Dramas That Don't Promote Toxic Masculinity

The archetypes for characters in romance stories have been set in stone for as long as the term 'Hallyu Wave' has been in operation. The male lead will be prickly, sometimes downright cruel, but often will have a heart of gold. The second male lead, the one who's chances with the girl are about 0.000001%, is the sweet and caring one who's always there to listen to her. Look at some of the Hong Sisters dramas for proof - hell, even some of my favourite dramas aren't completely immune to such stereotypes (Thirty but Seventeen, Drinking Solo, Hana Kimi to name just a few). To be honest, I think these models are popular for a less-than stellar reason.

I was wrong! (Gangnam Beauty)

When I provided a mini-review of My ID is Gangnam Beauty in the summer of last year, I'll admit it was somewhat disingenuous. Opinions on the drama were split right down the middle, me favouring the side that screamed it was awful and offensive, but the review I wrote was non-committal. I wanted to avoid upsetting anyone. I actually never watched the first episode, which prompted me to re-watch the majority of the show and finally finish it. As for how I feel about it now... I've changed my mind. Gangnam Beauty is not a terrible drama - whilst I think it had trouble attempting to address every social issue it wanted to effectively, it was a damn good try.