Best tv shows like Hard to Say I Love You
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
Nakajima looks up to his father, who was a war photographer, but can only get a job as an assistant for gravure magazines. Mizuno is a provisional high school teacher, currently on probation. Nishimura is Mizuno's best friend, whose boyfriend has been avoiding her since she discovered she was pregnant. Ichihara works at a magazine where he is being blackmailed into sexual favours by his chief editor. Park, on Twitter, takes on the persona of a doctor, when he is actually working at a company that sells medical equipment to disinterested doctors, and at the same time, trying to take care of his younger sister. This is a story about the blossoming friendship of five young people who were brought together by Twitter, and their journey to finding honesty with each other and with themselves.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 156
Genere: Drama
Country: Japan
Duration:
Plot tags: shoujo
Best tv shows and movies like Hard to Say I Love You (2010):
Similar in 88%
Love with a Case (2022)
Plot Summary:
Detective Suzunosuke Shikahama is currently suspended from work after a screw up. He gets together with Haruhi Mabuchi from the Administration Bureau, Sesuna Tsumiki from the Community Safety Bureau, and Ruka Kotori from Accounting. All from different departments and carrying their own baggage, the four join forces. They’re not exactly what you would call champions of justice. They’re not even ambitious enough to go for success. All they want is the truth.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 55
Genere: Crime, Drama, Romance
Country: Japan
Duration:
Plot tags:
Similar in 87%
Tokyo Bachelors (2019)
Plot Summary:
Three Japanese men in their thirties and forties are professionals working in law, dentistry and banking. The friends are trusting of one another and enjoy each others' fellowship. Aside from that they are currently single. Something inside them begins ticking and they begin to wonder about the merits or necessity for marriage.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 144
Genere: Drama
Country: Japan
Duration:
Plot tags:
Similar in 77%
I Order You (2015)
Plot Summary:
Yeo Gook Dae is a talented chef who is sassy and considerate but heartbroken in the past since his divorce. His heart later on gets healed when he falls in love again. 28-year-old Park Song Ah is idling at home after quitting her job. She goes to a homemade dosirak (lunchbox) shop as her brother’s request and meets three attractive men there. The pretty and delicious food that they make touch her, and she gets her heart stolen by one of them. A cute funny story about a couple who bicker constantly but their relationship gradually blossoms into pure innocent love.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 59
Genere: Drama
Country: South Korea
Duration: 25 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 84%
Left-Eye Detective (2010)
Plot Summary:
Tanaka Ainosuke was born with a weak left eye. Then one day, his older brother Yumehito dies mysteriously, allowing Ainosuke to receive a cornea transplant from him. After the surgery, whenever there is a shock to his left eye he sees strange images. Ainosuke assumes that the images might be clues to his brother's death and starts an investigation with the help of his junior high school nurse Sayama Hitomi. But just when their probe begins, an unidentified criminal organization appears to disrupt their investigation.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 43
Genere: Drama
Country: Japan
Duration: 54 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 89%
Ordinary Greatness (2022)
Plot Summary:
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IMDB Rating: 7.8
IMDB Votes: 97
Genere: Comedy, Crime, Drama
Country: China
Duration: 45 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 88%
If There Is No Tomorrow (2020)
Plot Summary:
I Am Yu Huanshui is a story for the underdogs about a man who tolerates as much as he can, yet things change when he discovers that he is terminal ill.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 111
Genere: Drama
Country: China
Duration: 45 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 87%
If Time Flows Back (2020)
Plot Summary:
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IMDB Rating: 7.8
IMDB Votes: 13
Genere: Drama
Country: China
Duration:
Plot tags:
Similar in 90%
True Love 18 (2002)
Plot Summary:
Xia Xiao Tong leads a complicated life. Between a physically and verbally abusive mother and her rebellious best friend who is constantly getting into trouble, she has to work hard to focus on her dream of becoming a beautician. However, when a handsome new teacher, He Fan, arrives at the school, things begin to get even more complicated as she starts to fall for him.
IMDB Rating:
IMDB Votes:
Genere: Drama
Country: Taiwan
Duration:
Plot tags:
Similar in 75%
Love Yourself (2020)
Plot Summary:
Television reporter Sun Yihe, corporate manager Ren Ran, the optimistic Dingding and single mother Xue Kairui are all on the cusp of turning thirty and have reached career bottlenecks. Their love lives don’t go too smoothly either, as all sorts of conflicts and problems start to surface when they begin dating.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 15
Genere: Drama
Country: China
Duration:
Plot tags:
Similar in 81%
Good Doctor (2018)
Plot Summary:
Minato Shindo has savant syndrome. His memory is amazing, but he has difficulty communicating with other people. When Minato was little, he dreamed of becoming a doctor. He met Doctor Akira Shiga and he wanted to become a pediatric surgeon. Akira was surprised by the 7-year-old's memory of the human organs and he decided to support Minato in achieving his dream. Eventually, Minato graduated from medical school and passed the national exam for medical practitioners. Now, Akira works as a director at a large hospital. He suggests to Minato to work in the pediatric surgery department at the hospital where he works.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 312
Genere: Drama
Country: Japan
Duration:
Plot tags: medical drama
Similar in 89%
A Murderous Affair in Horizon Tower (2020)
Plot Summary:
A beautiful coffee shop owner Zhong Meibao suddenly dies in a condominium at the Horizon Tower. When she died, her face still wore a doll-like makeup, hence the case was referred to as the "Doll Murder Case". This case shocks the whole tower, and after investigation the clues point to three suspects - security guard Xie Baoluo, architect Lin Dasen and property manager Lin Mengyu. All three suspects were enthralled by Zhong Meibao's beauty, and all had an intimate relationship with her. All the clue seem to point to the possibility of a love crime. However in the midst of investigation, new clues begin to emerge, and turns the focus to Zhong Meibao's complicated and painful youth. Her family, consisting of her step-father, mother, younger brother and foster mother, were implicated into the case. Just who could be the real murderer?.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 243
Genere: Drama
Country: China
Duration: 40 min
Plot tags: suspense
Similar in 90%
Shark (2014)
Plot Summary:
A rock band, SHARK, dreams of changing the world with their music. Without their visionary leader, will they ever fulfill that dream?.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 14
Genere: Drama
Country: Japan
Duration:
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, suspenseful
Similar in 83%
Unrequited Love (2017)
Plot Summary:
At a university football team reunion, former team manager Mitsuki Hiura confesses that she killed a person to quarterback Tetsuro Nishiwaki. She also reveals that as a result of a gender identity disorder, she is now living as a man. Tetsuro and his friends were puzzled by the events leading to her behaviour. They try to protect their old friend as they gradually discover the truth.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 11
Genere: Drama
Country: Japan
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 78%
The Foreign Duck, the Native Duck and God in a Coin Locker (2007)
Plot Summary:
A university student finds himself wrapped up in the bizarre world of his next door neighbor, learning about his history and relationship with a girl who changed his life.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama
Country: Japan
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: psychological, tense, captivating, disturbing
Similar in 77%
The Underclass (2020)
Plot Summary:
After getting dropped from an elite program, a student gets tangled in the affairs of a high school gang while trying to find her own identity.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 84
Genere: Drama
Country: Thailand
Duration: 55 min
Plot tags: dorama
Similar in 82%
Ruri's Island (2005)
Plot Summary:
Ruri, having been abandoned by her mother to a foster care facility, lives a life of reckless abandonment. When Nakama Yuzo, a kind man but for a trigger-happy temper, runs into Ruri he realizes that perhaps she's the child he's been looking for. Yuzo lives in Hatomijima, a small insland in Okinawa where the population is 49 and the average age group is 61. There are no children. The island has only one school - a primary school. If a child is not enrolled in the school, it will be closed. As a result, society will abandon the island and in a few years, it will cease to have any inhabitants. To save their island, the locals decide to bring in a foster child. Ruri is their candidate, and with her she brings the hope of the island's survival.
IMDB Rating: 7.8
IMDB Votes: 9
Genere: Drama
Country: Japan
Duration: 50 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 88%
dele (2018)
Plot Summary:
Freelance programmer Sakagami is paralyzed in the lower half of his body and confined to a wheelchair. He sets up a company called dele.LIFE in partnership with a law firm established by his late father. At the request of clients, Sakagami works together with a freelance jack-of-all-trades Mashiba to delete all unfavorable digital records of their clients left in their computers and smartphones after they die. They are not supposed to see inside the files but when they feel something strange in the client’s death, they cannot help getting involved.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 459
Genere: Drama
Country: Japan
Duration:
Plot tags:
Similar in 77%
Antique: Western Antique Cake Shop (2001)
Plot Summary:
This story is about four men who work in a confectionary. Tachibana Keiichiro (Shiina Kippei) is the owner; Ono Yusuke (Fujiki Naohito) is the superb baker that has a mysterious and mesmerizing aura; Kobayakawa Chikage (Abe Hiroshi) is the waiter and close bodyguard of Tachibana; and last but not least is Kanda Eiji (Takizawa Hideaki), the ex-boxer who loves cake so much that he becomes a waiter at 'Antique'. This is a refreshing, yet heartfelt comedy about the 4 very unique personalities that work until the wee hours of the night at the small confectionary. The series follows the romance, family life, and most importantly friendship that these 4 men from different generations experience. This is a confectionary with a "flavor" not like most. Located in the middle of an ordinary residential area, "Antique" stays open until 2 a.m. Every single thing in the shop is antique, in fact even the sherry glasses that water comes in look like they would cost 50,000 yen. On top of this, all the sweets that are sold are unbelievably delicious. The thing that is most peculiar about "Antique" though is that all 4 of the men that work here are very handsome, and each has an interesting past. Those that frequent the store also have a story to tell. Edited Excerpt from JDorama.com.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 85
Genere: Drama
Country: Japan
Duration:
Plot tags: dorama
Similar in 86%
TEPPACHI! (2022)
Plot Summary:
The protagonist Hiroshi Kokusho was an ace rugby player in his high school days attracting national attention, but his forceful play led to an injury. Condemned by his teammates and becoming isolated, he retires. After graduation, he lives on his own but fails to get a regular job, living a dizzying, carefree, day-to-day life. One day, after getting involved in a fight leads to the point of getting the police involved, he is fired from his job at a construction site and is evicted from the apartment he lives in for nonpayment of rent, leaving him at complete loss. Then a man comes to him and says, “let me introduce a job that's perfect for you!” “A dormitory and three meals included! So perfect for your physical strength which you are so proud of!” The job is in fact at a “Ground Self-Defense Force” which protects the peace and security of the country….
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 10
Genere: Drama
Country: Japan
Duration:
Plot tags: dramatic, exciting, serious
Similar in 88%
Sexy Central (2019)
Plot Summary:
In the bustling center of Hong Kong, five women reckon with betrayal, unrequited love and other matters of the heart.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 8
Genere: Drama
Country: Hong Kong
Duration:
Plot tags:
Similar in 89%
Voice (2009)
Plot Summary:
A group of five medical students take on the task of conveying the "voices of the dead." Kaji Daiki fails to get into a popular heart surgery seminar but is somehow accepted into a seminar on forensic pathology. When he approaches professor Sagawa and asks him why he ended up in the seminar, Sagawa challenges him by asking why he wants to study heart surgery. Daiki replies that medicine is meaningless after the heart stops, but Sagawa counters that medicine also applies to the dead. And so, together with fellow students Ryosuke, Kanako, Teppei and Akira, Daiki begins to explore the mysteries of death.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 84
Genere: Drama
Country: Japan
Duration:
Plot tags:
Similar in 81%
The Red Thread (2008)
Plot Summary:
Mei has been in love with Yuya all her life. They've grown up together. But when they reach their second year of middle school, Yuya suddenly professes his love for her older sister, Haruna.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 152
Genere: Drama
Country: Japan
Duration: 106 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 80%
One of the Boys (2023)
Plot Summary:
The socially awkward Lau goes on the traditional Man Camp with the provincial town boys to prove that he's a "real man". But, things get tricky when he develops feelings for another boy on the trip.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 184
Genere: Drama
Country: Denmark
Duration:
Plot tags: queer cinema
Similar in 77%
Youth (2018)
Plot Summary:
When five college students share a house, they also share their experiences with life and love. Han Yi Tong, Ni Jin, Chen Chen Chen, Lin Xiao Chun and Zhang Sheng Nan are roommates who share a house while attending the same university. Can they support each other through the many challenges they face?.
IMDB Rating: 8.3
IMDB Votes: 50
Genere: Drama
Country: China
Duration:
Plot tags:
Similar in 88%
Time Spiral (2014)
Plot Summary:
When Natsuki Aizawa was a child, she was kidnapped which left her traumatized. Natsuki grew up relying on her friend Kentaro Yuki. She now studies physics at a university. One day, she meets newly appointed professor Shuya Tatsumi. Afterwards, mysterious events continually happen around Natsuki Aizawa. Shuya is time traveller who travels between the future and the past.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 34
Genere: Drama
Country: Japan
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, suspenseful
Similar in 84%
Close Range Love (2014)
Plot Summary:
In high school, Sakurai Haruka, Mirei and Kanata are good friends whom everyone envies. The three of them believed their relationship would remain like this forever. Then Haruka’s stepsister Ririko suddenly returns from overseas. After several years away, she has become beautiful to the extent that classmates call her “goddess”. Although Haruka has often built walls around other people, Ririko deliberately gets close to him. One night, she barges in all of a sudden and starts to cry against his chest. “I have no where to go. You’ll let me stay here, right?” Haruka is baffled by his pushy stepsister, Mirei secretly loves Haruka and Kanata has become aware of Mirei. The distance between Haruka, Mirei and Kanata who had taken it for granted that they would always be close, starts to change little by little.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 434
Genere: Drama
Country: Japan
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, suspenseful, shoujo
Similar in 75%
Boys Over Flowers 2 (2007)
Plot Summary:
Hana Yori Dango Returns is a Japanese television drama series, broadcast on TBS in 2007. It is the sequel to 2005 Hana Yori Dango TV series, based on Japanese shōjo manga series, Boys Over Flowers, written by Yoko Kamio, and followed by movie adaptation Hana Yori Dango Final.
IMDB Rating: 7.8
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama
Country: Japan
Duration: 45 min
Plot tags: dorama, sentimental, romantic, humorous, cynical, shoujo, anime, comic
Similar in 76%
Otomen (2009)
Plot Summary:
Otomen is a Japanese romantic comedy manga by manga artist Aya Kanno, which began in Bessatsu Hana to Yume in late 2006 and concluded on November 26, 2012. The series has been adapted into a live action TV drama. The series has been one of the best-selling shōjo properties in America, since being licensed by Viz Media. The series is also licensed in France by Delcourt and in Spain by Planeta DeAgostini.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 64
Genere: Drama
Country: Japan
Duration:
Plot tags: dorama
Similar in 87%
Life (2007)
Plot Summary:
Adapted from Keiko Suenobu's manga "LIFE," this drama delves into the dark side of high school life. The story focuses mainly on bullying, but the manga also touches on subjects such as self-mutilation, suicide, and rape. Kitano Kii stars as Ayumu Shiiba, one of the students bullied by a group of classmates led by Ayumu's former friend, Manami Anzai (Fukuda Saki).
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 166
Genere: Drama
Country: Japan
Duration: 36 min
Plot tags: psychological, captivating, dorama
Similar in 89%
Tomorrow, Mom Won't Be Here (2014)
Plot Summary:
There are over 600 orphanages across the nation, housing approximately 30,000 children; Most of them had been abused by their parents. Maki, was placed into the orphanage "Kogamo no Ie", after her mother, Ryoka, was arrested and jailed. There she was handed over to the care of Kana, and also Sasaki, the eccentric caretaker of the home. Under Sasaki's management, the home is a calm and safe haven from all the madness of the real world. At the home, Maki befriends 3 other little girls, who all go by their nicknames instead of their real names. Piami who plays the piano really well, Bombi who came from a very poor family, and Post, who is the leader of all the kids.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 104
Genere: Drama
Country: Japan
Duration: 54 min
Plot tags: sincere, captivating, suspenseful, tear jerker, tearjerker