If “Dear X” Got You Hooked, You Should Watch These Dark Sociopath-Led K-Dramas Next!
- Disha Paul
- Nov 13, 2025
- 4 min read
If you are watching Dear X and found yourself staring into the screen, wondering, “How did Baek Ah-jin always stay so composed while manipulating everyone?”, then you’re primed for more dramas where the lead isn’t just flawed, they’re dangerously clever.
In Dear X, we meet a woman who studies people like chess pieces, controls situations with a cold gaze, and refuses to be typecast as “nice”.
Here are nine K-dramas that give us that same thrill: characters whose calm hides machinations, secrets, and manipulations. Think psychological games, hidden identities, moral collapse.
1. Flower of Evil (2020)
Baek Hee-sung appears to be the perfect family man. He cooks, takes care of his daughter, and supports his wife, who works as a detective. But the world doesn’t know he is living under someone else’s identity.
As a new violent case opens, his wife starts digging into the truth, and the clues slowly point back to him. The tension builds episode after episode. Is he protecting his family or hiding something they should fear?
Aired: July to September 2020
No. of Episodes: 16
Cast: Lee Joon-gi, Moon Chae-won, Jang Hee-jin, Seo Hyun-woo
Streaming Platform: Netflix, Viki (availability varies)
2. Mouse (2021)
A rookie police officer gets involved in a case that raises a frightening question. What if people are born with a gene that makes them incapable of empathy or guilt? While investigating a series of murders, he becomes obsessed with proving that psychopaths can be identified early.
His beliefs start crumbling when the truth comes closer to home than he expected. Every episode flips your assumptions, and nothing feels safe anymore.
Aired: March to May 2021
No. of Episodes: 20
Streaming Platform: Viki (region dependent)
3. Strangers from Hell (2019)
A young man moves to Seoul for work and rents a cheap, cramped dorm. At first, the strange roommates seem harmless. Then small things go missing, noises echo through the night, and an unsettling neighbour starts hovering around him with a smile that never reaches his eyes.
The building becomes a trap where every door feels like a threat and paranoia becomes his only companion.
Aired: August to October 2019
No. of Episodes: 10
Cast: Im Si-wan, Lee Dong-wook, Ahn Eun-jin
Streaming Platform: Netflix
4. Kill It (2019)
By day, Kim Soo-hyun is a gentle veterinarian who treats abandoned animals. By night, he eliminates high-profile targets as a contract killer. A detective searching for answers starts closing in on him without realizing the man she is chasing is the same one she is slowly drawn to.
The question hangs throughout the show: if a man kills for survival and not pleasure, does that make him a monster?
Aired: March to April 2019
No. of Episodes: 12
Cast: Jang Ki-yong, Nana
Streaming Platform: Viki (availability varies)
5. Psychopath Diary (2019 – 2020)
A timid office worker witnesses a crime, hits his head, and loses his memory. By accident, he ends up with the killer’s diary and becomes convinced that he is the serial killer mentioned in the book.
Meanwhile, the real killer watches him and becomes dangerously amused. The fear flips back and forth: who is actually more dangerous — the man who kills, or the man who believes he can?
Aired: November 2019 to January 2020
No. of Episodes: 16
Cast: Yoon Shi-yoon, Jung In-sun, Park Sung-hoon
Streaming Platform: Viki
6. It’s Okay to Not Be Okay (2020)
A mysterious children’s book author known for her cold personality meets a psychiatric caregiver who has spent his whole life swallowing his emotions. She is rumored to have antisocial personality traits, yet she understands him more deeply than anyone else.
Their connection forces them both to face childhood traumas that shaped them into who they are.
Aired: June to August 2020
No. of Episodes: 16
Cast: Seo Ye-ji, Oh Jung-se, Kim Soo-hyun
Streaming Platform: Netflix
7. The Glory (2022 – 2023)
Moon Dong-eun spent her teenage years being brutally tormented by her classmates. As an adult, she builds a plan so detailed that every person who hurt her becomes part of her revenge.
This isn’t a story of forgiveness. It is revenge that is cold, logical, and merciless. She doesn’t want an apology. She wants accountability.
Aired: 2022 to 2023
No. of Episodes: Part 1 and Part 2 (total 16 episodes)
Cast: Song Hye-kyo, Lim Ji-yeon, Lee Do-hyun
Streaming Platform: Netflix
8. Extracurricular (2020)
An honor student secretly runs an illegal business to fund his future. He keeps his two lives separate until a classmate discovers his secret and uses it as leverage. One decision pulls him into a world of crime where he has to choose between maintaining control and becoming someone he never thought he could be.
Aired: April 2020
No. of Episodes: 10
Cast: Kim Dong-hee, Park Ju-hyun, Jung Da-bin
Streaming Platform: Netflix
9. Hyper Knife (2025)
A former neurosurgeon loses her medical license after a tragic incident. Instead of giving up, she starts performing illegal surgeries and becomes entangled with her former mentor.
Their relationship becomes a psychological battle where one controls power through intelligence and the other through obsession. Genius, revenge, and moral corruption meet in one explosive storyline.
Aired: March to April 2025
No. of Episodes: 8
Streaming Platform: Disney+ (select regions)
Final Thoughts
Characters like Baek Ah-jin are addictive because they break the rules. They aren’t written to be good. They are written to be interesting.
Which one from this list are you watching next? Or have you already seen any of them? Share your pick in the comments!
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