PhuongNguyen
This review may contain spoilers
Overall i rate this drama above average, at least I finished it despite skipping huge chunks of it. I stopped watching k drama since full house in 2004 (I didn't even finish that) and only just picked up again since COVID. Must admit I couldn't finish most of them so anything I can finish watching even with skipping is worth noting.
What I like:
The music
The romance
ML acting
What I don't like:
The plot and subplots and all
The characters
Story:
Summary in a few words: forced, illogical and over-dramatic. I generally cant tolerate medical drama (with the exception of Hospital playlist) because of gross inaccuracy in the portrait of healthcare professionals and in medical knowledge. I picked up doctor John because of the high ratings and the topic of euthanasia, which if done right in highlighting both sides, the proponents and opponents of euthanasia, could be explosive. However, this show fails to deliver. I skipped most if not all of the hospital scenes unless involving the main couple romance.
What the ML did is involuntary euthanasia, which is considered murder and illegal in all countries. He deserves jail time and having his license revoked permanently. He does not have the right to end a patient's life without consent under the disguise of relieving pain. Also he has absolutely no respect for patients' wishes. I absolutely hate that kind of doctors who think they know better and willingly violate patients autonomy. The show confuses euthanasia, assisted suicide, assisted dying and DNR etc, hence the whole euthanasia plot is just a mess. The prosecutor and the nurse are obsessed with Cha for no valid reasons, or in other words, the reason the show presents is very forced. They should be charged with harassment. Cha did not kill their kids and the killer dies a painful death, so the grudge is very contrived, particularly for the prosecutor who is supposed to be smart and competent. I'm not even sure if it's legal for him to be involved in Cha's case to begin with. His involvement seems like a blatant conflict of interest to me. They are just batshit crazy for no reason. And I hate that trope in Kdrama, bad guys are bad just because they are bad. The lawyer and the former minister are even more ludicrous. There are plenty of drugs already available for assisted suicide. There's no good reason to develop a new drug to kill yourself with no financial gain. I initially thought it was to get rich but turned out they just want to die themselves. How stupid.
The CIPA/hospital plot is even less convincing. On what ground can't a doctor treat patients because he has an illness especially when it's not contagious and does not hamper his ability to work?????? If so, there wouldn't be any doctors left in this world. Doctors are also human and they can get sick, too. Dismissal based on this is discriminatory and illegal. Plus I can't understand why the hospital executives are so hellbent in getting rid of Cha while he is not even a threat to their positions. It also appears that doctors in this fictional hospital do nothing but running around aimlessly. One patient is tended by several dozens of doctors.
Let's not even get into the medical stuffs because I accept the fact it's a fictional work, there's no need to nitpick the inaccuracy.
The only reason that I kept watching was the romance. I'm a bit lost in the first two episodes why the FL decides to return to work after the encounter with ML other than her love-at-first-sight crush for him. It seems very forced when she has been dwelling on it for 2 years and one encounter somehow was enough to resolve her emotional turmoil and restore her confidence. If she was a as competent doctor as supposed to be, she shouldn't have trusted a stranger whose credibility is questionable. In fact she doesn't even know if he is qualified to give medical advice. I wouldn't if I was her. If her confidence is that low to even take on quack medical advice on the street, she shouldn't have returned to be a doctor. But Ill let it slide because I can see why the two of them are a match and she also redeems herself by taking the lead in the relationship. She is a lost puppy looking for a mentor and he fits the bill. He is aloof and closed off to the world because of his illness so if it wasn't for her forwardness, he would have never taken a move. I can see why her clinginess and ott expression touch a lonely man like him and why he falls for it. Thanks to Jisung' s suberb acting, the ML shows subtle hint of romantic interest in FL from the very beginning and never pretends to not like her, like earlier trope in Kdrama of the 00's (jerk ml has a crush on FL but acts otherwise, the main reason I quit watching years ago). I'm also very glad that there is no love triangle and all of it's banality. Their romance appears to be very accepting, understanding and supportive even without the lovey-dovey, which I absolutely love. The confession scene in the penultimate episode is heart melting, thanks to Jisung's electrifying gaze. However, the finale was disappointing, I still have no idea why they break up, like the writers has nothing better than time lapse to fill the slot. The more convincing logic wouldn't be to be with your loved one and go through difficult time together, would it? Anyway, romance is still the only plot that scores point for this show.
Acting/casts:
As I said earlier, Jisung's top-notch acting skill saves the show. I have never heard of him or watched any of his show before, probably because he debut after I quit kdrama. Although I don't like how the character Dr. Cha is written, the acting is still outstanding. Jisung delivers excellent performance in portraying the character's personality, the struggle and loneliness with his illness. His eyes speak volume. He gives me butterflies just with a tiny lift in the corner of his mouth, not to mention his heart-melting gaze, the perfect blend of care, concerns, gratefulness and sincerity.
As for the FL, I can't comment when her character does nothing but crying. I give her credit for her crying skill ?
Other characters have so little story to tell for the acting to shine.
Music
I absolutely love the OST, very fitting for the romance.
Rewatch value:
I can watch the confession scene hundreds time. But that's about it .
What I like:
The music
The romance
ML acting
What I don't like:
The plot and subplots and all
The characters
Story:
Summary in a few words: forced, illogical and over-dramatic. I generally cant tolerate medical drama (with the exception of Hospital playlist) because of gross inaccuracy in the portrait of healthcare professionals and in medical knowledge. I picked up doctor John because of the high ratings and the topic of euthanasia, which if done right in highlighting both sides, the proponents and opponents of euthanasia, could be explosive. However, this show fails to deliver. I skipped most if not all of the hospital scenes unless involving the main couple romance.
What the ML did is involuntary euthanasia, which is considered murder and illegal in all countries. He deserves jail time and having his license revoked permanently. He does not have the right to end a patient's life without consent under the disguise of relieving pain. Also he has absolutely no respect for patients' wishes. I absolutely hate that kind of doctors who think they know better and willingly violate patients autonomy. The show confuses euthanasia, assisted suicide, assisted dying and DNR etc, hence the whole euthanasia plot is just a mess. The prosecutor and the nurse are obsessed with Cha for no valid reasons, or in other words, the reason the show presents is very forced. They should be charged with harassment. Cha did not kill their kids and the killer dies a painful death, so the grudge is very contrived, particularly for the prosecutor who is supposed to be smart and competent. I'm not even sure if it's legal for him to be involved in Cha's case to begin with. His involvement seems like a blatant conflict of interest to me. They are just batshit crazy for no reason. And I hate that trope in Kdrama, bad guys are bad just because they are bad. The lawyer and the former minister are even more ludicrous. There are plenty of drugs already available for assisted suicide. There's no good reason to develop a new drug to kill yourself with no financial gain. I initially thought it was to get rich but turned out they just want to die themselves. How stupid.
The CIPA/hospital plot is even less convincing. On what ground can't a doctor treat patients because he has an illness especially when it's not contagious and does not hamper his ability to work?????? If so, there wouldn't be any doctors left in this world. Doctors are also human and they can get sick, too. Dismissal based on this is discriminatory and illegal. Plus I can't understand why the hospital executives are so hellbent in getting rid of Cha while he is not even a threat to their positions. It also appears that doctors in this fictional hospital do nothing but running around aimlessly. One patient is tended by several dozens of doctors.
Let's not even get into the medical stuffs because I accept the fact it's a fictional work, there's no need to nitpick the inaccuracy.
The only reason that I kept watching was the romance. I'm a bit lost in the first two episodes why the FL decides to return to work after the encounter with ML other than her love-at-first-sight crush for him. It seems very forced when she has been dwelling on it for 2 years and one encounter somehow was enough to resolve her emotional turmoil and restore her confidence. If she was a as competent doctor as supposed to be, she shouldn't have trusted a stranger whose credibility is questionable. In fact she doesn't even know if he is qualified to give medical advice. I wouldn't if I was her. If her confidence is that low to even take on quack medical advice on the street, she shouldn't have returned to be a doctor. But Ill let it slide because I can see why the two of them are a match and she also redeems herself by taking the lead in the relationship. She is a lost puppy looking for a mentor and he fits the bill. He is aloof and closed off to the world because of his illness so if it wasn't for her forwardness, he would have never taken a move. I can see why her clinginess and ott expression touch a lonely man like him and why he falls for it. Thanks to Jisung' s suberb acting, the ML shows subtle hint of romantic interest in FL from the very beginning and never pretends to not like her, like earlier trope in Kdrama of the 00's (jerk ml has a crush on FL but acts otherwise, the main reason I quit watching years ago). I'm also very glad that there is no love triangle and all of it's banality. Their romance appears to be very accepting, understanding and supportive even without the lovey-dovey, which I absolutely love. The confession scene in the penultimate episode is heart melting, thanks to Jisung's electrifying gaze. However, the finale was disappointing, I still have no idea why they break up, like the writers has nothing better than time lapse to fill the slot. The more convincing logic wouldn't be to be with your loved one and go through difficult time together, would it? Anyway, romance is still the only plot that scores point for this show.
Acting/casts:
As I said earlier, Jisung's top-notch acting skill saves the show. I have never heard of him or watched any of his show before, probably because he debut after I quit kdrama. Although I don't like how the character Dr. Cha is written, the acting is still outstanding. Jisung delivers excellent performance in portraying the character's personality, the struggle and loneliness with his illness. His eyes speak volume. He gives me butterflies just with a tiny lift in the corner of his mouth, not to mention his heart-melting gaze, the perfect blend of care, concerns, gratefulness and sincerity.
As for the FL, I can't comment when her character does nothing but crying. I give her credit for her crying skill ?
Other characters have so little story to tell for the acting to shine.
Music
I absolutely love the OST, very fitting for the romance.
Rewatch value:
I can watch the confession scene hundreds time. But that's about it .
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