Strong Female Leads (Korean + Chinese Dramas)
UPDATE :
Added 'It's Okay To Not Be Okay' (huge fan of Ko Moon Young's I-take-no-shit persona and her go-getter bold tigress approach) & 'Memorist' to the list.
'Itaewon Class' ~ Yi Seo is an exemplary strong female lead. She's fearless (not gullible), and doesn't succumb to bullying or injustice. I've much admiration for her character's determination, competitiveness and resilience in fighting for her man using her innate wit rather than brute-force or cruelty!
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Nothing better than a strong, independent, capable & intelligent female lead!! This list depicts my favourites from China & Korea. A few chosen dramas are based on the plot's premise of the female lead's growth and development (eg: from a naive and immature girl to an assertive and determined women).
P.S: Let's PLEASE VOTE for LESS oh-so-typical dramas with the usual damsels in distress, girls living in poverty needing saving from a prince charming (aka rich chaebol/ceo), or immature female leads with a naive, ditsy, whinny and fragile persona. It's the year 2021, and I believe the world continuously needs stronger female representations as role models.
Comment and share your top 3 strong female leads below. Feel free to also recommend what else could potentially be added to this list ;-)
Red Raven Feb 9, 2020
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![Hotel del Luna]()
Nestled deep in the heart of Seoul’s thriving downtown sits a curious hotel, the like of which no one has ever seen before. Old beyond measure, the building has stood for millennia, ...more -
![Crash Landing on You]()
After getting into a paragliding accident, South Korean heiress Yoon Se Ri crash lands in North Korea. There, she meets North Korean army officer Ri Jung Hyuk, who agrees to help her ...more -
![Her Private Life]()
A dedicated professional, Sung Deok Mi lives for her work as an art gallery curator. Devoting herself to her work, she is exceptional in every way, save one. Beneath that cool, professional ...more -
![Search: WWW]()
This drama delves into the challenges and triumphs of modern women who have chosen career over traditional family roles. Bae Ta Mi, a competitive director at a major web portal company in ...more -
![What's Wrong with Secretary Kim]()
The series revolves around the narcissistic Lee Young Joon, the vice president of a company run by his family. He is very self-absorbed and thinks highly of himself, so much that he ...more -
![Princess Agents]()
The story takes place during the chaotic times of Wei, where innocent citizens are often kidnapped and turned into slaves. Slave girl, Chu Qiao was thrown into a forest along with other ...more -
![Eternal Love]()
The Nine-tailed Fox Bai Qian, the youngest daughter of the Fox King, is brought to Kunlun Mountain to become a disciple of the God of War, Mo Yuan. While studying there, a ...more -
![It's Okay to Not Be Okay]()
Moon Gang Tae is a community health worker at a psychiatric ward who was blessed with everything including a great body, smarts, ability to sympathize with others, patience, ability to react quickly, ...more -
![Legend of Fu Yao]()
Adopted as an orphan, Fu Yao served as a slave for the Xuan Yuan sect in the Taiyuan Kingdom. After a series of tragedies, she journeyed across the lands, searching to lift ...more -
![Doctors]()
Yoo Hye Jung was a tough bully in school with a prickly personality and always goes wayward. She had many scars from her childhood and through self-preservation, Hye Jung keeps her heart ...more -
![Healer]()
Seo Jung Hoo is a special kind of night courier, known only as "Healer" by his clients. For the right price and with the help of a genius hacker, he gets his ...more -
![Itaewon Class]()
Park Saeroyi's life has been turned upside down after he gets expelled from school for punching a bully and his father is killed in an accident. Following his father's steps, he opens ...more -
![The Princess Wei Young]()
The Northern Wei Dynasty was obliterated one night leaving behind the kindhearted Princess Feng Xin Er as an orphan. Although she escapes death, she accidentally enters her enemy's territory and she assumes ...more -
![Secret Garden]()
The drama tells the story of Kim Joo Won, an arrogant and eccentric CEO who maintains the image of seeming perfection, and Gil Ra Im, a poor and humble stuntwoman whose beauty ...more -
![Flower of Evil]()
Although Baek Hee Sung is hiding a dark secret surrounding his true identity, he has established a happy family life and a successful career. He is a loving husband and doting father ...more -
![The Last Empress]()
Set in an alternate universe, in which Korea is a constitutional monarchy in 2018, Oh Sunny is a bright and vivacious musical actress who marries the emperor. She becomes involved in the ...more -
![XX]()
Yoon Na Na is a well-regarded bartender at XX bar. She takes pride in her work and position as the head bartender. She involves herself in other parts of XX like selecting ...more -
![The King's Woman]()
Gong Sun Li is the granddaughter and disciple of military commander Gong Sun Yu. Jing Ke (first disciple) and Sun Li are childhood lovers and were forced to escape when Qin troops ...more -
![The King: Eternal Monarch]()
Lee Gon is the third Korean emperor of his generation. His citizens regard him as the perfect leader. But behind this flawless appearance, hides a deep wound. When he was eight years ...more -
![Cheese in the Trap]()
Having returned to college after a year long break due to her family's poor background, Hong Seol, a hardworking over-achiever, inadvertently gets on the wrong side of her senior, Yoo Jung, who's ...more -
![Hospital Ship]()
Army doctors board a hospital ship, which is a floating hospital that serves people who live on remote islands. But were these doctors interested in helping underprivileged people for free? Not at ...more -
![General and I]()
In a world ravaged by war, the four great nations, Jin, Yan, Liang and Qin, are ceaseless in their pursuit of power and ultimate domination. In the midst of this endless conflict, ...more -
![V.I.P]()
VIP is a drama that seeks to find an answer in the secretive relationships we hold in today’s society. Jung Sun is a competent and successful career woman who works as a ...more -
![Memorist]()
Dong Baek possesses an extraordinary gift - the ability to delve into the memories of those he touches. His remarkable talent, striking appearance, and no-nonsense approach have made him a world-renowned detective. ...more -
![A Girl Like Me]()
The beautiful baroness, duchess, princess (She gets promoted a lot!) Ban Hua has skirted marital bliss three times. Her straight-shooting manner and explosive temper ensured that each relationship ended in disaster – ...more -
![Story of Yanxi Palace]()
In 18th century Beijing, during the 6th year of Qianlong Emperor's reign, Wei Ying Luo enters the Forbidden City as an embroiderer to investigate the truth behind her older sister's rape and ...more -
![Empress Ki]()
Genghis Khan built an empire that spanned vast regions in East Asia and East Europe. And there was one woman who held immense power in the Yuan Dynasty, which Genghis Khan founded, ...more -
![The Story of Ming Lan]()
Set in the Northern Song dynasty, the story follows Sheng Ming Lan, an unfavored concubine-born 6th daughter of an official. After losing her mother at a young age, Ming Lan is raised ...more -
![The Glory]()
A high school student dreams of becoming an architect. However, she had to drop out of school after suffering from brutal school violence. Years later, the perpetrator gets married and has a ...more -
![The Glory Part 2]()
Moon Dong Eun's silent fury against those students that horrifically abused her during her high school years continues to burn inside of her. She meticulously executes her plan to inflict ultimate pain ...more -
![Celebrity]()
Fame. Money. Power. One young woman fights to become the next hottest celebrity in the glamorous yet scandalous world of influencers in Seoul. (Source: Netflix)
