5 Things to watch for now that the Hallyu Ban has ended

Song Song couple hallyu ban lifted
Although it was never made official, the Hallyu ban was in place for over a year in China to restrict all forms of Hallyu, also known as the Korean wave, due to a tense standoff between the two countries over the deployment of the U.S. anti-missile system (THAAD) in South Korea. 

Fast forward to October 31 which also happened to be the wedding day of Korean power couple Song Joong Ki and Song Hye Gyo, an event covered extensively in China and the rest of the world, and it looks like the air has cleared along with this happy occasion (I mean, Zhang Ziyi was at the wedding too). 

Sure enough, reports such as 'China, South Korea agree to mend ties after THAAD standoff' and 'China, South Korea end year-long diplomatic feud over missile system' came trickling in from international news outlets like CNN and Reuters. I think it's safe to say that the Hallyu ban is over and as a fan girl, I'm kind of hoping for a few things...

Lay Zhang Yixing EXO hallyu ban lifted
1. Zhang Yixing Lay to come back with EXO. Given that he's been missing in action from all of the band's activities due to supposed schedules in China, maybe we can look forward to finally seeing Zhang Yixing take part in an EXO comeback. 

F(x) reunion hallyu ban lifted
2. While we're at it, how about an f(x) comeback too? Amber has been conquering Youtube, Luna has been singing solo and doing collabs, Krystal Jung was most recently a goddess in the k-drama Bride of the Water God and Victoria Song has been showing her versatility by venturing into Chinese dramas, movies and variety shows. I'd say it's about time for a reunion between the four ladies (and please, don't disband).

Lee Jong Suk and Zheng Shuang in Jade Lovers
3. Lee Jong Suk and Zheng Shuang in a drama together. Despite wrapping in 2016, the upcoming Chinese drama Jade Lover which served as a Korean-Chinese collaboration between Lee Jong Suk and Zheng Shuang was one of the dramas that couldn't air due to the Hallyu ban. Both leads are pretty big in their respective countries, and to put them in one drama as the main couple pairing? I'm in. 

Park Min Young Kim Tae Hee Hallyu ban lifted
4. Park Min Young and Kim Tae hee looking exquisite in ancient garb. Period dramas are often so loved due to their stunning visuals that range from lush sceneries to beautiful costumes, so it'll be a feast for the eyes to see Park Min Young in Braveness of the Ming and Kim Tae Hee in Famous Calligrapher Wang Xi Zhi.

Ha Ji Won Chinese movie ManHunt
5. Ha Ji Won's badassery in John Woo's upcoming action blockbuster ManHunt. She is part of a very international cast that also includes Zhang Hanyu, Fukuyama Masaharu and Qi Wei, yet there is no mention of her on the movie's official weibo page apart from glimpses here and there. Maybe now that the Hallyu ban has lifted, we'll get to see some actual promos of the actress.  

Oh Sehun Hallyu ban
Come to think of it, EXO member Oh Sehun was featured on the cover of the August Issue of Super Elle China as part of The Age of Influence campaign that also included Dilraba Dilmurat, Bella Hadid and Liu Haoran. Perhaps tension was already easing even then... 

Source: 1, 2, 3


  1. What is Zhang Yixing Lay’s first name? Going by the East Asian convention of family names before given names, is he Lay Zhang Yixing OR Zhang Yixing Lay?

    I have never been able to tell, and it drives me crazy

    1. Yixing is his first name and Zhang is his family name, Lay is his stage name. So it would be Yixing Zhang.

  2. Just want to shout out to Admins! Thank you so so so much for creating this awesome website/blog!!!! I am a Chinese-New Zealander, but I could never get into Cdramas because of the lack of English commentary. I always felt alienated because of the cultural barrier I feel, so I'm so glad to hear about cdramas through a more relatable channel. Would love to hear how you got into both Chinese and Korean dramas?

    1. aww thank you for the shoutout and support. I can definitely relate because I barely know anyone (in person) who enjoys c-dramas as much as I do. I got into k-dramas when I was in college, c-dramas much earlier because the parents (more like my dad) like to watch.. Have you found your way to c-dramas already or just starting to? I always recommend Nirvana in Fire though it depends if you like strategic dramas:)