I’m curious, so here’s a quick poll: Which of these romantic kdrama staples is your least favourite?
A. The Wrist Grab
B. Lying to people “for their own good”
C. Men talking about sex and saying they have to “control themselves”
D. Making relationship decisions without consulting the other person

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    A. ….I really can’t stand it… -.-

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    Just one….

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    I feel like a haven’t seen C that much—kdramas tend to skirt around the subject of sex anyway—so I’ll go with A. It’s my biggest pet peeve, especially in newer dramas. In the past couple of years we have had great kdramas without wrist grabs and similar forceful behavior, so seeing them pop up again in new dramas makes me angry and sometimes sours me to the show. Especially when they try to make it romantic. Ugh!

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      C showed up most recently in Encounter/Boyfriend, which was especially disappointing because that show has generally been good about not sending archaic messages about relationships.

      Please tell me more about these Wrist Grab-deficient dramas you’ve watched. I’d love recommendations.

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        Oooh, that’s disappointing, although I’m not watching the show.

        For wrist grab-less dramas, the first that comes to mind for me is Because This Life is Our First, and it’s one I am 100% sure is devoid of wrist grabs because I have watched the episodes… too many times. Aggressive male behavior in general is shown to be what it is—a bad, terrifying thing, and not at all romantic.

        Just Between Lovers comes to mind next, but clearly you have already seen it! Hehe. The only wrist grab I recall is Moon-soo dragging Kang-doo into an ice cream shop. Hehehe.

        I personally don’t recall wrist grabs in I’m Not a Robot, but @vivanesca told me there are some… nevertheless, it’s such a great drama with fantastic female characters, it’s definitely still a must-watch.

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          Yes to all of this.

          BTLIOF was magical. I have mixed feelings about the last two episodes, but this drama struck a chord with me. I could talk about Se-hee and Ji-ho for years. Their relationship was thoughtful and respectful and unlike anything I’d seen in a kdrama up till that point. Not a single wrist grab in sight.

          JBL is another one of my treasures. Moon-soo was the coolest and bravest kitten I’d ever seen and I like how healthy their relationship was.

          INAR not only had Jia but Pi, a woman in STEM (like me!). I don’t remember any wrist grabs either, but I think it’s a great drama with healthy relationship dynamics (well, as much as is possible given the set-up of the show, lol).

          It occurs to me that one thing these shows have in common is that they all eschew the typical mean lead & nice second lead set-up in favour of kind heroes. And honestly, this is a trend I can get behind.

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      C was in WWWSK (which disgusted me to no end). Ugh. Ugh. Ugh. (but All of these make me ugh. then make me mad. then ugh again).

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        That’s why I decided not to watch WWWSK. Ugh, indeed. Whoever thought that was romantic?

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    D and B. If I have to choose, I hate D more.

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    E – A,B & D

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    This is really hard. I can’t choose.

    The wrist grab pisses me off every time I see it. I’ve made many a post on that. Oddly enough, I’m not as pissed as I used to be when it pops up which could mean that I’m getting used to it which is very very sad.

    Communication problems and breakdowns in general piss me off.

    C. It a surprisingly common theme in not just Korean entertainment but Chinese and Japanese entertainment as well. SMH.

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      The Wrist Grab is the bane of my existence. I don’t know who thought that would be romantic.

      C always makes me deeply uncomfortable because it’s based on the idea that all men are inherently sexually aggressive and they deserve a prize because they kept themselves from screwing you. It’s gross.

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    The wrist-grab is such a staple in rom-coms I flinch whenever I see it and maybe even scream “let her go!” occasionally at the screen. C also irks me the most out of all of these but I haven’t actually seen it in Kdramas, but maybe I just haven’t watched enough recently to notice.

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    C. or D. The third option doesn’t seem to happen much in K-dramas but have seen it in books and other shows/movies. I feel like option D. is just plain disrespectful to the other person.

    So out of these two, option D. (if you have to have one answer).

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    This made me laugh. If I were a superhero, those would be the pillars I stand by: t̶r̶u̶t̶h̶,̶ ̶j̶u̶s̶t̶i̶c̶e̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶A̶m̶e̶r̶i̶c̶a̶n̶ ̶w̶a̶y̶ hope, fluff and wokeness.

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    A with D a very close second. If someone grabbed me I’d punch them out.

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    E. All of the above

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    D. Although I do always wonder why people let themselves get dragged so much by A. I know, it’s just the writing but like… You don’t have to move?

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