Anti-heroes are seen as characters with a morally grey area, who ordinarily will be considered as villains or bad but as their story progresses, they show hints of goodness with their actions that makes the viewer ultimately root for them to succeed. Often seen as a lesser evil, anti-heroes are seen as people who would do anything to bring to justice a greater evil plaguing the society or community.
So far, there have been many anti-hero characters in K-Dramas. Characters whose thrilling storylines and actions have made us fall in love with them. Here are some of them.
1. Vincenzo Cassano - "Vincenzo"
Vincenzo Cassano was as morally grey as they come, he worked for the Mafia, burnt down an estate, killed a couple of people here and there, and stole from others as well. Now, we can very well say that the people to whom he did all these acts to were bad or even worse than him. But still.... he was a bad guy. However, perhaps it's the fact that he saw people in need of his help or just for the quest of not bringing more eyes into the safe below the apartment complex but as his story progressed, even though he still applied questionable methods, he's seen as a warrior for the defenseless, using his expertise to protect those around him and hunt down an even greater evil.
2. Kim DooKi - "Taxi Driver"
As morally grey as they come, Kim DooKi believed that to fight bad and evil, you have to be just as bad or even worse. Always ready to throw a fist, Kim DooKi used his skills to bring proper and due punishments to evil people whose acts were so bad that they perhaps did not deserve a second chance or were such malice to the society that whatever punishment the courts may have had for them wouldn't have sufficed.
3. Kang YoHan - "The Devil Judge"
In today's terms, Kang YoHan would be described as the judge, jury, and executioner. While he seemingly went after the corrupt and evil people in the society and delivered justice to them, his thoughts and actions where often questionable. While on the surface he might have seemed like the smart and dutiful warrior for justice who was serving the people, in reality, he also had his own plans as he was on a quest for revenge and used his position to achieve his plans regardless of whom he hurt along the way.
4. Kim SungRyoung - "Chief Kim"
Kim SungRyoung is seen as a smart accountant who helps the rich and gangsters evade tax and hide their wealth while receiving an ample commission from them. He does this because he doesn't want to be poor. However, when he joins a new company, he sees the corrupt practices of the owners and managers and it doesn't sit well with him. Using his smarts and wits, he embarks on a journey to uproot all the evil people in the company. And although some of his actions were bad, in the overall context, he was a good manager seeking to save the people in his department.
5. Na JiYe - "Doctor Prisoner"
Revenge was his game and using others to achieve this was his plan. After being wrongly fired from his job, Na JiYe is on a quest for revenge and somehow lands a job in Prison. Using his skills and smarts, he manipulates others to do his bidding regardless of the consequence to them. Although his actions were morally bad and problematic at times, he still showed great conscience and humanity in dealing with others, which made us understand him even better.
6. Hwang DaeMyung - "Stealer The Treasure Keeper"
It takes a thief to catch a thief. A modern-day Robin Hood, while Hwang DaeMyung may not be seen as the typically morally grey character who does everything to achieve his goals, so far, his only flaw (well, not really a flaw in the broader scheme) is the fact that he steals, from rich and corrupt individuals.
7. Hwang KyungMin "The King Of Pigs"
Hwang KyungMin is a character you do not just take pity on but somehow root for him, even though he is on a vengeful murderous path. Seeking to bring justice after 20 years to his high school bullies, he does whatever it takes to find his former classmates and deliver to them the same level of cruelty they afflicted on him and his friends. While his story was seemingly a sad one, he is seen as an anti-hero who served justice to those who had hurt him and his friend.
Which other male anti-hero character did you love? Let us know in the comments section.