Second Leads who Deserve a Second Chance
Amnesia in dramas is not just a guilty pleasure, it’s a necessity, just like how most female characters are either dying of leukemia or in extreme poverty, or how every mother-in-law are the spawn of evil, or why the male lead is always filthy rich; amnesia plotlines are always here to stay. Since amnesia has been rehashed for as long as drama existed, drama gods have gotten a bit creative in using amnesia that ranges from the believable, to outrageous, and to out of this world insane that no neuropsychologist can fathom. Here are the types of amnesias that exist in drama land to satisfy your amnesia cravings.
> Normal amnesia - the most common in drama land where the lead suffers from a traumatic injury (usually car accident, surgery, or a hit in the head) and poof, amnesia. One of the most classic ones is from Meteor Garden/Hana Yori Dango/Boys over Flower, that particular amnesia arc that became the source of frustration to a lot of fans, the second female lead getting lots of burns, and Dao Ming Si/Domyouji Tsukasa/Goo Joon Pyo proving that he is still a first-class jerk. Classic as its finest, more classic than our pineapple head got his memories back by another huge hit on his head. Ouch!
Honourable mentions:
Age of Legends - Liu Zi Guang (William Chan) loses 8 year’s worth of memories and how convenient that those 8 years were when he was a baddie.
Autumn Concerto - Guang Xi (Vanness Wu) suffers from a memory loss after his brain surgery, forgetting his girlfriend and his son.
100 Days My Prince - High and Mighty Prince lost his memories, got hitched to a commoner (by a decree he created), and treated as the village idiot.
> Double amnesia - If getting amnesia isn't frustrating enough, what about when the lead gets it twice? One of my favourites is Prince Turns to Frog where Shan Jun Hao (Ming Dao) is your typical jerk heir, who suffered from amnesia after an accident, and transformed to a nice, loving, and sweetest boyfriend to Tian Yu (Joe Chen), until he suffered another accident and lost all his memories during his times with Tian Yu. It's annoying to see the girl chase over the guy once he forgets all about her, but it's also satisfying to see the guy in the throes of hate, confusion, and love for the female lead.
Honourable mentions:
Save the Last Dance for me - Plot-wise, it's almost the same as above.
Shopping King Louie - couldn't recall how many times did Louis hit his head, one would think that for a shopaholic, he should have bought a helmet for protection. Do watch this for laughs.
> Psychological Amnesia - This type of amnesia usually doesn't involve a blow in your head, just a traumatic experience that will push your subconscious to repress that memory. One of the best dramas for this is Moon Embracing the Sun where Heo Yeon Woo (Han Ga In) experienced being buried alive coupled with a dash of shaman magic and she forgets all about her noble identity and the suffering she had to endure just because she's engaged to the Crown Prince.
Honourable mentions:
Kill me, Heal me, and Deep in my Heart - both involve characters with multiple personalities that were created after a tragic incident. Each personality is unique and has no recollection what his/her other personality has done or experienced.
> Magical Amnesia - This is my favourite type of amnesia, it defies logic, but that's what set this apart. Be it a kiss from a mermaid (Legend of the Blue Sea), or drinking a potion (Ten Miles of Peach Blossoms), or destruction of a jade pendant (Love through a Millennium), it doesn't matter because love will find a way to get those memories back.
Honourable mention:
Secret Garden - everything about this drama is magical even Hyun Bin's famous violet sparkly jacket.
> Yes, this kind of amnesia exists - If magical amnesia defies logic, then this one has no logic at all, but hey, they are entertaining. An example is an ongoing drama; My Girlfriend is an Alien, where Fang Leng (Hsu Thassapak) gets amnesia every time it rains, but to be specific, he only forgets any female species that he knows. There's also Okitegami Kyoko no Biboroku (Aragaki Yui), where a pretty detective forgets everything once she falls asleep, so she only has one day to solve any cases before her nap time.
Honourable mentions:
Arang and the Magistrate and Bring it on Ghost! The female leads' amnesia could be classified from any of the types mentioned, but what set these two apart is that the ghosts are amnesiac and they can't go to the other side until they get their memories back.
One Week Friends - If Okitegami Kyoko only has one day, Fujimiya Kaori has one week.
They say that our brain isn't still thoroughly researched and I'm quite sure that amnesia tropes will never be tiring, they will get more interesting.
What's your favourite amnesia drama?
Are there other types of amnesia that I missed?
