Previous post, I said that I will post an entry on the cliches of Korean Dramas and I was so inspired to write, I decided that no time is better than now.

So let’s get started!

What you think you can find in a Korean Drama and you probably would:

1.       Korean drama characters get sick in the rain very easily.

Characters here fall sick so easily. They run in the rain, they walk in the rain, they get emotional in the rain, heck, they SING in the rain, what awaits them? Fever. Well, and also a very caring other lead, be it male or female, who will take care of him/her. If it’s not the rain that makes them sick then it is (refer to point number 2)
 

2.       Korean drama characters have poor immune systems.

This means that they get sick from working overtime or even a broken heart. Does that sound better?
 

3.       The male characters are superb at making u-turns.

Is it just me, or have you ever notice how the male leads get to make a u turn without any mishaps? Enters a guy chasing after someone, most probably the woman he loves. He gets a call on the phone or he calls someone to find out that he has been going in the opposite direction. Here comes the stunt. He will pull on the wheel and turn his car hundred and eighty degrees around and drive off in what we all hope is the correct direction this time. Yet almost always, I don’t notice the male leads’ awesome driving skills. I notice how the streets are always empty IN THE AFTERNOON (?) or how all the oncoming cars happen to be stopped by a red light. Their timing is so perfect.
 

4.       They are so noble.

Yes I know it’s sweet and all.. BUT CAN THEY STOP BEING SO NOBLE? They make sacrifices that no one understands. It will have been better if that sacrifice is required, but it’s not. They just make sacrifices because well, the scriptwriters think that the audience will be touched to tears and honestly, I think they just want to have more episodes. Think of how many more episodes they can add! An episode on a startling realisation, two on the male/female lead preparing to be noble and sacrifice themselves, and other one on resolving that.
 

5.       They are indecisive.

This does not apply to all but many. An example would be from a certain drama where the guy is sick (from what? Refer to point number 1) and does not want a girl to treat him. He lies on the bad with a broken heart and tells the girl to go. Conversation goes like this:

Guy: Go.

Girl: I won’t go. I will just stay to see if you are all right.

Guy: – raising his voice- I told you to go!

Girl: Turn around so that I can change the cloth on your forehead.

Guy: GO!

Girl: -sigh and turns around to go-

Guy: -turns around with amazing speed and grab the girl’s hand- Don’t go.

Girl: Let me go.

 

I am speechless. Is this a conversation to prove who is the more indecisive of the two? In that case, I think the judges will have a difficult time choosing.

 

6.       Bad guys always turn good.

Aahhh this one. All the evil characters will be forgiven; they will have retribution and they will be punished for whatever they have done. Ultimately, they will reconcile with the good leads and they will apologise. I like that though. Even if this phenomenon does not appear in real life, it’s good to know that at least karma exists in dramas.
 

7.       The couple has fun for a day and then someone mysteriously disappears.

This is in conjunction with point number 4. When someone decides to leave for a noble reason, usually the female lead, she will ask the male out for a date, much to his surprise. They will have fun the whole day, regardless of whether it’s the movies or picnics and what not. The date ends off with the male being very happy and the female secretly crying. The next day, the male will wake up to find that the woman he loves is gone.

 

8.       Not so much now, but still in fashion – cancer.

Yes this is not so much in present dramas but still quite popular. Whatever cancer you can name, you can probably find one drama that has a lead that ends up that way too. Leukaemia seems to be a popular choice.

 

9.       Second leads are the saddest people on earth.

Especially second male leads. They get their hearts trampled on by the first female leads in various ways ( I can imagine scriptwriters getting creative here!) but they still love them no matter what. Then they cry, and we cry.

 

10.   MISUNDERSTANDINGS

If there are no misunderstandings in a Korean drama, it’s not a Korean drama.

 

11.   Wrist grabs

Ever notice how the male likes to forcefully grab the female – by her wrist? Whether it is an argument, or to pull her somewhere, the male feels terrible if he does not reach out and throws his iron-clad fingers over her wrist. Go easy guy, wrist grabs are not the way to attract a girl. Unless the girl likes it :O

 

12.   They cry prettily.

NO Korean characters cry like us. You will never get to see one who cries with his/her eyes crossed, the face all scrunched up, the tears flowing into the mouth and the mucus going into his/her mouth. Instead, they let their tears well up gracefully, flow nicely in straight lines and allow the characters to look elegant, unlike us who look like a mess.

 

13.   Elevated status of either leads

Someone has got to be the richer of the two.

 

14.   EVIL persona

Hoho don’t you just love that? Without our darling evil someone, we have no drama. No Korean Drama.

 

15.   Piggybacks.

AND LASTLY, piggybacks. This is the truest of all. I swear, I have yet to see a SINGLE Korean drama that has no piggybacks. NOT A SINGLE ONE. And you wonder why all the girls in the world get daydreams of spraining her ankle so that her Prince Charming will come along and give her a piggyback home.

 

Yes and that’s the end of my list. I’m pretty sure I can think up of more but right now my brain will only churn out those cliches. Don’t misunderstand me though, I guess these cliches are what make women and girls all over the world fall in love with korean dramas. These cliches are what Korean Dramas are made up of.

Comment!