If there’s one thing synonymous with being a fan of Korean rom-coms, it is crushing on the characters and falling in love with the way they love. With how attached we can get to these characters, it’s a pity that they’re not real. Here are 15 K-Drama male leads so perfect that they gave us unrealistically high standards for dating and relationships! Note: This list is not a ranking.
1. Hyun Bin - “Crash Landing On You”
Hyun Bin plays Captain Ri JeongHyeok in “Crash Landing On You”, a stern and upright North Korean commission officer who suddenly finds himself harbouring a South Korean woman, Yoon SeRi (Son YeJin), in his home, who quite literally falls from the sky and into his arms. Through their relationship, we see just how gentle of a sweetheart he is and, moreover, how deeply he cares for his lover. Ri JeongHyeok goes above and beyond to make sure SeRi is comfortable in a foreign land, even if that means risking his own life. For Captain Ri, breaching borders and breaking rules is nothing compared to the sheer joy of being able to see SeRi. The dedication he has towards his beloved is truly admirable.
2. Kim SeonHo - “Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha”
“Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha” presents one of the most fairytale-esque romances of modern times with the story of Hong DooShik (played by Kim SeonHo), the jack-of-all-trades of Gongjin and Yoon HyeJin (Shin MinA), an accomplished dentist who moves to the seaside village to open up her own practice. Despite his cheery personality, Hong DooShik holds deep trauma in his heart, which is healed by HyeJin. In turn, Hong DooShik is greatly supportive, kind, understanding, and patient towards HyeJin. He grounds her, brings her out of her shell, and fills her up with love and affection. Together they learn to paint their world with bright and beautiful colours. If that’s not a dream relationship, we don’t know what is!
3. Park SeoJun - “What’s Wrong With Secretary Kim?”
One of the most iconic romantic comedy K-Dramas of all time, “What’s Wrong With Secretary Kim?” has taken over the world for a reason. It tells the story of two star-crossed lovers whose fates were intertwined as children when they encountered a disturbing incident together. Back then, Lee YeongJoon (Park SeoJoon) promised Kim MiSo (Park MinYoung) that he would marry her when they grew older. Years later, MiSo is working as YeongJoon’s trusted secretary, and the two start to fall in love right when she decides to quit. Unbeknownst to her, YeongJoon has been looking after her ever since she joined the company, but she doesn’t know that her seemingly arrogant and haughty boss is the man she wanted to marry as a kid. Park SeoJun as Lee YeongJoon truly set the bar way too high for romantic relationships, especially with his unrelenting love for Kim MiSo and the way he would do anything just to see her smile.
4. Kim SooHyun - “My Love From The Star”
When your lover leaves his entire planet just to be with you, you know it’s real. Kim SooHyun plays Do MinJoon in “My Love From The Star”, an alien being who came to the Earth from the star KMT 184.05 during the Joseon Era. After hundreds of years, he gets involved with a moody actress named Cheon SongYi (JunJiHyun), and the rest is history. Do MinJoon is the only one who can handle Cheon SongYi’s temper, and also the only one Cheon SongYi shows her real self to. He is fiercely protective, reassuring, and passionate and only has eyes for her. Besides the fact that he is very much an alien, a lover like this is quite otherworldly.
5. Ju JiHoon - “Princess Hours”
The OG royalty AU of K-Dramas, “Princess Hours”, starring Yoon EunHye, Ju JiHoon, Kim JeongHoon, and Song JiHyo, was a global sensation at the time of its airing and continues to be a classic. Ju JiHoon plays Crown Prince Lee Shin in the drama, giving us all the butterflies we could possibly imagine. Lee Shin may be as noble and regal as it gets, but he craves freedom and true happiness just like anyone else. The way he falls in love with Shin ChaeKyeong (Yoon EunHye) is not only heart-fluttering but unbelievably dreamy. He is someone who is always on his queen’s side and doesn’t hesitate to stand up for her, no matter the consequences. Now, that’s what we call a Prince Charming.
6. Lee MinHo - “The Legend Of The Blue Sea”
When talking about K-Drama male leads who are responsible for the impossibly high standards we now have for romance, Lee MinHo is a name that could fill up a whole list. However, for the sake of concision, our one pick is Heo JoonJae from “The Legend Of The Blue Sea”. Playing the dual role of Kim DamRyung, a dignified magistrate in Hyupgok, and a fatally charming con artist, Heo JoonJae in Seoul, Lee MinHo’s tryst with parallel universes is as whimsical as it gets. He is in love with a mermaid in both worlds, who he fondly names Sim Cheong (Jun JiHyun), and the way he treats her with such respect, adoration, and tenderness, makes us fall head over heels for him more and more with each episode. Even his jealousy is adorable!
7. Kim JaeUck - “Her Private Life”
The embodiment of a walking green flag, Kim JaeUck as Ryan Gold in “Her Private Life” is the most wholesome, sincere, and romantic boyfriend one could ever ask for. He’s so refreshingly unproblematic, mature, and straightforward that it leaves ample scope for us to see the couple in love rather than spending more than half of the episodes navigating misunderstandings due to lack of communication. He doesn’t hold back from expressing his feelings honestly, is an attentive listener, and genuinely respects Seong DeokMi’s (Park MinYoung) love language. With a name like Ryan Gold, we’re not surprised that he is the gold standard for romance.
8. SF9’s RoWoon - “She Would Never Know”
“She Would Never Know” is a simple love story about a woman who doesn’t want to date younger men and a younger man who changes her mind. However, because it is so simple, we get to zoom into the intricacies of their relationship, the subtle details of falling in love, the excitement of finding the one, and the rousing desire to stay together till the end of time. RoWoon walks right out of a manhwa as the persistent, charismatic, and warm-hearted Chae HyeonSeung, who has nothing but oceans of love and adoration for Yoon SongAh (Won JinA). He stands by her through thick and thin and respects her choices at every step of their relationship. He’s good with kids too! Talk about husband material.
9. Jung HaeIn - “One Spring Night”
Jung HaeIn is one of those actors who could make us fall in love with even the most morally grey characters. So, when he played the patient, reliable and sincere Yoo JiHo, we knew it was game over for us. Jung HaeIn has us tied around his finger, and we’re not complaining! Yoo JiHo is the definition of what a soulmate is supposed to feel like. His fictional existence is a constant reminder for us to never settle for less than what we deserve, which is someone as loyal, compassionate, and doting as Yoo JiHo.
10. Kang TaeOh - “Extraordinary Attorney Woo”
The latest addition to this list is the character that has been living in our minds rent-free lately, Lee JunHo, played by Kang TaeOh in “Extraordinary Attorney Woo”. You have to have saved a country in your past life to be blessed with a significant other as caring, endearing, and precious as JunHo. It almost feels like Woo YoungWoo (Park EunBin) and Lee JunHo were tailor-made for each other. He admires her excellence and unique perspective, and she can be herself with him without any reservations. Lee JunHo is a safe space, and that is exactly what a partner should be.
11. Song JoongKi - “Descendants of the Sun”
The gateway K-Drama for millions of fans all over the world, “Descendants of the Sun” was a cultural reset. Song JoongKi plays Yoo ShiJin in the drama alongside Song HyeKyo’s Kang MoYeon, and their romance is out of this world. In war or in peace, ShiJin is always looking out for MoYeon, expressing his feelings clearly and decisively, and most importantly, sticking to his promises. He doesn’t beat around the bush, which makes him all the more attractive. After all, what could be more alluring than someone who wants you and isn’t afraid to let you know?
12. Lee JongSuk - “I Can Hear Your Voice”
A must-watch K-Drama if you want to be charmed out of your mind with some of the most memorable characters of all time is “I Can Hear Your Voice”, starring Lee JongSuk, Lee BoYoung, and Yoon SangHyun. Park SooHa, the male lead, played by Lee JongSuk, is as picture-perfect as it gets. His transparent, true-blue approach towards “noona” Jang HyeSung (Lee BoYoung) is so earnest and heartfelt that it will leave you squealing at the screen. If you start developing a colossal crush on Lee JongSuk after this drama, you can thank us then!
13. Ahn HyoSeop - “Business Proposal”
Another chaebol heir after our hearts, Kang TaeMoo from “Business Proposal”, played by Ahn HyoSeop with all the magnetism in the world, is setting our expectations too high for relationships. He would move mountains for Shin HaRi (Kim SeJeong) if that made her happy, so booking a famous food truck for a whole day is really no big deal to him. It is so heart-warming to see him understand his own feelings, come to terms with them and pursue his happiness with HaRi despite the adversities that we are not only impressed but also swooning. We all need an archaeopteryx in our lives!
14. ASTRO’s Cha EunWoo - “My ID Is Gangnam Beauty”
A list about fictional boyfriends that live in our imagination would never be complete without ASTRO’s Cha EunWoo. He has bewitched rom-com fans all over the world, and for good reason too! In “My ID Is Gangnam Beauty”, he plays Do KyeongSeok, the representative tsundere of the K-Drama world. However, even for a tsundere, he prefers not to complicate things with Kang MiRae (Im SooHyang) and doesn’t hesitate to say what’s on his mind. He’s thoroughly supportive and proud of MiRae and encourages her to be proud of her own self too. Now, that’s true love.
15. Ji ChangWook - “Melting Me Softly”
Finally, we could not possibly conclude without the luminous Ji ChangWook, who reigns in our hearts as the King of Romance. “Melting Me Softly” is arguably his most underrated K-Drama, and it certainly deserves more recognition. Ji ChangWook plays Ma DongChan, a passionate producer with an eye for the next best thing. In a series of events, he ends up being frozen in time for 20 years with Ko MiRan (Won JinA). When they finally wake up, the world has changed, and so has everyone around them. DongChan is the only one who understands MiRan, her sense of loss, her aspirations, hopes, and dreams, and does whatever he can to make sure that she can live the life she truly wants, regardless of her age. When someone is this perfect, it’s not our fault that we keep looking for a real-life Ma DongChan!
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