K-dramas are either too long or too short

I’ve been watching K-dramas for a long time, and I’ve noticed how the episode format has changed so much over the years.

Back then, I used to complain that episodes were too long, especially the older dramas with 50+ episodes. It felt dragged out and I would lose patience halfway through.

Then we moved into the 30-episode era, which felt slightly better, but I still felt some stories were stretched unnecessarily. After that came the 20 to 24 episode format, which I thought might finally be the sweet spot, but even then some parts still felt dragged or padded just to fill time.

Then the 16-episode standard became the norm, and at first I liked it because it felt tighter. But honestly, even in 16 episodes I sometimes felt like the pacing dragged in the middle or unnecessary subplots were added just to extend the story.

Now we’re in the 12-episode era, and I feel like I’ve come full circle again. Sometimes it feels too rushed and not enough is fleshed out, like characters or emotional moments don’t get enough time to breathe.

I guess I’m just stuck in this weird cycle where no matter the format, 50+, 30, 20, 16, or 12 eps, it never feels perfectly balanced. Either it drags or it feels rushed.

Curious if anyone else feels the same or if I’m just too picky at this point 💀