Talking about my favorite shards of glass moment, the one I like a lot is from 2521. It’s not like super romantic. But it was such an impactful scene for me. That moment of care he showed without making a big deal out of it. And it was so funny Moon Ji-ung was sitting in a chair, arms raised waiting to be picked up too.

About what I will defend. Hmmm. I think it’s either a back hug or standing behind one’s back, say in a crowded bus. There is something about this that makes me feel like ‘I got your back’. The back hug also to me feels more safe and comforting than an embrace. It gives you that safe space to be your self. Especially having someone stand behind you in a crowded place is a big YES for me. It’s gets me every single time.

I think I will go for the moment when someone is in need of an umbrella and one appears as if by magic often when they are already wet. Sometimes they are desperately sad and the person comes to say we are in this together so let me be your cover for now. I was reminded of the scene in My Holo love where he used his hands to cover her head but because he is a hologram it didn’t make a difference but it was a great example of ‘it’s the thought that counts’. I am loving the use of big umbrellas or bright colours and I am sure one of the dramas it was an invention that had a button that turned it clear so you could see the sky.

Sigh. I’ll probably always defend a sweetly tender childhood connection trope.

They can be done a bit too OTT (I’d put Secretary Kim in this camp), but when they’re adorably nostalgic like Once Upon a Small Town (with two competing childhood claims!) or even 100 Days My Prince, they can add a lot of sweetness and squee-icity to a plot.

I am willing to fall for it almost every time.

Cohabitation! I absolutely love this trope! From DREAM HIGH S1 to ANSWER ME 1994 to PINOCCHIO to AGE OF YOUTH to WELCOME TO WAIKIKI to HAPPINESS to the current HEARTBEAT and plenty plenty more. This is my catnip. I also like close neighbours that are practically family, ANSWER ME 1988 & LET’S EAT S1-S3.

With cohabitation, there isn’t a need to manufacture the characters interaction since they all live together. There also isn’t a power imbalance (usually). It’s one of my pet peeves with office romance, the romantic relationship is almost always between a boss and employee. Also as it’s a workplace, there is sometimes these forced and contrived scenarios so as to give the couple more screen time together.

I'm very forgiving of tropes in general (they're the hallmarks of the genre and give K-dramas their flavor!!), but I have a few favorites that I'm always willing to defend. HeartBeat is actually doing a FEW of my favorite things right now. Along with the intertwined past lives/reincarnation theme, last week's episodes also did one of my favorite things: nursing the other half of the OTP back to health after they suddenly fall ill with a fever. It's a way to demonstrate caring and consideration for the other person, along with an opportunity for tender moments of washcloth pressing 😊

ML tying the shoelace of the FL

This was a topic of discussion in a thread some time ago. I didn’t defend it back then, but since we have a dedicated topic right here, I figured why not share my thoughts on this.

Okay, some beanies find this gesture incredulous. Maybe it is, but if it was done towards you, you’d think that it is actually plausible. My boyfriend has done that towards me a number of times (don’t get me wrong, I don’t have a Princess complex 😆. He was just always quick to spot my untied shoelace + his love language is acts of service, so… there…), so for me, a guy tying a girl’s shoelace in kdrama is pretty realistic.

I love cohabitation and relationship/marriage contracts, but I especially love anything that hints at fate/destiny. Dramas are escapism for me, so it's all fantasy. Childhood/past life connections, couples who seem to be drawn together in spite of themselves or those around them, etc.

As for broken glass, Fireworks of My Heart just had a good one :)

Noble Idiocy! When it's not noble idiocy at all.

It gets a bad rep but sometimes it's not idiotic, it's just noble! If the character is doing something for the benefit of another because they have good reason to believe it's in their best interest, they are being selfless and doing the right thing for both of them.

And amnesia! :P

Hm, I love it when there is a sound of pounding heart (sometimes accompanied by the character's hand on their chest) after a sudden physical proximity between the leads, especially when it happens earlier on in the story and is presented as a first signal to the viewers that the one who's heart is pounding (more often the ML) is starting to fall for the other one. It may be cheesy and totally on-your-nose, but it always gives me butterflies.

getting sick after being soaked in rain. totally plausible and pretty unavoidable if it is a bit chilly and you cannot change your clothes. nothing brings on a cold like wet clothes.

I love characters unexpectedly being forced into close physical proximity (narrow alley, closet, etc.), and epically shot slow mo kiss scenes with 6 different camera angles.

Messed up characters deserve love too. I will stand on this hill for as long as my - hopefully - immortal soul exists. Healthy relationships between 100% perfectly fine individuals belong to real life (even tho I believe it's an utopic dream that cannot be truly reached), while in fiction I can and will have as much of angst, trouble, trauma, obsession and overall toxicy as I want. As a deeply messed up yet equally deeply romantic person I need some futile hope in that department to keep me going, you know)))

The trope I love (and kindof hate myself for loving) is the one where one half of a couple gets hurt or sick (fever, truck-of-doom accident, sprained ankle--I don't care) and the other half of the couple, who, up to this point, has either been in denial about their feelings or trying hard to suppress them, can't hide their love and concern.

There are a million great examples of this trope as it appears in basically every romantic drama I've ever watched, but the one that comes readily to mind is "Call it Love." It's a bit of a reverse trope moment because the FL is the one who is both hurt and trying to fight her feelings, and the ML is already aware of and expressing his feelings, so his ML emotional reaction is not a surprise. But it's still cathartic and so moving when he's by her bedside, looking tormented at the thought of her being in pain, and she briefly clasps his hand as he's pushing back her hair. It also represents a shift in their relationship towards acknowledging the reality that their feelings are mutual. The whole scene encapsulates everything I love both about this trope and "Call in Love."

1. People who stand up/ speak up for others. Not only in Kdramas, I think this is something that is so hard to do so when someone does it, there seems to be some aura from that person.

2. People who are good to a fault. No matter what anyone says, people like this are extremely cool in my book. Because it is such a difficult thing to be when you grow older.

3. Ex who respects your decision to breakup but still wishes you the best. Reason justifying this is the same as 2.: it’s just so difficult to do, and it says a lot about the ex.

4. When characters take the high road.

5. MLs whose love language is acts of service ♥️.

So many are already mentioned!
To add:
- grabbing the hand and running together, preferably in rain 😆
- when ML ties Fl's hair 😊

There's something about back hug that gets to me. The lingering feeling, earnest plea, or secret promise that speaks volume. I particularly like Han Tae Sul in STM backhugging Soe Hae. I could feel his desperation at that moment. Another instance Taek to Deok Sun in Reply 88.

Tragic ending in sageuks.
If a historical figure died tragically, it becomes a part of their legacy. Despite the sadness, the tragedy can also be memorable, emotional, logical, realistic, etc.

I've noticed that there are actually more sageuks with happy endings than tragic ones. So, I don't quite understand why people tend to associate sageuks with tragic endings.
https://thetalkingcupboard.com/resources/sageuk-timeline/

Eating together. Preferably as a whole family, with full table of Korean dishes. 😋

...and rameyon... in all meanings ☺️

The drama thing I am always ready to defend is the total lack of irony in the storytelling. Sometimes I feel that current Western storytelling has too much irony, cynicism, and self awareness, so I find the lack of the above in the classic kdramas truly refreshing. If I want to experience a cathartic moment, I have to fully embrace the melodrama. That's one of the lessons kdrama watching has taught me.
Years ago I would never consider watching a melo like "I'm Sorry I Love You." Now I am not afraid to weep for Mu Hyeok and his mother.

The unexpected kiss, especially what I like to call as "Grab, pull, twist and kiss".

My heart would always thump out of my chest whenever the ML suddenly grabs the hand of a leaving FL, pulls her with a slight twist onto him and kisses her.

I was first introduced to this in "Love Rain" where Jang Geun Suk kisses Yoona in front of a fountain, but I do not know if it is a Kdrama thing because in "Amazing Spiderman 2", spiderman (Andrew Garfield) uses his spiddy web to pull in Gwen (Emma Stone) for a hot kiss. These two scenes forever live rent free in my head 😍

I'm not sure about my phrasing but certain types of jealousy? Haha
I like when the characters fall for the other character despite themselves and they unknowingly act jealous. Sometimes, often times, the character really don't even register they like or are interested in the other person that way but they still can't help themselves haha

I know Lee Seung Gi dramas best so his characters come to mind. I think he's done many versions of jealousy without it being creepy, dangerous, or overbearing.

Recently, Heartbeat featured some unconscious jealousy.

I like the bickering.

The drama thing I will always defend is the friends or family members who go straight for freebies, repeatedly, and completely matter-of-factly, not even shamefully or shamelessly.

No, it is not a trope that I love, but I know so many people like this that it is totally believable to me.

Over the years I have seen so many comments on this trope, people saying it is exaggerated to the point of taking them out of the story. But I, maybe unfortunately, have seen it so much in my life that my only reaction is "Huh, are you my cousin's doppelganger?” and move on.

To clarify, I don't defend the trope and the character. I defend the writer who has written it, because to me it is just a normal if irritating part of life.

I have grown to LOVE the confession. I used to find them a bit bizarre, probably because they’re not common in the culture I live in and seem almost too much, but I cannot help but respect the courage, honesty and vulnerability of someone being very clear about their feelings. For most of my life, I believed myself to be more of an acts of service sort, but as I get older, verbal communication is what floats my boat. Not empty promises or false compliments, mind, but articulating one’s thoughts and feelings in words, even when it’s hard is what makes someone very attractive in my books.

My only caveat is that I don’t like confessions towards people already in a relationship. I believe you should keep your feelings to yourself in those case (I know I might be in the minority on this, though). I also don’t like confessions with expectations - they should be given like true gifts with no obligation for reciprocation.🎁

This is such a fun topic!!! Love it missvictrix!
I didn't even realize 'trope' was my thing until I saw K-dramas. Imagine my surprise when I realized I am one 'tropey' girl. Give me the tropes peoples! I loved them in my romance books, and I love them in my K-dramas :D
Trope #1 Angst filled hero : This remains my favorirte trope of all times. I love the journey of a hero who overcomes issues - family, trust, fear, trauma - bring them on. Enters our heroine, and fun begins! That right there is the story for me. I think this speaks to the power of human connection and healing.
Trope #2 Female leads dissing the high and mighty male leads: And he realizes he is being brought a peg down, but there is not much he can do haha! LOL! Turns out, that is the part of her charm that claims his heart right? That's one thing I have been liking about KTL.
Trope #3 Grab and pull kiss : I never though I would ever say this, but boy this is hot (as long as it's done between the people who love each other; stalkers not welcome. Sorry, that icky Hwarang kiss needs to be excluded from this list).
Trope #4 Friends to lovers: I should be hating this trope because it stereotypes male female relationship and places it in one narrow box. Yet, I have been loving this trope in K-dramas. That silent love from far, the respectful distance, the deliberate avoidance of physical touch, that look of anticipation followed by disappointment.....
Act of service: Especially when the ML wraps his jacket around FL shoulders, I swear you can see stars in my eyes.