The Hero We Had VS The Hero We Deserved
**Warning: Spoilers ahead for My ID is Gangnam Beauty, What's Wrong With Secretary Kim, Something about 1%, One More Happy Ending, The King: Eternal Monarch!
1. My ID is Gangnam Beauty
Do Kyung Suk played by Cha Eun Woo
 | My ID is Gangnam Beauty is a story of a girl who undergoes plastic surgery to transform herself from an ugly duckling after constant bullying. When she enters college, however, she runs into a boy who knew her before the surgery and does everything to avoid him in order to keep her secret. The boy she works hard to avoid is the male lead Do Kyung Suk who tops the list for being strongest in giving other girls who are not his female lead a cold shoulder (Ice cold). Kyung Suk is such a satisfying character to watch, specifically when he is straight-up cold to Hyun Soo Ah (second female lead) in a way that made it plain and clear that he didn't like her one bit. He, unlike 99% of the characters in the drama including the female lead herself, has the ability to see through Soo Ah's kind-hearted facade and is able to see her for the manipulative biotch she is. The interactions between Kyung Suk and Soo Ah are delicious to watch because they go along the lines of her trying to be friendly to him and him ignoring her. |
As a result of Kyung Suk's straightforwardness, most misunderstandings do not come from him but instead from the female lead's own insecurities. Kyung Suk knows how she looked before surgery and did not mind her before, nor does he mind it after. His ability to see people for who they are inside stems from his own personal experiences with his family. Kyung Suk likes her for who she is as a person and my future husband needs to be exactly like that.
2. What's Wrong with Secretary Kim
Lee Young Joon played by Park Seo Joon
What's Wrong With Secretary Kim is a story of an arrogant and sensitive rich chaebol whose secretary suddenly quits on him and thus goes on a quest to figure out the reason. Our male lead in the drama is the conceited and arrogant Lee Young Joon and convenient for our list, he does not like to be touched by anyone else aside from our female lead. Young Joon's traumatic experiences make him sensitive to the people around him. For that reason, he has never truly dated aside from fake publicity girlfriends who he is never alone with (one on Tuesdays and one on Thursday lol). One that we see specifically, Ji-Ran tries to be more but fails miserably and not without failing to notice that he gives secretary Kim special treatment. The reason Seo Joon never dates is that he has yet to meet anyone as perfect as he is in every way to meet his standards ha! |  |
Aside from his sensitivity to other women, Young Joon puts in the effort to gain secretary Kim Mi So's family approval as they are protective of her. He supports her growth and although reluctant to part with her professionally, accepts, and respects her decision. Furthermore, he spares no effort to impress her with grand gestures making him just the sweet guy to come across.
3. Something About 1 Percent
Lee Jae In played by Ha Seok Jin
 | Something About One Percent's male lead Lee Jae In played by Ha Seok Jin is a natural jerk to basically everyone aside from the female lead who will have none of his rudeness. Luckily in the list of everyone, he is a jerk to include the second female lead Han Joo Hee, his ex-fiance whose engagement with her ended after she refused to sign a prenuptial agreement. Joo Hee is definitely one of the more extremely clingy female leads who are out of touch with reality. |
Our male lead, however, doesn't hesitate to draw her back to her senses by plainly telling her he has better options than her, making it clear that he had no reason to start over with her, choosing the female lead right in front of her, and smacking her hand away from him when she touches him. When Joo Hee takes things too far by harming his female lead, Jae In is determined to make her pay even when the Dahyun (Female lead) is more forgiving.
Jae In is all about his female lead and has no patience or time for Joo Hee, which makes him boyfriend worthy. He is also very possessive of her (if you are into that sort of a thing) and detests her friendships with other males outside of her family. What makes him lovable is the fact that he always puts her into consideration even when he is sleep-deprived and busy with work. Lacking real connections, Jae In makes a lot of mistakes with Dahyun but also learns from his mistakes. As they say, an apology is a change in behavior.
4. One More Happy Ending
Song Soo Hyeok played by Jung Kyung Ho
One More Happy Ending's Song Soo Hyeok is actually the nicest guy on this list, but that doesn't mean he is so nice as to the point of acting like a noble idiot. Soo Hyun's focus is always on Han Mi Mo, his female lead and they are basically each other's best friends. When his parents devise a plot to get him together with a family friend So Eun who he turns her down both in front of her and his parents at dinner lol. |  |
When Mimo and So Eun meet for the first time in an awkward moment for Soo Hyun, he simply puts his arms around Mimo, making it known he was taken and happy. So Eun is clingy in more of a cute but still annoying way as she moves into the same apartment complex as his and Mimo's, but he makes it clear of his disapproval for the move. A positive, however, about her being around the couple is that she experiences their public displays of affection which hilariously they are not afraid to show her.
Aside from his straightforwardness to So Eun, Soo Hyeok is a caring boyfriend and friend to Mimo and puts himself in a line of fire several times to make sure she is not hurt. It seems to be the theme of the drama that he is constantly coming to her rescue, and even while going through struggles himself, he still worries about her well-being.
5. The King: Eternal Monarch
Yi Gon played by Lee Min Ho
 | The King Eternal Monarch's Yi Gon is head over heels for his female lead Jeong Tae Eul starting at a young age and even before he meets her. This sadly gives no other women a chance with the Kingdom of Corea even if that woman is an intelligent and beautiful young Prime Minister Goo Seo Ryung. Yi Gon makes the lines clear between He and Goo Seo Ryung that they have a professional relationship and gets angry when she crosses the line. |
He is last on this list because he allows for rumors to flow about how they are a perfect match and also allows opportunities for a photo op that made them appear closer than they actually were in the media. He is forgiven though because he stops this as soon as he officially meets Jeong Tae Eul in person. From then on, he does not hide his affection towards her to the prime minister. Goo Seo Ryung makes multiple attempts to flirt with Yi Gon which he shuts down each time claiming himself to be for another woman. A man after my own heart.
What makes Yi Gon a great boyfriend is that he makes his leading lady and her safety a priority second to saving the world. The man little travels through worlds to get back into her arms, and that is not me being just poetic. He even declares to the public that she was his queen (awwws).
Editors: BrightestStar (1st editor) & Jojo (2nd editor)
