The Hero We Had VS The Hero We Deserved
Epic love is the type of love that is one in a million, the Cleopatra and Antony type of love, the titanic love, Romeo and Juliet die together love. Once in awhile a drama comes along that blesses us with such romance that captures the audience's hearts domestically and internationally alike. While Korean dramas are abundant in romances, not all romances are created equal. Some experience a tireless journey of tribulation but conquer all with their love in the end. I have listed my top 10 favorite epic loves in a Korean drama.
WARNING THIS ARTICLE CONTAINS SPOIlERS
You Who Came from the Stars's Cheon Song Yi & Do Min Joon
Cheon Song Yi and Do Min Joon stole our hearts in 2013 when a starlet fell for an alien posing as a college professor while stranded on planet earth. The romance between the two start with bickering as always but I very much enjoyed the fact that for the majority of the show it was the female lead who chased the male lead. Mixed with some cute family interaction and the female lead's overdramatic ways as well as the danger looming around the couple from a mysterious figure. Love certainly becomes complicated when it is between two different species and that is exactly where the epicness of their loves stems. Imagine being born two literal worlds apart, finding your way to each other, and falling in love? That to me is a definition of soulmate. Their love spans years and planets, and above all, they have the most romantic and epic reunion embellished with the flashing paparazzi lights.
Chicago Typewriter's Han Se Joo & Jun Seol
*WARNING, THIS SECTION CONTAINS A MAJOR SPOILER*
My heart is very sensitive in discussing anything Chicago Typewriter. Even the epic love story between Han Se Joo and Jun Seol still has my heart tender. The two leads knew each other in their past lives as they fought together as part of a rebellious gang against the Japanese occupation in Korea, so we already know we are in for a bucket of tears. They meet again in the 21st century where Se Joo is a famous writer while Jun Seol is a veterinary physician and a huge fan of Se Joo. Their love story is hilariously complicated by the fact that a ghost is following them and needs their help to piece together what happened to him in the past.
Their past lives end in an epic tragedy and although there is no single doubt that they loved each other, their country came first and it remained that way till their last moments. Clearly, they are a match made in heaven in this aspect and soul mates as they are able to once again find each other after reincarnation.
Mr. Sunshine’s Choi Eugene & Go Ae Shin
Mr. Sunshine covers the same Joseon time period as Chicago Typewriter but only a few years earlier therefore once again its a love story that comes with a ton of tears. Personally, I detest romance triangles as they eat up too much of the plot, however, the love triangle (sometimes square and some times pentagon) in Mr. Sunshine is meaningful from the first episode and beyond. The male lead Choi Yoo Jin was born as a slave of the second male lead's family who commits a grave sin against him before Yoo jin escapes to the U.S. When he returns to Korea as Eugine he fatefully encounters the female lead who is engaged to the son of the family who wronged him.
The two have loyalties to different nations and must navigate through the politics of a Japanese takeover. In the end, he dedicates his life to her while she dedicates her life to her country. Theirs is a love spanning oceans, continents, and war but leaves the audience with no doubts that they love each other dearly. This is quite telling when the male lead decides to protect what she cares about with all of his might. I cannot imagine what could be more epic beyond this.
King2Hearts’s Lee Jae Ha & Kim Hang Ah
*Warning this section contains spoilers
King 2 Hearts is one of my favorite romances of all time. It is a story of a modern S.K Korean monarchy on a search for a princess to marry their rebellious prince and it seems to be the female N.Korean special forces soldier Kim Hang Ah. Our leads are surrounded by a conspiracy to prevent them from uniting the two Koreas and the baddies will stop at nothing. What makes their love epic I would say is partially the fact that they both were born in very politically influential families and also their union could potentially unite the peninsular into one nation.
The obstacles that our leads go through are absolutely no joke especially because the bad guy is not your typical Korean drama baddie. He is straight-up evil to the core and he commits some atrocities throughout the drama. Their love perseveres all and unlike the other dramas on the list, they are equally dedicated to each other as they are their country which helps them come out on top standing stronger.
What I really liked was that our male lead was very flawed early on and our female lead was strong and knew not to deal with his B.S. He pulls an epic romantic gesture to get her back and maintains his senses the rest of the drama. Above all, they make an epic power couple.
Goblin’s Kim Shin & Ji Eun Tak
Theirs is a love that transcends time and I guess magic? The sole purpose of female lead Ji Eun Tak's existence is to end the curse placed on male lead Kim Shin as his bride. Already you can tell that it is going to be a love of epic proportions! Kim Shin who is a 300-year-old goblin saves a pregnant woman from death (or brings her back to life), the child born becomes his bride destined to end a curse placed on him by God for killing many people. (Tbh their love is my least favorite)
When they meet Eun Tak is an 18-year-old teenager dealing with neglect and abuse but magically finds solace in the goblin who keeps appearing whenever she blows a candle. The two fall in love and therefore begins the angst of the meaning behind her duties as his bride. Theirs is a love that spans across time and burdened by a curse and prophecies. Fortunately, it has a happy ending definitely worth the watch.
The King: Eternal Monarch’s Yi Gon & Jung Tae Eul
The King: Eternal Monarch is a love story that spans across time and different universes. King of the Kingdom of Corea, Yi Gon is rescued by a mysterious figure at a young age and all we know about his hero is that they drop the police ID of detective Jung Tae Eul, our female lead. Fated to be wouldn't you say? What is more interesting is that there is no such person and her unit does not exist in his world. He is only able to find her after crossing through a gate to another universe and fatefully she is his first encounter. Of course, surrounding our leads and their romance is a conspiracy and dead bodies falling in large numbers.
Yi Gon and Tae Eul's love must fight the fact that he has monumental responsibilities as King and she belongs in a different world. Our determined Yi Gon crosses through time and many universes to find his way to her and that alone is just epic.
Moon Embracing the Sun’s Lee Hwon & Heo Yeon Woo
*Warning this section contains spoilers
The Moon Embracing Sun's Yeon Woo and the crown prince's love still tugs at the heart. Theirs is a love that spans years of life and death. I remember the time this drama aired both international and domestic audiences were a buzz especially because the young actors' Yeo Jin Goo and Kim Yoo Jung did such a great job. In the drama, the royal family holds a princess selection for the crown prince Lee Hwon who falls for Yeonwoo and to his delight is exactly who is chosen. The young leads are as sweet as sugar can be. However, the dangers of politics separate the young married couple. They meet again drawn to each other and unable to recognize one another.
What makes their love epic is the fact that not only are they married at a young age and separated, they find each other once again and fate cannot be intervened the second time. Now that is epic!
Crash Landing on You’s Ri Jung Hyuk & Yoon Se Ri
Personally, Crash Landing On You was not my cup of tea, however, I will admit that the romance between the leads was certainly epic. As they are both Korean, the Male lead a soldier from the North, and the female lead an heiress from the South. The two come to a fateful or maybe coincidental encounter when she experiences a windstorm that blows her all the way to the north where he happens to be patrolling.
Theirs is a clear Romeo and Juliet love where they cannot be together but cannot fight off their feelings. As if their nationalities and statuses are not already complicated, they have to fight off the bad guys who are out to eliminate them.
Queen In Hyun's Man’s Choi Hee Jin & Kim Bung Do
Queen In Hyun's Man is a story about a scholar who time travels from the Joseon dynasty to the modern times and runs into an actress who is coincidentally playing the role of a Queen that he is trying to save in real life. Fated right? Anyway, the two really go through it, not only are there baddies in Joseon, there is a jealous ex-bf in the 21st century and an overprotective best friend/BFF, not to mention living life years apart. Love, as usual, conquers all and our leads end up in a happy ending.
W’s Kang Chul & Oh Yeon Joo
*WARNING, THERE IS A SPOILER IN THIS SECTION
W is the story of a doctor who transmigrates into a comic book illustrated by her father. The male lead of both the drama and comedy is a celebrity C.E.O and genius who is under attack by a mysterious man and thus the two go on a mission to get him out of danger and take down the bad guy. It's an epic love only missing someone who ends up in a coma because it certainly has amnesia and fake marriages. Theirs is quite a doozy and a little too over the top in obstacles for my liking but countered by a plethora of swoon-worthy moments and is epic nonetheless.
What are some of your favorite epic romances?
