L.U.C.A. The Beginning | K-Drama | Make Better Humans

L.U.C.A.: The Beginning is a K-drama about a mad scientist who thinks he’s good enough to be like God. In fact, he’s convinced himself that he can make better humans than God.

This Korean drama series is 12 episodes, released in 2021, currently streaming on Viki. As for the genre? It has elements of crime and mystery and elements of science that might have the viewer wondering if it’s science fact or science fiction.

What or Who is L.U.C.A.?

First, a woman supplied her ovum and a man supplied his sperm. You don’t need to be a scientific genius to know that is the beginning of human life. But! Suppose after you joined the ovum and the sperm, you combined human DNA with DNA from jellyfish, fruit flies, electric eels, and other animals. Now! Is the baby a human? A monster? A half-human, half-monster?

A scientist posits that humans evolved from being Neanderthals to the intelligent homo-sapiens that we are today. But then we decided to stop evolving. Instead of making ourselves “better”, we chose instead to improve technology. Because of this choice, the human race as we know it will become extinct unless we populate the earth with new and improved human beings. He insists that we should have chosen to continue the evolutionary process and make ourselves “better”. But scientists often forgo many scientific endeavors because of some silly code of ethics and fearing they might trespass the realm of God.

• What Is Ethics in Research & Why Is It Important? – by David B. Resnik, J.D., Ph.D.

Ryu Joong-kwon (played by Ahn Nae-sang) is a scientist who thinks that ethics hinder the research and advancement of science. He found people who were willing to fund his unrestricted research, so he was able to perform numerous kinds of scientific experiments. Only one of his experiments was successful.  In scientific circles, everyone knows L.U.C.A. stands for Last Universal Common Ancestor, the ancestor of all living things.  Ryu Joong-kwon genetically engineered a child who was named Ji Oh.

• Ji Oh (played by Kim Rae Won) is L.U.C.A.  This is his beginning.

Bad Science, Good Science, Ugly Profiteers

Scientific research being conducted by Ryu Joong-kwon is about creating and cloning “better (more superior) humans”. Some say it’s unethical.  Surrogate mothers are recruited by a “Spiritual Leader” who dupes them into believing they will give birth to angels. For sure that is illegal, immoral, and unethical.  If humans or animals are injured or die as a result of the experiments, it’s written off as the cost of saving humanity. It’s bad science. It’s not just bad.  The (NIS) National Intelligence Service, the government, is fully aware of what’s going on and supports the efforts.  Murder and mayhem get covered up in the name of science.

A scientist usually never works alone. He or she works on a team. Scientist Ha Young-jae (played by Kim Hyung-min) was told that the research he was conducting was to help cure or prevent defects and diseases, i.e. it’s good science. He was glad to work with a team of scientists on such an honorable project. But when he finds out that the research is unethical, he makes an ethical decision. He kidnaps the child and takes him home with him to his wife and young daughter. In his mind, he does not debate if the child is a human or a monster. The child is a human who deserves to be loved and should be allowed to make his own life choices.

The people who were funding the scientific research were very unhappy that their “profitable investment” had been taken from the lab. They wanted the child back and threatened him by kidnapping his wife. He decided to return Ji Oh, but giving him back did not go as planned. Both the scientist and his wife were murdered and Ji Oh escaped.

Where Oh Where is Ji Oh?

Ji Oh had been artificially enhanced and could generate electricity. Whenever he felt threatened or was provoked to anger, sparks would fly from his body, literally. He could generate enough electric power to burn down a building. He ended up in an orphanage where he was treated as if he was a monster. It was a Catholic orphanage so they didn’t call him a monster. They said he was the devil. The sisters mistreated him and provoked him. One day he set the orphanage on fire and escapes with a friend who was also an orphan. From that point forward, they live and grow up on the streets.

Every time Ji Oh’s body generated electricity, he would lose consciousness. When he wakes up he has no memory of anything that happened. This means that Ji Oh does not realize that he is:

• he is the product of a successful scientific experiment,
• he is worth a lot of money to a lot of people, and
• they are searching everywhere to find him.

Who Else Wants to Find Ji Oh?

While Ji Oh and his friend were growing up on the streets, Gu Reum (played by Lee Da Hee), the daughter of Scientist Ha Young-jae, was also growing up. She has vague memories:

• one day a little boy was brought to their home and he frightened her; and
• one day her parents left home with the young boy and never came back.

Did something bad happen to them? OR Did they abandon her? When Gu Reum grows up she becomes a detective and worked in different crime units. Most of her investigative work is aimed at finding her missing parents or finding Ji Oh because maybe he can tell her what happened to her parents.

Ji Oh and Gu Reum eventually meet each other. Her job as a detective is a dangerous one and he saved her life on more than one occasion. Once she realizes that he is the boy she has been searching for she tries to dig into the past. Only Ji Oh disappoints her because he can not remember his past. Nevertheless, she decides to stay close to him.

Ji Oh Becomes a Father

Staying close to Ji Oh also means Gu Reum has several encounters with the dangerous people who are searching for him. In addition, Ji Oh is being pursued by the police as a murderer or a murder witness. Gu Reum’s connection with Ji Oh is interfering with “NIS operations” and “scientific research”. Overnight, Gu Reum goes from being a detective to being framed as a murderer. Now they are both on the run.

They find a quiet place where they can stay for a while and elude capture. Their relationship develops into romance and a child is born from their union.

The Spiritual Leader, the NIS, and the Research Team are still hunting for Ji Oh. Somehow they learn that a baby has been born and now they are after Ji Oh and his child. Did he transfer his altered DNA to the child? If so … they can not only clone Ji Oh and sell the science to the highest bidder but they can continue their scientific experimentation on the child. They don’t even need human surrogate mothers anymore because Ryu Joong-kwon, the scientist who engineered Ji Oh, prefers to use artificial wombs.

Viewership and Rating

The Viki viewing audience rated L.U.C.A.: The Beginning 8.7 out of 10 stars. To be honest, I did not like the ending. Nevertheless, I give it 9 out of 10 stars. A person with no background in science, like me, will learn so many interesting things.

There are no plans for a Season 2 for L.U.C.A.: The Beginning. However, if you like Kim Rae Won, the actor who played Ji Oh, he has a major role in “The First Responders” Seasons 1 (2022) and 2 (2023).

Ahn Nae-sang is a seasoned actor with an extensive filmography that dates back to 1997.  Most recently he appeared in The Secret Romantic Guesthouse (2023), and Poong, The Joseon Psychiatrist (2022).