Eric
here
An Unexpectedly Fun and Interesting Medical Drama
This is a review of all of season 1 and part of season 2, though there are no spoilers.
I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting much from this drama. Based on my prior experiences with Jdramas and some confliction over the premise, I actually expected to drop it after a few episodes. Regardless, in my endless hunt for a drama where the female's skills are not continuously overpassed by their male counterparts, I decided to try it out, and I'm delighted to say that I was pleasantly surprised.
Perhaps it's the addictive nature of watching a character constantly exceed the expectations of her peers, but I could not get enough of this show, and watched the entire first season in one sitting. Luckily that wasn't too difficult, as a single season is 8 one hour episodes long, which is typically where other dramas start to peter out. In addition, the whole constantly-impressing-others gimmick remains fresh since the main character switches hospitals every season.
The main character Daimon Michiko's personality may seem off-putting at first, but she is generally redeemed by her boundless empathy for patients, and the endless measures she takes to cure them. Also, she is a person of incredible skill (hence her catchphrase "I never fail") which in part makes up for her arrogance. And, regardless, it's always fun to see other character's great pride destroyed by her when she outclasses them in surgery.
A saving grace of the show's otherwise impersonal tone is Michiko's manager, a delightfully happy man who skips down the hall with a melon in hand whenever it's time to collect a bill. The scenes with him are always surprisingly soothing, as Michiko lowers her guard and speaks openly and familiarly with him about surgeries, politics, and hospital gossip. Although there's a hint he may be taking advantage of her for money, you can tell they genuinely have a strong relationship.
Of course, as with any show, it's not all sunshine and rainbows and perfect storytelling. There is some noticeable repetition in parts of the plot and quite a bit in the score as well, and a great deal of plot armor surrounding Michiko herself. There's also a bit of unrealism in that supposedly renowned doctors often makes mistakes that she can fix in an instant, although this is somewhat explained away by the premise of a failing hospital system. There isn't so much character arcs as relationship arcs, as different side characters' feelings about Michiko change over time, but this is still interesting to watch, and shows don't always need to contain character arcs to be entertaining.
Although it's difficult to pinpoint any more particular downfalls, I will say that this is no masterpiece, but more like a guilty pleasure. Something that's not going make you feel super emotional, or change the way you see the world, but it will be something fun to watch when you need to relax or procrastinate (I can personally attest to that last part). For that reason, I would definitely recommend this drama (it comes without saying to those who have no aversion to medical dramas).
I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting much from this drama. Based on my prior experiences with Jdramas and some confliction over the premise, I actually expected to drop it after a few episodes. Regardless, in my endless hunt for a drama where the female's skills are not continuously overpassed by their male counterparts, I decided to try it out, and I'm delighted to say that I was pleasantly surprised.
Perhaps it's the addictive nature of watching a character constantly exceed the expectations of her peers, but I could not get enough of this show, and watched the entire first season in one sitting. Luckily that wasn't too difficult, as a single season is 8 one hour episodes long, which is typically where other dramas start to peter out. In addition, the whole constantly-impressing-others gimmick remains fresh since the main character switches hospitals every season.
The main character Daimon Michiko's personality may seem off-putting at first, but she is generally redeemed by her boundless empathy for patients, and the endless measures she takes to cure them. Also, she is a person of incredible skill (hence her catchphrase "I never fail") which in part makes up for her arrogance. And, regardless, it's always fun to see other character's great pride destroyed by her when she outclasses them in surgery.
A saving grace of the show's otherwise impersonal tone is Michiko's manager, a delightfully happy man who skips down the hall with a melon in hand whenever it's time to collect a bill. The scenes with him are always surprisingly soothing, as Michiko lowers her guard and speaks openly and familiarly with him about surgeries, politics, and hospital gossip. Although there's a hint he may be taking advantage of her for money, you can tell they genuinely have a strong relationship.
Of course, as with any show, it's not all sunshine and rainbows and perfect storytelling. There is some noticeable repetition in parts of the plot and quite a bit in the score as well, and a great deal of plot armor surrounding Michiko herself. There's also a bit of unrealism in that supposedly renowned doctors often makes mistakes that she can fix in an instant, although this is somewhat explained away by the premise of a failing hospital system. There isn't so much character arcs as relationship arcs, as different side characters' feelings about Michiko change over time, but this is still interesting to watch, and shows don't always need to contain character arcs to be entertaining.
Although it's difficult to pinpoint any more particular downfalls, I will say that this is no masterpiece, but more like a guilty pleasure. Something that's not going make you feel super emotional, or change the way you see the world, but it will be something fun to watch when you need to relax or procrastinate (I can personally attest to that last part). For that reason, I would definitely recommend this drama (it comes without saying to those who have no aversion to medical dramas).
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