OB/GYN Doctors

I watched OB/GYN Doctors (SBS, 16 episodes) during my new year break...

OB/GYN Doctors Synopsis: (from DramaWiki)
The drama depicts the difficult decisions and moving human stories that take place daily in the OB-GYN department, focusing in particular on Seo Hye Young, a talented and determined obstetrician who has just transferred from the prestigious Seoul base to the branch hospital. Her straightforward manner of handling her professional life is in contrast with her love life, which is marred by her relationship with a married man. This becomes even more entangled when she meets Lee Sang Shik, the chief of NICU, and her long-time friend Wang Jae Suk also shows his interest.

Cast:
Jang Seo Hee as Seo Hye Young
Go Joo Won as Lee Sang Shik
Suh Ji Suk as Wang Jae Suk
Lee Young Eun as Kim Young Mi
Song Joong Ki as Ahn Kyung Woo
Ahn Sun Young as Head Nurse Lee Sook Jung

My comments:
Medical dramas are not my favorites and I admit that I picked up OB/GYN Doctors more or less because of Song Joong Ki although he plays a secondary character. This drama reminds me of Private Practice but in a hospital setting with each episode involving a theme/case. It’s a more mature drama compared to what I’ve been watching lately. I’m not exaggerating if I announce that I cried in EVERY bloody (no pun intended) episode. That’s right I cried in all 16 episodes when it was not even a melodrama that I’m watching. There were a few cases where the doctors have to choose difficultly to save the mother or the baby. Therefore, it was especially sad when you see babies or pregnant mothers passing away during labour or post-labour. I was a bit squeamish at first during the surgery scenes as there were pretty gory and bloody!

Although it’s a drama that was heavy on medicine and light in romance, I found the chemistry between the three main doctors surprisingly good as lead actress Jang Seo Hee is 9 years older than her 2 co-stars. Jang Seo Hee was very good as the stubborn, distant, hard to approach ob/gyn doctor. She was not my favorite character but I can see why the guys would like her. Go Joo Won and Suh Ji Suk were good as well although I thought they were awkward at times. I enjoyed watching the secondary couple of Kyung Woo and Young Mi and I was amused at how coy they are about intimacy since one is a doctor and one is a nurse…

It’s such a relief to see a drama without messy love triangles and secondary manipulating evils (well the mothers of some characters border on that). The romance was not only light but it was subtle too. Even though the rivalry between Dr. Lee and Dr. Wang was there but it was also very subtle and they were an interesting duo because they behave so gentleman-ly regarding Hye Young. I thought that they were going to develop more about Hye Young’s pregnancy and make a big deal about it but nope, not here. At times, I even forgot that our heroine is pregnant. It’s so good to see everyone behaving like professional and rational individuals. The ending was the most realistic open ending in all K-dramas that I’ve watched so far.

The main cast