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Doctor Stranger: Episode 11

We bring the focus back on the surgical jousting tournament between Hoon and Jae-joon, where the number of rounds is as arbitrary as the whole concept itself. Oddly enough, it’s remarkable how this world can seem so small when it hones in on one hospital conflict at a time. History threatens to repeat itself in the face of another possible case of malpractice, and it’s up to one of our cardiothoracic surgeons to suture the issue before it bursts.

The ratings race gets even tighter this week as Doctor Stranger clocked a 11.0% and Big Man came in second with 10.7%.

SONG OF THE DAY

BEAST – “이젠 아니야 (No More)” [ Download ]

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EPISODE 11 RECAP

On his morning run, Jae-joon’s thoughts are filled with his desperate pleas that ended the previous episode for Chairman Oh to give him another chance. Since everything about his character is metaphor-related, naturally his accessories are too—his PPL watch tells him to hurry it up a little.

A flashback to last night teaches us that Chairman Oh had granted Jae-joon entry and one more chance after all. He claims Jae-joon should thank his lucky stars for two things: (a) his attachment to Soo-hyun and (b) Hoon’s illegal peek at Seung-hee’s medical records, thus giving him another round in that arbitrary competition against Hoon.

Meanwhile, Chi-gyu awakes to a very different kind of morning as he winces in embarrassment at the recollection of last night’s drunken antics. Spotting the head of hair to his right, his first thought is of Soo-hyun, so he carefully looks underneath the covers and jumps in a mix of shock, relief, and horror to find a mannequin lying there instead.

His flirtatious advances towards a plastic model aside, Chi-gyu answers Jae-joon’s call and assures him that Soo-hyun probably made it back home all right. A hand creeping up his chest has him check his left, which leads to another round of shock, relief, and horror to see Doctor Geum.

Evidently the partying cardiothoracic surgeons all crashed at Soo-hyun’s place last night. At the sight of two different shoes, the two docs’ eyes widen, remembering that Hoon followed Soo-hyun upstairs.

Following the trail of clothes, they gasp to see two pairs of bare feet in bed together. This entire sequence is ridiculous and yet strangely hilarious—maybe it’s the techno-electronic music in this scene.

Anyway, it’s Doctor Moon in the same bed as Hoon, though the discovery makes it no less shocking for anyone in the room. As for Soo-hyun, she wakes on the floor, and then proceeds to brandish a mannequin arm against her boxers-wearing colleagues.

Asked what they’re all doing at her place, the guys point out that she was the one who told them not to leave. She ushers to kick them out, but that’s when movers suddenly show up at her doorway, here with the new tenant: Seung-hee, who doesn’t look happy to see Hoon and his bedhead hair in this apartment.

The simultaneous-occupancy mix-up turns out to be the broker’s fault, and Soo-hyun concedes the place to Seung-hee, since she signed on later. Feeling bad, Seung-hee suggests that Soo-hyun stay until she finds a new place.

Hoon has overheard the discussion and tells Seung-hee not to get anyone else needlessly involved. That remark stirs Seung-hee’s jealousy again, and she drags him outside by the ear. She asks what happened last night, removing a strand of Soo-hyun’s hair out of his.

His murmured explanation pacifies her, though Hoon pulls her back to encourage her to smile more like she used to. She’s in no position to do that under current circumstances, she tells him.

Hoon immediately seeks Soo-hyun out to blame his recent scolding on her. He presses her hair down to keep it from going rogue again and she returns the favor in kind. Seung-hee observes their schoolyard bickering just outside wearing what I think is a sad expression.

Hoon redeems himself a little in his apology to Chang-yi, to whom he reminds to keep quiet. She still hasn’t fully forgiven him, but Hoon gets a few points for trying to make amends.

Chairman Oh sits down with Soo-hyun after overhearing that she’s already found a place of her own. He agrees to let Soo-hyun move out on the grounds that she and Jae-joon get engaged. Her hand gives an involuntary jerk.

At the mention that Jae-joon was going to be transferred to the branch hospital, Chairman Oh says that’s changed and smiles at his daughter. Seeing Jae-joon and Hoon walking together has her recall the two different hugs.

Hoon rejects the idea of extending their surgical competition another two rounds and therefore gambling with more lives. Having been prepared for that answer, Jae-joon hands him a large sum, telling Hoon that he can withdraw and take the money then.

Hoon turns down the tempting offer and takes a meta moment to wonder how the doctors in this place have so much money to burn. He asks what important reason Jae-joon has to become part of the prime minister’s surgical team, and Jae-joon explains that people hold different values—just like how Hoon wants to save his North Korean girlfriend, he wants to make Myungwoo into the best hospital in Korea.

Offering up this sum means that his goal to become Myungwoo’s hospital director is worth more than money. Hoon doesn’t look down upon Jae-joon’s career aspirations at all, but this chat hasn’t changed his mind either because he has his own reasons to operate on the prime minister.

It’s in Hoon’s best interests to accept this offer, Jae-joon states in a firm voice. Hoon says that sounds like a threat, but he doesn’t budge. At the same time, Soo-hyun returns her father’s declaration that Jae-joon will operate on the prime minister with confusion.

So Jae-joon calls the police to have Hoon and Doctor Moon arrested, the latter busy polishing his brand-new hospital director nameplate (convinced it’ll happen eventually) when the cops barge in. Doctor Moon immediately points the finger of blame at Hoon for looking at the medical records.

Seeing Jae-joon around the corner, Hoon angrily grabs him by the lapels, declaring that things won’t go according to Jae-joon’s plans. However, Jae-joon is convinced that they will, “because I have more important things to do than find a girl.”

Watching from the other side of the glass is Chairman Oh and Soo-hyun, so Hoon gives himself up to be taken in. On the other hand, Doctor Moon is dragged away kicking and screaming his innocence.

Hoon takes everything in stride because this isn’t his first brush with the law. He assures Doctor Moon that everything will be fine just so long as they keep three things in mind. The first is an attempt to escape, which doesn’t work with the police standing two feet away.

The second is to deny all allegations at the police station, but that doesn’t go well either since there’s enough evidence that states the contrary. So Doctor Moon asks what the last tactic is… and Hoon sighs before contorting his face to hold back tears: “I was wrong, Officer. I’ll confess.” Ha.

It gets even better because then Hoon points to Doctor Moon and whimpers that he was only following his “master’s orders.” Doctor Moon freaks out. This show’s crazy.

Soo-hyun finds Jae-joon in his office, where she’s astounded to hear that he was the one to report Hoon. She speaks to Hoon’s defense, arguing that Hoon was trying to confirm his sweetheart’s doppelganger. But Jae-joon doesn’t buy that excuse, and she asks if Jae-joon’s being a poor loser. Ouch.

At her claims that the Jae-joon she once knew doesn’t act like this, he retorts, “Then what about the Soo-hyun I knew?” He admits that the recent first round loss still stings, but what irritates him more is Soo-hyun’s ever-present concern for Hoon.

In the face of Jae-joon’s jealous tantrum, Soo-hyun takes the opportunity to set him straight: “There’s no place for me in [Hoon’s] heart! She’s everything to him!” Omo, are you jealous, m’dear?

Jae-joon voices that question: “Does that anger you? Because there isn’t a place for you?” He takes Soo-hyun’s hand and urges her to come back to him and his team. Soo-hyun replies that she really wants to, but Jae-joon keeps blocking her and pushing her away.

Soo-hyun appeals to Seung-hee to visit the police station together. Chang-yi hears the news from Chi-gyu and knocks him over the head with an empty bottle for bad-mouthing Hoon. Anyone else see a side romance brewing between these two?

Hoon is still racking Doctor Moon’s nerves in jail by the time Soo-hyun and Seung-hee arrive. Unfortunately the only person able to drop the charges is party who reported them. Cue Jae-joon, who notes that this is the consequence for refusing to extend their surgical competition.

Being victors won’t matter if they lose their medical licenses, so Doctor Moon readily accepts. Hoon still refuses despite the added condition that their next patient of choice is up to him. He then looks to Seung-hee, who nods, so he reluctantly agrees.

That effectively gets them out of jail, and Soo-hyun pulls Jae-joon aside and calls this whole act cowardly. Jae-joon fires back that according to the law, those two would be imprisoned for their crimes, but he gave his fellow doctors another chance.

In the car, Hoon asks why he has to operate on Prime Minister Jang’s heart. Seung-hee says she’ll explain later and they should do as they’re told. But Hoon knows Agent Cha isn’t someone to do that, so she replies, “Trust me. I want to protect you.”

She claims she has her own plan where they can end up living happily ever after because this show needs more secret conspiracies to juggle at once. He agrees to do things her way, and then tells her to smile wide.

They drive back to the hospital where Hoon assures a slightly dolled-up Chang-yi that everything is fine now. It’s cute that she’s trying to impress him with her pretty looks, though Hoon’s compliments are more along the lines of a cute dongsaeng than love interest. D’aww.

Still, Chang-yi changes out of her casual clothes to a more alluring attire underneath. Chi-gyu happens to witness the transformation, so she waltzes up to him with a coy smile, grabs two bottles this time, and smacks both sides of his head for being a Peeping Tom.

Hoon nearly gets run over by a taxi, but his attention turns to the woman who gets out. He watches as she clutches her head in pain but is all smiles to greet her husband and hospitalized son. Just when Hoon turns away, however, she collapses onto the ground.

Hoon runs over to examine the woman using his genius, and then carts her inside. But he doesn’t get to treat her because another team of doctors takes her away.

Chairman Oh takes this opportunity to chat with Hoon about his father. Hoon is no fool in that matter, so Chairman Oh confirms that Myungwoo would be in shambles if that malpractice suit went through and subsequently wouldn’t have been able to save the countless number of lives they did over the years.

The doctors are the ones who save lives, not the hospital, Hoon argues. But Chairman Oh counters that doctors can’t treat patients without equipment, and Hoon retorts: “And did that money fall from the sky? No, you bought that using the money your patients give you.”

Chairman Oh smirks—would there be doctors who think like that? Hoon fires back that patients want a doctor who do, like his father. “And what happened to him?” the chairman asks. Hoon balls up a fist.

Patient Lee’s family is relieved to hear that the patient has regained consciousness, but we all know how easily a person’s medical fate can change in this hospital.

Nightshade and Agent Cha hash out the change in plans at the riverside. Agent Cha asks how Jae-joon can be trusted in their mission should he win, to which Nightshade replies that he can pray that Hoon does instead.

But what does it matter who anyone else thinks will come out victorious when Prime Minister Jang sees this stupid competition like a literal gamble. He places his bet on Jae-joon to win the second round because a tie-breaking final round is way more fun. Or something.

Hoon reviews Patient Lee’s scans, still troubled by the burst blood vessel he sensed through his genius. He points it out to Soo-hyun, who doesn’t see it on the ultrasound. They’re interrupted by Doctor Moon, to whom Hoon is all, Weren’t we broken up? He gets dragged away, leaving Soo-hyun to review the scan.

In his office, Doctor Moon says they have the advantage this round and therefore should enjoy themselves rather than do their best. Because that’s the kind of doctor Moon is. Noticing the woman’s husband loitering in the hallway, Hoon doesn’t stick around long enough for Doctor Moon’s creative suggestions.

It seems the cardiologists haven’t given a clear explanation to the family, so Hoon puts Patient Lee’s condition in layman’s terms: His wife has three stents in her heart to improve blood circulation, but a blood vessel burst, hence her fainting spell earlier.

When asked if this is a case of malpractice, Hoon delicately replies that he can’t be sure, though, he does wonder to himself whether the docs think something is wrong and an error they made. He explains the complications in this kind of internal bleeding, namely shock and possible death.

Just then, they get the frightening call that the patient is crashing and arrive just in time for the senior cardiologist to regain a heartbeat. The senior cardiologist assures them in a chipper voice that everything will be fine, though Hoon’s troubled expression suggests otherwise.

Hoon is reluctant to perform surgery, knowing that the cardiology team won’t be thrilled about it. I feel bad for the teenage son in his wheelchair who had to brace himself hoping that his mom will make it, and so does Hoon.

So Hoon pulls Doctor Moon to take it up with the senior cardiologist, who claims surgery is both unnecessary and risky. He recognizes Hoon as the feisty young doc from the emergency room and puts his foot down—he won’t have the cardiothoracic department steal a patient from his team.

Hoon argues with Doctor Moon in his office about Patient Lee: Hoon wants to pursue surgery to fix the possible surgical error and save the patient’s life whereas Doctor Moon insists that they turn a blind eye to a life they aren’t even responsible for. Their shouting match gets them nowhere and Hoon leaves, sulking.

Hoon can’t bring himself to ignore the dejected teenage son in the hallway. The realization that the surgery won’t happen only discourages the boy, who blames himself for his mother’s condition. He had called emergency when his mother had a heart attack, but couldn’t get to her because of his wheelchair, so he resorted to crawl towards her. Aw, kid.

Although he’s told that that call likely saved her life, the boy calls himself a horrible son anyway. Hoon grimly says he’s probably an even worse son by those standards, recalling Dad’s death.

He tells the boy to put aside those negative thoughts and assures him with his trademark wink that they’ll find a way to save his mother.

So Hoon assembles his team, asking Seung-hee to be his anesthesiologist. He smiles when she hops on board. He then seeks out Nurse Min and she agrees too, though, she suggests someone else aside from Doctor Yang to be his first mate.

That someone is Soo-hyun of course, who’s still mulling over why she couldn’t see the hemorrhage on the scan. She raises her hands when Hoon draws near, warning him against joking around with her again. He whispers that he wouldn’t dare, not when they have a life to save.

He takes her hand and says he needs her assistance to operate on the female patient with the hemorrhage. Soo-hyun is onboard up until she hears that Hoon hasn’t gotten permission from the other department and puts on the literal brakes. Well, good thing you found out before wheeling the patient in the operating theater.

Hoon says they don’t need permission from docs who’d rather ignore the patient’s condition. But Soo-hyun doesn’t budge and he asks if she’ll join him or not. She confirms that this patient will be in actual danger if they don’t proceed, and then agrees.

You can imagine the cardiologists’ surprise when they hear that their patient is being prepped for surgery. Over at the operating room, Hoon sends Patient Lee a reassuring smile before he scrubs in.

It just so happens that Jae-joon’s team is currently operating in the adjacent room and notes Hoon and Soo-hyun’s presence. Jae-joon takes note, but continues with his own procedure. Hoon thanks Soo-hyun for putting her neck on the line for this surgery, too. She asks if he’s worried about her right now, to which Hoon says he’s concerned for everyone on his team.

It isn’t long before news reaches Chairman Oh’s ears, but it’s douchey Sang-jin who arrives at the scrub room first. Sang-jin grabs Hoon’s already washed hands, since that prevents him from pursuing surgery (albeit temporarily). Hoon responds with a headbutt.

The cardiology team file in moments later and Hoon requests that he be allowed to perform this surgery. His request is met with a slap to the face, and the senior cardiologist pulls rank over Hoon—how dare he speak with such arrogance?

Soo-hyun’s attempt to come to Hoon’s defense leads to the senior cardiologist grabbing her by the scrubs with a hand raised… and it’s Jae-joon who intervenes to break it up.

After Doctor Moon ushers the cardiologists away, Hoon takes a look inside the operating room, and then turns to Jae-joon to declare, “I found the patient for our second battle. The patient you’re going to take.”

 
COMMENTS

Even if it’s painful to sit through more of the ever-present surgical competition in this hospital, I am glad that it keeps the numerous conspiracies swirling in this dramaverse temporarily at bay. Not that this arbitrary tournament makes any more sense than anything else on this show (though not much does, of course) it’s the one plot point that bookended the beginning and end of the hour—to set up the battle for more rounds.

With k-dramas giving us two-episodes a week, the odd episodes usually set up a conflict in hopes that the viewers see a payoff or continue to build narrative tension in its even episodes to eventually cap off a smaller story arc. As a viewer, you can see when a show falls into that pattern, and some shows do a better job of that in its execution than others and go beyond those guidelines (e.g. say, you get a payoff in an odd episode). On the other hand, following that formula can also lead to other less wanted content in an hour. In Stranger’s case, much of this episode was devoted to humorous filler, and while off-beat and funny (I don’t know why those moments make me laugh, but they do), I couldn’t think of any reason why the show wouldn’t take that time to help its viewers make more sense of the larger world at hand aside from a case of panicked storytelling.

We’re already past the halfway point now, and while I could understand the show spending a few episodes trying to gain its foothold in the beginning or even the middle stretch, I would hate to see Stranger run out of time to tell the story it wanted to in the latter course of its run. In the hopes that there is an overall story to tell, of course. Instead of driving the narrative forward, we’re seeing more the same tiny narrative moments being recycled more often, like Doctor Moon’s disregard for any patient or the requisite check-in of Prime Minister Jang’s ambivalence.

All we can do then is to give focus on whatever the show deems important for the hour. So for our case of the week, I’d wondered how Hoon and Jae-joon would proceed with this competition without twins to operate on anymore. Handing Patient Lee over to Jae-joon’s hands assures Hoon that Jae-joon will do what’s necessary for their battle and therefore save her life. I have a feeling that one word from Chairman Oh will trump any cardiologist’s tantrum, which leaves Hoon to find the patient he wants to save. It’s a good thing then that the medical moments of this show continue to be compelling, giving us glimpses into our rivaling doctors’ character and values in their line of work.

I’m still uneasy as we proceed in this battle, however, all thanks to Prime Minister Jang’s off-hand remark at how fun it’d be to reach a tie-breaking round. I shouldn’t be surprised at how apathetic the politician is of gambling other people’s lives including his own. Then again everyone else seems to regard his somewhat-but-is-it-that-important surgery as a stepping stone for their own goals, so why shouldn’t he?

 
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This episode is just a patch-up job to appease the audiences. Consider it as a soft reboot for Hoon et al, as you could definitely have the inkling that the writer has made an about-face in all major red flags that were raised from ep 10. Hoon apologizing to Changyi, Seunghee smiling more and Hoon himself even asking why she doesn't smile as much anymore either, Jaehee finally giving a confirmation that she is doing spywork to save both herself and Hoon, and most importantly LESS screentime for the convoluted spy triumvirate of PM Jang, Secretary Kim, and Agent Cha. Also, no more running around. That, and tons of fan service. This episode is marginally better than the travesty from the past 2, but the jury is still out of how the show will ultimately tie everything up. I like that the writer is listening to the audience, but what's most important is having a vision of the plot and the conceived endgame then working on it, instead of pandering to viewer demands whose complaints sprung from the plot shorcomings in the first place. Fix the plot, and everything else will follow.

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Ditto. Cute comedic hijinks will not be enough sail on for the next 9 episodes.

@gummimochi and HeadsNo2: thank you watching this silly show and thoroughly recapping it for all of us. I, personally, will not even bother FF-ing to the significant scenes any more until it genuinely shows some plot progression.

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Really? I gave up on the plot, and I'm only watching it for the cute comedic hijinks at this point lol.
Everything is crazy, but LJS is still adorable. XD

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Yup, this is apparently the big rewrite that was announced last week. But from the recaps, not sure it is any improvement - it still seems to be lurching all over and not making any sense.

I have lost any desire to watch this, and I feel bad for the recappers.

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I have still not watch ep 11 yet, eventhough the recap made it seem look a bit better, I think I might wait for 2-3 episodes more to decide whether it worth my time or not.

@windsun
there's an announcement about the big rewrite? really? Where did you hear the news?

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I read it over on koala'splayground earlier in the week that they rewrote it in light of viewer complaints.

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Is that officially confirmed info? I can't find any information on that on Korean sites...

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Apparently NOT confirmed, though it has appeared on a couple of sites, it may in fact not be true. There is nothing on any of the "official" sites.

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NOT officially confirmed info. Speculation based on the fact that heaps of viewers wrote and called SBS demanding rewrites after Episodes 9 and 10.

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reading recaps is much more fun than watching the series itself lol

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The comedy in the beginning was fun. But then you could watch blackadder...

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Agreed.

Although we didn't have much plot progression this episode, and the plot is still a huge mess, I appreciated the fact that the writers were doing /something/ to appease the audience. At least I found it easier to root for Hoon in this episode as compared to the previous 2. He had his redeeming moments and I really needed those.

I honestly thought this episode was entertaining and pretty hilarious - maybe it's just me.

I'm still unsure about Jaehee though :s

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Riding on your comment here, apologies!

Agree with all you say. It did feel more cohesive.

My thoughts:

Jongsuk appears to have watched Doctor Who to prepare for this show, probably the David Tennant version. Felt like I was seeing that show again...

However, does that make JaeJoon the Master?

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Then who is the companion?

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Up to now i still don't get the importance of Prime Minister Jang's heart surgery. Is the goal his death or his health? is nightshade working together with agent Cha? or will they stab each other's back?

well i did enjoy the light part of the show, another drunken frenzy from dr. Park, dr. Quack, and dr. Moon, crazy as ever. Their waking up in Soo Hyun's house, their banter after sobering up, Seung Hee finding Soo hyun's hair, Hoon and Soo hyun hair battle, Hoon and his "master" act in the police office, Hoon sitting on the table while munching chocolate bar, those scenes are worth watching for.

Is it possible that Soohyun and Jaejoon's heartbeats match each other?I hope so since Hoon-Soo Hyun's ship is definitely sinking -___-

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No surprise that the ratings race is that tight (but that threat could end next week since Big Man is only 16 eps and will be wrapping up I think?), and this ep is still a pile of crazy. But crazy filler instead of the impossible crazy+boring we got last week.

As for the comments last week about PD Jin Hyuk`s style...well, it certainly is very flashy or it can be, like here. But it can also be much subtler and hint at actual themes (like all the nods to death in Master`s Sun) when he has something to work with. I`ll just make a mental note to avoid anything by this writer in the future, is all.

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YAY! thanks for the recap.

After the last two episode don't feel like watching this drama anymore, but I see some cute/funny moments!

Gonna watch it tonight! ^^

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opps! double post!

Please delete this admin. ^^

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Seung-Hee might give way for Hoon and Soo-Hyun's ship to sail.

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That's what I was thinking when she was watching the 2 of them bickering and playing with the other hair.
Hoon and Seung-hee used to be like that.

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Ha ha. Now we're getting Rom Com thrown into the mix? So funny when Hoon and Dr Quack are bickering and she says she hates his perm! You and me both KSR. Definitely fan service this episode.

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I think gummimochi and HeadsNo2 deserve an award for doing the recap. I thought LJS could make this work. But his pretty face is not enough to salvage this wreck of a drama.

And personally, I could forgive Jin Se Yeon once for being overshadowed by the second lead in Gaksital because Rie was a highly compelling character on her own without the added acting brilliance of Han Chae-Ah. But if anything, Seung Hee/Jae-hee COULD have been portrayed as the badass mysterious crazy skilled doctor spy that she is. But Kang Sora's stereotypical quack doctor has more screen presence than her. ( goes to google her other works)

**I am not hating on JSY. Really. I am just disappointed. **

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Outside of her character's dog chewed mangled storyline, Jin Se Yeon simply doesn't have the charisma or the chemistry to pull off the female lead role alongside LJS. It was the same problem in Gaksital because even though the writers gave her all the poignant, emotional scenes (remember that scene with the horse carrying gaksital?), she couldn't do diddly squat with it.

Same story here, the bridge scene? didn't do it for me. And honestly, even though the story TELLS us that she's the love of Park Hoon's life and that his happiest days were spent with her, it just seems like she's the continual source of all of PH's heartbreak, angst and problems. After all that, it's hard to the viewer to favor her character.

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Hmm, that's very strange, because I really loved Gaksital and JSY played a huge part in why I liked the drama so much. It was the first drama I've seen of her. I thought her emotional and poignant scenes were really well-done.

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? What's strange about it? It is what we called different opinions, my dear.

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Agree ^_^

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"it just seems like she’s the continual source of all of PH’s heartbreak, angst and problems."

Spot on.

PH becomes crazily irrational and annoying when it comes to JH, and JH is the central problem that is hindering his life as a doctor or even his life in general.

I don't hate/dislike JSY but I wished they killed off JH and idk, this show could have been much better if JH died and SH didn't appear.

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agreed. I felt this show could've done well enough if it was just about Park Hoon trying to regain himself after overcoming his tragedies and fit back into society as a doctor under the context of the hospital.

None of the N. Korean/Prime Minister/dead girlfriend double and triple backstabbing spy thriller stuff, if they had executed the nuances well enough (the supporting cast is certainly good enough), this would've been much more pleasurable to watch as a slice of life drama instead of a spy-thriller/rom com/mystery drama all rolled into one.

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That would have greatly veered off to the source material then--which is all about Hoon and his wife from NK Jaehee. Y'know, the novel to which this show was adapted.

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That's the point, the show has severely distorted their loveline into something that's self-inflicting and borderline destructive, that it's almost as if they're purposely making room for some BS plot twist later. For 7 episodes they have made an effort of making Seunghee as ambiguous and unrootable as possible.

I would wager that not even the most seasoned actress could have made their romance any more likeable than it is now.

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Cognitive dissonance. The show wants us to believe in their love but then goes and does exactly the very things that makes us doubt in it.

I wouldn't even worry about chemistry, because that's all about perception. If the story is doing good, and the plot and directing is delivering all the proper scenes, even two statues could exude chemistry too. Really, chemistry is the least of this show's worries.

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This episode was somewhat of an improvement from the past two, but it still feels awkward knowing how much they backtracked from episode 10. PH is no longer his irrational, foaming at the mouth, self and Jae Hee doesn't seem like the cold, manipulative backstabbing turncoat.

However, extending this inane farcical competition is a stepback in iteself (not to mention the extremely unethical nature of it). And it just feels like they're rehashing a lot storylines we've already seen. (I swear, they could've clipped that dialogue between Jae Joon and soo hyun episode 4? and it would've fit the exact same jealous- lover-whathappenedtothejaejoon/soohyuniknew narrative)

That, and we still have this messy mushroom cloud hanging over our heads--why does, or rather DID, the prime minister want park hoon doing his surgery? and why his sudden change of heart to prefer jae joon? and what do those crazy N. Koreans have to do with all of this????

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I just started watching this last week, ep 1 to 10.
and now honestly I'm not that excited to continue with ep 11 =(
so I thank the recappers for this awesome recap..at least this and other future recaps will make me remember to JUST FVCKING GET THIS SERIES OVER WITH!

LGS I still adore you <3

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No show, you can't ride the rest of the series on Lee jong suk's smile or his charm.
It has never been more evident in this episode than any other where he had to give his all just to be a puppy so viewers would forget the mess of a story.
Give him something to work with.
I get jae hee is your end game by now, but step forward in love department would do wonders right now.
Whatever, it's not my show. Am sticking by for now. Don't make me stop watching you.

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hi everyone... kinda off-topic but i hope somene can help me out... it's been a while since i checked out dramabeans and k-dramas in general...

the last 2 kdramas ive watched are Master's Sun and You Who Came From The Stars so i know i have missed out on quite a few shows lately... any recommendations please?... preferably completed or almost complete so i can run-a-marathon kdrama-style :)

thanks in advance!

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Try Bride of the Century if you are looking for something recent.

There are many classics if you don't mind things that are over 3 years old.

But it would be nice if we knew what you like watching and what you don't like.

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coolrepublica -- thanks for the suggestion i will check that one out :)

i can almost watch any genre except makjang... i tried watching IU's drama 'Youre The Best Lee Soon Shin' but its pace was too slow for me... i also started Heirs but although i love the actors i found the drama too cliche and stopped at ep4... good rom-coms are always a delight and mystery-thrillers are also ok for me...

i also started to check what dramas that have aired recently... are 3 Days and Hotel King good ones?

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I Hear Your Voice!
It's better for marathon.

Then if you like romcom try something like Coffee Prince, Arang and The Magistrate, Secret Garden, etc

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thank you kanz... looks like we have the same preferences in drama and you listed some great dramas :D... i LOVE arang and the magistrate and i hear your voice... coffee prince is an all-time fave and i have the dvd hehe... i have watched the ones you mentioned already... hmmm i might rewatch one of them while looking for goods ones that i havent watched yet...

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I just started watching Sungkyunkwan Scandal and so far it's kept me hooked (12 episodes in). Helps that Yoo Ah In and Song Joong Ki are just freaking adorable in that show.

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I Need Romance 3, Let's Eat, and Miss Korea are some more 2014 kdramas that you might want to check out after Bride of the Century.

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While this episode was certainly more watchable than the last two comedy hijinks don't do anything to resolve the main problems of the drama i.e. the plot.

We need answers about Seung Hee, more about Jang's illness and why he chose this convoluted farce as the way forward.

Is he even sick ? Could this actually be for someone else and that's why he's so cavalier about it?

This episode just spun it's wheels, if this is an example of the rewrites -fan service that gets us nowhere- than I really will have to drop this drama.

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I just want to post here what I've posted over at soompi to which I pointed out how the show has done a great disservice to its primary loveline that it has done the near impossible--have its viewers become desensitized to it. To a point that the actors had to be unfairly besmirched when they've been doing everything they can to make it work, chemistry or none. I sincerely believe that the public sentiment has been swayed unwittingly by the show to not like the OTP, and ultimately set themselves up to their own failing.
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In any case, as far as romance goes I’m truly disappointed with how the show has handled their OTP’s loveline. They have just about permanently damaged what could have been a great romance set-up, now they’re stuck into redoing the script which I largely suspect is because all of a sudden the OTP became marginalized, to a point, that not even a kiss could resuscitate the flat lining romance. Subsequently, resulting to the drop in the ratings, among many other things, which they have done to their own detriment.

The set-up of Hoon's and Jaehee's love in itself isn't faulty, but the writers have made a crucial mistake by purposely hurting themselves when they suddenly cut off Hoon's and Jaehee's romance and throwing Jaehee into the bridge without even giving the decency of fleshing her out. Then Seunghee comes along, and the show continued to deter her development by keeping her identity under the wraps. They have created a scenario where the audience becomes reluctant and confused whether they should root for Seunghee or not, and this continued for like what, 7 episodes? There is a detachment to their romance because the show has sabotaged itself by dousing it with cold water before it could even grow hot. They were mistaken if they expected that the first 2 episodes would have been enough to carry that narrative, especially when they kept interjecting it with convoluted spy plot in between, which only further confused the audience. What could have been dedicated as a buildup leading to the climax of Jaehee's kiss-reveal by episode 9, the show wasted it all towards muddling Seunghee’s intentions instead. Hence, by the time the reveal and kiss happened, it just fell flat. It was supposed to be a high point which culminates what could have been a romantic build up in the previous episodes, instead, the show just laid the kiss like it was some random encounter. It's like that awkward moment of prematurely going into climax before you've even made penetration. I could hardly even call it as a pay-off because I was too busy figuring out if it’s Jaehee or not, I was like: “She kissed him! So she’s Jaehee after all, oh wait, she disappeared? It was just a dream? Oh it was real!” Without even realizing, they already kissed, and instead of me being drawn and immersed to the emotions of the kiss, I’m left dangling because show just kept teasing me like the deplorable harlot that it was. Until. The. Very. Last. Scene...

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So kang sora will be hoons girlfriend at the end

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And here I thought that it was JSY who's got the big backer in the industry. She's been casted as replacement for three consecutive times already and all those shows end up being flops while the character she plays either ends up being marginalized or dead, or both. Then she still gets flak for even trying to land the lead parts. I think it just ends up being a consolation for her, like: "oh yeah we'll cast you as the lead but we're going to crap all over your character later."

Poor girl.

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Definitely better than the last episode, still need lot of answers but much better.... I like it more

One thing is for sure now, Jong suk won't get the best couple award this year ... and we all know why :D

JSY my advice to you take a long break after Dr. Stranger,
and give the viewers a break, take some acting lessons, work on you facial expressions, have some experience in life... then make a come back with a 2nd lead role... in a rom-com maybe ...perhaps then, only then you can prove yourself and be a better actress.

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Lmao. What a load of crock. Why are people so fixated on her when the script has been campy crap since episode 1? It's obvious the writer has a thing for Kang Sora since he wanted to cast her in his aborted drama about Lee Soon Shin so I'm not surprised she got the more fan friendly character. I doubt even she could make the Jae Hee Seung Hee setup more palatable.

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lol get over it.
even if the script is shitty af, at least be a good actress.
apparently, she failed to do so.

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I have to say that I fail to see any improvement on JSY's acting. Yes, SH/JH character is bad and the script is ridiculous too. At least, she should work with her character better and not confuse us with her reactions/emotions.
Even gummimochi wrote, "what I think is a sad expression". I really hope she will take her time to go back to acting lessons if she wants to be capable leading lady.

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Or maybe she is exactly portraying Seunghee's ambiguity perfectly. :D

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I think the whole surgery conspiracy is part of pm. Jang. Attempt to sway public opinion to his favor by risking his life on the operating table. That why they need seung hee to control his comas. Then myung woo hospital will growin prestige after. The operations success and with public sympathy and love backing him, Jang will have an easier time forking the money over to north Korea and become more popular than the president, even one day replacing him,, probably very soon

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Even the recappers are not sure what emotion SeungHee is trying to convey. :D
This episode (almost) made me forget of last week's annoying episodes. I decided to not overthink about the plot and to just enjoy the hilarious moments of the show which I did in this episode.

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Anyone else getting tired of seeing JaeJoon and Soo Hyun arguing with each other every time they meet? Someone needs to lock these two together in a room and let them finally make out with each other....ehem i meant make up with each other....(Though i definitely wouldn't mind them doing the other thing..ohohoho)... at least there's still hope in this pair especially with what JaeJoon did towards the end. Come to the bright side JaeJoon-shii~~

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Soooo, a doctor can report malpractice, those involved can admit to it, then the one who reported it can say, "just kidding"? What is this?!

Why couldn't Seung-hee have saved them. "Nothing happened, they just looked at MY medical records, I said it was OK. I was upset? Oh, that is because... some random excuse."

The only way Jae Joon could have reported them was with evidence. It is not like he even saw the indecent to begin with! His word should be useless.

And now we have sexi Chang-yi? Well I preferred the cute version, but OK, I'll play along. It will be fun to see her wrapping that player-doctor around her little finger. Not the sweet guy I would have found for her, but we'll see.

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I hate that this show mangled my favorite part of it: the Seung-hee/Jae-hee and Hoon storyline. Scientia, you aptly summarized exactly how they mangled it.

Anyways, I'm sticking to recaps until I see improvement on that front. Haaaaate medical stuff so much. Give me spy badassery, please.

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The doctors keep strangely idiot and unprofessional!
Sigh...I'm done! I'm done with DS and Triangle as well..Aigoo..What's wrong with these dramas lately..

*back to watch old dramas...

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Hey. What is the song during Bora's transformation into a dress part? something memory?

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I just need Soohyun-Park Hoon moments. the rest is just as annoying as Park Hoon's blind-love.

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