Lee Jong Suk debuted as an actor five years ago, and has been working steadily ever since. How has Kdrama’s prettiest actor progressed?
Prosecutor Princess
Lee Jong Suk made his acting debut in 2010 with “Prosecutor Princess”. It was a glorified walk-on role so Lee Jong Suk did little more than wear a dark suit while providing support to the lead characters. It is worth noting that styling and grooming make all the difference, because Lee Jong Suk is barely recognizable in this legal drama.
Acting: 
Aegyo:
Secret Garden
Six months after his debut, Lee Jong Suk assumed the losing end of a love triangle as gay songwriter extraordinaire, Tae Sun in “Secret Garden”. It was a big step forward, because he was given the opportunity to act, though in a limited capacity. Tae Sun looks sulky, throws bitchy looks at the competition, and makes repeat attempts to escape Oska, the object of his affections. Due to the sullen nature of Tae Sun, there is no charm offensive.
Acting: Aegyo: 
School 2013
Almost three years after his debut, Lee Jong Suk had his first starring role as Nam Soon, a teenager with a gang past in “School 2013”. Nam Soon starts out apathetic, is tormented by guilt with the appearance of former friend, Heung Soo (Kim Woo Bin), gets goaded into violence, cries a lot with Heung Soo, then assumes an an air of contentment when he and Heung Soo become besties, again. However, the default status of Nam Soon is stoic, so the aegyo only comes out in flashbacks to more carefree times.
Acting: Aegyo:
I Hear Your Voice
Six months after “School 2013”, Lee Jong Suk was depicting a teenager again, but this time, in a noona romance. In “I Hear Your Voice”, Lee Jong Suk plays the sensitive straight man to Lee Bo Young’s caustic lawyer. They have great chemistry together, and Lee Jong Suk’s charm has plenty of opportunities to make an appearance. Unfortunately, during some of the more intense scenes with the psychopath villain, Lee Jong Suk’s overacting rears its ugly head.
Acting: Aegyo:
Doctor Stranger
Since the genre of “Doctor Stranger” is melodrama, Lee Jong Suk’s tendency to overact was bound to come out. Yet, the show’s production team could not resist slipping in comedic moments, which Lee Jong Suk is surprisingly adept at. As a North Korean surgeon, he was best when he was acting irreverent.
Acting: Aegyo:
Pinocchio
Lee Jong Suk reunited with the team behind “I Hear Your Voice” for the recently completed “Pinocchio”. He appears to have toned down the overacting in the role of Ha Myung, a rookie reporter. Ha Myung is an orphan out to redeem his father’s name, so there are few opportunities for aegyo. It would appear that Lee Jong Suk is growing up.
Acting: Aegyo:
Readers: Which Lee Jong Suk drama was your favourite?
And, how dewy was his skin?
Noonas Over Forks 
Secret Garden was such a bad drama but I found myself so caught up in it anyway. I shipped Tae San and oska so hard that it hurt. I knew it was doomed, and yet still I clung to hope that something would become of it and it wouldn’t be just fanservice. 😦
I liked him in I hear your voice too – although agree on the overacting and I didn’t get caught up in that drama like secret garden. I thought lee bo young’s character ended up with lee jong seok’s out of convenience and obligation, not really love, which just made me feel really sad for su ha. all that passionate overacting for nothing. 😦
I do think he is a lot more attractive in modelling rather than acting. It’s amazing that he hasn’t really had a failure yet though – doctor stranger seemed a mess but it only increased his popularity after all.
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“Doctor Stranger” increased his popularity?! What is wrong with the world?
By the way, we agree with you about Tae San and Oska: https://noonasoverforks.com/magical-moments-advent-calendar-day-22/
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Out of the dramas above, I’ve only seen Secret Garden and Pinocchio, and while I really liked the last few episodes of Secret Garden I think Pinocchio was better overall (and way more intense).
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I agree, because “Pinocchio” did not have to resort to body swapping, and Park Shin Hye’s character was not a complete pushover.
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I love him in I hear your voice, even though the chemistry between him and Lee Bo Young wasn’t really that strong.
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Whaaat? I thought the chemistry between Lee Jong Suk and Lee Bo Young helped bridge the age gap. It is worth noting that Lee Jong Suk had made his desire to work with her known before they did “I Hear Your Voice”.
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