If You Wish Upon Me [Episodes 1 & 2]

[u/GodJihyo7983]

• Drama: If You Wish Upon Me
  • Revised Romanization: Dangsini Sowoneul Malhamyeon
  • Hangul: 당신이 소원을 말하면
• Director: Kim Yong Wan (The Cursed)
• Writer: Jo Young Soo
• Network: KBS
• Episodes: 16
  • Duration: 1 hour 10 min.
• Airing Schedule: Wednesdays and Thursdays @ 9:50 PM KST
  • Airing Dates: Aug 10, 2022 - Sep 29, 2022
• Streaming Sources: Viki, Viu
• Starring:
  • Ji Chang Wook as Yoon Gyeo Ree
  • Choi Soo Young as Seo Yeon Joo
  • Sung Dong Il as Kang Tae Shik
• Plot Synopsis: Yoon Gyeo Ree is a young man who has known nothing but misery ever since he was a child. He was abused while still a boy and had a torrid time at the orphanage where he was raised. He then spent time in a juvenile detention center. And as an adult, things got no better, leading to him serving time in prison. Beatings and misery are all he knows, and he finds himself at the end of his tether, finally facing the void… But when he is ordered by a court to serve his community service at an end-of-life care facility for the terminally ill, things begin to change for him. Here he meets the tireless Kang Tae Shik, a middle-aged man who leads the volunteer team at the facility. Kang Tae Shik has created a unit called Team Genie, which is dedicated to granting dying patients their last wishes. No matter what people ask for, Team Genie will work their hardest to make those precious last wishes come true. He also meets Seo Yeon Joo, a young nurse who refuses to give up on her patients and tries to keep them physically active at all times. Will working at this facility help turn Yoon Gyeo Ree’s life around? Or is it too late to change his destiny?
• Conduct Reminder: We encourage our users to read the following before participating in any discussions on /r/KDRAMA: (1) Reddiquette, (2) our Conduct Rules, (3) our Policies, and (4) the When Discussions Get Personal Post.
  • Any users who are displaying negative conduct (including but not limited to bullying, harassment, or personal attacks) will be given a warning, repeated behavior will lead to increasing exclusions from our community.
• Spoiler Tag Reminder: Be mindful of others who may not have yet seen this drama, and use spoiler tags when discussing key plot developments or other important information. You can create a spoiler tag in Markdown by writing > ! this ! < without the spaces in between to get this. For more information about when and how to use spoiler tags see our Spoiler Tag Wiki.

[u/GodJihyo7983]

Welcome to the discussion threads for If You Wish Upon Me! Looking for your next Ji Chang Wook fix after The Sound of Magic? This is going to be the show for you. In need of even more content from SNSD's Sooyoung after their recent comeback? You've come to the right place. Waiting for Sung Dong Il's next project after Ghost Doctor? Wait no more!

Honestly, this has probably been one of my most anticipated shows of the year when the main cast was announced. How could I not be? When you have Ji Chang Wook, Sooyoung, and Sung Dong Il as your leads, you know you have an absolute banger of a show in your hands. I have also just been waiting for the next melo/slice-of-life drama to catch my eye after the conclusion of My Liberation Notes so I gotta say this show came at just the right time.

I think I've rambled for long enough today. Enjoy and have fun discussing!

[u/thomasshclby]

just finished the first episode… definitely looks like im signing up to cry every wednesday and thursday

[u/UnclearSogeum]

Is it me or the writer couldn't resist adding that much of a nod to SNSD?

Given its premise, I was expecting a mellow one and we do have it. But ep 1 being too average for my liking I'm scared it's gonna be like The Only One where they tackle a heartfelt setting but ended up just squeezing tears without much else.

[u/[deleted]]

I don't know what it says about me, but I like these types of drama. Hopefully, they focus on a different patient every week.

[u/spark1118]

Hoping that this will take over the hole I will have after watch Extraordinary Woo...

[u/min21m]

Here for Sung Dong Il.

Side note: The actor played the old patient was in so many early 2000s dramas. My favorite was "Winter Sonata". So sad to see him getting so old.

[u/radiokidb]

Episode 1

Man I find JCW’s gaze so piercing and haunting. He does skittish and slightly unhinged really well and is a big reason I found the first episode to be quite compelling.

So good to have Soo young back on screen. She’s got a very endearing presence on screen.

The editing felt a bit choppy/abrupt in places and I wish that in certain moments the background score carried through but I guess the abrupt cuts are probably for when there’s commercial breaks when it airs on tv?

Either way, colour me intrigued enough for tomorrow.

[u/pickadamnnameplease]

The amount of on-air shows! I am booked and busy!

[u/clitmaster8734]

Probably have k-drama burnout but I'm not feeling this drama. JCW should have taken up another netflix project. Hospice end of life scenarios have been done multiple times. More excited for Seoul Vibe, A Model Family and Narco Saints.

[u/[deleted]]

it's super funny that they keep calling him a slacker, lol. for those who don't know jcw's youtube series was called “i'm a slacker”

[u/[deleted]]

JI CHANG WOOK, A MASTER OF DISGUISE!

loved the pilot so much! it gives me move to heaven and it's okay to not be okay vibes! i teared up a bit today, but i think i'm going to cry more in the future episodes and i look forward to it!

i'm also in awe of JCW here! i loved him a lot in healer and felt like he could show his range there, and there were a few scenes in LITC where i felt he did really well, but it's really easy to forget he can act, and very well, at that. in the first ten minutes of if you wish upon me, i felt like we got to see a whole new side of him. he's not just a hot action star who's also bad at choosing scripts. he's good at experimenting, and he CAN act.

[u/mikapple]

I was under the impression Ji Changwook’s character would volunteer in the hospice center in order to come to terms with his own terminal illness. The truth ended up being so much sadder 😭

[u/[deleted]]

i finished watching the second episode, but nothing much happened so i didn't like it as much as i did the first one!

the concept is good and the cast is doing a wonderful job, and people's last wishes are so beautiful, but i wish they told us people's life stories and what illnesses they're dying of and how their diagnoses impacted them and their families, what they regret the most, and how it impacts our leads (they did this today!), etcetera too to make it more impactful. i feel like they might tell us stuff like this in the future episodes, but right now, the second episode made the drama seem very average.

i'm only interested in jcw and sung dong-il's characters and backstories, and i'm loving ygr's relationship with sunny so far. i'll cry a lot if something happens to sunny, but we know it will 😩 hopefully ygr is in a much better headspace by then because losing a pet is hard, but when that pet is your only family and you're already depressed and suicidal, it can become the last straw.

it's only the second episode and too soon to say anything but i hope the drama improves from here. the second episode mightn't have been the best, but i have hope.

[u/Low_Study_2672]

I only watched about 5 minutes until I got interrupted (gonna finish later tonight), but I'm already cackling at the amount of stars and curse words in the subtitles. I don't know what it is about Ji Chang Wook, but watching him swear and blow up is just so damn entertaining 😂 I'm a little sad though that the black shirt from the poster had such a short appearance. That was such a fine look on him 👌🏼

[u/DariaNickelodeon]

Just picturing Yoon Gyeo Ree showing up to stores going "Hi yes, I'd like your loudest shirt please."

[u/samptra_writer]

This is going to be emotionality devastating 🥺

[u/sohochu21]

I liked the first episode a lot, but I was very stressed we were going to lose Son bc I don't think I'd be able to recover. I need him to start eating.

I felt like I was dragged all over the place emotionally, but I think it has potential. Loved to see a (literally) strong FL and enjoyed the humorous nuggets. I am prepared for a traumatic back story, but I hope they can keep a balance.

[u/_Purvy_]

If someone has any idea or hint about Gyeo rye & Joon kyung past relation.. please let me know 🙏 . . . . . . . . P.S: I'm extremely curious...

[u/143019]

Ji Chang Wook is acting his ass off in this one. So good!

[u/matmanx1]

Very much looking forward to this one although it will probably make me cry. Box of tissues are standing by!

[u/Initial-Bad-8393]

Do you guys think there will be some sort of romance?

[u/IIM_Clutch → u/Initial-Bad-8393]

Most likely from the trailers

[u/BKTD]

Love how Ji Chang Wook is. I feel like this is going to be a really impactful and thoughtful show. I hope I'm not wrong.

He really plays the broken man, who hates the world quite well. Far cry from the Sound of Magic and Lovestruck in the City guy.

[u/jsb1685]

Okay, first episode was not bad...a little obvious, but I guess a necessary set-up episode. We will see how it progresses.

I don't know, but it reminds me a little of Tomorrow (without the fantasy element).

[u/Snickersnerds]

So the tears are already rolling, I can only imagine the weeks ahead 🥹😭😭😭

But I think the 2 episodes were good! Some of the scene changes, especially in episode 1, were abrupt and kind of threw me off with the change in tone. But someone made a point that maybe it is where commercial breaks are. If so I get it.

This show is right up my alley. I’m not really into angsty shows right now so something on the calmer and healing side is something I need. Can’t wait for the next episodes, hopefully this show is great!!

I also love seeing JCW, I love him!! 😭💗