We recently published Cressida Blake Roe’s glorious “Second Lead Syndrome.”

Here, we ask her two questions about her story:

1) So who isn’t a sucker for a Second Lead, right? They’re so much more tragic and interesting than the lead! You just want to take them home and … comfort them! I love how you hit on this trope, but also give us a real, vibrant creation here. Is there a Second Lead out there whose plight tugs at your heartstrings?
I have to mention two famed Second Leads, Baek In-Ho of Cheese in the Trap and Gong Tae-Kwang of Who Are You: School 2015, since they were the ones who inspired this piece. A common trait between them in particular is their popularity within the fandoms and how so many viewers really regretted that they didn’t end up with the heroines. It raised this question for me of acceptable Second Lead attractiveness. If a Second Lead is too compelling, is that bad writing, according to the Laws of Tropism? Or is it good writing, because he makes our hearts waver just as he makes the heroine’s? That paradox got me intrigued and led me into this story.

2) And speaking of this trope — what do you think of its effectiveness? Could a love story be equally as rich without a second lead pining for the heroine? Or do we need him to see how truly special she is?
So much of what a Second Lead can do is almost beyond mere romanticism, even though that’s his most visible role in the plot. He’s also a very load-bearing character in what he does to the narrative, which is something a bit different: he’s naturally a foil to the First Lead and the heroine, a perfect third point to the triangle that supports the whole structure. We learn more about them, both good and bad, than we would if he weren’t there. He expands the story-world beyond their immediate interpersonal sphere to broader and more dangerous forces, since he’s often connected to the main antagonist. But although he introduces conflict of all kinds to the heroine, he also provides a great deal of comfort to her and can be the most vulnerable character we see on-screen. Through this, we become deeply invested in his struggle—all the more so, I believe, because we know he’s doomed. This connection with the audience is also a significant aspect: I find the Second Lead such a great archetype because although he’s a tragic figure, he’s also such a relatable one. He struggles and grows and loses people and endures, even without the nice tidy reward of a traditional happily ever after. In some ways, his heroism is his ordinariness. Of course, not every story demands this kind of relationship or dynamic. But what it does and what it evokes from us is unexpectedly complex, which is why the Second Lead—especially in k-dramas—can be so beloved.