“Strong Girl” Franchise Hints At Male Version Spin-Off, Triggers Heated Reactions From Korean Viewers

The “Strong Girl” K-Drama franchise consists of two hit shows: Strong Girl Bong Soon (Strong Woman Do Bong Soon) and Strong Girl Nam Soon. Both K-Dramas became global favorites, with viewers from all around the world.

“Strong Woman Do Bong Soon” | JTBC

So when, at the end of the Strong Girl Nam Soon‘s finale episode, the franchise hinted at a potential male version spin-off—assumed to be something along the lines of Strong Man Choong Dong…

“Strong Girl Nam Soon” | Netflix

…the negative reactions to the idea might have been unexpected.

아니 스핀오프로
힘쎈남자 장충동 …? pic.twitter.com/2JXnmV5MiP

— 시즌 (@season__22) November 26, 2023

Wait, is this a spin-off teaser? Is it going to be Strong Man Jang Choong Dong…?

— @season__22/Twitter

But via online communities and social media platforms, Koreans, and even international viewers, pointed out that a male version would defeat the purpose of the female character-driven franchise.

| theqoo

• “But the world is full of men using their strengths. We don’t need to see another male character—one punching a computer monitor at that—to be the lead of a K-Drama.”
• “Strong man… f*ck that.”
• “The ‘Strong Girl’ franchise was meaningful because it was female character driven. Am I wrong?”
• “A ‘strong’ man who smashes computer monitors after losing a PC game is not it.”
• “Yeah, no. We’re not interested in watching a show about some loser.”
• “Anger management, much?”

Some took it a step further and criticized the premise of the said “Jang Choong Dong” character, based on the behavior that was shown in the teaser.

| theqoo

• “It looks like the male lead comes with an anger management issue.”
• “WTF?”
• “I tried watching the two female versions for… sh*ts and giggles. Which I failed. And no, I will not be watching the male spin-off.”
• “But who wants to watch a ‘strong man’ going around smashing monitors? In fact, characters like that remind me of crimes happening in real life. Gives me goosebumps.”
• “Um…? That defeats the purpose of the franchise. Isn’t it supposed to be about female characters being strong warriors? Flip that, and the plot is no longer special.”
• “But who would watch Strong Man Jang Choong Dong?”

The “Strong Girl” franchise scriptwriter Baek Mi Kyung has neither confirmed nor denied the speculations surrounding the male version spin-off.

Read more about the cast of Strong Girl Nam Soon here.

Who’s Dating Who? The “Strong Girl Nam Soon” Cast’s Real-Life Romances