How about Xiao Pingjing in Nirvana in Fire 2? I thought he was really warm and friendly at the beginning, and…
Thank you for the comment! I only watched the original NiF and haven't yet had time to start NiF2, but I intend to, someday ^^ Same with Ever Night. Thank you for the recs!
Congratulations on your second article, dear friend! This one is an extremely analytical yet amusing read. I couldn't…
Aaah, thank you so much! ❤️ I guess I can't write articles in any other form, years of academia have probably wired my brain like this for good :D The first draft was very serious, so then I tried to add some levity to it - I'm glad it worked ^^ I also hope to spread the love of this less popular type of characters! :)
Good article.Looking forward to your take on atypical female leads.
Thank you sm! ^^ Oooh, this is a good idea, but I'm not sure if I'll be able to deliver... When I think of it, it seems to me that the female leads are more diverse regarding their character traits than male leads. We have both childish characters, and stoic and reserved ones, as well as some that fall between those two types... So I'm not sure what I should consider an atypical character trait here :) It's a good topic to think about though, thank you! :)
Sifeng of Love & Redemption, first one that comes into my mind for costume C-dramas. Prince An of Imperial Coroner…
Thank you for the comment! ^^ I didn't watch L&R, I started but ultimately couldn't stand the FL... So I'll take your word for it! Prince An is a sweet and reliable guy, I liked him in the Imperial Coroner - but he's lacking this kind of carefree and easy-going attitude that I'm after :) The Word of Honor leads are too much on the reserved or crazy side to fit into this type of character I was trying to describe here (but I love them nonetheless :D)
Really enjoyable article. I think most of the characters you have highlighted can be described as anti-heroes,…
Thank you! ^^ Hm, I would be careful with labeling them as anti-heroes... maybe, in certain times of their lives, but not in general? Anyway- I thought about Ning Yi, too :D He's one of my faves, but he's also slightly different from the characters described above. I can't deny him having a playful personality, but he's much more quiet about it than the other characters I've mentioned :) Also, this guy is just acting a lot of different roles in front of a lot of people, so sometimes it's a bit hard to discern what his real personality is like. In the end, he doesn't strike me as a people person - he may like having the people he cares about around, but there's only a few of them. Still, he's a fascinating character, definitely different from the typical cold types!
First of all, your description of The Untamed is the most accurate and intriguing of any summaries of the show…
Oooh, thank you for this comment, I loved reading your thoughts! ❤️ I'm so glad you liked my description of The Untamed ^^ Yes, Aang from The Last Airbender is such a fascinating character! I love this cartoon so much, mostly because of the incredibly well-written development of the characters through all the seasons :) Thank you sm for this book rec, I haven't read this series before, but from your description it sounds interesting, at least character-wise, so I'll check it out ^^
Thanks for your article!! How come Zhangsun Wuji from Legend of Fu Yao and Wei Wuji from Sound of the Desert aren't…
Thank you for the comment! ❤️ They aren't here because I haven't watched these dramas yet :D On the drama page, Wei Wuji is described as a handsome and COLD general. Sooo... Is this a misleading description? :)
Oh man, reading your article down the list suddenly I realized I still have Young Blood for a looong time in my…
Thank you for the comment! I'm glad we both like these atypical (for a c-drama) characters best ^^
Yound Blood in general has a sensible ending, there would be no need of having a second season if not for the very last scene. So you can totally watch it as a standalone and disregard the last scene :) but it seems like we'll get the second season anyway - if it's going to be as good as the first one, I won't be complaining :)
Thank you for this great topic. I wonder why the MLs in C-drama have to be cold and serious. Are their character…
Thank you for the comment! ❤️ I've never studied psychology, so unfortunately I can't comment on what makes these steady and cold types attractive to our brains ^^ But I would also read an analysis on that :)
Yes, very often the cold characters are paired with the bright, sunny ones, and it works great ^^
Well...i watched all of them, and i also like these type of male lead character ...can you suggest me some more…
Thank you for the comment! I'm glad we both like this type of characters ^^
I don't really have any other suggestions than the ones presented in this article, I'm also looking for new dramas with this kind of characters! I can only suggest trying what other people have recommended in the comments: Handsome Siblings, My Heroic Husband, Ever Night, Once Upon a Time In Lingjian Mountain, Marry Me, Dance of the Sky Emperor, Word of Honor... I think Chong Ming Wei may also qualify :)
Thank you so much for this article! I love cold and aloof male leads in Cdramas but the funny, mischievous and…
Thank you for the comment! ^^ I'm glad we agree that both types of characters are enjoyable, but the warm ones still end up as our favourites!
Hm, you're right, it's very hard to find a ML who's not some sort of accomplished genius. I can think of just one - Shi Jingyao from The Silent Criminal, he's just a normal bloke :D But - of course he has to be accompanied by a genius fighter and investigator... :)
I watched the first five or six episodes of My Heroic Husband back when it was airing - seems like I need to go back and actually finish watching ^^ I haven't seen Marry Me as well. Thank your for the recs! ❤️
Wei WuXian is a paragon of all cheerful, upright and charming rogues of all wuxia and xianxia world LOL. One can…
Wow, thank your for this comment, I loved reading your thoughts!
I haven't seen Handsome Siblings yet, but I'll def check it out later! Ever Night is also still on my to-watch list :)
I agree about Wen Kexing, I loved him as a character, but it's just as you said - he's a bit on the crazy side :D and here I wanted to find and present characters who are more "normal" (if that's even a thing :D) but who like interacting with other people, are playful and snarky, yet also somewhat dependable? I don't now if I'm explaining this right :) also - Wen Kexing seems like someone who is sociable, but that's more like a surface level - he's truly sociable only with his A-Xu ;)
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I only watched the original NiF and haven't yet had time to start NiF2, but I intend to, someday ^^ Same with Ever Night.
Thank you for the recs!
It does keep on till the end, don't worry :) Have fun watching!
I guess I can't write articles in any other form, years of academia have probably wired my brain like this for good :D The first draft was very serious, so then I tried to add some levity to it - I'm glad it worked ^^
I also hope to spread the love of this less popular type of characters! :)
Many people recommend Handsome Siblings here - seems like I need to check it out eventually :D
I'm happy you found here some new dramas to watch! Have fun! ^^
Oooh, this is a good idea, but I'm not sure if I'll be able to deliver... When I think of it, it seems to me that the female leads are more diverse regarding their character traits than male leads. We have both childish characters, and stoic and reserved ones, as well as some that fall between those two types...
So I'm not sure what I should consider an atypical character trait here :) It's a good topic to think about though, thank you! :)
I didn't watch L&R, I started but ultimately couldn't stand the FL... So I'll take your word for it!
Prince An is a sweet and reliable guy, I liked him in the Imperial Coroner - but he's lacking this kind of carefree and easy-going attitude that I'm after :)
The Word of Honor leads are too much on the reserved or crazy side to fit into this type of character I was trying to describe here (but I love them nonetheless :D)
Ahn Min Hyuk was definitely a fun character in Strong Woman Do Bong Soon! :D
Thank you for the comment ❤️
Hm, I would be careful with labeling them as anti-heroes... maybe, in certain times of their lives, but not in general?
Anyway-
I thought about Ning Yi, too :D He's one of my faves, but he's also slightly different from the characters described above. I can't deny him having a playful personality, but he's much more quiet about it than the other characters I've mentioned :) Also, this guy is just acting a lot of different roles in front of a lot of people, so sometimes it's a bit hard to discern what his real personality is like. In the end, he doesn't strike me as a people person - he may like having the people he cares about around, but there's only a few of them. Still, he's a fascinating character, definitely different from the typical cold types!
I'm so glad you liked my description of The Untamed ^^
Yes, Aang from The Last Airbender is such a fascinating character! I love this cartoon so much, mostly because of the incredibly well-written development of the characters through all the seasons :)
Thank you sm for this book rec, I haven't read this series before, but from your description it sounds interesting, at least character-wise, so I'll check it out ^^
They aren't here because I haven't watched these dramas yet :D
On the drama page, Wei Wuji is described as a handsome and COLD general. Sooo... Is this a misleading description? :)
Thank you for the rec!
Yound Blood in general has a sensible ending, there would be no need of having a second season if not for the very last scene. So you can totally watch it as a standalone and disregard the last scene :) but it seems like we'll get the second season anyway - if it's going to be as good as the first one, I won't be complaining :)
I've never studied psychology, so unfortunately I can't comment on what makes these steady and cold types attractive to our brains ^^ But I would also read an analysis on that :)
Yes, very often the cold characters are paired with the bright, sunny ones, and it works great ^^
Thank you fro the recs!
I don't really have any other suggestions than the ones presented in this article, I'm also looking for new dramas with this kind of characters! I can only suggest trying what other people have recommended in the comments: Handsome Siblings, My Heroic Husband, Ever Night, Once Upon a Time In Lingjian Mountain, Marry Me, Dance of the Sky Emperor, Word of Honor... I think Chong Ming Wei may also qualify :)
Joy of Life is really really good, you're in for a treat! ^^
I'm glad we agree that both types of characters are enjoyable, but the warm ones still end up as our favourites!
Hm, you're right, it's very hard to find a ML who's not some sort of accomplished genius. I can think of just one - Shi Jingyao from The Silent Criminal, he's just a normal bloke :D But - of course he has to be accompanied by a genius fighter and investigator... :)
I watched the first five or six episodes of My Heroic Husband back when it was airing - seems like I need to go back and actually finish watching ^^ I haven't seen Marry Me as well. Thank your for the recs! ❤️
I haven't seen Handsome Siblings yet, but I'll def check it out later! Ever Night is also still on my to-watch list :)
I agree about Wen Kexing, I loved him as a character, but it's just as you said - he's a bit on the crazy side :D and here I wanted to find and present characters who are more "normal" (if that's even a thing :D) but who like interacting with other people, are playful and snarky, yet also somewhat dependable? I don't now if I'm explaining this right :) also - Wen Kexing seems like someone who is sociable, but that's more like a surface level - he's truly sociable only with his A-Xu ;)
Thank you for the recs! ^^