Gone are the days when people loved the green and overly joyous characters. We all agree that nowadays, K-dramas focus more on reality and gray shades of character, as today's youth prefer villains over heroes. Listed below are many diverse characters that are protagonists, but people didn’t find them lovable or somewhat annoying.
1. Jo Yi Seo From Itaewon Class
Jo Yi Seo, played by Kim Da-mi from Itaewon Class, is one of the characters who receives a mixed reaction from the audience. She is a talented genius who helped Park Sae-ro-yi with his business successfully. She has an antisocial personality disorder, and some viewers sympathize with her. But her other personality is known for being manipulative and using her intelligence in the wrong way.
2. Gu Jun Pyo From Boys Over Flowers
Gu Jun Pyo, played by Lee Min Ho, is one of the famous characters of the 2000s. However, in today’s time, his character will not be appreciated. Because he was so toxic and bullied people and female leads around him just because he had resources and power.
3. Ko Moon Young From It's Okay To Not Be Okay
Ko Moon Young, played by Seo Yae-ji, is one of the recent characters that nobody expected would be so different from other female leads. Ko Moon Young is a children's book writer obsessed with Moon Gang-tae. Ko Moon Young is obsessive and toxic, which lacks empathy from the audience for her character.
4. Kang Ye Seo From Sky Castle
Kang Ye Seo, played by Kim Hye-yoon, is another lead protagonist that the audience didn’t like. Kang Ye Seo comes from a privileged background and lives in a palace called Sky Castle. She always judges her peers and makes insulting comments because of her wealthy background, which doesn’t sit well with the viewers.
5. Bae Gyuri From Extracurricular
Bae Gyuri, played by Park Ju-hyun from Extracurricular, is one of the annoying lead protagonists. She discovers the secret of Oh Ji Soo running an illegal business and blackmails him. She always sticks her foot in his business, and if something goes wrong because of her, she blames him.
6. Nam Do San From Start-Up
Start-Up is a K-drama where the audience wants Han Ji-pyeong, played by Kim Seon-ho, the second lead to be the main hero. But Nam Do San, played by Nam Joo-hyuk, was shown as a talented but struggling entrepreneur. But throughout the drama, he is not seen making any progress to achieve his goal but only shown dreaming about his lady love.
7. Oh Ha Ni From Playful Kiss
Oh Ha Ni, played by Jung So Min, is one of the lively characters who has a crush on his popular deskmate, Baek Seung Jo. But as in this era, many viewers find it very annoying because of her clumsy and stalking behavior towards the boy. The drama shows awkward moments as romance, but actually, it is more embarrassing.
8. Cha Joo Hyuk From Familiar Wife
Cha Joo Hyuk, played by Ji Sung, is one of the worst characters ever written in K-dramas. Cha Joo Hyuk and his wife are always having problems in their relationship. He never wants to address them and think back to his first love. He leaves his wife for his first love and later regrets it, bringing misfortune for both the women.
9. Yu Na Bi From Nevertheless
Many people who have watched Nevertheless find it a red flag drama. Many people think Park Jae-eon, played by Song Kang, is the red flag. But Yu Na Bi is the red flag, played by Han So-hee. She knows he doesn't do relationships, but still, she has to mingle in his business. She kept expecting from him even though he made it clear to her.
10. Sung Gi Hoon From Squid Game
The famous Netflix show Squid Game, which broke the internet in 2021. It is a show where players with financial problems join to play a children's game of death. The character of Sung Gi Hoon, played by Lee Jung-Jae, is unappreciated by viewers as he has a mixed personality and nature. Gi Hoon doesn't give respect to his family but is kind to foreigners.
