The rising popularity of Asian dramas has taken the world by storm! These shows provide an escape from reality and into the heart-warming stories of first loves, school crushes , and more. Many people don't necessarily resonate with these sometimes too-good-to-be-true storylines, but still find much-needed comfort via a good hours-on-end binge! So, here are 5 must-watch romance C-dramas on Netflix!

1) When I Fly Towards You

Length: 1 season - 24 episodes (30min each)

Themes: high school romance, youth, first love

When I Fly Towards You is a fun, light-hearted high school 'she fell first, but he fell harder' themed series. It covers the classic 'smart, quiet boy + innocent, goofy girl' trope between Zhang Lurang, an insecure, highly-praised genius, and Su Zaizai, a carefree girl who keeps 'bumping into' the school's academic prodigy. The show brims with wholesome and adorable moments of first love and the spunky shenanigans of school life. With many different characters within the main cast, multiple romances occur simultaneously, leaving you rooting for all of them to succeed!

Although this show does not really showcase much deep, emotional, tear-wrenching drama, it makes up for it with moments that have you grinning like a lunatic at their relationship development and the slow realization of feelings.

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2) Hidden Love

Length: 1 season - 25 episodes (45min each)

Themes: childhood crush, slow-burn romance, family ties

This show has got people swooning through all 25 episodes. Hidden Love touches on the very relatable feeling of having a huge crush on your sibling's bestie. In this case, Sang Zhi is absolutely obsessed with Duan Jia Xu, her older brother's schoolmate who often visits to play video games.

He's well-mannered, smart, and good-looking, so what's not to like? As she grew up, her feelings for Jia Xu gradually developed, but never turned into an actual relationship. When Sang Zhi decided to enroll in a university in the same town as Jia Xu's workplace, however, their relationship deepened and evolved into something much more than 'a crush on my sibling's BFF'.

As a couple with a larger age gap than most in the C-Drama universe (5 years), they face Sang Zhi's concerned parents and very judgmental brother but manage to convince everyone of their perfectly healthy relationship!

3) Lighter & Princess

Length: 1 season - 36 episodes (45min each)

Themes: college romance, enemies to lovers, academic rivals, second chances

This one's for all the deep, complicated, emotional drama-loving viewers out there. It personally got me tearing up many, many times. Out of all the shows in the list thus far, Lighter & Princess probably has the most elaborate and intricate plot, but for the sake of this article, here's the gist of it:

Li Xun is a prodigy programmer uninterested in anything but coding and personal financial stability. Zhu Yun is a friendly, docile girl who is extremely conflicted with Li Xun's arrogant and disinterested behavior. As she continues to investigate the meaning behind his nature, both sides grow closer and more understanding of each other. As their romance progresses, they face many life-altering incidents (illness, family disapproval, prison...) that put their true feelings to the test.

4) Put Your Head On My Shoulder

Length: 1 season - 24 episodes (45min each)

Themes: college romance, opposites attract, roommates/enemies to lovers

Here's another light-hearted, adorable romance between an academic genius and a rowdy, loud, annoying (?) girl. After being forced to share an apartment due to an arrangement made by their mothers without prior notice, both Situ Mo and Gu Wei Yi find each other insufferable. Situ Mo is obsessed with 'luosifen', stinky river snail noodles, and is messy and chaotic; Gu Wei Yi sees everything from a scientific POV and is rigid and uptight.

With extremely contrasting personalities and interests, both of them despise the other but have one thing in common: their originally fully planned-out lives have been disrupted and become uncertain and confusing. Situ Mo is about to graduate and has no career plan whatsoever and Gu Wei Yi's life is being thrown off the rails by this riotous roommate of his.

Unfortunately, there's no English subbed trailer for the show on YouTube, but you can watch the trailer by clicking on the heading. This will direct you to the MyDramaList site where you can watch the official trailer! The same can be done for the other shows.

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5) The First Frost

Length: 1 season - 32 episodes (45min each)

Themes: love and longing, second chances, melancholy

The First Frost is the most recently aired series in this list (2025!). It's adapted from a Chinese novel written by Zhu Yi who happens to be the author of Hidden Love as well! In the original novels, The First Frost is actually the sequel to Hidden Love with the main connection between the 2 stories being the male lead, Sang Yan is the older brother of Hidden Love's female lead, Sang Zhi. But don't worry, it's perfectly fine to watch The First Frost without having watched Hidden Love beforehand as both stories stand on their own.

Sang Yan and Yi Fan are former schoolmates who, through various misunderstandings, never managed to properly express their romantic feelings for each other. Many years after graduation, Yi Fan is an independent journalist, whilst Sang Yan is a manager of a bar. Needing a place to live after moving back into the city, Yi Fan becomes roommates with Sang Yan where, due to close proximity and frequent interactions, their unresolved emotions from high school start to kick back in, marking the start of a wholesome, second-chance love story!

Whether you love heart-warming stories like Hidden Love, nostalgic high school romances like When I Fly Towards You, or playful banter and emotional second chances in The First Frost, these C-Dramas are sure to hit the spot for all the romance delulus out there! Each drama has its own unique charms and array of characters that'll have you laughing, crying, and swooning till no end. So, if you're looking for your next binge-worthy romance series, why not give these a go?

Let me know your thoughts or other recommendations in the comments! Thanks for giving this article a read!