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kisskh MDLv6.7
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Looking for romance dramas w/ manly, older male leads!

krom Author

Hello! I’m looking for a very particular niche of romance dramas that portray this trope as their main male leads, because a lot of the romcom dramas I’ve watched all feature young pretty boys, so I find the older manly leads very refreshing! Please help me fill this need for toughies-but-softies ;___;

preferred:
- mature/gruff/tough and stiff/awkward but actually a tender-hearted softie
- ruggedly handsome (older/manly) + facial hair is a bonus!

like the following:
- Fated to Love You (Jang Hyuk after he cuts his hair)
- Live Up to Your Name (Kim Nam Gil)
- Love and Destiny (Chang Chen)
- Eternal Love/10 Miles of Peach Blossoms (Mark Chao as Mo Yuan)
- Sungkyunkwan Scandal (2nd male lead: Yoo Ah In)
- Emergency Couple (2nd male lead: Lee Pil Mo)
- She Was Pretty (2nd male lead: Choi Si Won)
- Doctors (Kim Rae Won)

notes on the drama/romance itself:
- I don’t mind if the plot sucks as long as the leads can carry it with their romance and chemistry!
- mature, strong relationships that are believable and palpable are preferred but if it’s light/fluffy or just full of dumb misunderstandings like every drama ever, that’s ok too I guess (I’m desperate ma’am T__T)

extra notes:
- age gap isn’t required between leads, but I don’t mind it as long as they’re both adults
- I do like Korean and Chinese dramas, but if you have recommendations outside this, it’s fine too!
- Recs don’t have to have all of these qualities in the male lead, as long as it fits at least 1 category hehe
- I’m looking for dramas where romance is prominent, but I like these sub-genres:
    - historical
    - time travel
    - crossdressing
    - medical
    - crime
    - military
    - xinxia/wuxia

Thank you so much for your help!!

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Docta

Dong Yi 

Legend of Fu Yao 

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krom Author
 Docta:

Dong Yi 

Legend of Fu Yao 

thanks so much for the recs! I've added Dong Yi to my PTW list ~ LFY is already on it hehe :)

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taratara

Goblin

Gentleman's Dignity 

Padam Padam

It's Okay that's love

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krom Author
 taratara:

Goblin

Gentleman's Dignity 

Padam Padam

It's Okay that's love

ahh thanks so much for the recs! i have It's Okay that's Love on PTW, I'll check out the rest ^^

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mengosteen

https://kisskh.at/23733-oldboy 

https://kisskh.at/17440-to-be-a-better-man 

https://kisskh.at/40147-when-we-are-together 

All three actors are in their 40's... Not sure if this is what you meant. 

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chubbycheeks

Eternal love of dream 

Oh my baby (currently airing)

Beauty inside

Sound of the desert

Find me in your memory

Under the power  (historical and crime)

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honeyblue

Oh my baby 

Fix you

Fairyland Lovers (for the facial hair, lol) 

Find me in your memory

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Hae won-aaaaa

That's okay, it's love

Jealousy incarnate

Oh my ghostess

World of a married couple  (not a romcom though)

I have a lover

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krom Author
 chubbycheeks:

Eternal love of dream 

Oh my baby (currently airing)

Beauty inside

Sound of the desert

Find me in your memory

Under the power  (historical and crime)

got most of these on my list! thank you <3

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krom Author
 honeyblue:

Oh my baby 

Fix you

Fairyland Lovers (for the facial hair, lol) 

Find me in your memory

omg fairyland lovers looks so cute ;O; !! thank you so much for the recs, these are perfect!

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krom Author
 mengosteen:

https://kisskh.at/23733-oldboy 

https://kisskh.at/17440-to-be-a-better-man 

https://kisskh.at/40147-when-we-are-together 

All three actors are in their 40's... Not sure if this is what you meant. 

thank you so much for your recs! I'm not much of a slice-of-life person  :( but I still do appreciate it!

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Margaret
 krom:
preferred:
- mature/gruff/tough and stiff/awkward but actually a tender-hearted softie
- ruggedly handsome (older/manly) + facial hair is a bonus!

My preference too!

 krom:
- Fated to Love You (Jang Hyuk after he cuts his hair)
- Live Up to Your Name (Kim Nam Gil)

Agree with these! 

I also like Kim Jae Wook in Her Private Life  (cheekbones!) & So Ji Sub in The Master's Sun & Oh My Venus.  Lee So Jin's look doesn't appeal to everyone but his performance in the classic drama Lovers (gruff gangster) & the newer Marriage Contract (mature) rank in my favorites.

You might want to venture into the world of Turkish dramas - hot guys, major facial hair, larger builds, all ages. The Turkish shows have mastered the art of longing/lingering looks & slow burns ... but ... patience is a must! Episodes can be over 2 hours each & can last multiple seasons.

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PrettyCarEye

My favourite kind of male lead!

+ 1 Love & Destiny - Chang Chen is really gorgeous in this & he's perfect as the God of War. The way he singlemindedly focused on protecting/saving his Queen was so heart fluttering. :)

+ 1 Padam Padam - Jung Woo Sung is amazing in this role! And effortlessly gorgeous even when he's playing a gruff, down on his luck ex-convict.

Prison Playbook - this drama is not purely centred on romance, but trust me it's there! The fact that romance isn't listed as a genre is very misleading & one of the reasons why I ended up not watching the drama for a long time because I thought it was mainly focused on sports. The male is a pro ball player who is in essence a very simple guy (sometimes he may even come across as simple minded, but don't worry, he isn't). He just has a very one track mind, can only think/focus on one thing at a time ... I guess like most men. Anyway, he was a pretty unique male lead to me ... in the sense that while he was very good at baseball, he wasn't that 'smart' otherwise, like most other MLs who are bordering on being geniuses. His relationship with the female lead was really cute.

Cruel Romance - trust me the romance is far from cruel & the ML here is so dreamy, he's every woman's fantasy man!

Aishiteru to Ittekure - old but super gold and sooo romantic. The ending is not the most elegant, but the journey is worth it!

The Masked Lover - this one has crime/action & lots of romance! In fact, you get 2-for-1 bonus because the 2nd leads romance was quite heart catching, although I found the 2FL just a tad bit annoying. Anyway, worth the watch!

Others

Can We Love?
City Hall
The Greatest Love
Second To Last Love* - haven't seen this one personally, but I know ML fits what you're looking for.

Honourable Mention

Hope All Is Well With Us - this is not romance focused, but relationship focused. There's a lot of chemistry between the ML and the FL, but they never quite got together in the drama itself ... well, because the ML was really devastated by his divorce and couldn't focus on any new relationship right now. He needed to heal his heart first and get back on his feet, which is what the drama focuses on, but the FL is present, she supports him & helps him out when he needs it most ... they just never really went the romance route. I think this drama is really worth the  watch, though, if you like dramas about family and second chances. Plus the ML's little son is sooo adorable & their time together as father & son is precious. I definitely recommend you give it a go ... and if that's not incentive enough for you, just know that the ML is fine AF in that gruff, rugged manly sort of way!!! lol

edited
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Beatrix

Oh my Venus

Oh My Ghost

Its okay its love

A gentleman’s dignity

You are the best 

Accidental couple/ that fool

Wedding (2005)

Baby faced beauty

Five enough

Go back couple

Go go squid

Her private life

I am your teacher

Hospital playlist

Iris

Lie to me

Lovers in paris

Goblin

Prime minister and I

One more happy ending

Please comeback mister

Happiness in the wind

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