Melodrama's PLEASE!

• Flower of Evil
• Crush
• Tomorrow With You
• Cheewit Puer Kah Huajai Puer Tur
• My Sunshine
• Behind Your Smile
• Mysterious Love
• That Winter, the Wind Blows

 EvilSupportingCharacter:

• Flower of Evil
• Crush
• Tomorrow With You
• Cheewit Puer Kah Huajai Puer Tur
• My Sunshine
• Behind Your Smile
• Mysterious Love
• That Winter, the Wind Blows

Thanks for the recs! Unfortunately I've seen some of these already and some don't fit the type of drama I was looking for. I should've specified more clearly but I'm not necessarily looking for rich/CEO type dramas, more like poor/ living rough type main lead if that makes sense. But I'll definitely keep these dramas on my watch list for the future!!  

Dramas that fit some but not all of your criteria:

• The Legends - Okay so you might write this one off immediately because it's a wuxia / Chinese historical / martial arts / fantasy / romance drama, so by default the storyline is not remotely realistic. BUT I feel like you might enjoy this one anyway because it has a lot of the central elements of TSHLYE, JBL and CHM (I love all three). The ML has a dragon spirit / demon sealed inside him, and his father leaves him chained up inside a remote mountain + the most powerful sect wants to kill him because of it. So the ML is an abandoned outcast / seen as a monster. The FL saves the ML from being executed. He falls for the FL early in the drama, but the FL focuses on building her own sect and doesn't pay the ML any interest for years. At that point in the story, the ML hasn't tapped into his power and he remains a loyal but lowly gate guard. Then a tragedy occurs and the leads are separated just when the ML's true power is unleashed. The ML mourns the FL and dedicates himself to steadily building up her sect and protecting her legacy. Years later, the leads finally reunite. At first they are suspicious of each other, but their romance quickly develops. Throughout the drama the FL is the ML's reason for living / everything he does, even when he thinks she's dead.
• Mr. Sunshine - It's a mature romance loosely inspired by true events. Definitely lots of melo. The ML comes from a rough, poor background (his parents were slaves and he ran away to America when they were killed) with a steady job (he returns to Korea after joining the US army and climbing the ranks). He (understandably) has poor memories of Korea and has thoughts of taking revenge against the family / country that killed his parents. But he falls for the FL quickly and ends up supporting her efforts to fight for Korean independence. The one downside you might not like is that three men fall for the FL and they all have fairly big roles in the drama. 
• The Story of Ming Lan - Historical Chinese drama, but not a fantasy drama. The ML starts out rich (he's born into a high-ranking noble family) but his father's wife is not his biological mother and she strategically turns him into the black sheep of the family. There are points in the drama where he cuts ties with his family and has no family wealth. Because of the black sheep situation, the ML ends up leaning into his forced reputation / doesn't care / makes some bad choices. The FL helps him get back on a better path and he quickly climbs the ranks of the military and becomes a successful general. It's a slow burn that requires a lot of patience, but once the ML has a set goal, he works quickly and diligently to get what he wants (including the FL). There is a bit of a love triangle and it drags slightly, but not too much and I didn't have SLS.
• Tempted - The ML is a rich chaebol, so again, probably not what you're looking for. But he's a high school student with a bad family / home life who moves out after he graduates. He is sullen / dark / cold and doesn't care about anything except his two best friends and the stupid, twisted games they play. The FL absolutely changes him for the better. Their romance is neither super mature nor super immature. It's somewhere in the middle.
• My Mister - Not really a romance, but it's definitely very melodramatic with one of the best kdrama relationships ever done IMO in a mature fashion and a relatively realistic setting / plot. The ML is middle class. Outwardly he is warm and kind, but inside he is intensely miserable and lonely. He faces a series of difficult situations that require him to fight for himself, but he can't bring himself to do it. The FL is poor with a very tough background. They are both carrying heavy burdens on their own, and find support and connection in each other. The FL's support inspires the ML to push forward and fight for himself.
• Cheese in the Trap - The drama is more of a university rom com than a melo and not particularly mature. I'm only listing this here because the SML gives me strong Lee Kang Doo vibes. I sometimes rewatch my favourite parts of this drama just for his character. He is poor and a bit rough around the edges, but he's also talented, loyal and his heart is in the right place. He gave up on his future, but the FL inspires him to start trying again. 

 softiemooyoung:

@AH, 

WOW!! Thank you so much for putting this together, these are great! I'll look forward to watching them. I had some pretty specific demands, but I think you've done a fantastic job at finding some good dramas! Thanks again!! :)))

You're welcome! I really enjoyed all three of the example dramas you mentioned, and I totally get why you would be looking to watch something similar. I'm sorry I haven't seen any other dramas that fit the pattern perfectly, but I hope you might still find some that you enjoy among the ones that are close ^^