We at DWASOK love a good villain and while there might have been not as many as usual this year, that doesn’t mean we can’t give kudos too those that stood out.  Come join us as we discuss our favorite bad guys of 2017!

Kmuse:

Rebel: Hong Gil Dong/ Queen for Seven Days – I am combining these two since Crown Prince Hyomyeong is the bad guy in both dramas.  Both had different versions that highlighted the events that led to his reign of tyranny.  And both humanized the character to the point where I felt for him even as he did unforgivable acts.

Forest of Strangers – SPOILERS!!!!!!!!!!!!  There is something so refreshing on having a bad guy who decides to repent and do what is right….. no matter what.  The story had so many twists and turns that you didn’t really find out who the bad guy was until the very last few episodes.  Which is also why I am not telling you who it is specifically.  You will just have to watch and find out for yourself.

Telzeytalks:

Because It’s my First Life : Can I just say that Ji Ho’s dad in Because It’s my First Life should count as a villain? I try to discount him because mean fathers are kind of a trope and that was a set-up to the plot. But still. I don’t like watching him and I hated him in two seconds.

Man x Man – A villain that I enjoyed watching through the drama rather than just hating every time he showed up was Yeon Jeong Hun, who played the crooked chaebol in Man x Man. He was not just evil for evil’s sake, but intent on promoting his business empire at any cost and controlling his wife. As we progress through the drama we pick up on reasons why he had chosen this path, and signs that he has second thoughts.

CLKYTTA:

Strong Woman Do Bong Soon-So our serial killer/kidnapper guy totally creeped me out.  What really creeped me out was that he was totally hot and totally crazy.  I love when the bad guy has that little twist, like being hot, that you feel so conflicted because you really don’t want to believe that they are the one. I really want to see this actor play a non creepy role.

Memory Lost- This one isn’t a Kdrama, but a Cdrama.  The Alphabet syndicate are great villains. They enjoy playing games with people’s lives and there is nothing as scary as highly educated, well funded, seemingly normal, bad guys.

Karie the Maknae:

While You Were Sleeping – I haven’t detested a lot of fictional characters, but I truly detest Lawyer Lee Yu Beom. He’s so smooth and oily and selfish and just awful, but in a sophisticated and slightly charming package. I hate him a lot.

Revolutionary Love – Byun Hyuk’s dad is a terrible parent and a terrible person, resorting to violence and manipulation to get his way. BUT there’s a glimmer of something —  he wants Byun Hyuk to succeed. It’s a layer to his character that I didn’t expect, and I’m waiting to see how it all turns out.

Drama Geek:

Save Me-Hands down the cult trio get my vote. I honestly wasn’t sure I’d be able to watch the two men in dramas again without being completely creeped out. And each one of them were a different kind of psycho. Father Baek started out just a swindler and a pedophile but somewhere along the way convinced himself he was a god. Brother Jo never bought into the religious aspect but he was vile because he proved that he’d do anything to hold onto the money. Sister Kang was the most pitiful of the three, though in practice still just as evil. She put so much faith in getting on that stupid ship of salvation she sacrificed her daughter and herself for it.

Goblin-This one ended in January and I sadly left it out of most of my end of year stuff from 2016 since it was still pretty new when we did our posts. I have an odd addition here. The Reaper. No, he wasn’t technically the villain, but he does qualify. At least his life before he became a reaper. As king he was manipulated, but he was still the one that ordered everyone’s death. His redemption arc and relationship with both the Goblin and Sunny were one of the highlights of the drama. I love to hate bad guys, but I also love when they are shown as human and redeemable.

Kdrama Jen

Save Me– I know it looks like I am copying again, but I think there are other villains in this one. I think the school bullies that showed no remorse after they terrorized a young boy to the extent that he took his own life are scarier than the cult leaders. Their sense of privilege and conviction that they somehow are better than this young boy with a disability made me feel rage. Now, I think kids sometimes make bad decisions and through adult guidance and reflection they grow as a result. There was no remorse and no character growth for these villains. I think these entitled kids who took pleasure in the pain of others might be just as scary or even scarier than the cult leaders.

So many bad guys and so little time to go into them all.  Did you favorite villain make our list?  Let us know in the comments and check out all our End of Year Reviews HERE!

See you at our next EOY review,

The Fangirls