I am really excited for this drama. I watched a preview and it looked very interesting – Joo Won plays an autistic savant, Park Shi Ohn, who was mentored by a director at Sung Won University Hospital, Choi Woo Suk. Shi Ohn from an early age showed aptitude for medicine and with Woo Suk’s support, he’s now a first year intern. The tone of the preview and the description on KBS’s website (and even the musical score) says that this will be an uplifting show and I always like those.
And I have to say, I like the intro and the use of stop-motion to produce a 3-D effect.
The first thing we see, besides an overall city shot, is a picture of two boys, one hugging the other. I’m thinking that this picture of Shi Ohn and another boy is significant to our story. There’s also a ceramic bunny and an alarm clock which is ringing. Aw, Joo Won is sleeping. He looks so peaceful.
Shi Ohn opens his eyes and immediately sits up. He has great bed head.
He’s gotten out of bed and is outside washing his hair using a tub of water. He’s got really good suds happening, but some of the soap is down on his eyes. Ouch.
Now he’s dressed and fixing his hair in a mirror. He’s using his fingers. No comb?
He’s in a suit and is leaving his house. He stops for a moment to look behind him and then he continues. He has a satchel strapped across his chest (from the preview, he carries this a lot, maybe it’s his security blanket) and he’s dragging a suitcase. I wonder what the suitcase is for. The pants of his suit are about 3 inches too short. But he’s wearing cool striped socks. I like fun socks. I think I’m going to like you, Shi Ohn.
He’s walking along the train tracks. Suddenly it’s a flashback. Four boys have beaten up a little boy, who I’m assuming is Shi Ohn from the way the kid is holding himself and just twitching. He’s lying on the ground with cuts on his face. One of the boys yells, “Why are you following us? Dumb kid. You deserve to be beaten.” They’re doing a great job of portraying Shi Ohn’s perspective through the music and camera work. He just lies there as this kid kicks him. If I saw this kid, I would thrash him. That’s just ridiculous.
A kid runs up and shouts, “I said stop!” He kicks the kicker off Shi Ohn and then proceeds to threaten the other boys. I like him. I think he got the kicker in the really painful place for boys. Good job! He reaches down and tenderly puts his hand on Shi Ohn, asking him if he’s okay. He tells him to get up. The boy inspects Shi Ohn for anywhere else he might be hurt.
Continued Flashback. They’re on a hill overlooking the town. The boy has finished applying medicine. He tells Shi Ohn that he should have asked if he could play with them. He tells him that if he persists in asking, they’ll eventually play with him. I think this is going to be a lesson for later, in dealing with people at the hospital, especially the guy who I think is the chief resident from the preview.
Shi Ohn isn’t looking at him, as most autistics don’t make eye contact, and he’s holding a cage with a bunny inside. We saw him looking at the bunny earlier while he was getting beaten up. His friend – please tell me his name soon so I can use it – asks him why he’s still playing with the bunny and then he says that he can’t keep playing with Shi Ohn. Shi Ohn reacts to that, looking down with a very sad face. This makes his friend feel bad.
The boy lifts Shi Ohn’s chin, telling him to lift his head. He puts some more medicine on him. When he’s not looking, Shi Ohn looks at his friend.
It’s later. Shi Ohn’s outside, with a woman, presumably his mother, shielding him from the wrath of a man, presumably his father. He’s yelling at her for getting a medical report. He calls Shi Ohn a bastard and yells at her for not just keeping him locked up in the house. What a jerk. The whole neighborhood is gathering to watch him scream at his wife.
Shi Ohn’s mother responds that they can’t let him be this way (autistic); they have to fix him. Shi Ohn’s awesome father calls her a bitch and then throws a huge tray of food, I think mushrooms, at the wall above her head. The boy from earlier starts beating the dad with a broom and telling him to stop. Is this boy his brother? The dad grabs the broom and throws the boy to the ground. The mother yells his name, Yi Ohn, but the boy doesn't stay down. He gets up and uses his body to shield his mother from the blows of his father. And none of the neighbors do anything while this man is beating his family.
Dang! He’s kicking now. And no one is helping them. The dad just picked up the rabbit cage and threw it, killing his rabbit. Which makes me cry.
Maybe the rabbit isn't dead, because later Shi Ohn’s taken it to the doctor. The doctor has taken it out of its cage and tenderly puts it on the examining table. It’s Choi Woo Suk. He briefly examines it and then tells Shi Ohn that he thinks it’s dead. Shi Ohn is looking at him. He asks if the rabbit went to heaven. Woo Suk tells him yes. And I can’t really see because I’m crying. Stuff with pets really gets me.
Shi Ohn wants to know if it’s possible for the bunny not to heaven. Woo Suk tells Shi Ohn that if they heal him before he dies, he won’t have to go to heaven. Shi Ohn wants to know if he became a doctor, could he make someone not go to heaven. Woo Suk nods and Shi Ohn strokes his dead friend gently. I can’t believe they killed a bunny. I didn’t expect to cry to early! Man, I think I’m going to be crying a lot watching this series. I don't mind the crying, because I really think I like Shi Ohn, but man, this is really laying it on thick in the beginning.
Woo Suk looks fondly at Shi Ohn. Shi Ohn says that he wants to become a doctor, too. At least he has a good father figure that isn’t going to die any time soon (fingers crossed)!
Shi Ohn’s up at that spot on the hill, burying the bunny. He looks up at the sun streaming through the trees and closes his eyes. A nice breeze blows. It's a nice little moment.
Later, Shi Ohn is painting a really well-done bunny on a window. Yi Ohn gets his attention and asks him why he’s alone again. Well, being around people doesn’t seem to be a positive experience. I know his brother means well and is trying to help him fit in. Yi Ohn scolds, telling him that he should stay with the other kids even if he does beaten up. Then he kicks the rabbit cage, asking Shi Ohn why he keeps carrying it around. Shi Ohn looks down and starts twitching. Yi Ohn gently shoves his head and tells him that Shi Ohn should listen to him so they will stop calling him dumb. Yi Ohn sighs and tells Shi Ohn to follow him.
Yi Ohn and Shi Ohn are talking with the boys from earlier. The bully leader tells Shi Ohn that there’s a condition for them letting him play with them. Shi Ohn has to go in to some place that looks closed off and get him a ball bearing. It looks like there’s big ‘keep out’ warning signs posted. (I can't tell because I can't read Korean, but it's kind of a universal way those things are posted.) Before Yi Ohn agrees to it, he makes sure they’ll make Shi Ohn part of their group if he does it. The leader promises to share their snacks and play games with him. Sounds like a good deal. But I’m worried. It’s closed off for a reason. The leader hands Yi Ohn a flashlight.
Yi Ohn and Shi Ohn go inside what turns out to be a mine. Eek! I’m definitely worried now. I see why it’s closed off, the ceiling’s not stable. Yi Ohn tells Shi Ohn that they just have to go in there and get one ball bearing. Shi Ohn nods that he understands. Oh no! Suddenly, the ground starts shaking which causes the mine to collapse, trapping the boys inside.
Outside, workers are frantically working to get people out of the mine. Not only has the mine collapsed, but it’s raining, making things even more unstable.
The nice doctor is digging through the rubble. He makes it to the boys, who are unconscious. He climbs through the hole and then yells that they’re there.
Outside, someone yells, “We’ve found them!” Thankfully, it seems that the other boys ran and told someone about their friend(s) being trapped in the mine. Their mom is there with a friend, anxiously waiting for their rescue. The jerk of a dad is nowhere. And I think I just saw a couple of the kids watching with their parents in the background, too.
Inside, while trying to get oxygen masks for the boys, the ceiling collapses more, trapping the doctor in with them. He’s put the one mask on Shi Ohn and is desperately doing CPR on Yi Ohn. I have a bad feeling I know where this is going. Shi Ohn opens his eyes and starts moaning.
It’s later and Shi Ohn is up at his spot on the hill. Hyung isn't there. He’s twisting a plastic green scalpel in his hand. The scene switches to the adult Shi Ohn, holding it and a plaid handkerchief. He’s now sitting on a bench near the train tracks. The train whistle blows and a conductor waves a flag as the train pulls into the station. Shi Ohn wraps the scalpel in the handkerchief and tucks it into his jacket inside breast pocket. Then he prepares to board the train. I’m thinking that Shi Ohn’s going off to school. That’s why he’s dragging a suitcase with him.
On the train, Shi Ohn sits looking out the window. A woman remarks that this egg is the one the old woman gave us before. It’s a young boy and his mother, who has just affectionately stuffed the egg into her son’s mouth. All of the egg which is basically the size of the boy’s mouth. She’s teaching him good table manners early. He pulls it out while they both laugh. It’s very sweet to see their affection. Shi Ohn has turned to watch them.
The mother has given her son some water. Although he’s definitely old enough to hold the bottle himself, she holds it for him. The little boy looks over at Shi Ohn. At that, Shi Ohn quickly turns away, blinking several times and twitching his nose. The little boy comes over and taps Shi Ohn on the shoulder. He looks at the boy, who offers him an egg. Shi Ohn awkwardly takes the egg. Neither he nor the boy speak.
The boy smiles and motions for Shi Ohn to crack the egg on his forehead. Why they crack eggs on their forehead, I have no idea. When he hits his head too hard, the little boy giggles and smiles at him. Shi Ohn painfully rubs his forehead and looks at the boy. I can’t tell what he’s thinking. But I'm thinking that this little interchange is going to be why he's going to be a great pediatric surgeon, because he relates to kids on their level.
We’re meeting our heroine, Cha Yoon Seo, someone who also relates to her patients well. She’s at the hospital, in her white lab coat. She’s telling a scary story to a bunch of children, who are hanging on her every word. As she gets to the scary monster reveal, a male nurse jumps out growling behind them, wearing this monstrously contorted face. He’s also holding himself like Dr. Frankenstein’s Igor and his eyes are rolled up in his head. Yoon Seo finishes with, “The monster took the child because he never took his medicine.” The kids groan and the nurse tells him, “I’ll take all of you.” Yoon Seo tells them they need to take their medicine and the kids reluctantly agree.
A man has brought white carnations to a memorial. The way he plops them down onto of where the urn is suggests he’s angry. There are two pictures of a boy, or maybe a set of twins. I’m thinking maybe twins because of the size of the urn, which is engraved with a birth year of 198X and a death year of 1998. The man looks understandably upset. He loosens his tie (he’s wearing a suit) and sighs. Then he walks off. It’s going to be interesting finding out what this story is. It’s going to be significant for this character.
Upscale Office. I mean, it’s fancy, with not one, but two fancy chandeliers. Chae Kyung, wearing scarlet red 3” high heels, is seated. I mention the red shoes because it takes a certain kind of woman to wear scarlet red shoes, especially when they don’t quite go with her olive and black flecked dress. Another woman, Yeo Won, sits down with her. They’re talking about the first woman’s work. Apparently, she’s restructuring the employees of an office. As Chae Kyung comments that there’s too many workers, Yeo Won opens a binder and examines its contents. Chae Kyung adds that this issue of excess workers is a big problem at their hospital. So is this the hospital administrator? I check the cast list, because I like the actress, and yes, she’s the chief director of the hospital, Lee Yeo Won. Yeo Won replies that they’re not a factory but a hospital. Patients’ lives depend on each employee’s well-being. I wish more top tier hospital administrators in the U.S. felt like that. At least, from what I’ve observed working at two hospitals, this is true.
Chae Kyung responds that it’s good to think about the patient’s life, but it interferes with the hospital’s well-being. This is why I don’t think I going to like this woman; not only is she cold and detached but she doesn’t embrace the Hippocratic Oath and isn’t about the people but the business. Yeo Won hands the folder back to Chae Kyung and tells her to bring a new proposal, something she can comprehend. I’m thinking this is her nice way of giving the woman the brush off.
Busy Train Station. Shi Ohn is walking through the crowd and trying to avoid body contact with everyone. He’s muttering to himself: “Leave the station and get on Line One. There will be one stop. About 1.9 km. Duration about 4 minutes.” Call me a nerd, but I like Shi Ohn already. Not because of his sad back story but something really appeals to me about his meticulous research of his route. “Fare will be 1,150 won cash, and 1,050 won by card.” Shi Ohn stops suddenly, slack jawed. He mouths, ‘wow.’
It’s a 3-D TV with a cartoon running. Shi Ohn puts on the glasses and watches the screen, mouth hanging open. He reaches out to try to touch the things on the screen. You hear giggling in the background. I check the crowd and they seem to be laughing at the cartoon, rather than a grown man trying to touch 3-D images. I keep describing Shi Ohn’s expressions because I think it’ll be important later. Autistics can be very expressive even when they’re dead-faced. It’s those little things like twitches and blinks that indicate things.
Woo Suk’s Office. On his clean desk is a picture of him with a young Shi Ohn and him at Shi Ohn’s college graduation. Aw. He’s got his lab coat on and is staring out the window with his hands clasped behind his back.
Flashback. Woo Suk is stitching up a guy while Shi Ohn watches. Shi Ohn opens up an anatomy book, looking at a drawing of the heart. He’s reading out loud the different parts of the heart: carotid artery, subclavian, vena cava. Woo Suk approaches, wiping off his hands and is amazed at Shi Ohn’s comprehension. Time passes as he sits at the desk, with more and different books appearing.
Train Station. Shi Ohn’s still trying to touch the 3-D cartoon. The boy from the train appears. His name is Hyun Woo. He’s looking up, watching a window washer clean a sign. His mother calls to him to wait for her. A shot of one of the cables holding the sign. It snaps. The man yells. The sign falls forward, shattering the glass, which falls on Hyun Woo. His mother screams, getting Shi Ohn’s attention. She’s begging someone to help her. It’s mass confusion as we see a large piece of glass sticking out of Hyun Woo’s abdomen.
Hyun Woo is unconscious (luckily). Several men carefully pick him up and move him away from the glass. A man remarks that fortunately the glass missed his carotid artery, but it’s damaged his jugular vein. Blood is flowing out. The man tells Hyun Woo’s mother that things will be fine if they can stop the bleeding.
Shi Ohn pushes through the crowd, still wearing the 3-D glasses and tells the man, “No!” Apparently, the way he’s pressing can put too much pressure on the air passageway. He pushes the man’s hands away and says that they need to put pressure higher up. He positions the handkerchief and tells the man where to press.
As Shi Ohn takes the boy’s pulse, he thinks that there may be damage to the lungs and liver because of the trauma. He announces that Hyun Woo’s pulse is normal. He scoots over and opens Hyun Woo’s shirt to more reveal the glass sticking out of his abdomen. The large crowd that’s gathered around them gasps at the sight of the glass.
Shi Ohn listens to Hyun Woo’s breath and then begins to give him mouth-to-mouth. He thinks, “The child may get cardioplegia due to shortage of air.” I have a feeling I’m going to be looking up a lot of terms during this show. Cardioplegia means heart paralysis. It’s typically done in surgical procedures so that there’s a still and bloodless field. “It’s vital to check for breathing. Inhale breath and check to see if the chest rises.” Which it is doing. “You must check to see that the child is breathing. It’s of 5 star importance.” Medical flashes of the wound and anatomy texts. “There’s no response from his right lung. Possibility of tension pneumothorax.” It looks like they’ve defined that for the audience, since there’s Korean Hangeul appearing on the screen. A tension pneumothorax is a pneumothorax resulting from a wound in the chest wall which acts as a valve that permits air to enter the pleural cavity but prevents its escape. Shi Ohn says they need to give CPR every three seconds and to make sure his chest rises.
Shi Ohn’s gone to the pharmacy in the train station. The druggist is passing him a bunch of bottles and bandages. She says that they don’t have any scalpels or tubes. Shi Ohn looks around for a substitute and sees some pens. He grabs those.
Multicut scene common in medical dramas that show Shi Ohn working, sterilizing the instruments, including a scalpel. As he prepares to cut into Hyun Woo’s chest, he thinks, “You must cut by following the upper part of rib number five to avoid damaging the vessels and nerves.” Good thinking! Hyun Woo’s mother asks what Shi Ohn’s doing and the other man says that he think Shi Ohn’s opening up Hyun Woo’s closed lung so that Hyun Woo can breathe. Shi Ohn inserts the pen casing. Some blood spurts on Shi Ohn’s suit and face. The crowd gasps. Many are recording everything with their phones. Even though Shi Ohn seems bothered by the blood, he doesn’t stop. Hyun Woo starts breathing.
The EMTs have arrived. Immediately Shi Ohn asks for a pediatric intubation kit. He doesn’t make eye contact though. He intubates Hyun Woo, but notices that his stomach keeps bloating up. There must be heavy bleeding inside of Hyun Woo’s stomach. Because of the child’s size, this much bleeding could kill him. More flashes of medical texts as Shi Ohn thinks, “Immediate intravenous injection needed. Four star importance.” He starts to look for a good blood vessel.
The EMT asks Shi Ohn why he doesn’t continue this once they’ve gotten him to the ambulance. Shi Ohn replies that they don’t have time and it can’t be done is a shaky car. Shi Ohn asks for the injection ASAP. He pulls off Hyun Woo’s sock and continues to look for a good vessel. He thinks, “Children have thin vessels. It’s hard to find them. It’s even harder when the child has been bleeding heavily.” He still can’t find a good vessel, so he pulls off the other shoe and sock, thinking, “The child is in a state of hypovolemic shock. Intravenous injection is needed.” Hypovolemic = decrease in the volume of the circulating blood.
Shi Ohn announces he can’t find any blood vessels. They’ll have to give the IV through bone marrow.” Do they have an IO needle? More Korean Hangeul. Intraosseous infusion (IO) is the process of injecting directly into the marrow of a bone to provide a non-collapsible entry point into the systemic venous system. This technique is used in emergency situations to provide fluids and medication when intravenous access is not available or not feasible. The EMT says that they don’t have that.
Shi Ohn thinks, “Then IJ cutdown.” Korean Hangeul. IJ cutdown = Dissection of internal jugular for insertion of a needle for the administration of intravenous fluids or medication. More medical procedure scenes while Shi Ohn thinks, “If you can’t find the child’s vessels, and there’s no IO needle, excise the jugular vein to give the injection. Three star importance. I’m interested in the importance ratings he has. Did he come up with that or did he get it from a book? A shot of someone using a phone to record the action. In case we missed it when they showed the audience before. I think it’s going to get posted on the internet and work in Shi Ohn’s favor later on when he’s opposed because he’s autistic. Just a hunch.
Shi Ohn tells the EMT to squeeze the fluid in so that it can be absorbed more quickly. The EMT quickly complies. Both he and the mother are watching Shi Ohn with rapt attention. Shi Ohn checks Hyun Woo’s pulse. He tells Hyun Woo that he’ll be fine and not to worry. With this announcement, the large crowd start applauding for Shi Ohn. They’re very relieved. Hyun Woo’s mother begins to cry again.
Shi Ohn tells the EMTs to hurry and take Hyun Woo to the hospital. Then he gets up and walks away. Hyun Woo’s mother comes running after him. She grabs his arm and begs him to go with them. He says that he has some place to go. She begs him please. He glances around nervously.
They’re in the ambulance. Hyun Woo’s mother is silently praying. Shi Ohn tells the EMT that he needs to get to Sung Won University Hospital. Coincidentally, that’s where they’re going. The EMT asks if Shi Ohn’s a doctor there. He answers yes, although it doesn’t sound all that confident.
Woo Suk says that Park Shi Ohn has excellent qualifications to become a doctor. It looks like he’s speaking in front of a meeting of the doctoral staff and hospital administrators. The managing director of the hospital’s foundation (I identified him from the cast list) asks what basis Woo Suk has for this statement. Woo Suk states that Shi Ohn suffers from savant syndrome. There’s general muttering. Among the crowd is the ‘I just care about the hospital, not the patients’ lady, Yeo Won (the chief director), Hyun Tae (the deputy director), Jae Joon (the head of Department of Hepatobiliary-Pancreatic Surgery) and Choong Man (the head of the Department of Pediatric Surgery).
Woo Suk continues, “As you know, people with savant syndrome are autistic who show ingenious abilities in specific areas.” Choong Man doesn’t look convinced. “Mr. Park shows this strength in his memory skills and spatial intelligence.
Flashback to Shi Ohn staring at an organ 3-D model. Woo Suk looks on smiling. Voice over of Woo Suk saying that when he was working at Tae Bak Community Health Center, he just happened to meet Shi Ohn. At age seven, he had already memorized every part of the human body.” A shot of young Shi Ohn drawing internal organs as Woo Suk looks on amazed. “Using his spatial intelligence, he completely understood the function and location of each organ. He entered the medical school at Song San University.” Back to the present. “He finished school and was accepted in the internship program at the National Hospital. Further, he’s finished that internship and will start his residency soon.” Well, obviously, he’s capable. He wouldn’t have graduated nor scored a prestigious internship without ability and skill.
Yeo Won says that Shi Ohn had great grades in medical school. Woo Suk answers that Shi Ohn is more qualified to be a doctor than anyone else.
While in the ambulance, Shi Ohn nervously looks at his watch. Although I think he’s probably going to get to the hospital more quickly this way than his original plan. And he just realized that he left his bag. A shot of the heart monitor. The EMT exclaims, “His pulse is going up! Did he lose consciousness?” Hyun Woo’s mother looks nervously to Shi Ohn. The EMT remarks, “It’s showing 100, but why is his face turning blue?” Shi Ohn feels for Hyun Woo’s pulse and then listens to his chest.
The ambulance arrives at the hospital. They quickly run inside, with Shi Ohn telling them to quickly do an echocardiogram. Echocardiogram = a sonogram of the heart. The doctor there tells him that according to the monitor, his heart is fine. He asks if Shi Ohn’s the boy’s guardian. Hyun Woo’s mother says that Shi Ohn saved her son at the train station and that he’s a doctor here. The resident (I’m assuming) says that he’s never see Shi Ohn before. He asks what department.
Instead of answer, Shi Ohn says that they have to do the echo. Korean Hangeul defining this term. I think it’s nice that they’re defining these things for the audience instead of assuming that the audience won’t care to know. The resident stops the stretcher and tells Shi Ohn to stay there. Shi Ohn obeys but tries to get the guy to listen anyway. He squirms anxiously.
Yoon Seo is listening to a girl’s heart. She tells Eun Ji that she’ll help her get through her operation, so she won’t be scared. Aw, she’s a very caring doctor. They’re establishing this early on with how she treats the kids. Yoon Seo also says that the doctor Eun Ji meets tomorrow will also make her brave. Eun Ji’s afraid she’ll die in surgery. Joo Yun, the chief nurse, tells her that it would be okay like she said and to trust the pretty doctor. The other resident, Jin Wook, snarks, “Who’s pretty here?” Which gets a quick punch in the stomach from Yoon Seo.
The girl's mother rushes in and tells Yoon Seo that there's been a mix-up; Eun Ji is scheduled for surgery tomorrow, rather than meeting with the psychologist. Yoon Seo says that she didn’t give those orders. The mother replies that Dr. Kim Do Han did. Yoon Seo quickly goes to talk to Dr. Kim.
It’s the guy from the mausoleum. Yoon Seo rushed into give him a piece of her mind. Jin Wook grabs her to stop her, but she tells him to get out. Do Han barely turns away from the monitor he’s studying. Yoon Seo wants Eun Ji to have therapy before her surgery. Do Han replies that she’s in critical condition. They need to do the surgery tomorrow because of her variceal bleeding. More Hangeul. Variceal bleeding = Because of blockage to the portal vein which supplies the liver, blood from the intestines may be re-routed around the liver through small vessels primarily in the stomach and esophagus. Some of these blood vessels may become quite large and swollen (varices). The spleen may also become enlarged. Due to high blood pressure and thinning of the vessel walls, the varices may rupture, causing bleeding within the upper gastrointestinal tract, which can cause the patient to go into shock and die. So the situation is dire.
Yoon Seo continues to argue with him, saying she needs the therapy session to get over her fear of surgery. Couldn’t they do it today, then? The other residents in the room leave quickly, I’m sure because they know Do Han’s temper. Do Han stands up and glares at her. Doesn’t she know how serious this condition is for a child? He tells her if all she wants to do is care about children’s feelings, she should become a kindergarten teacher. Wow, that’s cold. But I admire her guts for standing up to him. He orders her to stop working with Eun Ji. That’s even colder, for her and for Eun Ji. Do Han says he’s not going to watch a patient die.
Yoon Seo turns to go but Jin Wook grabs her arm to stop her. He tries to get Do Han to change his mind when another rushes in to tell Do Han about Hyun Woo, the ER trauma patient who’s bleeding heavily. Do Han looks grim and slightly irritated. That might just be his normal expression, irritated. Boy, I’d love having him treat my kid.
O.R. A bunch of doctors enter. They look at an x-ray. The lead doctor, which I’m assuming is Do Han says that the CT and x-ray don’t look bad, but there are lacerations on the liver and spleen. There’s a hematoma around the internal jugular vein, which may be signs of damage. Hematoma = a mass of usually clotted blood that forms in a tissue, organ, or body space as a result of a broken blood vessel. But, it seems that the bleeding has stopped for now. First aid was taken care of. Go, Shi Ohn!
From outside the OR, someone yells, “What are you doing? You can’t go in!” Do Han goes to investigate. Shi Ohn didn’t stay where he was told to. Two people are restraining him. He’s struggling, telling them he has something to say. Do Han asks Shi Ohn if he’s the guardian. Shi Ohn ignored the question, telling Do Han that there’s no time. They have to hurry. Do Han is, of course, annoyed, and tells Shi Ohn to be quiet because it’s an operating room.
Hospital security has arrived, to help cart off Shi Ohn. And the guy covers Shi Ohn’s mouth. But even so, Shi Ohn keeps repeating ‘echocardiogram!’ One of the other residents comments that he doesn’t think Shi Ohn is quite normal.
They’ve dragged Shi Ohn out of the OR area. The guard keeps blocking him from re-entering. Shi Ohn says that something bad is going to happen. I hope Do Han listens. I don’t want Hyun Woo to die. Do Han asks who did the first aid. One of the residents says that there was a doctor on scene. Another one remarks, impressed, that the guy did a good job. Another one wonders why he punctured the jugular vein to administer the IV. Do Han says that he did an IJ cutdown. Do Han is also impressed, saying that he knew pediatrics well.
Outside, Shi Ohn nervously paced and scratches his wrist.
Back in the administrative meeting, Jae Joon comments that people with mental disabilities can’t take the national exam. He wants to know how Shi Ohn passed since he suffers from autism. Woo Suk says that Shi Ohn was diagnosed as normal at age 17. I wonder who did that diagnosis. Hyun Tae points out that they overturned his scores. Woo Suk says that this is why he scouted Shi Ohn. They looked at his past medical history and failed him. But, there’s a caveat to that rule: if a certified doctor vouches for his capabilities, he will be able to pass. The National Health Center will reverse the failing decision, if there’s a verification of his ability. The ‘I-don’t-care-about-patients’ lady doesn’t look to happy right about now. Woo Suk holds up the contract guaranteeing that.
Yeo Won wants to know if their hospital can give that verification. Woo Suk says they can, through one year of residency. Hyun Tae wants to know if his autism is under control. Yeo Won thinks for a second and then says that he can’t say that it’s totally cured, but he won’t have any troubles being a doctor. Doesn’t exactly answer their question. Hyun Tae presses him. Yeo Won repeats that Shi Ohn is very capable of being a doctor, but he lacks in social and communication skills. Like several doctors I’ve known who weren't perfectly normal. They didn't really have much in the way of social or communication skills either.
Shi Ohn is nervously pacing outside the OR.
Hyuk Pil asks if Yeo Won is saying that Shi Ohn is psychologically immature. He calls the idea ridiculous. Jae Joon concurs: even if Shi Ohn is being treated, it’s impossible for him to act as a doctor. Hyuk Pil scoffs that their hospital is not a rehab center for handicaps. How dare Yeo Won suggest such a thing. Yeo Won cuts him off, asking him to watch his words. I guess maybe Hyuk Pil didn’t say handicaps but instead used retards. Hyun Tae wants to meet Shi Ohn before they make their decision. Choong Man points out that it’s already been 30 minutes and he’s still not here. I guess that means it’s not important to him, or else he doesn’t have the mental ability to keep appointments.
Yeo Won looks down at his phone and tries calling Shi Ohn, but his phone and bag is back at the train station where he left them.
Shi Ohn again tries to go into the OR, worried about Hyun Woo.
In surgery, Do Han remarks that there’s no critical damage. Once they treat the punctured area, he’ll be fine. But, as they work, a monitor goes off. His BP (blood pressure) is dropping: 50/30. His blood oxygen saturation’s maintained, though. Do Han asks about Hyun Woo’s echocardiogram and one of the other doctors says that they didn’t check, because nothing seemed wrong with his heart. Do Han remembers Shi Ohn’s muffled shouting of ‘echocardiogram!’ and orders one immediately.
Another doctor asks Do Han if they should prepare the defibrillator. He says not yet. He also remembers Shi Ohn trying to say ‘pericardial effusion.’ Pericardial effusion = an abnormal accumulation of fluid in the pericardial cavity (the area around the heart). Because of the limited amount of space in the pericardial cavity, fluid accumulation leads to an increased pressure which can negatively affect heart function. The echo is ready and Do Han orders them to prepare for a pericardial paracentesis. Wow, lots of medical terminology. More Hangeul. Do Han’s going to puncture the pericardial sac wall to drain off the fluid around the heart.
Shi Ohn still nervously pacing. He closes his eyes and imagines himself alone in the OR. He thinks, “Pericardial puncture is not easy with children. The angle can get narrow.”
In the OR, after the echo, he declares that it’ll be impossible to perform a pericardial puncture. They need to move on to the next procedure. Do Han declares that Hyun Woo has a cardiac tamponade. More Hangeul and medical terminology! Cardiac tamponade = mechanical compression of the heart by large amounts of fluid or blood within the pericardial space that limits the normal range of motion and function of the heart. He’s got an internal wound due to external damage due to heavy internal bleeding.
We get treated to side-by-side views of Do Han and Shi Ohn performing the surgery. Shi Ohn says, “For cardiac tamponade, you have to lower the pressure with a pericardiotomy (surgical incision into the pericardium).” As Do Han works, Hyun Woo starts bleeding heavily. Shi Ohn says, “If heavy bleeding continues because of the pericardiotomy, you need to open the chest.” Do Han also says this, adding that they need to find the source of the bleeding.
Shi Ohn continues, “After suction, prepare for thoracoabdominal incision.” Ah! These medical terms are killing me! That means that the incision will be done from two fingerbreadths below the scapula tip. That one was a hard one to find the definition of.
There’s a vote among hospital administrators about Shi Ohn’s residency. Everyone votes against it, except for Yeo Won. I think I’m going to really like her. Neither she nor Woo Suk are happy with the decision, but she says that the majority rules that Shi Ohn will not be hired on as a temporary resident. And the jerk, Hyuk Pil, that referred to Shi Ohn and those like him as retards, can’t suppress his pleasure at the ruling.
Shi Ohn still imagining he’s doing the surgery. Another security guard arrives and asks what he’s doing. We know he’s imagining holding a surgical tool, but it looks really weird. The second guard asks the first guard what Shi Ohn’s doing and he replies that he doesn’t know, only that Shi Ohn’s been doing it for the last two hours. He doesn’t think Shi Ohn’s normal. Especially since Shi Ohn is standing in the middle of the hallway, going through the motions, oblivious to the rest of the world. But I do like the fact that Shi Ohn did something to cope with the situation so he wouldn't be overwhelmed by it, even if it is a bit weird.
Shi Ohn: “If you cannot locate the source of the bleeding quickly, blood pressure will drop leading to cardiac arrest.” Which is exactly what happens in Do Han’s OR. He orders an increase in the vasopressor, quickly. Shots of the vassopressor. Do Han massages the heart while they get the defibrillator paddles. They shock the heart twice and it returns to normal. Shi Ohn: “Open up the heart more and search for the puncture.” Do Han: “The bleeding is coming from the area connecting the superior vena cava and the right atrium.” They fix the rupture. Hyun Woo’s vitals return to normal and Do Han hands off finishing up to one of the other surgeons.
Mentally, since the surgery is complete, Shi Ohn can finally leave. Do Han exits the OR, just missing Shi Ohn, and speaks with Hyun Woo’s mother. He tells her than the surgery went well and his bleeding in the spleen, liver and neck are under control. He mentions that there was a puncture in the pericardium so it was a bit risky but everything went well. At mention of this, Shi Ohn stops in his tracks and turns around. He tells Hyun Woo thank you. It's little things like this moment, where Shi Ohn is paying attention as he walks away, which show how aware of and plugged into he is even if it doesn't look that way.
Do Han asks about the doctor who took care of Hyun Woo’s first aid. She looks around for Shi Ohn, but he’s gone. She says that he was just there, but she heard he was a doctor here. Do Han’s surprised by this.
Shi Ohn has arrived at the administrator meeting. Everyone is gone, except for Woo Suk who looks extremely disappointed. He shuffles in. Woo Suk immediately lays into him for being so late, but when he sees Shi Ohn’s reaction, where he’s picking at his fingernails, Woo Suk gets control of himself. He reaches out and takes hold of Shi Ohn’s hands. He softly says, “You’re normally so good with your time. Why are you late? And what’s wrong with your clothes?”
Rubbing his shirt, Shi Ohn says that a boy got injured at the train station so he was helping him. Woo Suk wants to know if the boy is okay and Shi Ohn says that he’s fine. Woo Suk prepares to tell Shi Ohn the bad news.
In the resident’s lounge, they’re discussing Hyun Woo’s surgery. How did Do Han know that it was a pericardial tamponade since it isn’t obvious on a CT or x-ray. Jin Wook notes that Hyun Woo could have died. They’re all impressed with Do Han. Another resident, Sun Joo, remembers that they’re supposed to be getting a new resident that day. Jin Wook hopes he arrive quickly so he can go home, he’s tired. Il Kyu teases him. By how they interact, you can tell that they are friends.
Do Han sits, playing with a do-decahedral Rubik’s cube. He keeps thinking about Shi Ohn. And he should. Shi Ohn saved his patient and made Do Han look good in the process.
Shi Ohn and Woo Suk are outside. Woo Suk is holding Shi Ohn’s hands, consoling him. Woo Suk asks if Shi Ohn wants to stay there. No. Is he hungry? No. Shi Ohn’s stomach growls loudly, making Woo Suk chuckle. He muses that since Shi Ohn isn’t hungry, he’ll just have to go and eat some beef stew all alone. This gets Shi Ohn’s attention. Is he talking about the top-rated beef stew made with pine nuts and chestnuts? I love that Shi Ohn knows these types of things. Yeah, that’s the one, but Shi Ohn says he’s not hungry. I love how Woo Suk is teasing him. It shows what a good relationship they have.
Shi Ohn says that he is fine, but he thinks his conditioned reflexes are not functioning properly. Whatever that means.
A large crowd walks through the hospital lobby with Yeo Won. Hyun Tae tells her that she won’t have to be involved in these types of matters anymore. Why wouldn’t she want to be? Hyuk Pil pipes up that she doesn’t need to worry about hiring a mere resident. She replies that the late chairman was involved with hiring even the interns. Their doctors are not employees, but family. I really like her. She notices a large crowd of reporters at the front desk. Hyun Tae goes over to investigate.
One of the reporters tell Hyun Tae that around noon that day, a child was seriously injured at Chung Ryang Station. A surgeon at their hospital saved his life so they’re there to interview him. Do they know what his name is? No, only that he works there. Hyun Tae looks a little pleased that one of their doctors saved a patient is such a glorious manner. Little does he know that it was Shi Ohn, the man they just voted *not* to hire.
Shi Ohn and Woo Suk are eating beef stew. Have to have that gratuitous food shot. Man, it looks good. Woo Suk encourages him to slow down. A TV in the restaurant shows video footage of the accident at the train station, calling it breaking news. Woo Suk realizes it’s Shi Ohn. The news is praising his fast work and excellent skills. The video clip posted online has more than 120,000 hits in four hours, making it the third most-viewed video online. The newscaster adds that the entire world is watching...
Woo Suk’s phone rings. It’s another administrative meeting. I love how this scene establishes some things about Shi Ohn's character. He told Woo Suk about helping the boy at the train station, but he didn't go into great detail about how serious the situation was. When they are talking about him on television, he's more interested in the stew than what they're saying about him. For Shi Ohn, that recognition that some people crave, even from their loved ones, he doesn't really care about. He's not about boasting about himself or his accomplishments, which he could do. And I like that about him.
Hyuk Pil is complaining that in the history of their foundation, they’ve never overturned a vote by the board. My woman, Yeo Won, says that there’s always an exception, both domestically and in cases abroad. Also, she heard that he’s their own doctor. ‘Wouldn’t it look bad if we didn’t hire him?’ is the implied question. Chae Kyung objects to hiring him for that one reason, calling it nonsense. Yeo Won says that she’s not just urging it because of the good PR, but also because of his talent as a doctor. Jae Joon worries about how autism can cause both mental and living difficulties for the person with the condition. He won’t be easily cured and if he is, there’s a definite limit to how much. Surprisingly, although I think it’s the PR that he’s excited about. Hyun Tae says there’s definite cause to reconsider. Chae Kyung is shocked by this.
So is Hyuk Pil. He protests that their hospital will become a laughing stock. Woo Suk is trying to contain his reactions to these types of comments. He asks them to give Shi Ohn six months to prove himself. If, during that time, there’s trouble… I can foresee some misunderstanding that almost gets him fired. Or if Shi Ohn proves himself incompetent, Woo Suk will resign from his position as director of the hospital. Snap! He’s putting his career on the line for Shi Ohn. Which shows just how much faith he has in him. Yeo Won has my reaction. But she looks a little more worried than I do. Everyone else is surprised, too.
Woo Suk admits that autism does add difficulties to one’s life. But, it’s not incurable. It depends on the patient how much, but it’s curable. Shi Ohn is a case where he can be cured. The focus isn’t whether they hired a person with a handicap. They should do it to give hope to all of the autistic patients and families in the country. He asks them to be generous in their reconsideration.
Shi Ohn enters the meeting, looking rather sheepish. He hasn’t changed his shirt, which is still splattered with Hyun Woo’s blood. He bows to everyone. Yeo Won asks him why he wants to be a doctor there. He says it’s because of his bunny and his brother. The day that the tree smelled like ice cream, his bunny went to heaven right before his eyes. And the day that the railroad tracks smelled like rusting irons, his brother went to heaven right before his eyes. Neither of them had the chance to become an adult. He wanted to let them become adults. He wanted them to have children of their own and love those children. He wanted that for them more than anything. I think I just saw one of the doctors wipe away a tear. I know I’m crying.
Shi Ohn adds that he also wants to make a lot of money so that he can buy a 3-D television for the children from his childhood orphanage. Since they’ve never seen one, he wants to show them one. This last one seems to even get Chae Kyung.
Yeo Won announces that as of today, they will employ Shi Ohn as a temporary resident in the pediatric ward. She tells him welcome. Hyun Woo also welcomes him. Most of the doctors applaud, although some do begrudgingly. I guess those are the ones who voted against. But, yay! They changed their minds! Woo Suk smiles like a proud papa.
Later, Yeo Won and Woo Suk are talking. She tells him she’s never seen him act so rashly. He replies that sometimes, you need to be rash for a just cause. Is there some romantic history between them? She tells him that he could get in trouble because of Shi Ohn. From the beginning this hasn’t been about Shi Ohn, but a power game. I translate it that way because ‘power game’ is the exact term she used. It’s always interesting how they’ve adopted these English terms. How did they used to describe it, since I don’t think that type of thing was invented after the Koreans encountered English. Woo Suk just smiles and says that he doesn’t know anything about that type of thing.
Yeo Won scolds him, telling him he needs to know about it, because they’re anxious to kick him out. This makes me think even more that they’re either related or have had a relationship because of her familiarity. Woo Suk sighs and says that even if he stops being the hospital’s director, he’s still a doctor. Yeo Won sighs and shakes her head, muttering that she feels like she’s talking to a brick wall.
Shi Ohn is being interviewed. Hyuk Pil and Choong Man are laughing as they watch from above with Hyun Tae. Hyuk Pil comments that he didn’t even know Hyun Tae’s intention and he kept discouraging hiring Shi Ohn. They’re both excited at the prospect of getting rid of Woo Suk. Hyuk Pil isn’t laugh, just watching Shi Ohn be interviewed.
Hyuk Pil tells Choong Man to make sure that the rumor spreads about him all over the hospital, that the director hired an incapable doctor. He needs to make sure it’s malevolent. Choong Man all ready to do that, certain that Woo Suk won’t be able to last a month. They laugh some more.
Hyun Tae muses, don’t they feel like they are at a casino? What? They’re as confused as I am with this question. Hyun Tae says that they’re playing roulette and Shi Ohn has become the ball. No one knows their odds of winning.
Do Han is still working on the dodecahedron Rubik’s cube. When asked about it, Do Han comments that he thought a few hours would be enough to do it., but it’s already been a week. Dude, have you ever done the regular six-sided cube? It’s not that simple. And what do you want to bet that Shi Ohn quickly finishes it? Heh.
Choong Man enters, getting their attention. He tells them that the new resident they’ve been waiting for has arrived. Choong Man adds that he was hired specially because of the director’s recommendation. And then he adds, that they’ll see soon enough that his condition is not so well. Way to set Shi Ohn up to fail. Too bad, they’ve already ‘met’ him down in the OR and he’s the reason Do Han was able to save Hyun Woo. Jin Wook asks about his condition, but all Choong Man says is, “You’ll see.”
Woo Suk enters with Shi Ohn. They recognize him as the guy who cause trouble down in the OR. Woo Suk introduces him, saying he’s in his first year of residency. Do Han stares at him with a puzzled look on his face. Woo Suk asks about Yoon Seo. Jin Wook tells him she left early today.
Woo Suk tells Shi Ohn to introduce himself. He bows and tells them his name and his address. He finished his internship at Song Sun University’s medical school. Choong Man snidely says, “I told you.” Woo Suk doesn’t notice. He’s just a really proud papa. The rest of the residents obviously think Shi Ohn’s really weird.
Woo Suk tells them he’ll be leaving and please make Shi Ohn feel welcome. And he asks Do Han to take special care of Shi Ohn. Do Han looks less than pleased. One of the residents asks Shi Ohn if his name means something special. He shakes his head, no, adding that the pastor named him so that he can become a warm and generous person because shi means generous and ohn means warm-hearted.
Choong Man suddenly starts yelling at Shi Ohn. Where does he think he is?! This is the best pediatric hospital in the country. He tells Shi Ohn to act right. Shi Ohn thinks for a minute and then says, “Coffee, coffee. If you use 8 years of the sound energy from a person’s yelling, you can brew one cup of coffee. But…” He looks at Choong Man’s name badge, “Judging from Manager Go’s decibels, I believe that time can be shortened.” The other residents try not to laugh. Choong Man just asks him what his problem is. Do Han is not happy to be stuck with this guy.
Do Han is now in Woo Suk’s office. He’s got a problem. It’s not because of Shi Ohn’s savant syndrome, but because he’s got the character of a child. How are the patient’s parents going to accept him? Woo Suk says that the decision was made to test out Shi Ohn’s character and decision making skills. Woo Suk is confident that he will succeed. And dude, his outburst saved *your* patient. Do Han is having a hard time supporting this. He’s never gone against Woo Suk once, but Woo Suk’s never made a decision or done anything that Do Han couldn’t agree with. But this is different.
Woo Suk tells Do Han not to take this so emotionally. Do Han says he’s being completely logical. Woo Suk says that he thinks of all of them as his children. I called it, proud papa. Do Han protests that Woo Suk should then hear him out. Woo Suk continues that every child is the same to a parent. He does add that Shi Ohn is a little more special to him. Again, he asks Do Han to help Shi Ohn out; a last request from his teacher. What does that mean? Please don’t have cancer! Maybe it's because he knows they're trying to oust him, but *please don't have cancer!* This is a hard pill for Do Han to swallow.
Shi Ohn stands before Do Han in Do Han’s office. Do Han's not looking at him because he hates this, but he's trying to honor his mentor's request. Do Han asks him what he calls a pediatric surgeon? Shi Ohn: A general surgeon. Because? Because the pediatric surgeon deals with the child’s entire body. And? Because a child is in the process of growing. There may be many changes. There’s a difference in the way to diagnose and treat them. One must predict all of these differences.
Do Han sighs and says that Shi Ohn will never become the general surgeon that he just described. Why not? Instead, he should focus on finding the exact reasons why you can’t become that surgeon. Hunh? What’s with these teachers and their cryptic comments? Does he understand?
Shi Ohn has been distracted by the Rubik’s dodecahedron. Do Han yells at him, asking him what he’s been paying attention to?! Shi Ohn apologizes. Do Han snaps that Shi Ohn needs to avoid two things working for him: mistakes and excuses. Do Han sighs and tells Shi Ohn to go home and rest. Starting tomorrow, he’ll be on-call for 24-hours. He’ll get his orders from his seniors.
As Shi Ohn starts to exit, Do Han stops him. Has he ever performed surgery other than first aid or a simple procedure? No, Shi Ohn hasn’t. Then how did Shi Ohn know that Hyun Woo had pericardial trauma? Shi Ohn says that he processed together what he saw, heard and learned. Do Han tells him to explain precisely how he processed all of it.
Shi Ohn: In the ambulance, although Hyun Woo’s pulse was weak, his saturation rate was normal. His blood pressure did not react to anything.Do Han sighs, because that’s the right answer. Jin Wook enters and asks Do Han to come evaluate a set of colon x-rays from the NICU. Do Han tells Shi Ohn to go and leaves his office. Shi Ohn’s eyes stray to the dodecahedron.
Do Han: You suspected it just because his blood pressure didn’t react?
Shi Ohn: (shakes his head) No, I heard a faint heart beat. And although his blood pressure was low, his pulse was normal. That’s why I thought it may be Beck’s triad. Hangeul. Beck’s triad = a collection of three medical signs associated with acute cardiac tamponade. The signs are low arterial blood pressure, distended neck veins, and distant, muffled heart sounds. That’s a sign that there is blood accumulation around the heart.
Dohan declares that it’s microcolon. Microcolon = An abnormally small colon, often developing because of a decreased functional state. Judging from the films (x-rays), they can’t determine the cause. They’ll need to do a biopsy.
Shi Ohn hasn’t left Do Han’s office. He goes back in to see why Shi Ohn’s still there. When he says Shi Ohn’s name, Shi Ohn quickly puts down the dodecahedron and leaves. Sitting down at his desk, he notices that Shi Ohn has solved his puzzle. Outside the office, Shi Ohn is rearranging some books.
Hospital Room. Choong Man and Jung Mi (the monster nurse from earlier) enter. The mother tells him that it’s been three days since her son’s surgery and he’s still in pain. Choong Man tells her that this is just how surgery is; the pain should last for about a week. It doesn’t look like this is normal post-op pain, though, judging from the kid’s face. Jung Mi rolls him eyes and suppresses a sigh. The mother asks if her son will be okay. Choong Man smarms for her not to worry, they used the best medicine, and leaves, presumably late for his golf game.
Jung Mi rubs his face in frustration and chases after Choong Man. Before he has a chance to say anything, Choong Man lays into him for grabbing him right before he’s about to go home. This is a doctor who’s concerned about his patients. Jung Mi protests that the boy was in so much pain. So it’s not just me who doesn’t think this pain is normal.
Using his finger to continually poke Jung Mi’s chests, he condescendingly asks, “Are you in charge?” Jung Mi has no choice but to apologize. Choong Man mutters that everyone over-reacts. He tells Jung Mi that he has an important seminar tomorrow, so don’t call needlessly. He likes to wave his finger in this guy’s face. Jung Mi bows in agreement as Choong Man leaves. What else can he do?
After Choong Man’s gone, Jung Mi sighs exasperatedly and rubs the pain in the back of his neck.
Shi Ohn has arrived at Hyun Woo’s room. Hyun Woo is still intubated and is unconscious. He smiles ever so slightly as he looks at Hyun Woo sleep.
A Bar. It looks like the hospital’s bar since there are IV’s hanging around, including in Yoon Seo’s hand. She complains that she doesn’t know what’s wrong with her. No matter how much she drinks, she can’t get drunk. The bar tender, who is cleaning a glass because that’s what all bar tenders do, asks her why they always fight. I’m thinking he means her and Do Han. Were they enemies in a past life? She admits that he’s a good doctor, but he doesn’t listen to her at all. The bar tender agrees that he hates arrogant people, too. But, Do Han has every right to be arrogant. It fits him.
Yoon Seo yells at the bar tender, calling him her uncle, asking why he always takes Do Han’s side! She seems like she’s a little drunk. Fine, she says, she’s the bratty one. The Bar tender tells her that at least she’s aware of it and then asks if she wants her next drink to be 50/50, so she can get drink. No, she wants soju and beer at a 7 to 3 ratio.
Yoon Seo’s phone rings and she answers it with a testy ‘what?’ A voice that sounds like Do Han asks where she is. She says the library. He asks if she’s drinking again. Is this a habit when they fight? She says innocently, “a little bit.”
It is Do Han. He’s standing, perturbed by his car. I guess that’s his standard expression, irritated. He wants to know if Yoon Seo is still angry.
Yoon Seo asks why he’s calling, to make her feel better?
No, Do Han just wants her to contemplate what she did wrong earlier. Then he points out that drinking and covering up her faults doesn’t help her at all. She needs to stop drinking and get ready for the next day’s surgery.
Yoon Seo’s face mirrors my own – what a jerk! Do Han declares that he’s hanging up. Yoon Seo stares at her phone, amazed, and calls him a bastard. She tells the bar tender that she wants him to mix up all the liquor in the entire place for her. Because that will taste *really* good and won’t leave you hung over while you operate. She spins around on her bar stool to accentuate that she means *all* the liquor.
Shi Ohn has arrived, with his luggage – He’s lucky it wasn’t stolen. – at his new apartment. It’s relatively large for a studio and looks bigger than his old place.
Do Han enters his apartment. It’s huge and nicely decorated. A stark contrast to Shi Ohn's quarters. A dress that looks familiar lies on the steps. He’s getting it on with Chae Kyung. He frowns at the sight of the dress. This dude is never happy. He takes off his suit jacket and sits in one of the chairs in the living room. The set designer for this series is really good. It’s not necessarily what I would decorate my place with, since I’m no so into contemporary, but it looks really good. Chae Kyung comes out wearing slippers and a bathrobe. He tells her she should have called first. He would have come back sooner. Or would you have made an excuse so she wouldn’t come over? His voice isn’t exactly brimming over with affection. She tells him that it’s fine and asks why he’s wearing a black suit. Did he go somewhere? Evidently they’re not close if he didn’t mention the jesa (death anniversary) to her. He just says he had a meeting that morning.
Chae Kyung remarks that she was trying to vote Shi Ohn out for Woo Suk’s sake. Do Han isn’t sure what she means. She tells him that if they hadn’t have hired Shi Ohn, this all would have just passed by. But, Woo Suk’s risking everything. If Shi Ohn makes a mistake, Woo Suk will have to resign. Do Han wants clarification what she means. She says that the only reason they decided to hire Shi Ohn is because Woo Suk put his job on the line. This is their way to get rid of him.
Do Han sighs and massages his forehead in frustration. Woo Suk didn’t tell him that one. Chae Kyung says that the stupid executive manager didn’t catch on and kept going against the idea, but the vice president is completely for him. The vice president is above everyone else. Do Han can’t understand why. Chae Kyung says that he sometimes does things out of the blue, and the results were always good. Regardless, she’s concerned about the vice president because he’s the only person she can’t read.
Yoon Seo is staggering down the street, jumping around and flapping her arms, calling out that Kim Do Han is a bastard. Someone yells at her to go home quickly, since she’s drunk. She yells up at him, asking if he has an amplifier in his throat since his voice is so loud. He tells her if she doesn’t stop, he’s going to call the cops. She tells him to go ahead, she’d like the nice drive.
Shi Ohn sits in his new apartment, with cookies stacked in a pyramid. There’s a candle on the top one. He holds his plastic green scalpel and looks at it. He’s still wearing the blood-spattered shirt. That thing’s going to be hard to clean.
Flashback. Hyung is singing Shi Ohn happy birthday, as they sit inside the old broken-down bus that we saw earlier when Shi Ohn was drawing the rabbit. There’s lots of happy drawings on the outside of the bus, too. There’s a plate with a pyramid of the same cookies. Hyung has Shi Ohn blow out his candle and then gives him a gift. He says he saved up his allowance to buy it for Shi Ohn, because Shi Ohn said he wanted to become a doctor. It’s a child’s medical kit, which includes the green scalpel we’ve seen earlier. It really reminds me of the Fisher-Price medical kit I has when I was a kid. Hyung tells Shi Ohn he can do it, because he’s hyung’s brother. Shi Ohn agrees that he’ll do it because he’s hyung’s brother.
Hyung tells Shi Ohn never to think he’s dumb because he’s much, much smarter than his brother is. He knows that Shi Ohn’s going to be a great doctor so that later, when he or their mom are sick, Shi Ohn will cure them. Oh, I wish that were true about you, hyung. Shi Ohn agrees to do it and hyung scuffles his hair affectionately. Then he gives Shi Ohn one of the cookies and tells him to eat slowly. I guess old habits die hard, since Woo Suk told him to eat slowly, too.
Shi Ohn blows out his candle and eats the exact same cookie from the flashback. As he chews, the door lock beeps and the door opens. Shi Ohn stands up, shocked that someone’s entered his apartment. It’s Yoon Seo. She doesn’t even notice him. She’s still muttering about Do Han and what he said. He just stands there chewing as she starts peeling off layers of shirts. I don’t understand why she’s wearing a slip, since she's wearing a shirt and jeans, but I guess that’s so we won’t see her underwear when she kicks off her jeans. Then she flops into bed and falls asleep.
Shi Ohn awkwardly puts the rest of his cookie back on the plate and goes over to stand by the bed. He says excuse me. Yoon Seo flops up and yells at him to get out of there. She asks him if he’s trying to discipline her again. Then she mutters that he’s such a showoff and lies back down.
Shi Ohn starts pacing back and forth, rubbing his pant legs, trying to figure out what to do. I bet this is the first time he’s had a stranger invade his personal space like this. And it's a pretty woman at that. He stops and starts to stare at the sleeping Yoon Seo as the series theme begins to play.
The next morning. Outside shot of the apartment building. There’s a very loud scream. She screams again but starts to choke. Shi Ohn is standing in his boxers, brushing his teeth, with a towel draped around his neck. He’s just standing there, staring at her, while he brushes his teeth, not saying anything. It’d be a little bit creepy if you didn’t know him or how you ended up in his apartment. And the first episode ends.
Thoughts
I think this is a great start to the series. We’ve gotten a good introduction to all the major players and what their characters are like:
- Shi Ohn is kind and warm-hearted, like the pastor hoped when giving him that name, even though he’s hindered by his autism. He’s driven to succeed by memories of his bunny and his dead brother, who told him never to believe people when they told him he was stupid.
- Woo Suk is the doctor that became a father to Shi Ohn, since Shi Ohn’s real father is a scumbag. He’s highly respected and the hospital’s director, but people are looking to find a reason to get him out.
- Yoon Seo, the heroine, is kind-hearted, too, and an excellent doctor. She’s not afraid to stand up for her convictions and beliefs, even when it means contradicting her boss. She also doesn’t know when she’s drunk. She has some sort of relationship with her boss, what we don’t know yet.
- Do Han, the boss, is an excellent surgeon but horrible in the people category. He deeply cares about his patient’s physical well-being but doesn’t pay any attention to their emotional well-being. And I think this has to do with the death of the boy(s) we saw in front of the urn at the beginning of the episode. Do Han is highly respected and highly intelligent, but he’s also very arrogant. He’s Woo Suk’s student and greatly respects his professor, but he’s doubting this particular decision.
- Yeo Won is the chairman of the board. She values people first and foremost, whether it’s her staff or their patients. She supported Shi Ohn’s appointment when no one else did and had a problem with Hyuk Pil calling him a retard. Not everyone is happy she has her position. She has some sort of familiar relationship with Woo Suk.
- Chae Kyung works at an efficiency expert for the hospital. She isn’t concerned at all about the people, but instead about the hospital’s profitability. She’s also dating Do Han, although neither seems in love with the other. She seems cold and dispassionate and seems good at finding ways to manipulate things in her favor.
- Jung Mi is the head nurse. He isn’t afraid to act silly to cheer up his patients and is very concerned about their well-being.
- Choong Man is the chief of Pediatric Surgery. He doesn’t have ethics and all he cares about is the money. He can be condescending and a bully and is gunning to get Woo Suk out.
- Hyuk Pil is the head of the hospital's foundation. He is also slimy and isn’t above a smear campaign if it gets him what he wants. He wants Woo Suk gone. He thinks very highly of himself and looks down on others, especially those less fortunate. He was nice enough to call Shi Ohn a retard.
- Hyun Tae is Yeo Won's second in command. He seems very detached from everything. He also seems very pragmatic and very sly at getting what he wants. Right now we don't know what he wants, but I'm thinking to get rid of Woo Suk and Yeo Won.
- We also briefly met the other residents, but not enough to draw any conclusions, other than they are friends and good-natured. They weren’t quick to ridicule Shi Ohn, even though he seems strange, which point to a good character.
I like the tone that’s been set with this first episode. There wasn’t much exposition fairy, even though if you weren’t already inclined to root for Shi Ohn, you will after his initial flashback, which made me cry. Anytime where someone loses someone/thing that they love and that accepts them, it makes me cry.
Even though Do Han comes across as a complete jerk, we’ve gotten hints that he’s not really this way. He cares about his mentor and is protective of him. He cares about his patients, even if he doesn’t put the emotional part in it. From the beginning, the writers have set it up so that we’re going to be getting an explanation as to why he’s so clinical with people. I’m wondering if perhaps the accident that involved Shi Ohn and his brother also was the cause of death for the boy(s) that Do Han visited in the beginning of the episode. I can see that being a major emotional turning point for the story and his relationship with Shi Ohn.
You can really tell that Shi Ohn wants to connect with people but doesn’t know how to besides inside his own head. Saying thank you and the look of affection he gave Hyun Woo reveal that. He also doesn’t hold cruelty or meanness against people. The boys at the beginning were beating him up because he wouldn’t get the hint and leave them alone. When Choong Man screams at him, he doesn’t take it personally but has a sense of humor about it.
I really love the father-son dynamic going on between Shi Ohn and Woo Suk, although part of me is worried. K-dramas usually don’t let good parents stay around. Typically. Some do – like the mom in My Name is Kim Sam Soon and the parents in 49 Days. And I keep on thinking of examples, so maybe I don’t need to be worried. I’m finishing up Gu Family Book and that had not one by two good fathers die in it. I hope that Woo Suk’s still around by the end of the series because I don’t think I could watch Shi Ohn lose another person that he loves. Yi Ohn and his bunny were enough.
I also look forward to the developing relationship between Shi Ohn and Hyun Woo. Even though he’s not listed in the cast list, I have a feeling that Hyun Woo is going to play a significant part in Shi Ohn’s life. Maybe not, but he seems to have developed a real connection to this boy and I’d like that connection explored.
As a whole, this series hasn’t disappointed me. I didn’t expect to cry so hard so early – it’s that speech about his dead brother that really got me – but I like how this is treating autism and autistics. It’s not heavy-handed or flip. It’s balanced just right. And they haven’t made it about Shi Ohn against the world. He’s got people around him who might be cruel, but more are going to be compassionate and supportive. And they haven’t treated him like he’s mentally handicapped, but rather a person that’s retained his childlike perspective in a mature person’s body. And I can’t wait to see how the relationship between Shi Ohn and Yoon Seo develops. He might have autism. That doesn’t mean he can’t fall in love with someone. And he was studying her face as she slept.
Joo Won is doing a great job of portraying an autistic. I have a nephew with higher-functioning autism and have met several autistic children. Joo Won did a great job of staying within himself. I don’t know how else to explain it. Autistics are there, but it’s like there’s a chasm between you and them when it comes to connecting with them. (The little boy playing Shi Ohn as a child is really good too, although it has distracted me a few times, the scar over his left eyebrow that Joo Won doesn’t have. But I’m being picky.) And even though much of the time Joo Won is silent, he does a great job of expressing Shi Ohn’s emotions. He could overact but, like great actors do, it's all in the little things. His tics and the way he holds his body are very believable and consistent. He's also doing a great job of acting with his cast mates as an autistic. Autistics aren't immune or impervious to the world, they just relate to it differently, and Joo Won is doing a great job of interacting while not interacting with the cast.
Props to the rest of the cast, too. They have done a great job establishing from the get-go the familiarity that this group would have. Their interactions make you believe that there's long-standing relationships here. Two of the characters are a little cartoony for me, Choong Man and Hyuk Pil, but I hope that improves. They're too villainous right now. Cackling over their evil plans... I'm hoping that they're developed a little more so that I don't feel like I'm watching Snidely Whiplash ruffle his fingers while he cackles evilly.
I'm liking that the show is providing Hangeul explanations for the medical terms and it says to me that medical dramas are not typical for Korean dramas, so they’re defining things for the audience. I also like how they make further explanations, in the form of Shi Ohn’s internal dialogue, very unclunky. Sometimes when those explanations come out in a drama, it can really feel like the exposition fairy has waved her wand, but throughout the drama at the train station, Shi Ohn was explaining why he was doing things, but it came across as if he was reciting a list like his route to get to the hospital; it’s just his way of thinking. It was very clever of the writers to set us up with that travel recitation before the accident happened, so you’re used to this type of thought process.
Oh, one more thing. A comment on the mechanics. So far I am really pleased with the set design, writing and film direction of the series. In a play, there shouldn't be anything on stage or in the script that is extraneous, and the series so far is doing a good job of not doing that. The opening shot of the ceramic bunny and the picture of Shi Ohn and his brother, both are central explanations of Shi Ohn's character and I think are things that are going to pop up throughout the entire series. The fact that he kept those and the green scalpel that Hyung gave him to encourage him to be a doctor, those show part of Shi Ohn's motivations and what keeps his going. The pictures on Woo Suk's desk, they may seem throw away, but they reveal big things about the relationships of these characters.
The flashbacks show instead of having us be *told* things and they're not too clunky. Visually, especially with having Shi Ohn appear in the shot that the memory appears in, is a really nice touch. And they haven't done too much obvious filming, like making sure that we noticed that Shi Ohn was being filmed in the train station. I really like how they’ve visually filmed this. I’ve watched a bunch of medical dramas and they’ve done a good job of incorporating the feel and the look of a modern medical drama, with the split screens and multiple angles and internal body views. I just wasn’t expecting quite so much technical jargon! It’s the one thing I dread in the future. More medical jargon. But it’s not enough to keep me from recapping this show, because, as they say in Korea, ‘Fighting!’
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