L.U.C.A.: The Beginning (2021)

Something different, but just that.

Two things made me watch this series. First, the synopsis, which is of a different genre than most of k-drama series, and second, the female lead, Lee Da-hee, who is rarely seen playing such genre.

The story develops so well from the start, and continues to be engaging, but only until episode 8 or 9, when the main leads start to get manipulated too easily and make some out-of-character decisions, and other prominent characters either die too easily, or ridiculously survived from heavy beating up.

In all, I pressed fast-forward button a few times, and did not seem to miss anything much. It’s an action series, so I do not expect any extraordinary acting by the casts, nor any chemistry among the actors. The last 2 episodes seem to rush towards the end, for a disappointing ending. That is my opinion anyway.

With an ending like that, and the way ‘The Beginning’ is told, I am not sure if I will watch any sequel, or even Season 2.

The 10 rating is for the OST :)

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Not even trying

This was a bad Sci-Fi! Lousy plot, weak writing and unbearable characters. It progressively kept getting worse with every passing minute. It shamelessly tries to be serious but came out as nothing but goofy. The cast performance was meh and the visual effects were passable enough not to look cheap. There were no redeeming qualities to be seen here, nothing but a downward spiral.

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Honestly the major part of the drama was absolutely perfect but then it slightly toned down at episode 10 when the characters started shifting loyalties and joining other sides.
The characters were amazingly written with majority of them being in the grey zone and being neither fully bad or good. My favourite one would be definitely Gu Reum, I really liked how she was strong both mentally and physically and was an icon. My most hated character would probably be the spiritual leader of director Kim and the actors did such a great job with playing these villains.
The OST was catchy but the English part of the lyrics weren't making much sense tbh...
I feel like the ending left us with some unanswered questions and although I don't have any hope for second season to happen, I still wish for it.

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WEIRD?

I mean I dont know where to begin...
The story had good start. Good sci-fi level or whatever it's called. It was pretty decent but then as the series progressed, it just started to get tiring. It has many good and appreciable scenes which are the only reason I gave this rating. Leaving everything I just DID NOT GET THE ENDING. It was like the writers suddenly went like- "Okay you know what? Let's just wrap this drama up. Oh we're in the middle of climax? Never mind that just kill EVERYONE and give the most insane life to the living characters." I just dont get the ending. This drama had so much potential they just drained it like that in the end. For people trying to decide whether to watch or not, I would definitely say there are many other good dramas that you can watch. Ofc my point of view differs so you can give it a try if you dont mind bad endings and want a good plot [excluding the ending lmao]. Otherwise nuh uh!

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Humans will be human, you either trust them or you don't.

Humans will be human, you either trust them or you don't. This drama was very action packed and entertaining, but I would have preferred a different ending.
Looking back from episode 1 to 16, I really want to pay tribute to Gu Reum, this wonderful woman was a hard worker, diligent, stayed true to herself and a very good fighter, but I honestly think she wasn't really happy. What she didn't realize was that she couldn't change people, people only change if they chose to and on their own terms and free will. The struggle for justice for her parents, leaving her alone from a young age, and the battle to be alone and alone was very difficult for her. I was deeply saddened by the way things turned out for her. Soon, the little happiness she had received was robbed from her.
Ji Oh is the main hero and the result of a genetic experiment. It is a human/animal hybrid which is the first of its kind and was able to escape from the laboratory as a child.
He lived a life where he was lonely, with no memories of his "gift" or "curse" as he calls it, frequently being tracked down by people who don't remember.
The entire series focuses on the humanization of Ji Oh. He encounters the same people again who put him in Hell, which leads him to believe that this is really him.
To free yourself from mental slavery, you must undergo some form of therapy, which unfortunately did not and the result was a reflection of that.
A very disturbing drama, as one might imagine, if something like this was ever possible, there would be crazy dictatorships in power and rich nations would be happy to abuse engineer humans as weapons.
After all, with cloning, growing a human ear on a mouse and even working to grow human organs in pigs, this drama is not entirely fiction.

I think this drama will have a second part!!!

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It's a drama with an astonishing start and a strangely sad ending

I loved this drama a lot.
The story was nice as well as the people who played the characters. However, the ending was sad. I did not expect that sort of ending.
It was vague. What happened to the daughter?
Does Ji Oh know his daughter is alive?
What about Gu Reum? They did not exactly show if she died?
Also, why in the whole world would those bodyguards go and catch her ( Gu Reum) like as if she is a criminal or someone who is going to run away. Why couldn't they say they were there to take her back safely. They even hit her so much. And then why didn't Ji Oh tell the bodyguards and the women who ordered to bring Gu Reum to be careful and nice. Who in the whole world wouldn't resist and try to flee if a gang of people comes like that.
I hoped for Gu Reum to be more than an ordinary person. That she would leave her pain of the present moment so that her kid can be safe, not lose memory. It's difficult of course to see her kid being electrocuted. But, she also needed to realise that her kid is not an ordinary human being. She is even much more stronger than Ji Oh. Indeed it would be better to do the high voltage charge thing later as how Ji Oh said. But she ( Ge Reum ) shouldn't have misunderstood like the way she did. She could have trusted him. The trust could have saved them from that painful ending.
I watched this drama as it was a suspense thriller drama. I was happy that it was also a fantasy drama.
I don't know why though people say the main lead Ji Oh has become a villain. Because he is doing what he can do as a father to protect his daughter. He suffered a lot. And he knows maybe that his kid is alive somewhere. So, he of course needs to make sure that his kid is safe more. He is not near her as seen in the ending. I wonder if he even knows. Maybe he believes she is alive or why would he carry on with the procedure.
Also, no one seems to be harmed by the new babies. Those new babies are fine as long as they are good. So, I don't see Ji Oh as a bad person. He was produced in a strangely wrong manner. But it doesn't mean that he is a bad person neither the new babies.
The writer left too many things for the viewers to think about.
I really really want to know what would happen to the daughter, if she would ever meet her father and mother.
I hope that they create a season 2 and give answers, make it clear. I hope that Gu Reum somehow is revived back if the writer had thought of killing her. Also that the three can reunite.
There must be a season 2 or it won't make any sense. The actor and actresses should be the same as well.

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A hollywood level K-drama

As someone who watches both western and korean tv shows, I'm really impressed with Luca's cinematography, storyline, even to the cgi. Big thanks to tvn for taking this (somewhat ocn-like) drama bcs if it's on ocn, i dont think it would have this good quality. Also, a lot of people seem to complain about the characters but as someone who studies psychology (and also experienced trauma) , I understand why each characters act the way they do throughout the drama. Just because you don't like a certain attitude (or don't know why someone is behaving a certain way) doesn't mean u can judge and mock them. Everyone has their own story, like the characters in this drama. Anyways, this drama has really good plot and even heartfelt OSTs and made me want to meet the writer more than the actors because HOW THE HELL DID HE THINK OF SUCH MASTERPIECE. The actors also did a very good job like if u watch their interviews or bts they're different from their characters in the drama. I can go on and on about how amazing this drama is but i won't bore you. Just trust me when i say it's a good drama, im very picky when it comes to drama, like it has to have a good moral story, good plot, good acting, good music, and good psychological elements too. And Luca has all of them, but it's not as traumatizing as It's okay not to be okay. The only reason why i didn't give 'rewatch value' a 10/10 is we still don't know if it's a happy/sad ending. Because if it's a sad one i don't think i can bear to watch it again that's how much in into the characters.

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If perfect and awesome had a drama as their definition!

As a person who's been a K-Drama fan for over a decade I'm telling you from my experience that don't ask me any questions and just go and watch the drama. I mean it when I say that this drama is perfect and awesome. This drama is just so awesome.
The drama is high on action, like every episode has multiple action scenes. As the show is yet to finish I'm highly anticipating how it'll end. The drama doesn't have any unnecessary romance scenes unlike many. I feel like that the creators were highly aware of what should be there and what shouldn't cause it's very evident with the end product.
Be it be the casting, VFX, OST, acting, story or anything this drama is just perfect. I really wish for a happy ending but the title has the beginning in it so maybe like maybe there will a season 2? Who knows???

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This has got to be a series II or whatever. What a storyline. Now, this had me sitting straight up the whole time. Wow! This might be our future the way these scientists are cloning animals. Who knows what they are doing now? I know... I know, y'all will say "Nah". Never say "Nah". Kim Rae Won has not made a drama since 2017! He came back blasting his way to being the actor he was. I see he made a couple of movies in 2019. My first time seeing this actor and let me tell you it won't be my last. he is very impressive and handsome. Lee Da Hee another actress, my first time watching, I love the strong personality types of women who can act. She did that for me today. I will be watching her as well. The storyline was a lot different than the American-made L.U.C.A. I am impressed with this storyline. Fantasy or will it be a reality? Artificial hearts... what's next? Somebody has a messed-up head or can see the future. The visuals were lightning perfection. Now every time it thunders I will be thinking of this drama.

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Captivating from the very beginning!
We are introduced the main characters immediately and you get to know the important ones and the ones that will be written off. The storyline is pretty new-ish and fresh.
A guy with unknown origins trying to figure out who he is and we find out at the same pace as he does. A girl he met when he was younger, who believes that he is the murderer (of her parents) that she has been searching for.
While trying to search for answers together, they fall in love. Which kind of makes everything go spiraling from then on.
It was just 12 episodes long but around episode 9-10 I began to feel a bit annoyed with some of the characters. Wishing that they could just end it already. But the last episode redeemed the whole series.
Overall, Not a bad watch!
South Korea usually does a great job with their sci-fi/supernatural series, and they didn't disappoint with this one. OCN is usually the broadcasting station that does this type of shows, so this is my first time watching such a series on TVN.

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