Cha Jeong-Suk (Uhm Jung-Hwa) is almost 40, married with two kids. Before getting married, she was a resident doctor, at the start of her medical career. Her husband, Seo In-Ho (Kim Byung-Chul), is chief surgeon at a hospital. He also works with, and is having an affair with, his ex-girlfriend, who is also a doctor.
After a life-threatening liver disease and transplant, Jeong-Suk decides to go back into medicine, but she faces countless challenges because of her age. There's also the issue of working closely with her husband's mistress, but that comes later…
K-Drama Bingo Score
Using the Modern K-Drama set
Running commentary
A hospital drama with just a hint of romance for the older crowd, Doctor Cha is an adult show that tackles a few under-discussed topics in K-dramaland: affairs, divorce, and age discrimination for older Koreans. Uhm Jung-Hwa does great as the maternal and hard-working woman who decides to go back to work at age 40, and is thrown in with the young residents at the same hospital where her husband and son work.
The husband is a loathsome creature, cold and strict and apparently used to having everything go his way. When his largely-estranged wife (they've slept in separate bedrooms for years) decides to start working at the same hospital as him (and his mistress), his tidy life starts to unravel.
A good, solid, drama for a mature crowd. Low-scoring, but largely because there wasn't much cuteness in this.
- S01E16One of at least 3 good standoffs
Unmatched Bingo Spaces
- (Dis)possession
- Childhood friends forgotten
- Vehicular tragedy
- Bullying
- Cartoony FX
- Chicken & Beer
- Cramped quarters
- Finger hearts
- Middle-of-the-Road Soliliquy
- Piggyback
- Pinky swear
- Son Hyeung Min
- The Playground
- Thumbs up
- Wrist grab
- 강한나 (Kang Han-Na)
- 내 친구 ("My friend…")
- 한국어학교 (Language lessons)