Favorite and Least Liked K-Drama Heroine

This thread is inspired by a conversation my friend and I had recently that went something like this:
Friend: "Where all the strong female leads at?"
Me: *shrugs* " I 'unno..."
It was a quick conversation. But it got me thinking about heroines/female leads in K-dramas, so...

Favorite Heroine: Kim Sam Soon (My Name is Kim Sam Soon). Because who doesn't love a foul-mouthed pastry chef on the verge of turning 30? I love how the writers of the drama realistically and sympathetically portrayed her struggle to lose weight, find the right guy, lose the wrong guy, and achieve her dreams (which involved owning her own business!). She's intelligent and witty, and never lost her sense of self even after she became romantically involved. Basically, I never felt like I had to reach through the screen to give her a few slaps to jog her brain; in fact, I want to be Kim Sam Soon when I grow up.

Least Liked Heroine: Oh Ha Ni (Mischievous/Playful Kiss). Also known as Oh, Honey. As in "Oh, Honey, no--don't you have any sense of self outside of your inexplicable love for this emotionally stunted, petty, little rich boy? Oh, Honey, do you really only find value in yourself if he likes you?" Yeah, in the very last episode she's redeemed a bit, or so I've heard since I had washed my hands of her about half-way through.

Who are your favorite and least liked K-drama heroines?

Favorite: I agree with Kim Sam Soon, but also like Jun Seol Hee from I Am Legend, she seems weak, but after time her strength emerges. Its like, thru her tears, she gained the strength to be the woman she wanted to be.

Least liked: Oh Ha Ni, for all the reasons already mentioned, but also I just found the actresses way of speaking very very annoying.

Linni wrote: I'll lack originality here, but my favourite heroine is Gil Ra Im from Secret Garden. It's more of a personal reason than a clear-cut, rational one: I could easily identify with her, with her tough exterior, her pride and inner fear to be inadequate. She is brave and has a strong sense of justice, which does not imply abiding to some social rule or role.

I have a love/hate relationship with Gil Ra Im. I also identified with exactly the same aspects of her character that you did. My only problem was that I felt that as soon as she began to come to terms with her feelings towards Joo Won, she became a bit...meh. There was one scene in particular during which I found myself screaming, "You're a STUNT WOMAN! KICK HIM IN THE JEWELS! NO MEANS NO!" [I don't want to describe the scene in detail for fear of spoiling anything, but it's when they're left alone together at Joo Won's resort after the stunt team retreat. Episode 13, I believe.]

michaelachua wrote: And what I think about it is that she didn't kick his... jewels, because she didn't want to.

Hm, that's true. Thinking back to my original comment about Gil Ra Im, I think my problem with that scene had more to do with Joo Won's behavior: she initially protests; he ignores her non-consent and continues to aggressively force himself. That really bothered me at the time, and so my knee jerk reaction was wanting Ra Im to, well, jerk her knee. Don't get me wrong---the chemistry in that scene was sizzling! Which leaves me even more torn about the whole thing.

yumaz wrote: Hm, that's true. Thinking back to my original comment about Gil Ra Im, I think my problem with that scene had more to do with Joo Won's behavior: she initially protests; he ignores her non-consent and continues to aggressively force himself. That really bothered me at the time, and so my knee jerk reaction was wanting Ra Im to, well, jerk her knee. Don't get me wrong---the chemistry in that scene was sizzling! Which leaves me even more torn about the whole thing.

There has been a never ending discussion about this issue on Dramabeans, at the time. I remember this because Secret Garden was the only drama that had me go read recaps before the subs were out.

And, honestly, I thought it was a preposterous discussion.
First, because it didn't take into consideration what had happen up to that moment, the characters of both KJW and that of GRI, their interaction from the beginning. Basically, the discussion forgot the whole drama.
Secondly, because between two people who are falling in love with each other - or already are - the "rules" of courtship, seduction, their plays and innuendoes, are an eminently subjective thing, one that can't possibly be categorized from the outside.
Thirdly, because his forcing himself onto her consisted in embracing her; he didn't even try to kiss her. The fact that she could have beaten him to a pulp cannot be forgotten just because she's a woman and he's a man.

Mind you, I'm well aware of the importance of the issue, and how often dramas and movies try to portray un-ethical behaviours and let them pass as romantic. I would shudder at a love story in which a strong man harasses - let alone uses violence on a woman and she ends up forgive him in the name of a so-called love. But this is not the case here, with a woman that could have defended herself and didn't against the attempt of a man she has fallen for, to sleep holding her in his arms.

In short: I thought it was sweet, more than sizzling. The changing-cabin scene disturbed me more.
And that was also the last time I went reading the recaps of dramabeans.

I'll start with the least liked:

Oh Ha Ni (Playful Kiss): She has absolutely no self respect, I kept watching the drama just to see if she toned down her pathetic, stalker-like behavior, but that never happened. I honestly don't know how I lasted through all 16 episodes of that dramas.

Seo Eun Young (Coffee House):I don't even have a reason why I dislike her so much. I could say it's because of the end, which I didn't like, but no from the very moment she appeared, she didn't even need to talk, I disliked her.

Go Mi Nam (You are Beautiful) : Just because of the way she acted, just crying and being Hwang Tae Kyung's lackey. I do like how the actress acts and liked the drama, enough to finish it, though, but it was just the character who got on my nerves. I probably just finished it because of all the eye candy...

Park Kae In (Personal Taste): I liked the drama, but she got on my nerves on many occasions.

Favorite:

Gil Ra Im and Go Eun Chan: I just love them both.

Kim Sam-Soon: I loved her for all the reasons already mentioned.

The flavour of the week reminded me of another k-heroine whom I could never stomach: Moon Jane from Bad Guy.
Not the actress of course, who did a fantastic job in portraying her. I usually like strong women, who know what they want and how to obtain it, but the fact that it all revolved around seducing the man with the money made me so mad I could have slapped her at every turn.

End of rant.
;)