A few wisps of glossy hair fall carelessly over his big black eyes. His attitude is reserved, his skin smooth, his suits perfectly cut and his figure elongated. He's not looking for love, but may soon be surprised by the blossoming of new feelings. On screen, this archetype of the ideal young man successively takes on the features of Lee Jong-suk, Lee Min-ho, Kim Soo-hyun, Seo In-guk – actors who have become famous the world over thanks to K-dramas, Korean comedy, historical and futuristic series in which romance almost always plays a key role.
After discovering series such as Hwarang and Scarlet Heart Ryeo, Charline Gacon, with her long, straight hair and shy smile, admits to having been seduced by "the image of the romantic, attentive Korean man who takes care of himself." It is a form of masculinity at odds with the role models she grew up with "in the countryside," in Moulins. "I've never been in a relationship with a Frenchman; the ones I knew seemed macho, I-don't-give-a-damn guys, not clean-cut," asserted this 24-year-old Frenchwoman, who moved to Seoul after her studies and now works as a content creator and photo model. "I have the impression that Koreans are more sensitive than the French. Here, men do skincare, it's normal for them to put on foundation in the morning. As women, we're under a lot of pressure to shave, keep our hair long and take care of ourselves. When, in another country, we see that we're not the only ones under this pressure, we feel much more understood," she confided.
Like the new sex symbols embodied in American cinema by actors such as Timothée Chalamet, the success of these Korean idols in the West reflects an appetite for a new masculinity, in societies where the #MeToo movement has led the cult of virility to be called into question. "There are several typical characters, depending on the era and the series. In the 2000s, the ultimate standard was an outwardly cold man, who has experienced trauma and reveals a 'marshmallow' heart over the course of the episodes. Recently, more progressive male characters have appeared: They ask permission to kiss their partners, accept and celebrate difference, as in Extraordinary Attorney Woo, whose heroine is autistic with Asperger's," said Ophélie Surcouf, consultant and author of Pourquoi la Corée? La vague coréenne et nous (Atelier des cahiers, 2021, "Why Korea? The Korean Wave and Us"). K-dramas almost never include sex scenes, and they take the time to explore the different stages of the awakening of feelings, in a way that is both modest and highly erotic.
You have 65% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.