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Stylish Asian Drama Characters – Female

May 25, 2016

There are a lot of stylish characters in dramas — too many to list here. But I wanted to share characters I thought had great individual styles. Stylish to me is someone who carries a style well — regardless if it’s popular or not. This also means you may not agree with the people I’ve selected, but that’s okay. My list of stylish drama characters is long, but unless you want a novel I am keeping this on the short side by identifying three styles. As always, please share with me your favorite stylish characters from a drama (female version).

Cai Huan Zhen from Marry Me or Not

Rich style: Cai Huan Zhen
Marry Me or Not?
Cai Huan Zhen’s appearance on first impression might make you think she’s a snooty rich person. It’s mostly a facade that covers up a person with a deeper personality. Despite that, she really is very stylish when she needs to be. Her at home lounge style is kind of quirky. She’ll wear large framed glasses with the top of her hair pulled back. Her casual clothes are very feminine. But it’s her business attire that really sets the tone. Her dresses are form-fitting to show her curves and lean body.

I am obsessed with the jewelry she wears. I don’t really pay attention to the kinds of jewelry characters are wearing, but she always wears tasteful necklaces that stand out. It might be because her hair is a very simple and her business clothes are streamlined and that is why I always notice her jewelry. It makes for an interesting style tip: pair simple outfits with bolder jewelry. Also, coordinate your wallet to your handbag.

About Marry Me or Not?: Onscreen couple Roy Chiu and Alice Ke from Office Girls reunite in this romantic comedy. Burned by Jiang Qian Yao’s (Harry Zhang) playboy antics, Hao Sheng Nan (Joanne Tseng) and Cai Huan Zhen (Alice Ke) have been frenemies since college. But when Qian Yao resurfaces to stir up trouble years later, he ignites a new breed of cutthroat competition between Sheng Nan and Huan Zheng, who are both headstrong women focused on succeeding in work and in love. Meanwhile, after seeing too many failed marriages, divorce lawyer Justin Hao (Roy Chiu) becomes increasingly cynical.

Mako Hanzawa from The Reason I Can’t Find My Love

Cute style: Mako Hanzawa
The Reason I Can’t Find My Love
Mako Hanzawa reminds me so much of the ideal OL girl, looking for love (successfully or unsuccessfully) while dealing with the day-to-day grind of working. Her style is very cute and conservative, with lots of cardigans and sweaters. She’s always got on an interesting neckline (there’s a ruffle or feminine pattern somewhere). There are a lot of girls in real life just like her. Open the Japanese magazine, CanCam, or its older sister, AneCan, and you’ll see this is a particular style.

But across the many dramas I’ve seen I don’t see this style that often. It might not help that Japanese dramas are harder to find, but when compared to styles from other countries — I think it’s still unique. My takeaway from this is pairing simple skirts with feminine tops, sometimes paired with a sweater. Mako’s character has a sweet, romantic personality to match this style.

About The Reason I Can’t Find My Love: For three women, life is tough enough to handle — don’t even try adding love to the mix! Emi Fuji (Karina Nose) is a lighting tech whose colleagues are all men. She’s largely disinterested in fashion and love, but still harbors feelings for her ex, who also happens to be a coworker. Meanwhile, Mako Hanzawa (Yuko Oshima), a diligent administrative worker, lacks experience in all things romance, which proves tricky when she gets involved with a colleague. Saki Ogura (Yuriko Yoshitaka) aspires to be a journalist, but winds up working at a hostess bar, where she looks for love in all the wrong places. Will she give up on her dreams so easily?

Hong Seol from Cheese in the Trap

Unique style: Hong Seol
Cheese in the Trap
Why is Hong Seol on here? Fashion is definitely the last thing on her mind when she has to deal with a socially awkward boyfriend, mean people, studying, and making money to survive. However, her style fits her character perfectly giving her a unique sense of style (compared to others in the show). Although she’d rather not get any attention, people are drawn to her for good and bad reasons. Her red-brown wavy hair, which is unusual, doesn’t help.

In the world of fashion, she’s far from “best dressed” but being trendy is overrated. She wears a lot of muted colors and loose styles, especially oversized jackets and sweaters that hit below the knee. She is dressed very comfortably each day compared to the other characters on this list. You can tell she’s not interested in trying to attract attention. We’re more drawn to her personal ethics and hardworking personality than to her clothes. Practical shoes are more useful than sky-high heels, especially when you’re always running to class. You might not want to adopt her style if you care about fashion but we can still learn a thing or two from her — like how to wear a scarf, how to layer, or how to not care what others think about you.

About Cheese in the Trap: Hong Seol (Kim Go Eun) isn’t the smartest or most privileged university student, but she is without a doubt hardworking and earnest. In contrast, Hong Seol’s senior, Yoo Jeong (Park Hae Jin), is a high achiever with the good looks, athleticism and grades to prove it — but he harbors a dark side. Even stranger, an unlikely alliance is forged between these two classmates from opposite sides of the track.

There’s so many styles to choose from with dramas. Actually, there’s so many characters to choose from anime and manga as well. And, of course, there are stylish male characters, too. Be on the look out for future style posts. In the meantime, let me know which drama characters have a style you like.

Stylish Asian Drama Characters – Female

May 25, 2016

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