The 14 Best Taiwanese Dramas for Dramatically Better ...

In this post, we cover the 15 best Taiwanese dramas available. ... By Sheena Dizon and Meredith Kreisa Last updated: September 23, 2022 ... Home»ChineseLearningResources»The14BestTaiwaneseDramasforDramaticallyBetterChineseListeningSkills BySheenaDizonandMeredithKreisa Lastupdated: September23,2022 The14BestTaiwaneseDramasforDramaticallyBetterChineseListeningSkills It’snosecretthatChineseshows and Chinesedramas aregreattoolstohelpyouflexyourlisteningskills. Taiwanesedramas(alsocalledTDramaorTWDrama)arenodifferent! Ifyouwanttofine-tuneyourChineselisteningskillsthefunway,there’snothingquitelikeTaiwanesedramastobinge-watchyourwaytowardsfluency. Hereare15ofthebestTaiwanesedramasforChineselearners!  Contents 1.下一站，幸福(Autumn’sConcerto) 2.真愛趁現在(Love,Now) 3.極品絕配(ThePerfectMatch) 4.真愛找麻煩(InbornPair) 5.後菜鳥的燦爛時代(RefreshMan) 6.兩個爸爸(TwoFathers) 7.小資女孩向前衝(OfficeGirls) 8.命中注定我愛你(FatedtoLoveYou) 9.海豚湾恋人(AttheDolphinBay) 10.王子變青蛙(ThePrinceWhoTurnsIntoAFrog) 11.原来是美男(FabulousBoys) 12.摩登新人类(NewModernPeople) 13.蓝球火(HotShot) 14.翻糖花园(FondantGarden) WhyWatchTaiwaneseDramas? TipsforLearningChinesewithDramas Download: ThisblogpostisavailableasaconvenientandportablePDFthatyou cantakeanywhere. Clickheretogetacopy.(Download) 1.下一站，幸福(Autumn’sConcerto) Available:Netflix In“Autumn’sConcerto,”alawstudentfallsforayoungwoman,whohasplayedthepianoforhimregularly.However,hismotherdoesn’tapproveoftherelationship. Whentheyoungmanhassurgerytoremoveabraintumor,heloseshismemory,neverknowingthathistrueloveispregnant. Sixyearspass,andfatebringsthetwoloversbacktogetherinaruralvillagewheretheyoungwomannowliveswiththeirson. TheLanguage: Thelanguageusedismostlyconversational,buttherearesomecourtroomscenesandmusic-relatedcontent,soyou’llalsohearsomevocabularyrelatedtothesethemes. 2.真愛趁現在(Love,Now) Available:Netflix|RakutenViki ThePlot: Thisstorystartsoffwithaworkaholicbeingforcedtotakeavacation,afterbeingtrickedintobelievingshehadterminallivercancer. Whenshefinallyreachesherdestination,sheseekssolacefromastranger.However,thatstrangerturnsouttobesomeoneshehadmetinthepast,andsomeonewhohasbeeninlovewithhereversince. Thingsareallfineanddandyuntiltheybothfindoutthetruthabouttheprank. TheLanguage: Thetwomaincharactersareworkaholics,thusbusinessChineseisprettycommon.Casualconversationsalsooccurinandoutofthebusinesscontext. 3.極品絕配(ThePerfectMatch) Available:Netflix|RakutenViki ThePlot: TwoworldscollideasfinediningclasheswithnightmarketeatsinthispalatableTaiwaneserom-com. Itallstartswiththehumblecurry.CelebritychefHuoTingEnelevatescurryandturnsitintohissignaturedishathisswankyrestaurant. NightstreetvendorWeiFenQingquestionshisperceptionoffood,asshefirmlybelievesthatthepricetagoningredientsdoesn’tdeterminetheoveralltasteofadish. Withopposingviewsoncooking,acurry-offensuesandsparksaromancebetweenthetwoculinaryexperts. TheLanguage: Giventhepremiseoftheshow,thelanguagefollowsthefoodthemeinseveralculinarycontexts.Thevocabularycoverseverythingfromstreetfoodtogourmetcuisine,kitchenelementstofoodcritiquing.  4.真愛找麻煩(InbornPair) Available:Netflix|RakutenViki ThePlot: “InbornPair”followsthetaleoftwopeoplethatareincompletelydifferentstagesoftheirlives. KeWeiXiangisthepresidentofaresortgroup,asuccessfulbusinessmanwishingforlove.Meanwhile,SongYiJieisfocusedonhercareerandisn’teventhinkingaboutmarriage. Littledotheyknowthattheircardshavealreadybeendealt,withtheirgrandparentsplayingmatchmakerbeforetheywereevenborn. Despitetheiroppositiontothisancienttraditionandeachother,thearrangedmarriageslowlybeginstoworkitsmagiconthecouple. TheLanguage: There’salotofmarriagetalkinthisdrama,withthediscussionofoldtraditionsinthemodernworld.Becausetheconversationsaremostlyaboutrelationships,expecttopicslikeaffairsandmindgamestocomeup. 5.後菜鳥的燦爛時代(RefreshMan) Available:RakutenViki ThePlot: ZhongYuTangwasoncetheoverachiever,receivingtopgradesinschoolandshowingthemostpromiseamongallherclassmates. Tenyearsaftergraduation,shefindsherselfcomplacentinherjob,butthatjobissuddenlythreatenedwhenhernewbossturnsouttobetheslackerfromschool. Nolongertheunderachieverthatsheonceknew,hepushesheroutofhercomfortzoneandchallengesherinunexpectedways. TheLanguage: AspartofthePRdepartment,ZhongYuTangmentionsPR-relatedvocabhereandthere.Thelanguageismostlybusiness-themed,withclientinteractions,talksofmovinguptheladder,officepoliticsandsoforth. 6.兩個爸爸(TwoFathers) Available:Netflix ThePlot: Awomangivesbirthtoababygirl,onlytoleaveherwiththetwoguysshesleptwith.Withnoconfirmationonthetruebiologicalfather,thetwomendecidetoco-parentanduniteasanunconventionalfamily. Evenwithtwodifferentparentingstyles,aswellastheconstantspeculationontheirrelationshipandsexualorientation,thetwofathersmanagewellwiththeirdaughter. TheLanguage: Sincethefocusismoreonfamilyratherthanthefathers’occupations,thelanguageisperfectforbeginners. There’salotofchattingwiththedaughter,thedaughterinteractingwithherteacherandfellowstudents,sothiselementaryschoollevelChineseiseasyenoughtofollowalongwith. 7.小資女孩向前衝(OfficeGirls) Available:Netflix ThePlot: It’stimeforQinZiQitolearnhownormalpeoplelive. HisfatherrunsJingShiDepartmentStoreandhastaskedQinZiQiwithworkingalow-leveljobtoprovethathe’saworthysuccessor.Foroneyear,hemustliveandworklikeanormalpersonandhidewhohereallyis. Whileworkinginthedepartmentstore,hemeetsShenXingReng.Althoughtheyclashinitially,theyeventuallyrealizethattheyhavefeelingsforeachother. TheLanguage: Thisserieswillgiveyouahealthydoseofgeneralvocabularyalongwithshoppingandfashionterms.Youmayalsoheardifferencesinthetypesoflanguageusedbypeoplefromdifferentbackgrounds. 8.命中注定我愛你(FatedtoLoveYou) Available:Netflix|RakutenViki  ThePlot: ThistitleissometimesalsotranslatedintoEnglishas“You’reMyDestiny,”andiscurrentlyonNetflixunderthatname.  Aneager-to-pleaseofficeassistantatalawfirmplansaromanticcruisewithherboyfriend.Duringthecruise,shefindsoutthatherboyfriendhascheatedonherandthathewasplanningtobreakupwithher. Elsewhereontheship,therichheirofacompanyhappenstobeonthesamecruisewithplanstoproposetohislong-timegirlfriend,butendsupbeingstoodupbyher. Afteranightofdrinking,thetwoofthemwakeupinthesamebed.Andsotheirlivesbecomeentangledintheconsequencesofthisonenightstand. TheLanguage: Thisisarom-comstyledrama—hilariousandscandalousatonce.Itcontainslanguageconcerningmarriage,sex,romanceandemotionsthatwouldberelevanttoanyChineselanguagelearner. Notethatthere’saKoreanremakeofthisshowbythesamename.BesuretolookfortheTaiwaneseversion!  9.海豚湾恋人(AttheDolphinBay) Available:Netflix  ThePlot: Thisisashowaboutstar-crossedloverswhohavetoovercomehurdlesandchallengestobetogether.  Twochildren,aboyandagirl,meetatanorphanageandbecomebestfriends.Beforetheybecomeseparatedandadoptedbydifferenthouseholds,theymakeapromisethatthey’llfindeachotheragain. Yearslater,thewomanisnowasingerwithablossomingcareerduetoherbeautifulandpurevoice.Shecrossespathswiththeman,whounbeknownsttoher,beginshelpingherbehindthescenes.  TheLanguage: It’satypicalrags-to-richesstory,butthehardshipsofthefemaleleadcharacterwillsurelymoveyoutotears. There’ssomuchtolearnfromthisseries,fromthemotivationalwordsaboutreachingyourdreamstocorporatelingoandChineseculture.  10.王子變青蛙(ThePrinceWhoTurnsIntoAFrog) Available:Netflix ThePlot: Thisdramatellsthestoryofarich,arroganthotelCEOandhisaccidentalencounterwithaworkingclassgirl.YeTianYuaccidentallyhitsShanJunHaowithhercar,causinghimtogetamnesiaandforgetwhoheis. Withhisbackgroundandupbringingerasedfromhismemory,ShanJunHaogetstoknowYeTianYuwithouttheimpedimentsofclassdifferences. However,whatwillhappentotheirbuddingrelationshipwhenhisfamilycomeslookingforhim? TheLanguage: Speechisratherfast-pacedinthisdramaandYeTianYu’sfamilymembersallspeakwithaslightruralaccent. Advancedspeakerswillenjoythevarietyofscenesthatoccurandthecorrespondingvocabulary—frombusinessterminologytoweddingproposalstomedicalandphysicalinjurywords,thisdramacoversthemall. 11.原来是美男(FabulousBoys) Available:AsianCrush|YouTube ThePlot: Thisisastoryaboutagirlwhodressesupasaman,whichwasquitethetrendinAsiandramasafewyearsback.  GaoMeiNuisanun-in-trainingwhenshe’saskedtostandinfortwinbrotherinapopularband.Sheagrees,thinkingthatitwillhelpthemreunitewiththeirlonglostmother. Shehastodisguiseherselfasaboyandkeepheridentityasecret,allwhilelivingtogetherwiththeotherbandmates. Theband’sleader,HuangTaiChing,isnothappywithherpresence.Thingsgetevenmorecomplicatedwhenhediscovershersecret.  TheLanguage: Ifyou’reinterestedinbandsandthelivesofidolgroups,checkthisoneout.Youcanlearnalotofvocabularyaboutmusic,fameandfriendship.It’saremakeoftheKoreandrama,“You’reBeautiful.”  12.摩登新人类(NewModernPeople) Available:YouTube ThePlot: Thisdramafollowseightyoungpeopleastheymovetoabigcitytotryandfollowtheirdreamswhilekeepingtheiridealsintact. ThetwomaincharactersareXiaHongGuo,acountrygirlwhowantstobecomeafashiondesigner,andXieFeiFanwhowantedtoworkasaprobonolawyerfortheunderprivileged,butendedupinthefashionsceneinsteadbecauseofhisfather. Pathsoverlapmostlyinconnectionwiththefashionindustry.Therearelovetriangles,workhurdlestoovercome,challengesofbecominganadultandmore. TheLanguage: Ifyou’reinterestedinlearningworkplacevocabularyandcorporatelingothenbesuretopickthisone.It’sgottheperfectbalanceofvocabularyconcerningthefashionindustry,romanceandofficepolitics. 13.蓝球火(HotShot) Available:YouTube ThePlot: Thisdramacentersmainlyontwobasketballplayers,oneexperiencedandoneunexperienced.  YuanDaYing,hasalwayslovedbasketball,butneverhadthechancetheplaybecauseofhisstrictgrandmother.Afterherdeath,hereadsanotefromherthatheshouldpursuehisbasketballdream. TheotherplayerisDongFangXiang,thebestbasketballplayeralive,butwhonolongerwantstoplay. Theycrosspathsinacollegewiththeworstbasketballteaminthecountry.Thecollegeteamisrevivedwithanewcoachandtheschool’ssportshistoryendsupgettingrewritten.  TheLanguage: Thisdramarevolvesaroundtheyouth’spassionforbasketballandthelengthsapersoniswillingtogojusttofightforhisbasketballtitleandtowintheloveofhislife.Sotherewilllotsofsports-relatedvocabularyforyoutolearn! 14.翻糖花园(FondantGarden) Available:YouTube ThePlot:  ZhengMiEnisaskilledpastrychef,butherfriendandboss,ChenAiLin,oftenpasseshercreationsoffasherown.WhenChenAiLingetssenttoSouthKoreaforabakingcompetition,ZhengMiEncomesalongaswell. Inthemeantime,PoXiHuan,aTaiwanese-Korean,isthechosensuccessorofhisfather’sbusiness,butisnotinterested.HisTaiwanesecousin,YanHanXiang,wouldmuchrathertakeoverthecompany.  PoXiHuanismeanttomarrythewinnerofthebakingcompetitionaccordingtohisfather’swishes.Thepathsofthefourpeopleendupcrossingandromanticfeelingsmakethingscomplicated.  TheLanguage: Thisseriesrevolvesaroundbaking,fromthemeasurementsneededtoperfectacaketothemanagementskillsneededtosavethebakeshop. It’stheperfectseriesforthosewhoareinterestedinlearninglanguageaboutfoodandtheparticularsinthekitchen.SincealotofittakesplacesinSouthKorea,there’samixofspokenKoreanandChinese!  WhyWatchTaiwaneseDramas? TaiwanesedramastypicallyuseMandarinChinese. ThismakesthemappropriateforChineselearners. SomeshowsareinTaiwaneseHokkienorincludeafewwordsinthislanguage,soyoumayalsogetalittleregionally-specificvocabularytossedinforgoodmeasure. They’repopularinternationally.TaiwanesedramasareexportedthroughoutAsia,includingChina,Japan,thePhilippinesandThailand.Notonlydoesthisshowthatthey’repopular,butitalsomeansthatyoumightbeabletofindfellowfanswhereveryoutravel. They’reengagingandfun!WatchingTVisinherentlyfun,andsinceTaiwanesedramashaveengagingplots,you’llbeattheedgeofyourseatwantingtoknowwhathappensnext.Themoreyouwatch,thebetteryourlisteningskillswillget,soTaiwanesedramasmightbethebestthingyou’veeverbinged. WatchingTaiwanesedramaswillexposeyoutoanotheraccent.Ifyou’relearningChinese,it’sgoodtofamiliarizeyourselfwithanarrayofaccents.TheMandarininTaiwanesedramasisstandardforthemostpart,butit’ssomewhataccented.Practicinglisteningtoadifferentaccent,likeTaiwanese,willhelpprepareyouforunderstandingmanydifferenttypesofspokenChinese. Theyofferplentyofmaterial.TherearealotofgreatTaiwaneseshowsoutthere.Mostonlylastforoneortwoseasons,sothey’renottoointimidating.However,theyalsofrequentlyhavearound20episodeseach,soifyoufindashowyoulike,youstillhaveplentytowatch.  Theyuseslangwordsanduniqueexpressions. Thisisoneofthebestthingsyou’lllearninChinesedramas.Therearejustsomethingsyoucan’tpickupinabookorclass.You’llgettounderstandtheircultureanduniqueexpressions.Youcanevenpickupa chengyu ortwo. Theyhavesubtitles.ReadingChinesewhilelisteningisoneofthebestwaystolearnanunfamiliarcharacter.Ithelpsyouretainthewordsbetterinyourmemory.AlmostallChinesedramashavesubtitles(andsomeoftheseEnglishsubtitlesifyouneedthem!),soyoucanfollowthedialogueswhilereadingthecharacters.  TipsforLearningChinesewithDramas Beforeyougetstarted,hereareafewtipsyouhavetokeepinmind. Pickyourfavoritegenre.Thepurposeofwatchingdramasistoinjectbitsoflearningintoyourdaywithoutcompromisingyourschedule.Theonlywaytoachievethisistoensureyouenjoywhatyou’rewatching.Therearesomanygenrestochoosefrom–romance,comedy,family,office,politicsandmore. Followthetonesandsounds. Mandarinhasanumberof intonationsyou’llhavetokeepinmind.It’llbetrickythefirsttimeyouhearthem,sobesuretofollowdramadialogueswell.Takenoteofthecharactersinthesubtitlesinconjunctionwithhowthey’repronouncedbythecharacters.You’llgetusedtomakingtheseconnectionsovertime. Takenoteofsentencestructure. Followthedialoguesandobservethesentencestructure.Takenoteofthewayacharacterisusedinoneparticularsentenceversusanother.There’snosinglewaytouseagivencharacter.You’llbeabletostartconversinginMandarintheproperway,notinbrokensentences. Keepanotebook.Practicewritingthecharactersratherthanjusthearingthemorseeingthemtrailacrossascreen.Ofcourse,there’sacertaincorrectordertothestrokesineachwordthat’sdifficulttoascertainmerelyfromlookingatit.ButstrokeorderisreallyonlyimportantifyouplanonlearningtowriteincursiveinChinese.Otherwise,producingthecharacteritselfisgoodenough. Pauseandreplay.Ifyoudidn’thearacertainphraseorwantedtoseehowaparticularwordiswritteninthesubtitles,thecapacitytopauseorrewindcanhelpyouout.Youalsohavethefreedomtotakeyourtimewithanepisodeandtogoatyourownpacetodigestandprocesswhat’sbeingsaid. YoucanfindmoreTaiwanesedramasonNetflix,RakutenViki,YouTubeandmore.  ToincreasetheeffectivenessofyourChinesestudy,thelanguagelearningprogramFluentU hasauthenticvideocontent,suchas trailersandquickscenesinitscollectionofmediaclips. Youcanwatchdramasceneswithinteractivesubtitlesandeventakequizzestotestwhatyou’velearned. YourChineselisteningskillswillimproveinnotime!  Download: ThisblogpostisavailableasaconvenientandportablePDFthatyou cantakeanywhere. Clickheretogetacopy.(Download) SheenaDizon SheenaisafreelancewriterbasedinShanghai.Growingupasathirdculturekid,SheenahadtolearnTagalog,EnglishandMandarinallatonce.Aftertravelingtheworld,she’sbackinChinaagain,rediscoveringMandarin,exploringotherlanguagesandsharinghertipswithfellowlearners. MeredithKreisa MeredithKreisaisalanguage-obsessedwriterwholovesexperimentingwithnewwaystolearnfaster. FrequentlyAskedQuestionsaboutFluentU Search PopularPostsCategories ChineseBeginnerTips ChineseCulture ChineseLearningResources ChineseLearningTips LessonsinLearningChinese ChineseVocabandGrammar ChineseGrammar ChineseSlang ChineseVocabularyWordLists EssentialChengyu Enteryoure-mailaddresstogetyourfreePDF! WehateSPAMandpromisetokeepyouremailaddresssafe Close