Hospital Playlist Retrospective Season 1 Episode 3

This post contains spoilers for the episode under discussion and for future developments in the drama. It assumes prior knowledge of the entire drama. Read at your own risk.

The life of a hospital doctor is certainly not an easy one. The hours are long and the needs of patients are never ending. Even while the good doctors make weekend plans to take time out of the frenzy of work life, these plans can easily be foiled by the urgent call of patients. Hence it becomes apparent that medicine is as much a vocation or a calling as it is a profession. The extra hours and extra effort that's put in by clinicians has no price tag. As the montage of weekend disruptions show, the notion of leisure time for dedicated doctors is all but a pipedream.

In this episode Ik-jun and Jun-wan discover that Jeong-won has applied to join the priesthood when they stumble on a recommendation letter on his computer. While they make no attempt to dissuade him, it is not a development they are especially supportive of. It's evidently something that's come up more than once before. Both commiserate for his mother immediately. However, what's really revealing here is that Jeong-won who had made plans to run in a half-marathon is seen running in the opposite direction from the pack in response to a call from the hospital. This strongly hints that even though he has made a decisive move towards the priesthood, the call of medicine (quite literally) overshadows everything else. Even in these early days, the show declares that Ahn Jeong-won is a doctor in his bones (no pun intended). While he may genuinely believe that he needs a change of scenery for a myriad of reasons, his passion for medicine is unmistakable.

Right about this time, we discover that Dr Jang Gyeo-ul is romantically interested in a man. At first we are led to believe by surreptitious conversations and baffling acts of favouritism that Lee Ik-jun could be that man, which is highly questionable considering that he is spoken for. But as the layers of this onion are peeled away, it humorously turns out that in fact she is infatuated with the man who wants to be priest. What's also funny is that she doesn't seem the least bit deterred by that. "He only wants to be a priest. He is not one yet so I have a chance." This perhaps speaks to the mettle of the woman in question which is perhaps sorely needed considering what is at stake.

On hindsight that observation made in the early days is remarkably perceptive from a woman who has only known him for a short time. In fact her understanding of him seems uncanny. When Ik-jun tries to dispel the myth behind the man, she pushes back with the following rejoinders:
"He is a humanitarian"
"He is a man of principles"
"Isn't that noblesse oblige?"

This is somewhat startling especially because of what happened in the previous episode when he took her aside to lecture her on a more thoughtful way to communicate with patients. Rather than being resentful for being told off, her admiration for the man remains steadfast. Jang Gyeo-ul is made of sterner stuff and shows herself capable of being objective in the face of criticism. Unlike Lizzy Bennet whose pride was wounded by Mr Darcy which caused her to become prejudiced against him, Gyeo-ul was evidently undeterred by his rebuke. It is surprising that she used the expression noblesse oblige in reference to Jeong-won. In all likelihood she had no knowledge of the Daddy-Long-Legs programme but then not even his friends did. Yet in her work interactions with him she was already able to identify many of his strengths. It wasn't a case of a starry-eyed subordinate crushing on her supervisor because of his charm or good looks. There was something of substance at work here. This was also the point in the story where I started to speculate that the writer was putting out a romance thread between these two. Jang Gyeo-ul gets Ahn Jeong-won. In ways even his closest friends don't. She, as I've come to believe, is his other half. A Yin to his Yang.

Ik-jun challenges her to come clean with the object of her desire but she claims to be shy about making the first move. Then he says with no lack of irony that he will ask the question on her behalf because he has so much regard for her courage. Her courage to face him head on which was in question on this occasion blossoms and comes into play later on when she initiates two confessions.

At first it does appear that it may be one-sided except for indications that it might not be the case. The man himself makes an appearance when he interrupts their conversation pretending to be asking Ik-jun for cigarettes. (This parallels a later conversation when Ik-jun asks him for cigarettes as a misdirect to test Jeong-won's interest in Gyeo-ul in Episode 9) Jang Gyeo-ul recognizes his voice, gets up and leaves. Jeong-won comes storming in after Jun-wan raises the possibility with him that Ik-jun might be having an affair with her.

"Not with Jang Gyeo-ul of all people" Or "Don't mess with Jang Gyeo-ul"
"You scumbag, you'd better come to your senses before I beat you up. What are you thinking? You're married."

In many ways I find this is an odd opening for a confrontation. If you're not sure that your friend is having affair, you'd be asking, "Is there something going on between you and X?" or "Are you having an affair?" One would presumably be seeking clarification before jumping to any conclusions. Perhaps he was watching them from afar and was affected by their closeness.

Here Jeong-won names the woman before he names the sin. If you're a conservative Catholic, adultery is a sin no matter the woman. But Jeong-won seems to showing partiality for the woman and a fierce protectiveness towards her. It comes across to me that the affair is of less importance than the woman who is presumably being taken advantage of. To prove the point, he picks up a piece of yukjeon and shoves into his mouth in protest. Perhaps it is the case that the maggot scene from Episode 2 has caused him to see her as an innocent with no ill-intentions. Whatever the case may be, Ahn Jeong-won is clearly not neutral about Jang Gyeo-ul.

Indeed the show isn't entirely romance. Although Ik-jun and Gyeo-ul are not meant to be a romantic thread, their dynamic is intertwined with the Winter Garden thread. Aside from taking the role of confidant, Ik-jun begins his other role as mouthpiece for it. "So what do you think of Jang Gyeo-ul?"

Ik-jun receives a call from his wife who has been working overseas but is returning to the country to see their son U-ju for Children's Day. Both his Jun-wan and Jeong-wom who are present when he takes the call have scarcely anything nice to say about the wife. They offer backhanded criticisms of her long-term absence and ambition. In response, Ik-jun tells them to back off, show her respect and then says, "The bachelor and the virgin should shut up." It is a reproof rich in meaning with long-term ramifications. From that statement, the audience is invited once again to compare and contrast Jun-wan and Jeong-won's individual love lines in particular. The monikers are meant to lead us to think about their relative experiences with women and how that plays out in the drama from here on. The emphasis might be on their single status at the time of speaking but it also portends welcomed and unwelcomed disruptions on that front.

As it turns out the bachelor and virgin are not wrong about the ambitious Ms Yuk, wife of Ik-jun and mother of U-ju. She returns home to inform her husband that she wants a divorce because the status quo is in her words, "meaningless". What she doesn't tell him and blatantly lies about is that there is a another party involved. No doubt long distance relationships are difficult at best to navigate and those on the outer can sometimes grasp that better than the people who are in a situation how a scenario is fraught with problems. There is something inherently unnatural about spouses and young families living far apart which in many cases lead to infidelity. I wonder too if the drama isn't saying on some level that it can be tragic when people work so much harder at keeping their jobs than they do at maintaining their relationships. This occurrence must hold some meaning for Jun-wan later when he has to come to grips with his own long-distance romance and managing it.

Ik-jun's easygoing exterior conceals a troubled mind. Even as he's dealing with the prospect of divorce from his wife, a former patient of his has met with an accident and has now returned to the hospital as an organ donor. One of the most challenging aspects of his job is having to deal with the issue of the intricacies of transplantation such as in this case, grieving families. It is tragic for the wife and son who left the hospital a day earlier with their dad and husband (Yuk Hui-gwan) and now he's lying on an operating table waiting for the surgeons to harvest his organs. It is good news for those on the waiting list but for his family this will be the day they lost a loved one. As the "Lonely Nights" track plays in the background the song is re-contextualized with added poignancy.

Organ transplantation is an ongoing preoccupation of the drama. For the most part it is a lifesaving development in medicine for the needy but the show insists that we spare a thought for those who have lost someone precious. And to thank them for extending another life.

From this event it could be too that the show wants to say that Ik-jun was a more considerate surgeon because he was going through his own baggage with his wife. Sure he was dealt an unexpected blow but in comparison the Yuk family had lost a beloved husband and father so suddenly and they would never see him again.

The case of baby Chan-yeong, a delayed stent closure, is a lovely one of the PD playing with viewer expectations. Not only are Chan-yeong's parents younger than expected, their apparent composed indifference is a facade to prove to the world (their parents mostly) that they are mature enough to handle this crisis. Jun-wan despite his cranky exterior is wise enough and sensitive enough to show consideration to the young mother who is in actual fact quite distraught. It seems unfair that she has so much to prove at this time in her life but it does go with the territory of being a parent at 20.

Jun-wan's endocarditis patient also helps us penetrate the surface of the grumpy professor to the caring doctor. Jun-wan comes across as being abrupt with his patients but in actual fact he is far more considerate than he looks. The patient's daughter finds his bedside manner much to be desired but the rest of the family are surprised that he takes the time to attend her wedding after her father's surgery. It's a contrast to Professor Min from the previous episode who puts on a caring facade while the cameras are rolling but turns into a hard task master to his subordinates when he doesn't have to keep up the act.

What was highlighted with regards to Jun-wan and his dynamic with Chan-yeong's mother is the fact that he broke one of his cardinal rules of talking to patients about surgical outcomes. Even the doctor that doesn't seem to suffer fools gladly admits indirectly that when dealing with people, there's no one-size-fits-all approach.

Pachelbel's Canon makes an early appearance here when we're transported to a flashback of when Jun-wan makes his decision to pursue cardiothoracic surgery. He was talking then to the present director of Yulje. This is juxtaposed by the two medical students who after touching his little beating heart, and witnessing the miraculous nature of Chan-yeong's surgery is moved to commit themselves to the specialization of cardiothoracic medicine.

The introduction of Ahn Chi-hong in the previous episode and the further exploration of his dynamic with Song-hwa is one of multiple love threads in this drama. It was one that I was personally excited about in terms of power dynamics and how that would play out in and out of the workplace. But now looking ahead, it feels like his role in the romance stakes is one more of a catalyst rather than an endgame. More than all of that, however, I like the idea of a mature-aged student who has had to reinvent himself. To start afresh abruptly and yet resolutely. What caused a driven military man like Ahn Chi-hong to change careers midway through his life? The answers do come but later and after much speculation from his colleagues.

Perhaps too the show wants to say that not all potential romances end happily for all concerned even with the best of intentions. There are always unexpected developments that get in the way. People have feelings all the time that aren't reciprocated because human beings aren't automatons. It's of course not hard to see why Chi-hong is drawn to Song-hwa in an environment where he's working largely with people younger than himself. For him to meet a woman closer to his age with understanding of how the world works and maturity must be rare given his circumstances. It's also a testament to his confidence of his own masculinity that he can look to her as his instructor ("Trust me and follow my lead") and also develop feelings for her.

Another romance thread that appears to be brewing comes from the OBGYN department. Yang Seok-hyeong is a natural loner but a resident (or two) may have set their sights on him. Her nickname for him is instructive: "the sloth" and seeing him lying in Song-hwa's office trying to nap while the others are busy doing things around him does give weight to the designation. He is certainly someone not looking for a relationship at this point. But as this drama keeps telling us: Romance comes to those who least expect it or want it.

All of these events... medical and personal... highlight an important truth consistently throughout the drama. Life is unpredictable. Just when you think you have things worked out like a well-oiled engine, something throws a spanner in the works.

Even in the side-splitting karaoke flashback, we see that overarching principle at work. The Five start off squabbling about who should be next in line to choose the song. The one who seemingly wins is Ik-jun whose song "Aloha" starts playing and he begins singing. However at first opportunity, Song-hwa jumps in with her tone deaf singing. During the chorus everyone jumps in noisily and takes over. Also unexpected is Seok-hyeong taking a turn.

Unpredictability can be both beautiful and frustrating. But if you're like Ik-jun here and embrace that bit of chaos, it doesn't have to be a negative. It can become a wonderful moment and memory.

Hospital Playlist Retrospective Season 1 Episode 2

As this is a post written in retrospective, it contains many spoilers for the episode in question and subsequent episodes. Read at your own risk. 

Giving more weight to the idea that Jeong-won and Jun-wan are on antithetical parallel tracks, the show has Jeong-won commenting in a three way conversation about office space and privacy that he and Jun-wan are "soulmates". Although uttered glibly by Jeong-won to deflect criticism of not keeping his promises, it is a remark that has long ranging reverberations. By way of a preamble I will suggest that the drama compares and contrasts their individual trajectories with regards to work/calling and love lines all throughout the drama. This thesis will be explored in greater detail in future posts when these contrasts become more evident.

Because of what comes later, I believe that this episode is far more pivotal than I was previously led to think. It is a crucial set-up for what will prove to be key relationships in time to come. This was not always my view because after its initial broadcast, I hadn't bought into the lives of the hospital's residents and their dynamic with their professors. At the time I hadn't yet come to grips with what this episode was really trying to do.

It is easy to forget that the Korean title reads as Wise Doctor Life. With this in mind, Yulje Medical Centre is as much a place of learning as it is a place of healing. The hierarchical system although like everything else is subject to abuse, is meant to ensure that effective mentoring takes place so that quality patient care is maintained at the highest levels. The introduction of the residents and their role in this narrative is a purposeful reminder of that. But it isn't a one-way street. For good learning to occur, good teaching and modelling is a pre-requisite. So responsibility rests as much on those who hold greater authority as it does on those who are looking to them for guidance. It should be a sobering thought to those who are tempted by the trappings of power. Rank is rightly based on experience but with that comes the burden of responsibility.

This aspect of the drama reminds of an old UK tv show, Upstairs and Downstairs where the lives of the upper class and their servants were showcased. I believe that this was similar to the popular  Downton Abbey. While the vast majority of professor do not behave like overlords and masters but sagacious teachers, some do. In this episode we are also introduced to two medical students, Hong-do and Yun-bok (who are right at the bottom of the food chain) from whose eyes we survey the intricate goings-on around the hospital. The man who gets around the hospital hobnobbing with everyone is Ik-jun, the lovable busybody of Yulje. His movements take him all over hospital, even downstairs to the cafeteria where in this episode he substitutes for the regular server with mixed results. What's more fun is that even the director has his meals in the cafeteria.

Much has been said about the contrasts in personality and doctoring styles between the ER fellow Dr Bae Jun-hui and GS 3rd year resident Dr Jang Gyeo-ul. It's practically handed to us in blazing lights by the presence of Jeong-won in both cases. Bae Jun-hui is a personable and experienced ER doctor who communicates well with anxious caregivers. When Ahn Jeong-won witnesses her interaction with a mother, he smiles approvingly of the outcome of this event. On another occasion when Jang Gyeo-ul speaks to a caregiver in a plain, unfiltered way, he pulls her aside and chides her for being irresponsible and too quick to go to the worse case scenario with no thought to the mother's feelings. "Doctors must take responsibility for their words".

However, not as much has been said about how Jang Gyeo-ul has been mentored up to this point. How has a 3rd year resident not been pulled up for the deficiencies in the way she interacts with caregivers prior to this? That was a question that struck me forcefully this time round. Shouldn't her mentors have been on to this before? Why is Ahn Jeong-won, newly arrived at Yulje, the first person to make this a learning moment?

It's certainly an interesting question to pose and perhaps it goes someway in foreshadowing the nature of their future mentor-apprentice dynamic. Perhaps the other professors are fearful of causing offence to their only and much valued GS resident. She's a rare breed that they are obligated to pander to. Everyone wants a piece of her. Ahn Jeong-won who is used to working on his own, apparently doesn't need her to the point that he is worried about upsetting the applecart. It could also be much more than that. Jeong-won expects better especially when he still believes that this hospital belongs to his family. Therefore he could be demonstrating latent leadership qualities that sees him wanting more from his subordinates and demanding it of them. Nevertheless, to ensure that her dignity as a clinician remains intact, he calls to one side and lectures her on the dos and don'ts in communicating with patients and carers.

Here Jeong-won is obviously being contrasted with the publicity hound Professor Min, the new chief of neurosurgery, who in front of cameras flaunts confected outrage and publicly shames a subordinate, the chief resident Yong Seok-min to cover up his own shortcomings. Jun-wan, on the hand, appears to be a hard-task master to his chief resident Do Jae-hak but underneath his cantankerous demeanour is man who takes responsibility for his actions and words.

Pulling Gyeo-ul to one side and drawing the curtains around them, Jeong-won demonstrates a sensitivity and consideration for her dignity as a doctor but when Dr Bong interrupts this exchange, he rips open the curtain and asks them what they've been up to in a way that suggests that he has inadvertently intruded onto a moment of unspoken intimacy. It is highly suggestive and on hindsight it signals the beginnings of what becomes the Winter Garden dynamic.

Does this contradict what he says later to his friends, "Each doctor has his/her own methods and stories"? It doesn't have to. The one truism is not necessarily invalidated because there are other truths that counterbalance its application. For Jeong-won especially the statement comes back to haunt him when he witnesses the seminal maggot scene.

The incident with Jang Gyeo-ul leaves him with an unfavourable impression of her. When Ik-jun expresses surprise that they have worked together on occasion, Jeong-won declares, "She's not my cup of tea." Or literally, "She doesn't fit me." A statement rich in dramatic irony for those of us who have journeyed with them from start to finish. For someone who is a fan of Pride and Prejudice, it has resonances of Mr Darcy saying, "She's tolerable enough but not handsome enough to tempt me." Jeong-won is immediately cast from that template. They don't hit it off to begin with but an event occurs not long after he makes this statement that changes his perception of her forever.

Dr Bong takes a call from the ER that a homeless man with a frostbitten leg has been brought in. His leg has rotted to the point that it is infested with maggots. Jeong-won is present during the call and when he hears Jang Gyeo-ul's name mentioned, he follows Dr Bong to the ER. Presumably thinking that the aloof Dr Jang will be screwing this up too. To contextualize the situation clearly, the show makes it a point to show the general revulsion of those who see the man's leg. The usually competent ER ladies, Jin-hui and Hui-su are at a loss as they look on wincing. In walks the unflappable Dr Jang and without a second thought, she puts on gloves, crouches down and pulls the maggots off the man's leg. Everyone looks on stunned. The two professors arrive at the scene and are stopped in their tracks. Dr Bong mutters, "She's quite something." The camera zeroes in on Jeong-won's reaction. From that moment on his view of her undergoes a profound change. Whether he is reminded of the saints of old doing self-sacrificial acts or the gospel account of Jesus washing his disciples' feet, something about seeing her doing what others revolt at, moves him deeply. The seemingly unfeeling Gyeo-ul highlights the patient's humanity with her actions. Moreover, the very flaw that saw her being blunt with a patient is now a strength as she unflinchingly removes the maggots. In doing so she elevates his importance as someone not to be feared.

I now take very seriously the implication that Jeong-won began developing feelings for Gyeo-ul during the maggot scene. I wouldn't have said that during my earliest viewings but with the ER flashback that we're given in the season finale, I think it's possible to come to that conclusion with a high degree of certainty. Whether he is aware of it at the time remains a mystery. Even if it isn't a case of "love at first maggot" for Jeong-won, he learnt something that day. Yes, even the super pediatrician has something he can learn from his subordinate. What is even more fascinating as I'm rethinking all of this is that "the Good Samaritan" case also features a homeless man. Hence I am in little doubt that the two incidents are meant to be paralleled.

"The Good Samaritan" case becomes a dilemma for Song-hwa because she is repeatedly asked to step in and take over by Seok-min who is gravely concerned about Prof Min's inexperience (and hubris) with a complex surgical procedure to remove a tumour. She is afraid to overstep her boundaries with the new chief which may cause him to lose face thus showing herself to be disrespectful to a senior and an elder. "The Good Samaritan", Gong Hyeong-u, has become something of a media sensation for his deeds among the homeless and all eyes on are on Yulje to do well in his surgery. In the NS conference to discuss Gong Hyeong-u, the doctors are deliberating over issues such as the patient's quality of life and the prospect of bad publicity for the hospital. An equally important component to this is the skill of the doctor.

In the tug-of-war over who should do Gong Hyeong-u's medical procedure, it is easy to forget that he isn't a trophy to be haggled over but a man with feelings and choices. This is why Song-hwa insists that Seok-min apologize to Gong Hyeong-u before she participates in his surgery.

The second NS conference where the med students talk about the reason for going into medicine now takes on new meaning in light of what we know about their connection with Song-hwa. More importantly there is a telegraphing of Chi-hong's role in the love line stakes as he observes with discomfiture Song-hwa doing a foot rub during the proceedings.

In relation to lovelines, we also find out in this episode that Song-hwa has broken up with her boyfriend, Professor Jang after he confesses that he has been cheating on her. Throughout the episode we see her on Jun-wan's case for not telling her sooner of his infidelity, particularly during the kalguksu scene when he's on the defensive saying that it's not something anyone could do so easily. At the end of the episode we see that Jun-wan did confront the erstwhile boyfriend in his office and tell him to come clean. In that exchange Prof Jang cast aspersions on Jun-wan's motives for coming to see him, implying that Jun-wan has feelings for Song-hwa. To this Jun-wan says to him, "You're so old-fashioned" meaning that men and women can be lifelong friends and have a platonic dynamic. So as far as Jun-wan is concerned, Song-hwa is a really good friend that he cares about. There are no latent romantic feelings. As far as I'm concerned this is a declarative statement to the audience that there's no reverse harem at play. That Song-hwa's male friends are just close friends and confidants.

The Flawed Five attend another funeral, that of Jong-su's wife. Here we are also witness to the lifelong friendship between Rosa and Jong-su. It does beg the question. Why didn't they marry each other? Was it ever a consideration? Well, perhaps it's the writer saying that it isn't all about first loves. Maybe men and woman can remain close friends with no thought of dating and marriage. Maybe one party (Jong-su in this case) didn't have those sorts of feelings for the other (Rosa) even if Rosa might have had for him. Maybe neither ever thought of each other in that way. It is suggestive, however, that she told her son in the previous episode that she married for convenience whereas we're told in this one that Jong-su was completely devoted to his wife throughout their entire married life.

The kalguksu scene is also important not only of what it says about the Five's friendship (the good-natured bickering is always a joy to watch) but also what it says about Jeong-won. There is another side to Jeong-won... the calculating manchild who pushes back when others cross the line. It is also evidence that he might be more of his father's son than first meets the eye especially when he accuses Song-hwa and Jun-wan of gluttony and spouts off about the ownership of the hospital and whose money is paying for the meal here. These are, to my mind, hints of his larger trajectory.

In terms of his larger personal trajectory, we also see Jeong-won pulling in to the hospital hurriedly, not once but twice when called in for an emergency, signifying even in these early days what his true passion and calling is.

The Biblical resonances here suggests an overarching Christian worldview that is at play. The good Samaritan reference is key to understanding this. This is a parable told by Jesus in the gospel according to Luke about a man travelling on a lonely who was mugged by bandits and left to die. People who were religious walked by and did nothing for him because they feared for their lives and feared being tainted. But a Samaritan, historical enemies of the Jews stopped by, helped the man and ensured his full recovery going the extra mile. Jesus told this story when a religious teacher asked him, "Who is my neighbour?" Jesus' point was not just about helping those in need but that the person in need demands our attention because of their inherent value as an image bearer of God just as we believe in our own inherent value as God's image bearers. "Love your neighbour as yourself." Considering what's going on presently on the world stage, it's a subject matter that is always topical. All people should be treated with respect, from the unlikeable egotistical Professor Min to the homeless men because they are all made in the image of God. The Christian worldview emphasizes this. All lives matter.

Hospital Playlist Retrospective Season 1 Episode 1

This post and subsequent ones pertaining to Hospital Playlist contain spoilers for the episode in question and for the rest of the show. Read at your own risk. This analysis and observations were made after a rewatch. 

The first episode opens with Yang Seok-hyeong and Chae Song-hwa sitting and talking in Seok-hyeong's dusty, cobwebbed living room. They talk mysteriously about an unspecified project that Seok-hyeong who has just returned from an overseas stint wants to launch with his long-time friends but no one seems interested. Song-hwa gives her reasons. Apparently no one's used the house for some time so the electricals are wonky. The technicians are called in and one of them suffers electrical shock while handling the wiring carelessly. Fortunately for him, Seok-hyeong and Song-hwa are doctors and not long afterwards the emergency vehicle transports them to the hospital.

Although it seems like the most obvious thing to say, Hospital Playlist is at its core a medical drama that has a lot to say about life, the universe and everything else in it. Like the vast majority of shows of this genre, the hospital is a fixed point of contact where all manner of interactions take place. That's always helpful to keep in mind. On top of that there are five friends who are scattered in various locations. At the start of the show, they don't all work in the same place. So the show, like a shepherd in search of lost sheep gathers them all under one roof because it seeks a common thread to tell their story... and their stories. Their friendship is a significant focal point from which other nodes of interactions take place. So how does the show bring home the wayward sheep?

It does this with the death of the chairman of a large corporation. We never see the chairman himself who is a presence rather than a character. Some basic facts about the man are offered up. A well-known Catholic philanthropist who has made his youngest son, a doctor, the successor of Yulje Medical Centre. As it is in such cases the heir is a reluctant one and he signs away his right to run the hospital on the proviso that he gets to keep the lucrative takings from the VIP wards. Unbeknownst to anyone, Ahn Jeong-won, despite not showing much interest in the family business prior, is in fact very much a chip of the old block. He has his own much smaller scale philanthropic non-profit gig on the side called Daddy-Long-Legs which he has been funding out of his own salary which explains in part why despite his family's deep pockets, he lives largely from hand to mouth dependant on his friend and colleague Kim Jun-wan. Only one out of the five knew that he was the scion of a wealthy family. So very early on we catch a glimpse of this secretive side of Jeong-won. He is man who keeps secrets from his nearest and dearest. Up to this point, he seems to be rather good at it.

The main question that is before us as this set-up unfolds is: How do you solve a problem like Ahn Jeong-won? Presumably one has to first know who Ahn Jeong-won is and what problem he poses in the overarching narrative. Of course The Sound of Music allusion is no mere exercise in being facetious but an integral element of this season's narrative. At this time no one is aware that he has kickstarted the process for becoming a priest although there are hints of him making plans to leave medicine permanently. So why leave medicine for the priesthood? What's driving this need? Is it merely a fulfilment of a lifetime aspiration? The show, it now seems to me, tells us

Medicine for Ahn Jeong-won is a double-edged sword. He is rather good at it particularly in his chosen field of pediatrics where his love of children and determination to save lives intersect in wonderful ways. But Jeong-won is a highly sensitive soul and the reality is that he can't save every single life that comes his way or console every grieving caregiver. He can barely console himself on occasion so he goes to his oldest brother who portrayed as his regular confessor. In a real enough way medicine is his way of playing God but in the end he is faced with his own frailty as a mere mortal. In the case of Min-yeong, a child that was under his care for 3 years, she eventually passes away despite all efforts. He puts on a brave face for the benefit of the mother and his subordinates but when she thanks him for all that he has done, the facade collapses. He is undone and all his pent-up anguish come to the fore. From Jeong-won's situation we are directed to see that it is entirely possible to care too much. He tends to cross those healthy boundary lines once too often and has the scars to prove it. The seeming contradictions in Jeong-won's personality leads me to conclude that at his core lurks a pubescent male with an identity crisis. A manchild.

Clearly he is a devoutly Catholic doctor who aspires to the priesthood which in reality he is clearly unsuited for. A fact that the show attempts to demonstrate all throughout the series. So this suggests that the priesthood is largely a distraction and some kind of refuge for a soul in search of a balm for his battle scars.

It seemed more apparent on viewing this retrospectively that this first episode lays the groundwork for Ahn Jeong-won's individual arc by quickly establishing his relationship with Yulje Medical Centre and himself as the conduit by which all five call Yulje a home away from home. The timing to which all this happens is key to everything. Jeong-won is preparing his departure from but an external hand at work ie. God seems determined to intervene and disrupt that trajectory.

Some, myself included, have mooted the possibility of Jeong-won playing a much more important role in the running of the hospital in the far flung future because he demonstrates the capacity for leadership as he recruits his friends specifically for Yulje's VIP programme. If what I believe is the central truth of this drama... that the star of the show is the hospital... then in all likelihood Jeong-won will play a bigger role in the running and preservation of the hospital and its ethos.

The establishment of the friendship band is achieved as a result of Jeong-won's recruitment of his friends to the VIP programme. Seok-hyeong is an unwilling recruit unless his four friends are willing to be part of the band which turns out to be the mysterious subject that he discusses with Song-hwa at the start of the show.  Some haggling goes on because the VIP programme can only effectively take off if they're all a part of it as representatives of different departments. In desperation Jeong-won gropes around for something to get his friends to agree. He has a bit of dirt on Jun-wan, something related to an event in Hawaii so he manages to "blackmail" the latter to join the band. The only person who signs on without much cajoling is Ik-jun although he protests in no uncertain terms when Jeong-won makes her the band's lead vocalist as a lure. The irony being that she is tone deaf and generally unmusical. What really struck me this time round is how especially concerned Ik-jun is  that Song-hwa is treated with respect on this occasion even when Jeong-won the so-called goody Catholic boy reveals his latent Machiavellian tendencies.

Despite its unpromising beginnings, the band becomes a mainstay for the Five and the choice of songs each week are clues in some shape and form to the unfolding of the overall narrative.

In this episode we are also introduced to other key characters (that are not of the Five) such as Dr Bong Kwan-hyeong ER professor, as well as Jang Gyeo-ul the only general surgery resident on site. I hadn't realised in earlier viewings what a crucial role Jang Gyeo-ul would play in the overall narrative because she seemed to all intents and purposes, a secondary character. In hindsight, of course, the show problematizes that whole notion in fascinating ways. Her introduction, in particular, is tied very closely to Lee Ik-jun a general surgery specialist who is at this point an outsider, brought in as an emergency when ironically he had come into the hospital as an emergency. This also foreshadows a close supervisor-subordinate relationship.

Kim Jun-wan, the cardiothoracic surgeon among the Five was, we find out at the late chairman's funeral, a student of Yulje's current hospital director.  So when asked if he knows Jeong-won, he says that "He's my closest friend" much to chagrin of the other two present presumably for this blatant attempt at brownnosing, especially when minutes earlier, Jun-wan was hurling invectives at Jeong-won for concealing his family background. In Jun-wan's defence, the comment is not completely groundless. The two men are close. They share office space as well as living arrangements. This telegraphs early on the parallel-antithetical tracks that both Jun-wan and Jeong-won are on.

The chairman's funeral contains two of my favourite scenes of the Five and showcase their friendship in clear terms. One occurs when Jeong-won's phone sounds off abruptly with a painfully loud siren ring. Everyone within earshot jumps in fright. Seok-hyeong remarks that he thought his heart almost exploded. Jun-wan complains that he thought he had lost his unborn child. Both accuse the other of trivializing those scenarios with their comments. It is doubly funny because Seok-hyeong is the obstetrician and Jun-wan is the cardiothoracic surgeon. Moreover I also believe now that Jun-wan's comment foreshadows his own desire to be married and to have a family. The second is when Songhwa who is caring for U-ju, Ik-jun's son gets up and signals to Jun-wan and Seok-hyeong to take over when she has to leave. On cue both men take off their jackets. One rolls it into a pillow, the other places it over the boy as a blanket. They do this like second-nature that it feels like they've done it many times over the past 20 years.

In this episode too we see the overturning of several common Kdrama tropes. The most significant is the lack of a power struggle for the top job. It plays with audience expectations in humorous fashion. Ju Jongsu (especially because he is played by Kim Gap-soo known for his villainous turns) seems to be on the surface your run-of-the-mill ambitious company powerbroker who turns out to be a kindly gent who is a great childhood friend of Rosa, Jeong-won's mother and a devoted husband to his sickly wife. He takes on the role of the chairman after being persuaded by Rosa and Jeong-won to do so. There's also no family takeover bid because most of the Ahn siblings are religious celibates ie. priests and nuns who are past concerning themselves with worldly matters.

Even at the start the show provides a guiding principle as to how romance in the show should be perceived. Song-hwa is dating a Professor Jang, a cardiologist from another hospital while Jun-wan is seeing someone who has a tendency to drink a little too much. Jeong-won notes that everyone is dating but him. I detect a note of regret in the way he expresses that. So the show tells us even early on that the love lines in large part will not be formed among the Five. And why should it? These are 40-something adults who have had time to get their act together. Why would they all be setting their sights on each other now? They've had 20 years. Something seismic will have to occur for that to happen.

So how does one solve a problem like Ahn Jeong-won? It is the problem of the season in search of a solution. Because the man, I anticipate and surmise represents the ethos of Yulje. He and those closest to him are its true successors. The show hints that it's an issue that has to be resolved one way or another.

Finally the show strenuously insists that this show is as much about the patients as it is about the doctors. Even if they come and go, the raison d'etre of a hospital is to provide a service to those who go through its doors. To give hope, to heal and even to help them move on.

Mystic Pop Up Bar (2020)

Moving on from Hospital Playlist will be a hard ask. For the last few weeks I have watched nothing else. So I'm planning to do is a rewatch of the entire series starting this weekend and then to do an episode by episode retrospective in this blog just to inject a bit of life back in here.

I made a start on Mystic Pop Up Bar yesterday and two episodes in, my verdict: it's a blast. To be honest, I'm not a fan of fantasy in general but I liked the sound of the premise and since it is being aired on Netflix, it wasn't going to cost me extra. I was aware that Hwang Jung-eun was in it but was pleasantly surprised to see Choi Won-yong as her off-sider. I've always had time for those two but Choi Won-yong especially. His performance in I Remember You is still one of my favourites from Kdramaland. Both are also known for the comedic turns. The young human that they're trying to recruit played by Yun Sung-jae seems to be holding his own among the veterans.

The premise sees HJE's character, Weol-ju, a budding shaman turned ghost, with the ability to enter into people's dreams being disciplined by supernatural powers-that-be because she had tried to take her own life by hanging herself a sacred tree. 500 hundred years later, she's still attempting to complete her mission of finding 100 000 humans to help resolve their grudges. I note the disclaimer at the start of the drama stressing that this drama is entirely fictional. That is I imagine because the world-building draws on a whole range of religious and non-religious traditions in hodge podge fashion.

From that the show clues us in to the fact that it doesn't take itself all that seriously. And yes, it is quite humorous.

Clearly Weol-ju has a rather short fuse but as the drama demonstrates repeatedly, despite the cantankerous displays, her heart is generally in the right place. Due to past experiences, she can't stand for injustice and comes down hard on those who abuse the vulnerable. Manager Gui is a nice balance to her shrewish side as the more reasonable less impulsive member of the team. The human that eventually comes to be part of this good-doing trio, Young Kang-bae, is a kindly customer service officer in a supermarket who eventually moonlights at the pop-up bar. He is eventually recruited for his uncanny ability to get people to open up and pour out their woes.

Even with the fantasy tag, the drama has all the makings of a superhero team-up -- a K version of the X-men or the Fantastic Four. All the "magic" stuff is more or less window dressing. A group of individuals using their respective abilities to help people with deep-seated issues. It's become immediately clear to me that this isn't about crime and punishment as it is about atonement and redemption. For Kang-bae this is about his coming to grips with his "gift". So far it has been a "curse" because he can't get close to anyone because he's a walking truth drug.

365: Repeat the Year (2020) Episodes 9-10

*Spoilers ahead*

We've reached a point in the drama I think we can safely say that there's clarity and the confusion is no more. A relief indeed because my greatest fear was that this plot would spiral ridiculously out of control and make no or little sense. Even while there's no explanation (and I doubt we'll ever get one) of the temporal device, the cloud has lifted on the chaos and madness of the past few weeks. Yes, we do have a serial killer and we do have clarification of why Lee Shin reached out to all those individuals very specifically.

A bunch of people resetted to change their fate and but they died anyway. A fairly reductionist way to put it. But of course there is/was always more to it than that. Lee Shin, a psychiatrist who is desperately trying to cure her daughter of some multi-syllable incurable disease has been resetting that particular year of her life. How she came upon this temporal device... we don't know... While doing so, it came to her attention that a serial killer was running loose during the course of the year so decided after several times that she was to take matters into her own hands. She finds an opening and the potential killer is disposed of unceremoniously except that it leads to other problems. On the next reset... the present timeline... she invites all the individuals who fell prey to the serial killer to join her and change their "fate". She doesn't tell them about their deaths or the serial killer... but offers a panacea to their unhappiness. Little by little, this crew gets picked off by the killer.

Once the killer is identified a lot does make sense. The show seemed to be pointing that way in previous episodes. It had to be someone close by and aware of what was taking place. So the question is asked, by saving the killer early on has Hyeon Ju opened the door to a lot more people dying. The answer to that depends on one's worldview. This is why LS answers it with a cryptic: "Is that what it is?" For HJ it feels like awfully like a case of "damned if you don't, damned if you do." This isn't really so much a survivor game in as much as it is an ethical dilemma. Do you kill one person to save 11? Or do you save 1 person you care about and let 11 people die? I think that's the question that weighed heavily on LS. She had the foreknowledge. 

But of course it is far more complex than that. It isn't all on HJ. He's been presented as the quintessential likeable, simple-minded guy but he takes on too much responsibility for the evil that's being perpetrated. You can understand why LS kept mum. Because she wanted him to act freely without the burden of knowing that in the act of saving his senior, he indirectly causes a chain reaction. Now people aren't dominoes either. Nothing has to be inevitable. None of those people had to die during the designated time and place. I think that was what she believed. Even with a serial killer on the prowl, people given scraps of information and having an inherent fear of death may still be able to redirect their personal trajectory. She also believed, I think, that if she had a cop on board the reset, that there would be a possibility that the killer could be caught without having to kill him first and causing his loved ones heartache. 

The confusion for me lay in the fact that there were all these disparate forces at play. The killer doing his thing, LS doing her thing, the leads doing their thing and all the now-dead players doing their thing. I wouldn't call them "agendas" in the usual sense but each party in this narrative, due to fear and a lack of trust were acting on their own which exacerbated the chaos. 

Character is destiny is very much the thing that's driving this. That was always clear from the start. In every instance, LS is right in this regard. People had the opportunity to change course. But they didn't. Why was that... 1) Secrets that they were loath to share 2) Flaws in their personalities 3) Lack of trust 4) No interest in changing the status quo just outcomes. A cynic might say that people aren't really interested in changing until they're forced to. Just think of Se Rin for instance. She had the chance to leave town but her concern and obsession for the boyfriend overrode all her survival instincts. More than she was someone who invited trouble. Some of it was a lack of affection, some of it the Munchausen talking but she had some serious character flaws. As long as she was fixated with him, the danger was imminent. It wasn't about the time or the day, it's about what these people did to draw the notice of the killer. 

I'm not saying that any of these people "deserved" to die. That's what the killer thinks most likely. But these individuals were prone to making poor choices and even criminal ones. There's little doubt they made a lot of noise one way or another.

Therefore avoiding death here is not purely about dodging metaphorical bullets. Death can't be avoided in most cases unless a person's moral or aspirational compass changes. In a way it is inevitable. There are also things we cling to... friendship, love, family, trust etc that are normally good things but can be worked against us.

That's an important issue too with regards to HJ and SH. I can't imagine what he's going through right now. Never in his wildest dreams I'm sure did he believe that someone so close to home was behind all these deaths. That's why his mind never went in that direction. This is why he had to have help from GH to come to this place. She's more than his partner... she's someone who provides another set of eyes and keeps him honest.

Hospital Playlist (2020) Stage One

As expected, this drama was worth the wait. Ever since it was announced that the director of the much lauded Prison Playbook was helming this, some of us having been eagerly awaiting this. Plus they managed to score two of my Kdramaland favourites in the casting which was the cherry on top. 

As the title suggests it is a medical drama of sorts and yes, there's music. In fact there's a band. But the beauty of this drama is that the medical-music side of things is primarily a backdrop for a 20-year long friendship amongst 5 busy physicians who are really good at what they do. So far this is where the show really excels in its storytelling. I'm not a recapper by inclination so this post like all the others is a smattering of thoughts about the show.

Like many other medical dramas before it, this one does make use of the hospital backdrop to represent a microcosm of society. There are certain universal truths that seem to apply all across the board which make the hustle and bustle of medicos in their space relatable. Chief among them are the people who walk the corridors where life and death decisions are made routinely. The weight of what they do are felt by them acutely. But hospital wards are made up of a myriad individuals that play their role in a pre-existing pecking order. Every player in that world has his/her quirks and strengths. They might not be the top dog in their field... by definition there can only be one (or a handful) but they have their contribution to make. By their very presence they can influence decisions and outcomes. Not everyone goes into medicine for altruistic reasons. Many don't. Even so, they have a part to play. Some clinicians would do well to improve their EQ and yet, as the show demonstrates they have skills that can fill in other gaps within the system. It's not about trying to change people or even change their minds... if that's remotely possible. With various agendas, egos and personalities at play it is up to a wise team leader to make it all come together for the benefit of patients. 

Yulje Hospital is not one's usual Kdramaland hospital. There's no ongoing power play for the top job. In fact, the humorous part of this is that this family business is not run by any member of the family. In fact, there's no sibling rivalry aiming to wrestle power from factions. In fact, most of the siblings are deeply religious Catholic adherents who have chosen a life of celibacy. The youngest sibling is a pediatrician in the hospital waiting for his shot at the priesthood. This turns a number of K drama tropes on its head to good purpose. This also tells us that the show is a different beast, traversing a different trajectory. Rather than setting it up as a place of business like any other, it is a place where people do good or at least do the best they can under all kinds of conditions including the most trying ones. Hospitals still have to make money so that's where the VIP suites come in. Those who can pay top dollar do and apparently it's a win-win situation for them and the hospital. The CEO as far as we can tell is a kindly old friend of the family who apparently defies the Kdrama stereotype as well.

The Five Friends conveniently occupy various departments in the hospital so the camera gets around as do a couple of third year medical students. From top to bottom everyone's juggling their own personal issues as well as professional ones. For instance, Jung-wan, the cardiothoracic professor amongst them has a reputation for having a prickly personality and being a bit of a penny pincher. Yet there's another side to him. The man holding a scalpel may be brusque but he's skilled and he does have a soft spot for the people he cares for. Song-hwa, the only female amongst the besties, is a neurosurgeon who does it all at the hospital and still manages to get away on weekends to camp. She's hugely popular and immensely likeable. Already there are speculations about who she ends up with. :D Ik-jun who is a professor in General Surgery has been under the spotlight of late because of his family issues. Yet he has time to think about a former patient and consider that family's feelings. What enables these doctors to do what they do... Compassion? Sympathy? Empathy? They see patient care as something that goes beyond the condition or ailment that needs to be resolved. The investment they make in going the extra mile whether it's dealing with guardians or mentoring their subordinates belies a belief that what's best for the patient begins even before the patient enters the consult room.


Band practice or group karaoke is a guaranteed barrel of laughs. With this talented crew, bad singing is an art and a craft. Here music is firstly about memories, holding on to them and making new ones. It is also about friendship. That's what the band is about. Friends that play together stay together. 

365: Repeat the Year (2020) Episodes 3-4

This is shaping up to be an excellent drama. At least it can't be accused of being dull. The pacing is good and I'm usually on the edge of my seat. At times I feel like I'm being bombarded with information. Despite spewing out a whole heap of theories last week, I honestly have no idea what in blazers is going on. In a good sort of way. I've even started jotting down questions and notes just to keep up with things which I almost never do. This show is full of twists and turns so it's not really possible to be entirely sure about the mechanism that's at work here.

My general feeling is that we're only seeing the tip of the iceberg so far -- the show is still in setup mode. But after the last couple of episodes I think we are getting a glimpse of what's at stake. It does appear that everyone in the drama is operating as if they have been transported back in time. What's really fascinating, I think is that the assumption that a "reset"... another bite at the cherry as it were... is under serious attack here. There seems to be a tacit indication that it's a really bad idea in most instances. The crux of the matter it seems to me is that a second chance doesn't necessarily engender wisdom, growth or positive change of behaviour. That much is clear... for a show of this kind. It seems to be a consistent thread running through these early episodes. From the evidence presented, the show is saying that "reset" doesn't equal to "change for the better". For some a "reset" only means another chance to do the same thing while dodging the consequences. I don't think it needs to be overemphasized that human beings are self-centred creatures. We do what's best for us and those closest to us because there are immediate benefits to doing so. Few like change and few find change easy.

A peek into a mysterious "trophy room" on the other hand seems to suggest that there's an opposing force at work -- a serial killer perhaps on the prowl for unworthy candidates/recipients. My guess is that there's someone... at least one person who isn't keen on the whole "reset" idea because it is in essence a form of cheating fate. Take the lottery guy... formerly a security guard. He was prevented from bucking the system and enjoying his winnings. The stockbroker is stopped in his tracks before doing a runner. He doesn't get off scot free. He was going to continue with his double life and carry on the facade of being a family man. Someone is out to stop individuals from using "reset" in egregious lawless fashion apparently. So perhaps the Death Note reference made by the gamer lad last week is not beyond the pale. It is possible that the killer sees himself as a dispenser of vigilante justice. So who's sending the death blossoms?

Episode 3 in particular, with all its twists and turns led me to think of David Mamet's The Spanish Prisoner. The elaborate layers of deception in both the drama and the film leaves you wondering who can be trusted or if... it turns out... anybody can be trusted. Trust is an important foundation of our social interactions that it is often taken for granted. We don't assume people are lying to us when they tell us things about themselves. They could be, of course but that's not our default position. In an Agatha Christie whodunit... A Caribbean Mystery or Pocket Full of Rye... can't remember which... Miss Marple says something similar. These days particularly because there is generally much more movement around the world, long-term connections are not easily maintained. It's hard to be sure that what we see or here is the truth. We tend to give people the benefit of the doubt. Our institutions function for the most part in this way. 

In that vein, Hitchcock also came to mind. It's not surprising given the obvious psycho-thriller elements. "Who's going to be next?" has that kind of nerve wrecking buildup that the master of suspense was famous for. People are dying unexpectedly and now we have clear indications that there's at least one person behind the recent deaths. On the surface they look like natural causes or suicide but given the presence of death blossoms in each case, it's looking increasingly like foul play.

The Hidden Killer webtoon needs to be a consideration in all of this. Even if it isn't the key to why people are dropping off like flies, it should clue us in on why that particular cohort of participants came together in the first place.

Needless to say, the reset has a cost attached to it. The leads are feeling the brunt of it considering what they do for a living and their natural curiosity. It does feel like they were all sold a bill of goods. Their lives are now increasingly consumed by these mysteries. Not being able to tell people how and why you know things. Very awkward. Then the lies... one lie after the next. One lie to cover up another.

I like how the leads are written. They're hardly perfect as individuals but as a duo, they seem a good fit. The UST seems to be working. The perspective they provide on the entire mystery and their investigative partnership seems to be going from strength to strength. The lying was pretty clumsy at first but they're getting better at it. :P Romance is possible. I don't discount it entirely although murders are keeping them on their toes. Hyeong-Ju's colleagues are keen for him to be romancing his favourite graphic novelist. They keep needling him about spending so much time with her. I won't object if it means an overload of adorable LJH. I also noted that he was quick to pick her up for interrogation and I doubt it had anything to do with zeal for justice. ;) My opinion is that he did for himself because he was really worried that she could have done it so he needed to allay his own fanboy fears that his favourite webtoonist is guilty of murder.

As if there weren't enough guessing games to keep the viewer occupied for a while, the show throws a new element into the mix... "who is the person in the trophy room" :D