Na Young Joo & Oh Dae Gi in from Where stars land.
Of course we have Sunny and Grim Reaper from Goblin. But this post reminded me of the second couple from ‘Where stars land’.
This drama has been mostly erased from my memory (Atleast the main story) but these two are remembered fondly.

Lee Cho Hee and Lee Sang Yi (Once again)

They were so adorable,their chemistry was solid and i was far more emotionally invested in them than the leads.

Lee Da-hee and Lee Jae-wook ( Search WWW)

Honestly Da-hee was the MVP in this whole drama from her over-the-top reactions to her favourite makjang drama to super cute romance with a guy over 10 years younger then her, their chemistry was so organic

Sung Hoon and Shin Hye Sun (Five enough)

I Ioved them, they totally stole the show for me, they perfectly captured the awkwardness of first love and they had very little emotional baggage.

The teen love triange from Crash course in romance.

Sure theres recency bias here but honestly they were cute, i was on team Geon-hu all the way, Sun-jae was okay though, im not mad he got the girl.

A really good favorite and always high up the list will remain Kim Min-jae and Seol In-ah in Business Proposal. One thing I liked about how BP handled their romance was that their relationship progressed way earlier in comparison to the main OTP. They were their own story while being a non-primary OTP.

Kiss Sixth Sense also had this with Oh Seung-taek and Ban Ho-woo. If you want to see Tae In-ho in love, here's were you should be.

Love is For Suckers has another of my favorite side couple in the characters Park Dae-shik and Oh Hye-jin.

Ahah! Chae Ji-seung and Lee Jae-woon in She Would Never Know. This one is my all time high, all time favorite. I don't need to say more about this couple. The love I have for this couple is sprinkled here and there in large doses.

Lee Dahee and Lee Jae Wook in Search:www are my first and almost only choice here as well. They were so beautiful on their own that you could forget they weren't the main couple! It was so well thought out and acted. That scene when they were sitting on a park bench rehearsing his scenes where he had to say some mean things to his opposite character! I just loved how he apologized to her when he thought that was too harsh...
The original OTP in this drama didn't leave a lasting impression on me, to be honest. But those two...I want to see more of them. Give them their own drama!

Ga-ram & Myung-Jin in Our Blooming Youth. I don’t really care if they become romantic or not but both of these characters are far more interesting and fun to watch than the leads. Honestly don’t know why these two aren’t the leads and since we are already getting a Joseon lawyer drama, I demand a spin-off with our two Joseon forensic pathologists titled Our Decaying Youth or something

All of these had very little on screen time but the way they conveyed their love for each other was really clear in the time they did have and they were all really sweet together.

Love all play seonbae couple Seungwoo and Youngsim,
Love is for suckers Johnjang and Jiwan and Daesik and Hyejin
Love with flaws Wonsuk and Hodol

Secondary couples that I found more compelling than the main couples: Cha Song Joo & Lee Soo Hyun in Capital Scandal, the Princess and Shin Myeon in The Princess's Man, Sunny & Reaper in Goblin. Secondary couples that were just a delight: Sayong and Hyopbo in Jumong, Jing Yi and Leng Yue in The Imperial Coroner.

_ I have watched this secondary couple recently: Doo Shik (Kang Hoon) and Ji Eun (Yoon Ye Joo) from Welcome (Meow, Secret Boy). They are cute. He is an extroverted and she is super introverted.
Their subplot was as interesting as the main one.

Other secondary couples that gained my heart:

_ Yu Rim (Bona) and Ji Woong (Choi Hyun Wook) from 25-21.

_ Alberto and Seo Dan from Crash Landing on you.

Boys Over Flowers : Kim Bum and Kim So-Eun. In every version of this story, I always like this couple.

King 2 Hearts : Jo Jung-Seok and Lee Yoong-Ji. Their story was sad :(

Heirs : Kang Min-Hyuk and Krystal. They were super cute, without any drama!

Funny how I immediately thought of Seol In-ah, but in SPECIAL LABOUR INSPECTOR JO (2019) (I haven't seen her recent dramas). Her relationship with Kim Kyung-nam was one of the many things I loved about that drama. Talk about chemistry!

Though I am a fan of the OTP in FLOWER BOY NEXT DOOR (2013), the side romance was just superb. Kim Seul-gi and Go Kyung-pyo had me in stiches.

Also, my favorite royal couple: Park Se-young and Ryu Deok-hwan in FAITH (2012). King Gongmin & Queen Noguk ❤ 4evah.

I agree BUSINESS PROPOSAL second leads were great. In recent time, the seconds in GOOD JOB were strong in their own quirky way. ALCHEMY OF SOULS was mostly secondary character interludes since the main couple was in neutral for most of the series.

Oh my! I have A LOT!

Lee Sung Min and Song Sun Mi in Miss Korea.

Bora and Sunwoo in R88.

Lee Jung Shin and Park So Jin in Shooting Stars.

Oh Dae Hwan and... whoever the poor guy was in love with in Room No. 9.

Ryu Duk Hwan and Lee Elliya in Miss Hammurabi.

Ryu Duk Hwan and Park Se Young in Faith

Kang Dong Ho and Im Joo Eun in Wild Romance

Everyone's name such great ones! I want to throw in Veronica Park and Ki Dae Joo. Aggressive woman+innocent man couples get an extra point from me.

Seo-joon and Haerin in Romance is a Bonus Book were super cute. I loved seeing them meet up and become friends. Of course, you can see them being charmed by each other over time. I squeed when Seo-joon got jealous upon hearing that Haerin was going to a blind date and then he immediately asked her out on a date.

Song Joong-ki (Yong Ha) and Yoo Ah In (Jae Shin) in "Sungkyunkwan Scandal."
Our stabby OTB, Woo Do-hwan (Seon-ho), and Yang Se-jong (Hwi) in "My Country."
Han Suk-kyu (King Sejong) and his loyal guard Cho Jin-woong (Moo-hyul) in "Tree with Deep root."
Honey Lee (Noksu) and Kim Ji-seok (King Jeon-san) in "Rebel"
Choi Min-soo (Chun) and Yoon Ji-min (Ji) in "Warrior Baek Bong Soo."

Much agreed about SEARCH: WWW side couple!

Two of my own favorite side couples are same-sex pairings:

SUNGKYUNKWAN SCANDAL - Yoo Ah-In and Song Kong-Ki managed to out-cute and out-charm our admittedly cute and charming lead couple!

LITTLE WOMEN - One of the things I loved most in the drama was watching In-Hye and Hyo-Rin—two adolescent, misunderstood, and neglected girls (played by Park Ji-Hu and Jeon Chae-Eun)—find in each other a loving, kindred spirit, and then securing the financial independence to build a life together.

Also on my list of notable side couples:

Esom and Park Byung-Eun in BECAUSE THIS IS MY FIRST LIFE. For me, one of the most memorable scenes in the drama is where Sang-Goo sits in the car sobbing in despair, telling Soo-Ji that he can’t bring himself to give up his company even though he knows it means he won’t be able to see her anymore. The look of joy and astonishment on his face when she replies by asking if she can kiss him—and then the kiss itself… 🫠

Nam Gyu-Ri as the sweet, slightly airheaded actress Ga-Yeong and Park Sang-Nam as the idol star Patrick in YOU ARE MY SPRING. Her struggle with insecurity about being in a relationship with a much younger man seemed very authentic to me.

Wow, there are a lot. There’s obviously the aforementioned ones, including, Kim Min-kyu and Seol In-ah in A Business Proposal (although for me, they never stole the show from the OTP, just had an equally strong concurrent subplot that was just as interesting and compelling - the best kind); Park Yeon-woo and Son Hwa-ryung; the secondary couple from Strongest Deliveryman who are the only part I actually even remember from the show, NGL. But some of mine I would include are:

• Lee Dong-wook/Yoo In-ah from Goblin - the ONLY couple from the show as far as I’m concerned.

• Lee Da-hee/Lee Jae-wook from Search: WWW - Main OTP found dead in a ditch, they saw how much better this ship was and couldn’t handle it.

• Jeon Hye-jin/Ji Seung-hyun from Search: WWW - Oddball choice, I know, but hear me out. I get that they were basically not a couple during the show because of the forced marriage and all that, but those moments of tension, those crackling minutes where it seemed like they really could’ve been something of their union wasn’t forced upon them… it’s delicious, it’s angsty, it’s painful. I love them.

• Kim Bum/Kim So-eun from Boys over Flowers - Listen, I know this show is a dumpster fire and I don’t recommend anyone watch it (check out it’s highly superior Thai adaptation F4 Thailand instead), but I just have to put it out there that even in their, like, four minutes of screentime I though these two had better chemistry and compatibility than the female lead with either of her admirers.

Yoo Yeon-seok/Kim Min-jung from Mr. Sunshine - Another not-really-a-couple (who were they fooling lmao), but I thought their tangled, messy relationship throughout the years was far more interesting than the main romance, which I always found to be the least interesting plot plot of an otherwise stellar drama.

• Ryu Hye-young/Go Kyung-pyo from Reply 1988 - Why shed tears over the main love triangle when there’s a perfectly good relationship to squee over right there in the corner? At least that’s what I did whenever I needed to distract myself from Jung-hwan related heartbreaks.

• Lee Joon/Jung So-min from Father is Strange - It should be hard to steal the show from a drama that was excellent all-round, but these two somehow did it. They did have a fauxcest stumbling block at first, but once they got over that, it was all sweetness. Bonus points for the actors having actually dated in real life.

• Lee Sang-yi/Lee Cho-hee from Once Again - Yet another family drama making an appearance. I think this medium is really good at making strong side couples due to the inherent ensemble nature of its cast (see the other popular choice of Sung Hoon/Shin Hye-sun from Five Enough). Anyways, I loved them.

• Wi Ha-joon/Jung Yoo-jin from Romance is a Bonus Book - Makes it all the more upsetting that WHJ seems determined to not be in any onscreen romances.

Bo Ra and Sun Woo!! 💜 (Respond 88).
Tbh, I feel like all the Reply series have cute secondary couples. Especially Reply 88' with all the parents.

I also love my babies from Ho Gu's Love, Five Children, DJG is Watching, hi JimmyFBNDoor, Search WWW, Run On, Lovestruck— Age of— Because this is— just any secondary couple involving Kim Min Seok, Be My Dream Family... But yeah, Bo Ra and Sun Woo win in my book.

There's probably a bunch I will remember right after I post this, but the side couple I always think of is Lee Sung-Min's assistants in Memory, played by Lee Jun-ho and Yoon So-hee.

I also liked Hwang Bo-ra and Kwon-Oh Joong in Arang and the Magistrate, as the shaman and manservant (also basically the leads' assistants).

Another Miss Oh had side couples who gave me lots of laughs:
Ye Ji-won playing Park Soo-kyung paired with "Mr Rooftop Party" aka Kim Ji-seok playing Lee Jin-sang.
Heo Jung-min as Park Hoon paired with Heo Young-ji as Yoon Ahn-na.

I always seem to like the side couples better than I like the leads.

I agree with many of the comments already posted: Sunny & the Grim Reaper, Scarlett & Seol Ji-hwan, etc.

Also, they were really the only romance in Chief Kim, but they were cute: Lim Hwa-Young & Kim Sun-Ho. (Well, ok, haha, the main romance was the award winning bromance between Namkoong Min & Lee Joon-Ho.)

Off topic: lots of people responded to something I posted previously (in a different thread) & I want to thank everyone. I can't always keep up with things (I have a chronic & unpredictable illness) but I read everything & feel grateful that you all answered my questions & gave me advice. Hurrah for Beanies!

I really liked the pairing of Krystal and Gong Myung in "Bride of Haebak." They had one steamy kiss, many high tension moments, and he was just so completely gone on her that they quickly became my favorite part of the drama.

Secondary couple Yoo Chang Soo (Park Hyung Sik) and Lee Ji Yi (Im Ji Yeon) were the only thing that made High Society watchable. The main couple and their storyline was extremely bad but the secondary couple kept me watching as their romance sizzled.

Lee Mi Ju (Hwang Jung Eum) and Jo Min Woo (Joo Sang Wook)'s romance in Giant was riveting. Its a 60 episode drama and I don't think they even meet until around episode 20 but their romance was electric and hands down the best part of this drama.

For my pick of second couples who outshone the leads: Strongest Delieveryman's Oh Jin Gyu & Lee Ji Yoon.
When I was watching the show, they, both together and individually, were the characters I liked most. Even when I think back on the show, their scenes/moments are what I recall first and most clearly.
They are the only drama characters, that I can remember, who I've liked/was way more interested in than the lead characters.
They also make me think about the idea that maybe they shine so much is *because* they are supporting characters; there's not as much pressure on them and they're allowed to be wacky or complicated or selfish vs the "heroes" who is super pure & selfless or the jaded one who just "needs a good influence" (oh that doesn't appeal to me haha)

As someone else mentioned, the couples in A Business Proposal and Romance is a Bonus Book are cute and engaging but to me they don't necessarily outshine the leads but just added to story in a positive way. They were good friends, supportive ears, and then they had relationships that just makes one go "aww".

For Romance is a Bonus Book, at first I didn't even remember this pairing, I just remembered the divorcing couple but once I remembered, they really were sweet and clumsy. I also like how it wasn't instant like or love at first sight but a genuine respect or admiration that developed. (It's been so long since I've watched it but I think bonded over each other's talents or insights)

In addition to the already mentioned Business proposal and Search www, I will mention Run on. The secondary couple is not secondary at all, with proper air time to develop.

The side couples from The Liar and His Lover, The Secret Life of My Secretary (Veronica PARK) and the couple from Hwarang.

The secondary couple is generally always a pleasant surprise, especially when one part of the couple does not get the other person as a consolidation prize for getting rejected by the lead.

Can't believe no one said John Jang and Ji-won from Love is for Suckers yet! They're so good, a bunch of us wanted them to be the main couple and kept watching the drama just for them.

Anyway, other side couples:
- Gwi-nam and Ji-a from Secretary Kim kept me watching long after I got bored with the main coupl.
- Seo Dan and the lawyer guy from Touch Your Heart.
- The ML's sister and his friend in Another Ms. Oh. I still rewatch that elevator kiss a lot.

Ojakgyo Brothers - Hwang Tae Hee (Joo Won)/Baek Ja Eun (Uee) had a wonderful romance, much better than the lead couple. Was shocked when Hwang Tae Beom/Cha Soo Yeong won best couple award. While I enjoyed the Hwang Tae Beom/Cha Soo Yeong romance, it wasn't near as good as Hwang Tae Hee/Baek Ja Eun romance which was the best thing about this drama. Also, hated the older brother (Hwang Tae Shik)'s romance. Kim Mi Suk deserved so much better than him.

Same with King of Baking, Kim Tak Goo - Joo Ma Jun (Joo Won)/Shin Yoo Kyung (Eugene) totally dysfunctional, messed up romance was completely addictive. Again, can't believe Kim Tak Goo/Yang Mi Sun extremely bland, emotionless romance won best couple award.

2015 High Society’s Lee Ji Yi and Yoo Chang Soo.

My sister and I came into this drama with High expectations (pun intended) for the love of UEE and Sung Joon. But we ended up loving the side couple played by Im Ji Yeon and Park Hyung Sik. If it wasn’t for them, this drama had already crashed and burned.

(For the record, the drama did crash and burn but these two is like the salve you put on the third degree burns that the drama gave - it doesn’t heal you but has a soothing placebo effect, I guess?)

Also this is a 180 degree turn from Im Ji Yeon’s amazing villain portrayal lately so it might be nice to check out to help remove her scarring Park Yeon Jin portrayal.

Descendants of the Sun.

History of the Salaryman (2012) - Loved the secondary romance of Choi Han Woo/Cha Woo Hee. Overall a fun, quirky satire on office politics (apparently the drama itself is based upon historical events occurring during China's 202-206 BC Chu-Han Contention but set as a parody of modern office politics). While I preferred the secondary romance over the main romance, the female lead was quite a hoot.

Forever my SL couple, Lee Da-hee and Lee Jae-wook in Search WWW (I even skip the main couple)
Yoo Inna and Lee Don Wook in Goblin definitely in my list
Park Hyung Sik and Im Ji Yeon in High Society (I don't even care with main couple)
Kim Min-kyu and Seol In-ah in Business Proposal (I'm still love ML couple though)
Kim Jung Hyun and Seo Ji Hye in Crash Landing on You (ML couple still my favorite)

To me the side couple from BUSINESS PROPOSAL is second only to The Golfer Couple (Sung Hoon and Shin Hye Sun) in FIVE ENOUGH. Sung Hoon and Shin Hye Sun portrayed the magical pairing up of two people who are not so much similar but rather complementary: Each brought a strength to match the weaknesses of the other.

Had the writers not chosen to weaken the full story from the webtoon that was portrayed by Kim Min-kyu and Seol In-ah in BUSINESS PROPOSAL their story might have actually overshadowed the story of the ML and FL. The result was the unnecessary recasting of Chairman Jin (the father of the 2FL) as an emotionless, cold hearted, calculating caricature of a Chaebol rather than a man who is bawling at his daughter's wedding- and also the wonderful moment when Grandpa rides to the rescue of his (actual other) grandson. There was nothing "side" about our wonderful and passionate second couple in BUSINESS PROPOSAL it was originally written.

I loved the second couple from A Business Proposal, but my hands down, all time favorite has to be Sunny and the Grim Reaper. TBH, I watched Goblin for them.

I adored IU-Wooyoung couple in Dream High2

A discussion about best side couples is not complete without talking about Kim Seul Gi and Go Kyung Pyo in Flower Boy Next Door. Her tactics to ensnare him are truly hilarious, and they are so cute with each other.

Chef John and Ji Wan are the only reason I finished Love is for Suckers, and I honestly wish the whole drama had been about them.

And I know there are other side couples I loved, but I'm drawing a blank right now.

Yong Hwa and Dan Ah from Run On
Airport security couple from Where Stars Land

So the first couple that came to mind is the OG side couple: Chu Ga Eul and So Yi Jung 🤣

My my my! My 2013 (newbie) drama watcher heart was fed full of SoEul fanfiction!!!

Some other side couple I absolutely love are the two in Search WWW (Noona Romance and finding love with each other after a divorce, sign me up!), Be Melodramatic (where to start? I even love the two sets that didn't get together 🥲), 25-21 and Miss Hammurabi.