Siblings are such an underrated relationship in dramaland. In the midst of all the romance between the leads and bromance between the friends, we tend to forget one of the most fun and loving relationships in dramaland, i.e. of siblings. Here is a list of few of the iconic siblings from dramaland.
8. I’ll Do Everything to Protect You Siblings
This category of siblings is quite rare in dramaland. In the midst of always fighting, bickering and separated at childhood siblings, ‘I’ll do everything to protect you siblings’ are either the older siblings taking care of the younger ones, or a set of siblings with a tragic childhood who value each other to death.
- Yoon Na Moo, Chae So Jin and Yoon Hyun Moo (played by Jang Ki Yong, Choi Ri and Kim Kyung Nam) from Come and Hug Me (2018)
Come and Hug Me is one of my favourite dramas of this year. One of the many reasons why I love this drama is the relationship between the sibling pairs of Na Moo - So Jin and So Jin - Hyun Moo. Na Moo has always been an amazing brother to So Jin. Even though not related to each other by blood, he always treated her like his own sister. He carried her to school on his back, helped her to study, protected her from their father and behaved no less than how an elder brother should be. So Jin was also absolutely in awe of Na Moo and adored him to death. He was the only person she trusted after her mother and fought for his happiness in her own way.
On the other hand, So Jin’s relationship with her other stepbrother Yoon Hyun Moo gradually grew with time. Yoon Hyun Moo has a rather violent personality and would always use anger and violence to show his emotions. The only person who could control him and calm him down was So Jin (those sibling backhugs were my favourite), even though she was scared of him at the beginning. The relationship development between Yoon Hyun Moo and So Jin and ultimately between Yoon Hyun Moo and Yoon Na Moo was a treat to watch for the viewers, who had come to like and pity Hyun Moo’s character and wanted him to find peace from his inner turmoil.
Other siblings in this category:
- Kim Tae Hyun and Kim So Hyun (played by Joo Won and Park Hye Soo) from Yong Pal (2015)
- Sung Sun Woo and Sung Jin Joo (played by Go Kyung Pyo and Kim Seol) from Reply 1988 (2015)
7. Annoying Younger Siblings
My least favourite category in the list, ‘the annoying younger sibling’ is just as it sounds. It generally includes younger siblings who are either insulting the older sibling or are constantly interfering in their personal life to make it worse than what the drama writers have already made it.
- Kim Hye Jin and Kim Hye Rin (played by Hwang Jung Eum and Jung Da Bin) from She Was Pretty (2015)
Kim Hye Rin was somewhat the epitome of annoying sibling for me in the whole of k-dramaland. She has absolutely no regard for her elder sister and always demeaned her for her looks and intelligence and gave importance to the good-looking friend of her sister. All in a happy banter, but I just couldn’t take the insults she kept throwing on her sister regarding her looks and lack of personality.
Other siblings in this category:
- Lee Jung Hyun and Lee Shin (played by Moon Ga Young and Jun Young Hwa) from Heartstrings (2011)
- Sunwoo Hwan and Sunwoo Jung (played by Lee Seung Gi and Han Ye Won) from Shining Inheritance (2009)
6. We are Related but We Hate Each Other for Property Siblings
This is another very common trope for k-drama writers. I’ve realized one thing while watching k-dramas, i.e. if you are a chaebol, it’s better to be a single child. If not, you are bound to find enemies inside your home where your blood related sibling would be plotting to snatch your inheritance since the day you were born.
- Kim Won and Kim Tan (played by Choi Jin Hyuk and Lee Min Ho) from The Heirs (2013)
The Heirs is the reason why I know about Choi Jin Hyuk today. I was rather new to watching K-drama when Heirs came out and like everyone else, I was obsessed with the show (in my defence I was very young at the time). For most of the drama Kim Won remained angry with Kim Tan because the former believed that the latter would claim his share in the property. But it was Kim Tan’s property too, right? Anyhoo, after pretending to hate Kim Tan for around 15 episodes and later finally coming to help him both emotionally and financially, I just couldn’t grasp the reason why he had to pretend to hate him in the first place. If he had not, then maybe Kim Tan would have turned out to be a better human being than he already was.
Other siblings in this category:
- Wang So, Wang Wook and Wang Yo (played by Lee Jung Gi, Kang Ha Neul and Hong Jong Hyun) from Scarlet Heart: Ryeo (2016)
- Jang Ye Won and Jang Yoon Han (played by Yoon Ji Hye and UEE) from High Society (2015)
5. The Oddball Siblings
‘Oddball siblings’ are a weird and wacky set of siblings who are miles apart from each other, but their shenanigans and dynamics are just so much fun to watch that sometimes you would watch the whole drama primarily for their interactions.
- Park Do Kyung, Park Soo Kyung and Park Hoon (played by Eric Mun, Ye Ji Won and Heo Jung Min) from Another Miss Oh (2016)
The Another Miss Oh siblings were so random and so much fun to watch. Each of the siblings was just totally different from the others. Park Do Kyung was this always angry and moody sound engineer, Park Soo Kyung was this alcohol-loving, strict-looking, yoga-practicing director of a food company, and Park Hoon was this dorky budding screenwriter who had no other option but to remain in his older brother’s shadow. The dynamics between these three siblings and each sibling's individual life story were too cute and fun to miss.
Other siblings in this category:
- Sung Duk Deon, Sung Bo Ra and Sung No Eul (played by Hyeri, Ryu Hye Young and Choi Sung Won) from Reply 1988 (2015)
- Kim Jung Hwan and Kim Jung Bing (Played by Ryu Jun Yeol and Ahn Jae Hong) from Reply 1988 (2015)
4. I’ll Follow in Your Footsteps Siblings
This particular sibling category is where one sibling is so full of admiration for the other one, that they would do anything to become like their older sibling. Not exactly my favorite, but ‘I’ll follow in your footsteps sibling’ are rare to watch in k-dramas nowadays.
- Baek Seung Jo and Baek Eun Jo (played by Kim Hyun Joong and Choi Won Hong) from Playful Kiss (2010)
Well, I know that both Baek Seung Jo and Baek Eun Jo were this annoying set of siblings who had been mean to Oh Ha Ni for most of the drama for no apparent reason. But one thing that we cannot deny is the chemistry between these brothers. Baek Seung Jo was a genius with an IQ of 200 and with an EQ of minus 200 and was the smartest and most handsome guy in the school. On the other hand Baek Eun Jo idolised his brother and followed him religiously in whatever he did. This pair of siblings had quite an age gap but that didn’t stop the younger brother from giving some advice and putting some sense into the older brother’s head. Overall, this may not be my favourite siblings on the list, but they were cute (sometimes) and unnecessarily smart throughout the show.
Other siblings in this category:
- Lee Kang To and Lee Kang San (played by Joo Won and Shin Hyun Joon) from Bridal Mask (2012)
3. One Big Happy Family Siblings
One of my favorite sibling categories on the list, these particular sets of siblings generally belonged to the family drama genre, where there are enough episodes for their character development. This category also includes some of my all-time favorite dramas and actors in dramaland (I love you Joo Won!).
- Byun Joon Young, Byun Hye Young, Byun Mi Young, Byun Ra Young (played by Min Jin Woong, Lee Yoo Ri, Jung So Min and Ryu Hwa Young) from My Father is Strange (2017)
If only I could explain in words how much I simply adore this drama from start to finish and the amazing relationship between these siblings, then I could write an entire article about it. The Byun siblings are my ultimate sibling goals in dramaland. They are this fun loving and sassy set of siblings, who just absolutely love one other and are there for each other during both the good and bad times. They also portray a realistic side of a sibling relationship where they are constantly fighting, bickering and sometimes hitting each other for the simplest of mistakes. But that doesn’t stop them from being the coolest and probably the best set of siblings in the list.
Other siblings in this category:
- Hwang Tae Hee, Hwang Tae Shik, Hwang Tae Boem and Hwang Tae Pil (played by Joo Won, Jung Woong In, Ryu Soo Young and Yeon Woo Jin) from Ojakgyo Brothers (2011)
2. Best Twin Siblings
‘Twin siblings’ are another fun-to-watch category, provided that they are not separated at birth. Be it fraternal twin or identical twin, one of the twins is always the lead of the drama and other is constantly supporting their sibling from behind. This is probably the best part about having your twin sibling as a soulmate.
- Kang Ho Goo and Kang Ho Kyung (played by Choi Woo Shik and Lee Soo Kyung) from Ho Goo’s Love (2015)
Kang Ho Goo and Kang Ho Kyung are my most favourite twin siblings in dramaland. They are always there for one other, taking care of each other, talking, cursing and bickering like it’s nobody’s business and it's such a treat to watch. Also, Ho Goo’s Love was one the biggest surprises for me as it was such a fun and endearing show to watch, something which I was not expecting at all. Ho Kyung’s love and admiration for her brother, whom she knew as a fool and a pushover was such a cute little thing to watch. She has always been there for Ho Goo and has supported and helped him in all his decisions in her own way. Also, both Ho Goo and Ho Kyung had such an adorable and funny individual love story of their own, which makes this drama worth a watch.
Other siblings in this category:
- Lee Eun Bi and Go Eun Byul (played Kim So Hyun) from Who Are You: School 2015 (2015)
- Do Bong Soon and Do Bong Ki (played by Park Bo Young and Ahn Woo Yeon) from Strong Woman Do Bong Soon (2017)
1. Long Lost Finally Met Siblings
The most common category for all drama writers, ‘long lost finally met siblings’ are the most overused trope in dramaland. Three out of every ten dramas include siblings who were separated at childhood and finally met after either of them has become a criminal, a gangster, sometimes a psychopath, and the other always follows the path of truth. So original!
- Lee Hyun and Lee Min (played by Seo In Gook and Park Bo Gum) from I Remember You (2015)
Just to give a heads up, they might be the best looking siblings on the list. Lee Hyun and Lee Min got separated during childhood because of a tragic encounter with a psychopath. One grew up to be a high class criminal profiler, while the other grew up to be a lawyer. The whole plot of the drama revolved around them - their separation, misunderstandings, hatred, acceptance, love - every emotion was the highlight of the drama. Seo In Guk and Park Bo Gum played their role exceptionally well and gave us hard-to-forget sibling goals. Just go and watch those two minutes of the last episode where they were trying to take a selfie. It is the most adorable thing you’ll watch on the internet today.
Other siblings in this category:
- Kim Shin and Kim Sun (played by Gong Yoo and Yoo In Na) from Goblin (2017)
- Choi Dal Po and Ki Jae Myung (played by Lee Jong Suk and Yoon Kyun Sang) from Pinocchio (2014)
- Lee Hyun Woo and Han Seong Jun (Played by Kim Jae Won and Lee Tae Hwan) from Father, I’ll Take Care of You (2016)
- Jang Dong Soo, Jang Dong Chul and Jang Dong Woo (played by Lee Beom Soo, Kim Jae Joong and Im Si Wan) from Triangle (2014)