I had watched two Korean dramas lately and they had left me a deep impression. Aside from the intense plots, what has really made the dramas stand out is the leading actresses who portrayed as bad women who would do anything to climb to the top.

The Innocent Man (aka Nice Guy), the first drama I watched, is a story of a young man taking revenge on a woman who had betrayed him after leaving him in jail for a crime he didn't commit. The woman, Jae-Hee, is a television reporter and while trying to unravel a case she has accidentally killed a man while trying to defend herself. Kang Ma-ru, who is Jae-Hee's boyfriend then, attempts to counsel her to turn herself in to the police but Jae-Hee appears to be too shaken to do anything. It is then that Ma-ru decides to take the blame and turn himself in to the police, despite he is a promising medical student and he has a bright future ahead of him. He believes that Jae-Hee will appreciate what he has done for her and that she will wait for him until the day he is released from jail.

Yawang (aka Queen of Ambition), is another South Korean drama which featured a love betrayed man, Ha Ryu, and what he would do to bring his childhood love down no matter at what price he has to pay.

Ha Ryu and Da Hae are both orphans and they came from the same orphanage, however Da Hae is adopted by a family but she is unhappy as her stepfather often harassed her. She still fears for her stepfather even she is now a grown woman and has left the family, but that doesn't stop him from pursuing her. When her stepfather manages to find her one day, she kills him with a sharp tool out of fear and desperation. Ha Ryu decides to take the blame and buries the dead man after they have decided not to report to the police.

Life seems to be back to normal to Ha Ryu and Da Hae and it is at this time that Da Hae wants to further her studies in an University. Ha Ryu becomes a gigolo to pay for Da Hae's studies but he keeps this from her, thinking that this is best for everyone. Da Hae manages to get her degree in the end, and they had a lovely daughter thereafter although they haven't married. Da Hae later got a job in Baekhak Group, one of the leading companies in Korea and acquainted with the heir of Baekhak Group. She becomes distant with Ha Ryu, and though he tries to understand her ambitiousness, he eventually snaps when he loses their daughter to a car accident due to her negligence. Da Hae by then has decided to ditch Ha Ryu for good and this is when they began their games of conspiracy as each wants to bring the other down. 

While there is a slight similarity between The Innocent Man and Yawang as both dramas have the same plot of the good men taking revenge on their women, I felt the highlights of the dramas are not only their intense plots but how the leading actresses portrayed their roles seamlessly. You couldn't help but to swear and grit your teeth while watching them performing their bad deeds over and over again, and despite this you couldn't tear your eyes away from them. They may be the villains, but these intelligent and evil women stand out from the rest and usually score more coverage as compared to other kind and innocent female roles. They always put themselves first and most of the times, they make use of men and woman power to change their past life and to get what they want. They are the 'new' women villains who have their good reasons to be bad, and we being the audience can do nothing but to keep watching and hope for their crumble.