Currently Watching: Doctor X 2

Doctor X 2 is the sequel to the Japanese drama Doctor X (2012), a story about a brilliant female freelance surgeon who loves to do surgeries more than anything in the world (okay, she also loves dancing and eating) and she never fails, according to herself (except when she’s playing mahjong with her housemates). 


This “Doctor X” is Daimon Michiko, played by Yonekura Ryoko. Doctor X is above all a medical drama, and although there’s a plot line throughout the whole thing, the episodes are very formulaic and in that sense, there aren’t a lot of surprises. Even so, the main character is very interesting, and it’s also interesting to see the hierarchy of the hospital and the power play outside of the operation room. 


The Characters

I love Daimon Michiko as a main character. Her catchphrases from season 1 (“I never fail” and “I will not do it”) are still there, and if you stop to think about it, it might not be entirely realistic, but the actress pulls it off brilliantly. Michiko is a strong woman who stops for nothing when it comes to saving a patient’s life. Some people call her “Demon” and they think she’s just doing it for money, but these people don’t understand anything about her. She’s a lone wolf, aloof, never jokes around… but she has a warm, caring side, too. These are all things that remind me of my anime hero Black Jack – there seem to be some secrets in her past, too, that aren’t revealed yet – and the fact that this is an awesome female character makes it even better! 

Uchida Yuki as Jonouchi Hiromi remains from the first season; I liked her there because she was one of the more interesting characters, so I’m glad to see her in this season as well. Her and Michiko’s friendly banter is one of my favourite things. 


Fujiki Naohito is Kondo Shinobu, one of the younger doctors and the one with the lowest status at this season’s hospital. He doesn’t feel like he belongs with his colleagues so he’s the first one to try to be friends with Michiko. At first, he seems like a meek, shy guy… but appearances can be deceiving. In season one, there was also a younger doctor who looked up to Daimon Michiko, but I felt that that character was never really developed.


We also get to know the head of internal medicine department, Doctor Ishida (Yoshiko Mita), who is the one who hires Michiko because she’s impressed by her… but of course, she does have an ulterior motive. I liked this character, because it’s always good to see smart and competent female characters.

Then there’s Endo Kenichi as the ambitious Doctor Ebina, who spends a lot of the time sucking up to the surgery department head (Nishida Toshiyuki). We saw a similar dynamic between the characters in S1 but this time it’s more developed. 

Also, the manager Akira (Kishibe Ittoku) is still bringing a melon along with the bill. I still don’t get it. But I like it, because it’s fun. :) 

The Story So Far

I believe that it should be enjoyable even if you haven’t watched the first season. If you have watched it and liked it, you’re probably already watching it, right?! :) Five episodes have already aired, but it’s not too late to catch up!

I think this is an interesting drama; not a very deep and serious one perhaps, but it’s good! Doctor X 2 is even better than the first season. The basics of the show are still the same, but I feel that the characters are more interesting with more personality and the overall story arch is more pronounced. 

At this point, I’m interested in what the characters are up to; I can guess (it’s not that hard!) but I’m not completely sure where this is going. I think that a few of the characters have more than one ace up their sleeve that they’re waiting to play…


On a shallower note; I like Michiko’s hairstyle better in this season. ;)