Before the religious scandal mongers review-bombed it, Genie Make a Wish was the highest rated non-English series on Netflix. I'm not going to get into the scandal, as like most religious uproars it's ridiculous from my point of view. No matter how much I personally disagree with these people I have no interest in becoming involved in the hoopla. I just would like to point out that if we all practiced open mindedness and tolerance over such matters there wouldn't be any scandals or scandal mongering. That is all.
On with my take: the series stars Kim Woo-bin, one of my favorite Korean actors, as Iblis (aka Satan, the devil, fallen angel, ultimate evil), now the proverbial genie of the lamp, and Bae Suzy as Ki Ka-young, who is the reincarnation of the tragic young woman whose wishes resulted in Iblis being imprisoned in the lamp. Ka-young comes into possession of the lamp while on a trip to the Middle East, and is granted three wishes. She's unaware that the genie will drag her soul to hell after she makes her third wish (or so that's implied.) Then, inexplicably but fatefully, they fall in love (well, Iblis does.) Here's the kicker of a twist: in this life, Ka-young is a psycopath.
Woo-bin does the most marvelous job portraying the genie, but even with my bias I have to say it's Suzy who nails the crazy character of Ka-young. This is a woman born to be evil but raised to resist that side of her nature, and to see her give in to being a psychopath now and then is just the best (and shouldn't be, I know, but there you go.) I think she reminds us all that we have a dark side and heaven help the world if we ever give into it. Of course with the three wishes, characters from both their pasts making modern appearances, and the complications faced by a psycopath falling in love when she really can't love anyone is just pure unadulterated nonstop conflict and fun. Somehow it manages to be wildly romantic as well, which I thought showed the genius of the director and writers.
Downsides: the story does become a bit complicated and a touch muddled here and there, especially as to the fates of those who get three wishes. There's a subplot about a dog that was fun in the beginning but then broke my heart (there's an excellent resolution to it, however.) Some of the drama is wrenching, especially involving Ka-young's heroic and loving grandmother and her best friend.
That said, this was one of the best series I've watched this year, and I highly recommend it for the open minded and tolerant. Available on Netflix.
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