Posters for ‘Genie, Make a Wish,’ and ‘Would You Marry Me.’ Photo: courtesy of Netflix and Disney+
October opened with one of the year’s most talked-about K-dramas, Genie, Make a Wish, reuniting Hallyu stars Kim Woo-bin and Bae Suzy years after their major hit romance drama Uncontrollably Fond (2016). As the month progresses, there’s a lineup of similarly anticipated shows like Would You Marry Me starring Choi Woo-shik and Jung So-min, Typhoon Family starring Lee Jun-ho and more. Here are the top five we recommend for you to watch.
Genie, Make a Wish
This fantasy romance follows Iblis (Kim Woo-bin), a wicked genie, and Ka-young (Bae Suzy), a stoic woman who’s difficult to read. Her life’s been closely controlled thanks to her strict grandmother, but then things suddenly change when she finds an ancient lamp and awakens Iblis from his thousand-year slumber. With three wishes on offer, Ka-young’s whole world collides with his, sparking a chain reaction of past connections, crazy chaos, and heartfelt revelations.
Release Date – October 3
Would You Marry Me
Yoo Me-ri, a talented designer played by Jung So-min, and Kim Woo-joo, a bakery heir played by Choi Woo-shik, agree to a whimsical 90-day fake marriage to claim a lovely house—a prize for newlywed couples. Me-ri has faced hardships lately—her fiancé was unfaithful, and she became a victim of a housing scam. Yet, one day, she wins this beautiful house in a lottery, but with a catch: she must prove she’s married. So, Me-ri approaches Woo-joo, who coincidentally shares her ex’s name. And so begins their journey of a fake marriage… or so it seems, because in the process, real feelings start to creep in.
Release Date – October 10
Typhoon Family
In this period drama, Lee Jun-ho of 2PM plays Kang Tae-poong – a free-spirited young man who’s suddenly forced to trade his carefree life for serious responsibility when he takes over Typhoon Company, his father’s struggling enterprise. Set amid South Korea’s 1997 International Monetary Fund (IMF) crisis, this series chronicles the complexities of that era and a generation weathering the hardships it brought.
Release Date – October 11
Romantics Anonymous
This Japanese-Korean series revolves around Sosuke Fujiwara (Shun Oguri), a confectionery heir suffering from germaphobia, and Hana Lee (Han Hyo-joo), a talented but shy chocolatier who avoids eye contact. As they meet and start developing feelings for each other, their personal struggles and anxieties test their relationship. Thanks to psychologist Irene (Yuri Nakamura), they work through their issues – and amidst it all, Hana also secretly finds herself drawn to charming bar owner Hiro Takada (Jin Akanishi), adding a twist to this romantic comedy.
Release Date – October 16
Moon River
Crown Prince Yi-kang (Kang Tae-oh) is tough on the outside, hiding the scars from a painful loss, entangled in palace politics. Park Dal-yi (Kim Se-jeong), on the other hand, is a deft bounty hunter – wicked smart and a sales queen, but she’s got this one big thing weighing on her – missing bits of her memories. Then one day, in a totally unimaginable twist, their souls magically swap with each other – and now they’re stuck living each other’s lives, spinning into a wild roller coaster ride of ups and downs.
Release Date – October 31
Leave a Reply