I had second lead syndrome in these kdramas: - True Beauty - Cheese in the trap - Start up - School 2015: who are you - she was pretty - alchemy of souls (dont question me)
I’ve always questioned why it’s become such a staple in kdramas when you don’t see it half as much elsewhere. To me, it seems like one facet of the appeal is heightening the stakes of her love life as a narrative element, e.g. like a mystery or added plot element. Who she will choose adds some stakes to the otherwise smooth sailing love story bar external elements, ESPECIALLY if the romance is the central focus of the show. I also think another reason is absolutely the appeal of having multiple handsome men into you, with all the implications of vicarious living and FL audience stand in that has. It definitely has better narrative uses sometimes, if done well, for example in Hometown Cha Cha Cha which I felt had something to say with its SML. It’s a way for the FL to develop as a character if used right. Most of the time it feels extremely shoehorned in, though, which doesn’t help the story itself or people running out of patience with the trope. Including me, lol. EDIT: Marry My Husband uses this trope (as does the manhwa) but the show is so fantastic I am happy to forgive it. The SML there at least used partly to expand the main story which comes into play later (for those who’ve seen it, the letter).
ik seojun deserves better😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 when he cried i cried as well. i cried so much that my snot found its way to my mouth😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 still cant get over the trauma. As if my life was not enough to make me cry ......
altough i found ju kyung and suho amazing couple my seojun broke me but also made me laugh a lot♥ also true beauty bromance and trio actors, is one of the best things of kdrama history!! 2:55 lol love it!
My fav second lead will always be Han seo jun😭 sorry hwang in yeop, like he always ends up being the second lead bfr 😭 true beauty, 18 again, sound of the magic and why her. I want him to be the male lead sometime or imma just choose sl over ml always 🙂💜
I read somewhere quite a long time ago about why the second lead troop is still ongoing. A novel writter did respond in a insteresting way. She was saying it was to instill hope that 'Good man' (most of them are like puppy, sweet and gentle type of guy) are still available in the world. Because most of the time, the ML is taken in the end.
These "bromance" scenes remind me so much of Strong woman bok-soo, she thought the male lead was in love with the second male lead and wanted to steal him from the female lead cause the female lead was in love with the second male lead
Aaaaahg. The only second male lead trope I was ever fine with was the one from strong woman Do Bong Soon bc she did love him in the beginning, and devoted her whole heart to him. So watching him miss his chance felt more like a relatively satisfying "This is exactly what she went through with you :
okay no but listen, i didn't know what real 2nd lead syndrome was until i met choi siwon's character in she was pretty. I SUFFERED. HE SUFFERED. WE SUFFERED.
i started hating the second lead trope after i watched True Beauty, cause of my precious Han Seo Jun. But i like how in marry my husband, the second lead gets his own happy ending.
second leads exist so i could get inspiration to write fics! although in recent years i think second leads became more annoying (like in Itaewon Class or Witch's Mirror) and main leads less jerks, so i'm not getting upset anymore because of them, but still upset because of SLs from "My girlfriend is gumiho" and "She was pretty"
I really hate this shit about kdramas in every drama there must be love Triangle first Lead second lead bla bla 😂same thing in almost every drama like be real at least once