Despite being one of the rarest niches on television, superhero K-dramas are some of the best. Whether it’s a full-fledged league of heroes taking arms against a great evil or a single intrepid protagonist grappling with newfound powers, superhero stories are timeless. There are plenty of K-dramas about secret identities and characters living double lives, but the intrigue usually stems from convoluted political plots or slice-of-life hijinks. Similarly, there are hordes of fantasy and sci-fi K-dramas that have garnered cult followings, but very few are truly superhero shows.

Nevertheless, K-dramas in the streaming age consistently incorporate twists on familiar formulas or veer into unique, under-explored sub-genres, pushing the boundaries and consequently creating genre-bending hits. As such, K-dramas about superheroes and superhuman powers can lean into high-octane thriller territory just as easily as they can craft endearing action comedies. That variety means that, regardless of what you look for in traditional superhero stories, there’s surely a Korean drama that’s right up your alley— and, more important, deserving of high praise.

Moving

Three Super-Powered Families Must Avoid A Government Conspiracy

Moving is arguably the biggest superhero K-drama yet, and it’s certainly Disney+’s most successful endeavor to date in the field. When three teenagers suddenly begin showing signs of superhuman abilities, their parents— former super spies for the government— must go to great lengths to protect themselves. Each main character has their own unique ability, but the most intriguing aspect is the hereditary angle that results in some truly innovative combinations.

Despite its wildly ambitious scope, Moving never loses control of its reigns. From the fight scenes to the seamless effects to the deceptively simple character designs, everything in the superhero story feels meticulously chosen. Of course, the stellar production is supplemental to an enthralling narrative and some heavy-hitting actors. Understandably, Moving season 2 is already one of the most highly-anticipated projects in the K-drama sphere right now, even if no concrete release date has been confirmed yet.

He Is Psychometric

A Skeptical Police Officer Helps A Young Man Hone His Psychometry

A traumatic accident leaves Lee Ahn (Park Jin-young) orphaned and struggling with the mysterious power of psychometry, but he finds himself leaning on police officer Yoon Jae-in (Shin Ye-eun). Though the pair’s relationship starts out as strictly professional, the chemistry between Jae-in and Ahn is too strong to ignore, resulting in a quirky yet wholesome K-drama romance.

Psychometry is already a fairly complicated concept on its own, but He Is Psychometric takes it a step further by having Lee Ahn focus on reading the pasts and hidden memories of his colleagues. Consequently, he may not be made of steel or faster than the speed of light, but he’s a bona fide hero nonetheless who becomes instrumental in an engrossing overarching investigation. All things considered, it’s a light version of a superhero story, but rom-com lovers should run, not walk, to binge all 16 episodes.

The Uncanny Counter

A Ragtag Band Of Misfits Hunt Down Evil Spirits

Based on Jang Yi’s acclaimed webtoon Amazing Rumor, The Uncanny Counter follows So Mun (Jo Byeong-kyu), an ordinary high school student who finds himself roped into a team of paranormal crime-fighters called the Counters. Alongside a colorful cast of ensemble characters, So Mun and the Counters hide out in a noodle shop by day and banish evil spirits to the underworld by night.

What powers each character obtains, how they earn them, and why they were chosen to inherit them are all looming mysteries that slowly unravel with each episode. Plus, the series is a perfect storm of overlapping sub-genres. On one hand, The Uncanny Counter is an addictive action drama with seriously gnarly supernatural battles. At the same time, there’s enough humor and heart to spare, making the K-drama immensely satisfying on all fronts.

A Girl Who Sees Smells

The Lone Survivor Of A Brutal Attack Unlocks Her Latent Synesthesia

After losing her entire family in a gruesome murder, Choi Eun-seol (Shin Se-kyung) falls into a deep coma. When she wakes, she has a new identity as Oh Cho-rim and the uncanny ability to visualize scents, with intense synesthesia that shows smells as shapes, colors, and trackable trails. Her new power is sidelined as she adjusts to life with her adoptive father, but she discovers a newfound sense of purpose once she crosses paths with Detective Choi Moo-gak (Park Yoo-chun).

Whereas Eun-seol’s power stems from her nose, Moo-gak ironically lost his sense of smell, meaning the two main characters seamlessly make up for each other’s weaknesses. The opposites-attract K-drama takes the best parts of a police procedural and blends it with a classic romantic comedy, making A Girl Who Sees Smells a massively underrated must-watch.

Strong Girl Bong-soon

A CEO Hires A Boisterous Woman With Super Strength As His New Bodyguard

Strong Girl Bong-soon is one of the most iconic rom-coms of the 2010s, and it’s by far regarded as one of Park Bo-young’s best K-dramas. The beloved actress stars as the eponymous Do Bong-soon, a woman who inherited a matrilineal gift of superhuman strength.

While she feels like a bit of a wildcard at first glance, Bong-soon is guided by a staunch moral compass, as she is destined to lose her powers if she ever uses her strength for evil. Luckily, she instead devotes her time to protecting Ahn Min-hyuk (Park Hyung-sik), a high-powered CEO who oozes charm.

The Atypical Family

Members Of A Superhero Dynasty Begin Losing Their Renowned Powers

Unlike most superhero shows that focus on a hero’s genesis, The Atypical Family centers on the illustrious Bok dynasty, who have been revered for generations due to their powers. In the modern day, however, protagonist Bok Gwi-ju (Jang Ki-yong) and his family have all lost their special skills due to ailments like insomnia, depression, and an addiction to technology.

While the main characters all previously defined themselves by their precognition, time travel, flight, et cetera, they must instead find a new sense of self-worth as people rather than superheroes. Undoubtedly, it’s one of the most unique twists on a traditional superhero plot, but the esteemed K-drama on Netflix pulls it off without a hitch.

I Can Hear Your Voice

An Ordinary High School Student Can Inexplicably Read People’s Minds

In theory, anything could be turned into a superpower, but I Can Hear Your Voice follows arguably the most popular: telepathy. Like all great heroes, Park Soo-ha (Lee Jong-suk) unlocks his powers after a family tragedy turns his life upside down. With his strange ability to read anyone’s mind by making eye contact, however, he’s able to move on with relative ease.

Soo-ha eventually begins using his telepathy to serve the public by teaming up with skilled lawyers for numerous high-stakes cases. The product is a classic K-drama that toes the line between fantasy romance and tense legal drama, but it somehow works. Unsurprisingly, I Can Hear Your Voice remains a fan-favorite over a decade after its original release.

Memorist

A Skilled Detective Can Explore Anyone’s Memories With A Single Touch

Yet, when it comes to crime K-dramas that incorporate superpowers, nothing comes close to Memorist. The breakout hit from 2020 follows Dong Baek (Yoo Seung-ho), a young detective who can tap into people’s memories if he can establish physical touch. To stop a dangerous serial killer, he teams up with criminal profiler Han Sun-mi (Lee Se-young).

What sets Memorist apart from the various other super-powered crime dramas is how its two core genres work in tandem. The murder investigation is never confined to the narrative backseat, nor is Dong Baek’s memory reading ever disregarded. If anything, the two facets make each other better— and, in turn, take Memorist from good to great.

Behind Your Touch

A Veterinarian’s Uncanny Ability Helps Her Solve Crimes

With so many stories centered around psychometry, modern K-dramas have had to get creative to catch the audience’s attention. Case in point: Behind Your Touch, which puts a spin on the well-worn formula by making its super-powered main character a veterinarian. In fact, Bong Ye-bun (Han Ji-min) initially uses her supernatural skills on the animals she treats.​​​​​​​

That restraint can only last so long, however, especially when a killer begins wreaking havoc on the K-drama’s small town. With the help of disgraced detective Moon Jang-yeol (Lee Min-ki), Ye-bun begins mastering her powers as one half of an unexpectedly dynamic duo.

The Wonderfools

Four Unlikely Heroes Team Up During The Peak Of Y2K Panic

Despite releasing in May 2026, The Wonderfools is an instant classic, and it has fundamentally redefined what superhero K-dramas can be. At the heart of the action adventure are three outcasts— Eun Chae-ni (Park Eun-bin), Kang Ro-bin (Im Seong-jae), and Son Gyeong-hun (Choi Dae-hoon)— who become B-team superheroes after falling into toxic waste.

With mysterious new guy in town Lee Un-jeong (Cha Eun-woo) rounding out their super-powered squad, the motley crew must embrace their quirks to protect their town (and the entire world) from a nefarious secret organization. Without question, The Wonderfools is a perfect superhero show, and it will hopefully inspire many more K-dramas for years to come.

Release Date

May 15, 2026

Network

Netflix

Directors

Yoo In-sik

Writers

Huh Dah-joong

Cast

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  Cha Eun-woo

  Lee Woon-jung