Over the past few years, K-dramas have brought us a variety of genres and storylines. Moreover, it has also included some interesting story narratives, that have kept viewers hooked to the series. One of them is love triangles, which lead to fans sometimes preferring the second lead instead of the main one. Many times viewers have wanted the second lead to couple up with the male/female lead as they would fit into a better storyline than the existing main lead couple. These love triangle stories always keep fans engaged to the dramas.
A second lead contributes to the love triangle by falling in love with one of the main leads but ends up not being chosen. However, fans develop a soft spot for the individual and root for the second lead couple instead of the main lead. The love triangles have been a common but interesting storyline in the K-dramas. Many of them hold a dear place in fans’ hearts long after they have completed airing.
Check out some of our interesting recommendations for the best love triangle K-dramas.
True Beauty
Popular K-drama True Beauty tells the story of a young woman Im Joo-Kyeong (Moon Ga Young), who is insecure about her appearance and uses makeup to hide her blemishes. However, she soon meets a man Lee Su-Ho (Cha Eun-Woo), who sees her as her real self. She also makes another friend Han Seo-Jun (Hwang In-Yeop), who falls for her. But he is the more loved second lead who fans prefer in the drama. Unfortunately, he only stays with her friend until the end. The drama is available to stream on Netflix.
Nevertheless
Nevertheless is a popular K-drama about a flirtatious man Park Jae-Eon (Song Kang), who is fed up with relationships. He comes into touch with a woman named Yoo Na-Bi (Han So-Hee), who just wants to date after a failed relationship. Viewers thought of Jae-Eon’s character as a walking red flag, as opposed to Na-Bi’s friend Yang Do-Hyeok (Chae Jong-Hyeop), who was more considerate and caring towards her. The drama is available on Netflix.
The Heirs
Popular K-drama The Heirs introduces a star-studded cast, including Park Shin-Hye, Lee Min-Ho, Kim Woo-Bin and others. The story revolves around a couple (Park Shin-Hye and Lee Min-Ho), who belong to contrasting families. They have to overcome societal class differences and other restrictions to end up together. Kim Woo-Bin is the second lead, who is significantly adored in this drama, and also debated to be a better partner for Park Shin-Hye. The series is available to watch on Viki.
Start-Up
Start-Up is a popular K-drama that follows the story of young entrepreneurs who wish to establish their own start-up, while also navigating their personal lives, including love, friendship and more. Although Seo Dal-Mi (Bae Suzy) gets together with Nam Do-San (Nam Joo-Hyuk), viewers feel bad for Han Ji-Pyeong (Kim Seon-Ho), who also likes Dal-Mi. Viewers adored Kim Seon-Ho’s character in the drama as the second lead. The series is available to stream on Netflix.
Her Private Life
Her Private Life follows the story of an art curator Sung Deok-Mi (Park Min-Young), who entangles herself in a fake relationship with the museum’s director Ryan Gold (Kim Jae-Wook). She also runs a fan site for her favorite artist, but only her close friends know about it. One of them is Nam Eun-Gi (Ahn Bo-Hyun), who secretly likes her. He is also worried when what he thinks is a fake relationship between Deok-Mi and Ryan Gold turns real. He ends up being the friend after all. The drama is available on Viki.
Love triangles have been a significant part of storytelling in many K-dramas. Viewers are deeply invested in these stories and also show their admiration for the second lead more than that of the main lead couple. There is no dearth of love triangle series in the K-drama universe as they can be found on many streaming platforms.
