In the K-drama universe, a fairly common convention is for heroines to pose as males. Whether in a couple scenes or, more often, the entire drama, these gals do this for various reasons. Whether it's to help a male sibling out or just to do something that can't be done as a woman, these girls go all-out to be seen as just one of the boys.�

GOO JAE HEE

To The Beautiful You

Attracted to a track star who attends an all boys school, Goo Jae Hee goes undercover as a boy and enrolls there. Of course, a soccer player at the same school becomes enamored with her and begins to doubt his sexuality.

Did it work? Unabashedly yes. The makeup artists did a great job downplaying Sulli's feminine features. I think the sideburns helped, too. :)

GO MIN HYU

You're Beautiful

Go Min Hyu pretends to be her twin brother and joins the idol band A.N.JELL. Her bandmates eventually figure out her secret, but not before one of them, Jeremy, falls in love with her, much to his frustration as he thinks he's attracted to a guy.

Did it work? I think the fact that her character was a nun before doing this helped. Nuns typically hide their charms, so it wasn't so drastic a stretch to again minimize her femininity and pretend to be a guy.

GO EUN CHAN

Coffee Prince

Mistaken for a man, tomboy Go Eun Chan is hired by her chaebol boss to pretend to be his gay lover in order to avoid the blind dates set up by his grandmother. Her boss eventually falls for her and, despite some initial agitation, he decides he doesn't care if she's a boy or not.

Did it work? The very word "tomboy" says it all. In spite of the incredibly thin cast to her features, I can believe that she could pass as a man. As pictured above, there were some scenes that made her look very plain and lacking some of the more obvious feminine traits.

PRINCESS DEOK MAN

Queen Seon Deok

Abandoned as a baby due to a prophecy, Princess Doek Man trains with the Hwarang warriors in an eventual bid to reclaim the throne. Since they do not train women, she must disguise herself as a boy.

Did it work?� While some of her features are delicate, others are decidedly not. I think a lot of the elements combined well here, not to mention Lee Yo Won's acting. While I knew she was female, I would well imagine the warriors might have been fooled.
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SHIN YUN BOK

Painter of the Wind

Shin Yun Bok dresses as a boy to find her father's murderer. Along the way, she meets a master painter who convinces her to join the Dohwaseo Academy of Painting. While in disguise, both a man and woman fall for her. This lovelorn pair serves to highlight different relationships rather than being played for laughs like in other dramas.

Did it work? It would be very difficult to make this woman look anything other than female. Moon Geun Young is very pixie-like and looked very feminine to me throughout. We won't talk of the liberties taken with the historical figure, but she played her part well.�

HONG YEO JOO

Nail Shop Paris

An online writer caught in a plagiarism scandal, Hong Yeo Joo decides to observe real people for inspiration. Witnessing a manicurist saving a woman from a junkie in the grip of hallucinations, she decides on the perfect original subject: manicurist as hero. So she'll just apply for work at his salon and work alongside her muse while studying him. Problem: his salon only employs men. No problem, she will simply disguise herself as a man.

Did it work? Yes and no. The place where Yeo Joo works is a flower boy salon where the concept of soft and delicate dominates. While she certainly looks the part of a kkotminam ("pretty flower boy"), so does just about everyone else in the cast. It seemed like I was supposed to suspend my disbelief more than anything. I think having it swept back to reveal the forehead and closer cropped on the sides would have worked better.�

KIM YOON HEE

Sungkyunkwan Scandal

No women are allowed at Sungkyunkwan Institute, educational crown jewel of the Joseon Dynasty. Kim Yoon Hee disguises herself as her brother to do various odd jobs, since women cannot be employed, either. One of those jobs is as a substitute test-taker at the institute. She is caught, but convinced to actually enroll.

Did it work?� I couldn't imagine her as anything other than female, and the costume did little to dissuade me. Her face looks very, very feminine. I enjoyed watching, but was unconvinced. Maybe a little less makeup?

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Don't mistake my list for which dramas I liked and didn't like. I enjoyed 'em all. There's something amusing about someone who pretends to switch genders to be taken seriously and there's a lot of that in the Western world as well, both in popular culture and in history. So, any favorites of yours that didn't make my list, and did they work or not?

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