drama tropes we love and hate!

[Lmangla]

hi ya chingus!

welcome to a new mini event where we as a community hang out with each other and have some fun. so as lovers of drama, we can all spot the familiar tropes. some of it makes us giggle. hahaha.. sometimes it makes us roll our eyes and groan.  and some we just love!   you may hate waiting for the bus in real life but waiting for oppa in bus stop in dramaland always seems to be rather romantic no? (and how convenient for PPL sponsors to stick some ad on the bus stop too! hahahhaha....)

 

so we are creating a fun poll for you chingus to participate. how to participate?

e.g

#1 - rescued from the truck of doom -- who loves the truck of doom? me! hahahahha... for someone who doesn't notice any cars in real life, I have noticed the truck of doom has progressed from green to orange to white paint in kdramas and it seems to be more or less the same model. (I think! hahahahha...) why do I like it? where else can you see a real life version of a waltz swirl and dip!

 

two hearts beating ferociously from all that adrenaline and lots of eye staring and then some great OST starts playing. so it is an almost accident and in real life, the driver would get down and yell at her (isn't it always the girl?) for being so stupid and ask her to get some glasses and not pass on her bad luck to him. but hey, this is dramaland and the driver does his duty and drives on and leaves the leads to have their dum-dum-dum (heart beat) moment! how nice of him. hahhahahaha.....

 

see, that was easy right? so add to the list (don't forget to mention the number), you can create a meme or just say why you like it or hate the trope. it can be one sentence or a small paragraph. (about 250 words max!!!). don't worry about your english. and if you are tech savvy, you can add a gif or screenshot or vid from your favourite drama as examples.

 

can we as a community come up with 100 drama tropes we love and hate? looking forward to hearing what you have noticed from watching so many kdramas!

 

[kokodus]

Alrighty, this is funnnn. I want to talk about so many tropes honestly, are there any restrictions that one person should only post about one trope? LOL

 

#5 Rich boy poor girl

 

Now this is something most people usually eyeroll at, but it's a classic trope I just love. I mean how much chance you have to run into the richest of rich CEO in real life and make them fall for you?? Close to nil, I say. It doesn't really happen often in real world, and that makes it so swoony and dreamy in my eyes. Wellllllllll, I'm totally not waiting for a Prince of nine heavens who will come and sweep me off my feet or anything, ok??? (If anyone can't tell, I'm talking about Ye hua here. LOLOLOL)

 

 

[kaitochi]

#6 Angry Encounters 

Come on, we kdrama lovers know the first scene where the boy meets the girl or, the girl meets boy. It could be a little accident that has both parties yelling at each other or it could be previous notions of the person. So for like the first 3 or 4 meeting of the lead couple, its all bickering and arguing . I love this and always looked forward to it at the start of a new drama.

 

#7 The shopping/makeover scene 

Now this was a little rampant sometime, almost every kdrama had a scene where the male lead gives the female lead a makeover or the female lead just chooses one for herself. I really loved this as it made me see the female lead in different lights........ like from cute  to hot  hahaha!

[Lmangla]

kekeke... @kokodus @stargazer187 ~ yea, you can post more than once. we are trying to see if we can identify 100 tropes and so there's plenty of space. hahahah... but like in other threads, wait for someone else to post and one or two tropes max per post. this way, we give chance for everyone to post.. and P.S - let other chingus know too about our mini event!

 

and it is funny, I didn't even recognize the rich boy poor girl trope. obviously! hahahah.... got so used to seeing it, that we totally expect at least one of them to be rich. guess, we don't have to worry about their ever after where they struggle to pay the bills and get chased by loan sharks? hahahahha....

 

#8 the rooftop room - don't know about the rent on these places and whether they are cheaper than other places in real life  but it looks like all broke/struggling kdrama characters at least get a fantastic view of seoul even if they are struggling.

[kokodus]

#9 Piggyback ride

 

I prefer bridal carry more than piggybacks honestly. Lol. And i've always wondered how can the guy not end up with broken back after carrying a grown up women like that on his back. But yeah, Korean girls are pretty lean, and I bet everyone weighs like air, sigh. Ahahaha anyways, it's romantic in a way. Most favorite of mine is from personal taste, where the girl says that his back is so warm like her dad's. 

[Lmangla]

#11 - gangster clothes -- doesn't it seem like all the loan sharks and gangsters in kdramas dress a very specific way? so much so you can identify them even before you know the name or link with character..there is gold chains, maybe gold tooth, too much gel hair, colourful shirts that would be better suited for the beach, and sometimes instead of black suits, there is even a yellow suit! hahahah.... but lot of black suits. is it uniform? are loan sharks not allowed to wear other colours? and why do loan shark offices always have these recliner, am going to sit for hours and watch tv kind of sofas? it is not like clients are there to get comfortable?

 

@Jillia ~ after a certain point in watching melodramas, you are almost waiting for a character to get amnesia so that you can start eating some more popcorn and giggle. ahahahah.... @kokodus ~ love those piggy back rides and these guys have to be fit because they are always carrying the girl on an incline hill instead of a straight plain. so much more work! thats why it is only army return oppas who do the piggy back rides because they already got that training! lol.. hahahaha....

[Lmangla]

kekeke... like @stargazer187 said, sometimes the mean lead is fun to watch @Jillia; depends on the actor and how he translates the character. even though in boys before flowers, he was being so petty and making no sense, you can't help but giggle at the over the top jealousy. @stargazer187 -- the mean second lead is at least tolerable when they have great fashion!!!! hahahahah.... especially with candy leads who wear boring clothes, the mean second lead gets to have the fun wardrobe. hahahahha.....

 

#14 - bad boys in saeguks always get the cool outfits including really nice earrings!

all I remember from this drama is that the orange guy had a lot of awesome earrings that made me want to get some! hahahaha...

 

 

[Lmangla]

@stargazer187 ~ yea, his permed hair was also hilariously weird but I loved how ridiculous he was for the most part...

[kokodus]

Are you guys talking about Oppa behind my back. Too bad. LOL. His hair was the main attraction for me, no one can carry off that hairstyle like him. Hehe. 

 

#16 Time Jump

Hate hate hate this trope! Almost all the time nothing gets better even after the time skip, everyone remain the same, I totally don't see the point at all. So ridiculous and drives me crazy.

 

[Lmangla]

@kokodus ~ the time jump takes care of everything. it makes people grow up, hearts heal and everyone is all at peace. hahahaha...

 

#17 - the yin/yang of family dynamics. if the lead is responsible, then it is given that either they have a irresponsible sibling or parent who has borrowed money from some loan shark and has swindled their hard earned money. and instead of losing hair or having hair turn grey, the lead somehow manages to work lots of jobs to pay the bills and still meet someone cute and rich. then, loves comes in for the irresponsible family member and everyone in the end becomes responsible because thats the magic of love? hahahahah....

[yamiyugi]

Darn it so many different tropes to choose from and all of them so good. Also I wonder if I can even take part in this event due to me already pointing some of these tropes in other threads and so. Though the temptation of adding a screenshot of another drama in this thread and hopefully getting away with it is to good to ignore without getting any warning from a moderator or having the picture removed. So if no one mentions that Trope by my next post be sure that I will add it in.

 

Spoiler

 

This is the advice from Korean Drama Trope Central –

 

We seem to cover all sorts of K-Drama Items and needs if you want something be sure to orders it from us. We even offer group discounts so if you are a group of Second Drama Leads if can offer you special deals such as Not only providing a discount on Truck Of Doom Every Saturday and Thursdays we will even throw in a complimentary driver along the way if there is are atleast 3 second leads or their family members involved. We offer the lowest fare for tickets to the Land Of Exile and right now there is a special on Bugs/Listening Devices that all have Blinking Lights to show that they are fully functioning and all.

 

In the same vein let us continue with The Trope of The Day. Though we must warn you since all Tropes are so interrelated this will be a mixture of a few.

 

Trope Number 19

 

Land Of Opportunity/Great Investment Spot :

 

You have a lot of money but have no area where to invest Have no fear we guarantee Korea is the spot. This Trope Covers the Area of Koreans Haven’t Heard Of Locks, Missing Items Where Are Thou and Part of Popular Spots.

 

Why should you invest in Security is simple? Let us cover the Trope Korean’s Haven’t Heard Of Locks first.

 

This is a Trope where the Second Lead or someone related to them manage to easily enter the main leads house and obtain Items that can help identify them to others such as taking their Hairbrush or Toothbrush which they will then use for DNA verification but hide the results from the main lead or the person looking from them or other items such as clothes or a ring which has been passed down from parent to child as a means of identification etc… The best part to all of this is that this then becomes The Trope Missing Items Where Are Thou since the Main Leads never seem to realize said items are even missing. It’s like they don’t seem to care that their Hairbrush or Toothbrush is even gone.

 

It's Like them saying Meh who cares that was so cheap we will simply get another one let the poor person who needs it more than us keep it. Not realizing that the Second Leads are profiting over there instead of suffering and the only person suffering is themselves.

 

That is why we advise that if you invest in locks and inform the Koreans of this great device this should hopefully prevent this trope from occurring in the Future as well as safeguarding their goods and valuables as well at the same time. It is funny because Korea is supposed to be this Hi Tech place and all and yet they seem to overlook this simple thing called a Lock.

 

Follow this up with a Popular Spot where we recommend investing in security cameras for major companies atleast.

 

One of the most popular spots that one can be sure to see in the dramas would have to be the Company Rooftop. The one spot where the main lead is usually dragged by the second lead and confronted about some matter. Some Threats may even be issued here or there as well. Sometimes someone else may see this and follow said people up and try and use this to their advantage specially if said pair are the lead couple instead of the first and second leads and try and use said information against them to break them up and all.

 

Thus we recommend installing the latest Spy Cameras here. The people think that they can get away with anything because this is not only a secure spot but nobody will also find out about what has happened. This method insures that the bosses find out all the interesting gossip that happens in the company as well as some useful information along the way. Perhaps this way they may find out if company employees are secretly badmouthing them or if among them they happen to have some long lost rich heir or heiress or someone undercover. Perhaps even take proper precautions along the way.

 

If you really want to push you luck you can even try for bodyguard duty since the client will almost always be constantly at risk somehow whether it is from an oncoming Truck Of Doom, getting slapped by other people or other incoming objects which can be discussed in our next post

 

Hope You liked this presentation From Korean Drama Trope Central. So till next time and will love to see what the rest of you come up with,

 

 

[adriana902]

#20 Broken and troubled main lead being healed by love

 

Some tragic event happens in the past (usually in childhood) of our main lead that shapes his/her personality and still affects his/her life. Some of the tragic events that could have happened to our main lead are one or more of the list above:

• Being betrayed by a lover or a friend  (Nice Guy)
• Being abandoned or neglected by both or one parent
• Being bullied by everyone around 
• Suffered of physical abuse by parents or a member of his/her family (if the main lead is an orphan)
• Lost a loved one: parents, girlfriend/boyfriend, sibling, best friend (sometimes our main laid can lost everyone he/she cared about)

The outcomes could be our main lead having a cold demeanor, poor social skills, distrustful personality, rude, distant, selfish, self hate. Sometimes they could have severe psychological conditions such as dissociative identity disorder (Kill me, heal me), psychosomatic disorders (I am not a robot).

 

The troubled past of our main lead is usually revealed little by little trough flashbacks. The story could go like this: our main lead would meet his/her one true love whom at first would hate him/her but then would feel attraction and compassion because would see through that wall the broken soul and golden heart that is inside our main lead, who all this time is being misunderstood because he doesn't now love, so she/he would teach him how to trust, and socialize and will be with him/her through hard times so at the end our main lead will believe love conquers all and will have his/her happy ending.

 

---

Call me cheesy but I love this kind of story he he he 

 

 

[yamiyugi]

Continuing from last time Drama Trope Central continues to bring all of you posters new offers and specials in regards to the request.

 

 

Regardless of all here is the next Trope.

 

 

 

Spoiler

 

Trope # 21

 

Popular Drama Spots –

 

 

So you decided that perhaps Investing in Door Locks or Cameras is not your cup of tea. Have no fear grab a sandwich from your local Subway though we hear Quiznos is getting just as popular and move on to this next area where investment is optional.

 

 

Aka the Sauna.

 

 

After your long day of searching for investments to no avail we just you just relax in one of Korea’s more popular area of Dramas aka the Sauna.

 

 

This may be a reaction of someone who may be visiting Korea for the first time….

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

No Dears this isn’t a place for refugees as he thinks.

 

 

This spot is visited in nearly every drama at some point unless it is a period drama. J We have it on good authority that drama leads are bound to pay it a visit at some point because they don’t have money to stay in a nice place anymore or they have suddenly gone broke for some reason, kicked out of their house etc… So you can expect them to stay a night or so at a Sauna. They may also end up here due to them hiding from loan sharks temporary or from some family members that one of them may have caused problems for the family such as an Immature Adult may have been scammed and doesn’t want to show their face out of shame or knows that they will get into trouble with the people at their house. So they will decide to lay low over here for a few days till the matter has cooled down. Then again a Sauna may just be used by family members for recreational purposes but as we have noticed at some point someone from a drama will eventually end up here.

 

 

In other words, this is also not a bad place to invest in. Perhaps if you get lucky you may end up looking after someone who is rich and doesn’t even know that till later on. Perhaps they may decide to even reward you for being kind to them.

 

 

So now that you have visited the Sauna you require some other popular spot to visit perhaps even add it in Your Regular Tour Package. Have no fear we have something else and no we aren’t talking about Rooftop Meeting Places since that has been covered already in the last post.

 

 

We now cover the Han River.

 

 

We have it on good authority that after the Sauna this will be a great place to visit not only for the scenic view that it provides which enables this to be a great spot if you are planning on going on a date but also to vent out all your frustrations if you are alone. If you enjoy being an Evil Second Lead have no fear this area supports said need as well. We can arrange group reservations where evil second leads can meet up here for secure evil planning of their next best evil schemes with their partners in crime. This place makes it nice and secure with little chance of any of you being disturbed when coming up with your schemes. And all. Though we hope that the calm and beautiful scene actually makes you change your mind and go on the correct path.

 

 

Though if all your plans end up failing or backfiring we suggest you use this place to attempt suicide as well. Fortunately for you we recommend that you inform us of the person that you have wronged along the way. This is for your own safety and wellbeing because we know that said person will preferably not let you die and will come to your rescue in the nick of time and we take this very seriously so for the right price we will inform them secretly. Making this a Win Win situation for all of us.

 

 

Finally, the Han River serves one Final purpose. This Trope that it can also turn into is as follows.

 

 

Toss The Ring –

 

 

 

You are suffering from a bad breakup or have just discovered that you can’t be with your loved one for some reason or the other whether it is a noble sacrifice or you find out that he has been cheating on you for some reason or other. So what are you going to do now with the expensive Ring that they may have gifted to you. Certainly not sell it as that would be to good and one isn’t that smart enough to either think of that or want anything from said person even though you probably deserve it. Fortunately for you the Han River serves its other purpose as well. Just throw your ring in one of our designated Toss The Ring Spots and be done with your sad memories while we just fish it out later and profit from your misery or if we are feeling generous donate said rings or items for charity. Offcourse you can also try and discard some kind if incriminating evidence as well if you are the Second Lead or one of their family members. Don’t worry the Han River Guards your secrets well.

 

 

 

 

Hope you all enjoyed another report from Drama Trope Central and found it useful. Be sure to tune in next time for another trope from us if it hasn’t been covered. So till next time and continue to post another Trope which I can enjoy. Take Care all of you.

 

 

PS : After your tiring day from visiting all these places we recommend that end it all by ordering Pizza from Papa Johns. We also offer Special Discounts for all Trope Group Members so be sure to avail this deal

 

 

[kokodus]

#22 Birth secrets

 

Hehe. I remember city Hunter was the first ever drama I watched that had a huge birth secret, and I was so taken aback when it was revealed. I was like so surprised and thought they must be the most genius writers ever. I was young and inexperienced then, ok? LOL. I only came to know that it is one of the Makjang troupe that is commonly used in kdramas that is supposed to shock the viewers. Well only the viewers are more clever and they can sense a birth secret coming from miles away. Haha. 

 

Calling @triplem @stroppyse @USAFarmgirl @lynne22 @dhakra @themarchioness @phikyl @bedifferent @angelangie to come and participate here. I'm only watching dramas for 3 years now, I bet you people have more to add to the list than me. 

 

[Lmangla]

#31 - a pair of glasses

 

as someone who wears glasses, it annoys me that characters sometimes get makeover and the first thing that goes is glasses. does the person get magic vision and they can now see? did they get a pair of contacts? what is the story here? what is hilarious is when characters wears glasses that have no lens! hahahahah..

like this pic of @kokodus oppa -- only the frame which is so weird because even in shops when you buy, the frames are never empty. is it because the camera lighting person thinks the light will reflect off the lens? but what makes me laugh is how characters start wearing glasses and then all of a sudden through the drama, they are no longer wearing them. these are young leads -- only old people have reading glasses. hahahhaha.... considering how expensive frames can be especially when they are branded, it amazes me that no PPL company orders these leads to wear them the whole time. hahahah...

 

but what really irks me is how the frames are often all wrong for the face -- as a public service announcement, when you pick a pair of glasses, you should smile -- if your cheeks push up your frames or hides your smiley cheeks, then it is too big for your face.

[Guest]

#32 - Babe Falls .. Oppa catcha

 

Spoiler

ops... this one for real...heeee *juz for laughs*

 

[aurora1205]

#34 K drama parents always be like

 

[Lmangla]

#34 - when oppa is hot but his style is confusing.

maybe the stylist wants to make oppa more normal looking by putting him in bad sweaters, sparkly sweat suits, weird printed suits, tight pink pants or part of a children's costume (mask is missing)....

 

[jeijei]

@Lmangla that pullover was also worn by the Goblin (red) and Lee Jongsuk (powder blue, in Weightlifting Fairy cameo), making it the It(chy) Shirt of 2016.

 

#40 Everyone eats at Subway

 

#41 Kim Nam Gil is the Korean Sean Bean

He dies in 16 out of 26 credited works. I'm sorry, oppa, we can't protect you from this cruel world.

 

 

[SpiritGambler]

This looks fun! Here's mine.

 

#42 Cutting your own hair will give you a cool haircut

Whenever the kdrama char decided to cut her/his own hair the end result is always cool or at least a salon-quality haircut which is impossible to do in real life  

I don't hate it but it's kind of funny.