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Don't expect too much and you're gonna enjoy it!
First of all, it's not the best show on Earth, not even the best medical drama, and it's not really accurate either, BUT it's a LOT of fun, and feelgood drama with well-written stories, and characters.I think the biggest problem with the show is the main couple, I don't think there's any chemistry between the leads. The show could've been better without the romance plot. The fact that in the finale, all of them got a love interest was a bit much. Sabi and Jaeil were easily the best "couple" on the show. Their dance scene was one of the funniest part of the show.
The banter between the characters and the way SOME senior doctors taught their juniors were fun and interesting. I'm glad the so called "villain" of the story got her well-deserved ending, but I'd loved it if FL go on rampage because of her.
The 4 residents were likable and had a great dynamic, but I feel like the writers didn't do much with the plot. We could say YET, because I have a feeling we might get a 2nd season. It's more like a week-to-week drama with new cases, so don't expect some massive main plot. To be honest, it doesn't need anything like that.
My other problem with the show is that when real problems occurred, like deaths, I don't think the characters had much time to deal with it, they basically forget about what happened in the same episode. It would've been better if we actually see them struggling a bit with PTSD or something.
Overall, it's a fun show, and if they're planning a 2nd season, I'm up for it, but only because the characters are great. Especially the 4 main lead.
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enjoyable, but not that great
The Good⌲ It's decently well researched.
⌲ While this is no Hospital Playlist, in the world of Doctor Romantics, this is still very far above average in the medical kdrama genre.
⌲ The lead actors did great.
⌲ The cool episodic patient related plots
⌲ The supporting actors were also up there.
The Average
⌲ The drama feels quite boring at times.
⌲ The romance (it's alright, but not nearly as interesting as the prospective couples we've had in HP, let alone what's the norm in a decent romance drama)
⌲ The semi-villains of the show
⌲ While I enjoyed the HP cameos, most of the appearances felt rather forced.
The Bad
⌲ The lottery thing is egregious.
⌲ FL survived med school & everything to finally become a resident & all she talks and thinks about is quitting.
⌲ To add to the previous point, the whole plot about the debt is a bit insane too..
⌲ The rubber mannequin surgeries were quite immersion breaking.
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Romance Drama In Hospital Cosplay
I was looking forward to a slice-of-life medical drama about the hardships of residency, but all I got was an awkward romance.This felt like a classic bait and switch/false advertising. It's not even classified as a Romance genre. Don't get me wrong, I like a good romance, but this one was so abrupt and misplaced, and dare I say even inappropriate. Not even the charms of Go Youn Jung could salvage it.
Like other reviews, I found it strange that the residents themselves received so little focus, while the FL and ML took up the predominant amount of screen time trying to force a romance that no one asked for, with hospital stuff in between romantic breaths. Not to mention that the medical knowledge is extremely lacking... like can't even get into medical school, no less residency, level of incompetency.
Besides the leads, I thought the acting was solid and the characters were likeable, but were not given much time or opportunity to explore them. The ML and FL had a decent mentor-mentee relationship, but throwing in a romance made it weird. Not only is the ML her direct superior, but also related to her in another way, which made it even weirder. Not to mention the age gap (both in real life as actors and in the drama as well), I kept thinking the ML looks 40 while she looks 20. Go Youn Jung literally just played a student in Moving.
I did enjoy the brief moments of camaraderie that we did get. Some of the interpersonal dynamics between residents, nurses, doctors, and patients were nice but underdeveloped. There is a pretty decent subplot on IVF that I found heartbreaking and also genuine.
But unfortunately, there just weren't enough of those genuine slice-of-life moments, and there was far too much forced romance for my liking.
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It's a drama talked about the journey, not a relationship or a friendships or even a business ship.
I personally liked this drama a lot. It obviously remind me of hospital playlist and liked the appearance of its cast.
I enjoyed it from the first ep to the last. I liked to see their friendship be stronger day over day.
I went emotional every time a baby was born. The last episode i cried several times because of how much i got attached to them.
It's just a really good life series.
I liked every character of the doctors even if they are a bit lame. The acting was good, no one pissed me off.
There are nothing i don't like about this series. I fel in love with it
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Resident Playbook: Nostalgic and Heavily Dependent on Former Series
I have a tendency to watch some of the most formative dramas during my exam season.Last year, I had two weeks filled with exams, and to keep myself from getting stressed, I decided to start a little K Drama called My Liberation Notes. It had a few quotes I saw online, and some beautiful characters, so I thought what harm would it do to start the show and just watch an episode a day?
Five days, sixteen episodes, and three crucial exams later, I had finished the whole series, and my life forever changed. My Liberation Notes, and it's anthem of "Something Good Will happen today" continues to echo on my lockscreen and everything I o. Son Sukku and Kim Jiwon continue to live on in my heart.
Obviously, I didn't expect Resident Playbook to have the same effect. But somehow it did.
All the actors were enthralling, and absolutely played their part perfectly: the bored Yiyoung, the bright Jaeil, the stubborn Sabi, and the romantic that is Namkyung. All of the characters were lovely, and their actors were even better. The fact that this is Han Yeji's (Sabi's) acting debut is insane, and I hope to see her blossom in other dramas as well.
I also want to give a shoutout to the actor that is Kang Youseok. I thought he looked familiar in the show, but kind of brushed it off as he may have looked like a character from When Life Gives You Tangerines. Then after a bit of a deep dive, I realized that he was in WLGYT, but a few years before that he was on a little show called Light on Me, where he played the main character. I, of course, genuinely DIED when I found that out because, WHAT??!! HE WAS SHINWOO FROM LIGHT ON ME??!! CLUMSY, INTROVERTED SHINWOO??!! And I think that shows how good of an actor he is, so props to him.
I apologize that was a bit off topic with the rant, but ANYWAYS.
So yes, of course the acting was phenomenal as expected, but the story?? well....
I didn't love the story. I didn't really like Yiyoung's motivations at all. I know it was important to the development of the character, but it jsut felt a bit odd. Despite the actor's best efforts, all the characters felt a bit two-dimensional. I am going to be honest, I don't think there are any character's that I am going to necessarily remember or anything. I think this is going to just become a show I watched. And I think that's okay.
I think the one thign that kept me going through this show were the CAMEOS, which I was so excited for. I really liked how Junwan's cameo was so him: I absolutley loved it. And Andrea's cameo?? Guys, I sobbed my eyes out it wasn't even funny. The depiction of grief was so honest and real that my heart genuinely hurt. Ikjun and Songhwa's cameo was amazing of course, and seeing them on screen in the same manner as usual, but just a bit more intimate made me so happy. Lastly, the fact that I got to see Seokhyung and Chu Min Ha on the same screen again??!! Words cannot describe how ecstatic I was.
So ya, overall, I believe the cameos really did carry. However, there was something also special about the year that this show was set in.
2023 was genuinely one of the most interesting years of my life. I was going through the worst heartbreak, was living one of the best memories, and was battling my inner demons if you will every day. I thought I wasn't really going to make it out the same way I did. I was in such a hole all year, and was miserable to everyone around me all year. However, when 2024 was about to come, I swore to myself that I was going to make it the best year ever, and that I wasn't going to let everything from 2023 follow me into 2024.
And it didn't.
So there was a bit of a sentimental thing going on with the year that this was set, which is why I may have liked it as much as I did. And if you are maybe looking for a piece of home, and a piece of yourself, maybe you can find it in this drama.
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forgettable
good. funny but i don't really remember much of it. i think this is a pseudo-sequel to hospital playlist which i haven't actually watched. i did get a bit bored watching it but eh. maybe if i watched hospital playlist i'd understand this a bit more.Was this review helpful to you?
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MY COMFORT KDRAMA
I didn’t think I would end 2025 with a new favorite k-drama. I didn’t watch this when it first came out and didn’t think medical dramas were anything for me, but WOW did this k-drama prove me wrong. I formed a huge bond with, and attachment to, the characters!!! Go Youn Jung and Shin Si Ah are a huge reason this show is a masterpiece. I’ve rewatched it so many times despite only finishing it three months ago because of how comforting and witty it is!!! 10/10 bigggg recommend, I love them so muchWas this review helpful to you?
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Lighthearted medical drama.
I cried in multiple episodes bro. Professor seo was my favorite. There is so much chemistry oozing out of FL and ML. Dr.myung was so so annoying i literally wanted to go grab her from the screen and tell her to cut the crap. You see all of their progress and it really makes you feel like this is real this is a real hospital where everyone is developing and learning not dr. Myung though.... professor ryu was also such an inspiration. I would die literally if i had a professor like professor jo the dude is still immature.Was this review helpful to you?
Comfortable Watch
This series is a spin off of a show I have not seen, Hospital Playlist.This is not the usual Korean drama series.
This series follows the growth of four first year residents through day to day challenges. One of the four gets most of the attention especially early on. She was fired as a first year resident at another hospital, but we don't know why.
There's no big bad villain and no over arcing series thread with a lead up to a big climax and resolution. Instead we get gentle waves of minor sub stories as the four gradually develop their skills and along the way become friends.
The primary romance angle of the main R1 character is unusually linear moving forward step by step. I found it refreshing and unpredictable as I would check the episode number expecting the usual volatile up and down, on again off again plot development for romantic entanglements.
The characters feel comfortably real as we get to know and like them more and more with each passing episode.
The series is brought to a satisfactory end, or more accurately, endings, as each character and surrounding subplots and threads find satisfactory resting points in their lives and for us as viewers. Near the end a new nurse appears in the ward and it turns out she was one of three people present when the incident occurred that got our main R1 fired from her previous hospital and that news rewards the viewer with a nice satisfying cap to that early question.
This could easily have additional seasons as the residents have three more years of challenges to face. The writer left plenty of openings for continuation but unfortunately this is labeled as a limited series and the prospects for more are slim. That's too bad because I really liked these four characters and several of the supporting characters and would appreciate a continuation to this peek into their lives.
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group of doctors in action
finished 8.5/10 🌟One of the Kdramas I was most looking forward to seeing since it was set in the same world as Hospital Playlist 👀
Overall I really liked it, it follows the same rhythm and consistency in addition to the different stories that converge within the Yulje hospital 🤍
There were characters that I loved from the first time I saw them, like my beautiful Yi Young, who went back to work to pay off a debt and found herself slowly falling in love with her job ✨
Jaeil, a former idol who took up medicine as a second option after failing in his debut ✨
There were also other characters that drove me crazy, from the main cast to the guests, but I must say it was a pleasure to watch this story on air 👏
As for the ending, they left it open to a second season and I hope they keep it, I would like to see more 🙏
Maybe medical dramas aren't for everyone (I include myself on that list) but I feel like they're worth checking out ✨
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