and now most of them have disappeared.  So rather than hundreds of kdramas to choose from, there are now just 27!  That’s quite a difference.

High End Crush - Jung Il Woo and Lee Si Eon
When hundreds of kdramas suddenly disappear from your queue

I’m very disappointed with the move to decrease their offerings so much.  I watch kdramas on a variety of streaming channels, but Hulu was a nice one to have available because it has a smoother streaming experience with a lot less bugs and playback issues than some of the others.

I won’t go into much speculation, but these things usually boil down to licensing issues.  The bulk of their catalog came from DramaFever before the big purge.  The remaining dramas seem to be coming from Viki and MBC America.

Boys Over Flowers Korean Drama - Lee Min Ho, Kim Hyun Joong, Kim Bum, Kim Joon My Love from Another Star Korean Drama - Kim Soo Hyun and Jun Ji Hyun

I will concede that the 27 dramas left would be considered by many to be the cream of the crop including classics such as Boys Over Flowers, You’re Beautiful, My Love From Another Star, and City Hunter as well as a handful of popular newer dramas including Descendants of the Sun, Healer, She Was Pretty, and Oh My Ghostess.  So there’s plenty to keep a drama newbie entertained for many hours.

I just hope they work it out to add more dramas back in.  My watch list included a couple hundred dramas, so it is looking pretty sad right now since there are only two dramas left on it that I haven’t seen.  Luckily, newer dramas as well as many classics are still available on channels like DramaFever and Viki, but it sure was nice to have Hulu as an option.

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19 responses to “Hulu Removes Hundreds of Korean Dramas from Its Streaming Library”

  1. CozyBooks-and-Life Avatar

    Wow. I just checked it out for myself and was surprised. Lame!! They look like they did their research on what to keep fairly well, though: IHYV, Liar Game, Misaeng…

    1. Kay Avatar

      Yeah, they definitely kept a good selection, it’s just not much, especially considering how many they had before.

      I know I just mentioned to you that Potato Star was on Hulu. I was in the middle of rewatching it when it and almost everything else disappeared. Glad I had already watched it once, but it’s not on any of the other sites 🙁 I really hope the try to work with Viki to get some more, especially newer ones.

    1. Mitta Avatar

      Oops… quick fingers. Was going to say.. must be a business decision? Dwindling advertisers? Or is Korean drama uptake slowing down in the States?

      1. Kay Avatar

        Well, I’ve always been surprised at how many dramas they carried. They had to be spending a fair amount on them. And apparently really popular dramas like Descendants of the Sun are pretty expensive to license, so maybe they would rather spend their money on dramas like that over so many smaller ones.

        DramaFever was also where they got most of their dramas from and DramaFever was recently bought by Warner Bros, so maybe that impacted renewing the licenses. Hopefully, they eventually bring more back.

  2. Pandakim Avatar
    Pandakim

    I was watching answer me/reply 1988 right in the middle of almost finishing it. It got taken off.. Not only kdramas but anime selections are disappearing as well I was watching this yokai anime on season 2 it just vanished.. I had switch over to Hulu because of it wide range of kdramas and anime. And my laptop isn’t in the best condition to watch shows on so I use Amazon fire stick ..

    1. Kay Avatar

      Well, that’s terrible! I was part way through re-watching a series when everything disappeared. Luckily, I had seen it already, but it’s a show that isn’t on any of the other sites, so I’m disappointed.

      So they’re thinning out the anime too? That’s another disappointment. I liked to watch on Hulu when possible because it has less issues than the other sites. Now I’ve seen almost all of the series left, so I won’t be needing Hulu for kdrama anymore 🙁 I hope you find another way to easily watch dramas.

  3. Kathy Wright Avatar
    Kathy Wright

    I actually canceled my subscription because of it.It is 2017 and I cannot find new sageuks anywhere.

    1. Kay Avatar

      Yeah, it was so disappointing when they removed so many wonderful dramas. I barely use it now. Do you watch any on DramaFever or Viki? They’ve both got a few newer sageuks 🙂

      1. Kathy Wright Avatar
        Kathy Wright

        I have a Dramafever account and will start today again.Viki I didn’t try yet. Right now watching some modern ones on Netflix.

        1. Kay Avatar

          I wish Netflix would start adding some more dramas too. Glad you have DramaFever though. They have Scarlet Heart: Goryeo, Moonlight Drawn By Clouds, and Hwarang which are all newer sageuk dramas. Hopefully, you find some good ones to enjoy 🙂

          1. Kathy Wright Avatar
            Kathy Wright

            🙂 all those on my list.I found another one Jang Yeong-sil that I never heard about but looks promising.Rather short though 🙁

          2. Kay Avatar

            Sounds like you have a good list going then 🙂 Definitely some great ones! I’ll have to add Jang Yeong Sil to my list too 🙂

  4. Julie Avatar
    Julie

    I am so bummed. I was in the middle of The Good Doctor and Six Flying Dragons and then they were cut!! At first t was okay because Hulu added Goodbye Mister Black, W, and Moonlight Drawn from the Clouds that were not available on Dramafever. I may cancel my Hulu at this point. The only other shows we really look forward to were Teenage Mutant Ninja turtles that they don’t get new episodes for anymore and Shadow Hunters.

    1. Kay Avatar

      Aww, that’s awful! They didn’t even give any warning when it happened, so a lot of people were caught midway through series. And like you, it really left me with little to watch on Hulu. I really hope they eventually decide to get more dramas back.

  5. Mi Krumm Avatar
    Mi Krumm

    They also just did it again!!! Thank gosh I was able to finish my gf is a 9 tailed fox and they left moonlight drawn by Clouds. But now there are like 11 shows haha. Atleast asiancrush and DramaFever has alot for free thankfully.

    1. Kay Avatar

      Well, that’s terrible! It’s good you got to finish the drama though. They really need to start adding more back rather than take away. But yes, at least there are several other good sites that we can watch on 🙂

  6. Naikaru Avatar
    Naikaru

    There are only 10 now. 😥😰😫😵😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

    1. Kay Avatar

      That’s so sad! They did to get with it because the other streaming networks are now realizing how much potential kdramas have with viewers.

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