According to Koreaboo, in episode 7 of the recently aired Korean drama “Love Next Door”, the female lead Seok Ryu ( Jung So Min ) has a scene where she is walking down a dark alley in the neighborhood, and the male lead Seung Hyo (Jung Hae In) starts following her.
Seok Ryu felt like someone was following her, so she started running until she reached a dead end. She was forced to turn around to face the person chasing her.
Only then did Seok Ryu realize that it was Seung Hyo who was following her. She blamed him for not saying anything the whole way, scaring her and forcing her to run away. But Seung Hyo blamed Seok Ryu, saying that she could have turned around to see who was following her.
This scene was controversial, especially among female viewers.
A post that attracted a lot of interaction on social media criticized the scene: “Please stop putting stupid scenes like this in dramas, especially when the male lead doesn't realize his mistake and apologize immediately.
Every day we see news of women being attacked and even killed for stopping to check who was following them. But the male lead in the movie can say such nonsense?
For men it is not a big deal, but the truth is this is a part of every woman's daily life.”
Many commenters agreed with this sentiment. They criticized the scene for its insensitive depiction. Viewers agreed that fear like the one described above is a part of everyday life for most women.
This is not an issue that a character in a TV series can downplay or belittle in such a way.
Netizens left angry comments about the script and the male lead played by Jung Hae In:
"I can't believe the writer thought this whole conversation was supposed to be a cute back and forth between best friends who are about to become lovers. What the hell?"
“So he blames her, while he can't understand the fear she feels? I can't believe this is a Korean drama airing in 2024.”
“A lot of men don't know why it's scary. They don't understand because it doesn't really happen to them.”
“It’s disgusting that my best friend can’t understand what I’m afraid of. He’s even my “lover,” yet he says such nonsense? How could he be the male lead in a romantic comedy?”
