JTBC’s “Doctor Slump” ended its run over the weekend and considering its one of the few kdramas of 2024 I completed, I thought an overall review was in order. Let us talk about the drama, its actors, the script, and more.
Note: this is a subjective review. I will share my personal opinion. This is a spoiler review
Table of Contents
the script
“Doctor Slump” gained immense attention, and I mean IMMENSE when it was revealed that Park Shin Hye and Park Hyung Sik were set to collaborate on this project.
Considering it was Park Shin Hye’s 1st project post-marriage and baby, all eyes were on her, and she chose a wholesome life drama as her comeback project. I admit, I was among the many interested in what she was set to showcase with this drama, and overall, I think it was a fine drama. Let me explain!
So, the script is penned by Baek Sun-Woo who mostly wrote unknown projects. Although, she is known for the 2021 fantasy drama “My Roommate Is A Gumiho” which I thought was just fine. I remember at the time I thought that drama was unnecessarily long, and “Doctor Slump” is also unnecessarily long.
“Doctor Slump” 1st half was definitely more interesting and gripping, not in the traditional way, but in a ‘slower-paced’ way, as in it was interesting enough for those who connected with the characters and their struggles to keep up with.
The 2nd half immensely struggles with finding its identity beyond repeating what its been saying previously, its sluggish and boring. Generally speaking, the 2nd half had some highlights but was mostly forgettable and boring.
Why did I stick with it?
I personally stuck around because I wanted something on the lighter side, I also connected with the characters and shared some of their struggles, this personal connection was definitely a defining factor in why I stuck around even when I nearly wanted to drop it a couple of times.
The drama slows down significantly around episodes 10 to 13. I could probably slash about 2 to 4 hours of the drama’s run time as I do not think it’ll have an immense impact on the plot, and if I do that, it means it didn’t need to exist.
I understand, from a broadcasting perspective, if the station orders 16 episodes, you goin’ write 16 episodes, even if you know the script does not allow for that. But still, it does not justify the sluggishness felt throughout the 2nd half.
16 episodes are a lot of episodes, I feel like most people still don’t realize just how much 16 hours’ worth of content is, and for a drama about the topics it discusses, it definitely didn’t need to be this long, 10 would’ve been amazing, 12 would’ve been fine if we had wanted to tackle the Min Kyung-Min’s side plot more extensively.
which leads me to my next point, the Min Kyung-Min’s story. This story was interesting and a pivotal moment for the drama, however, I didn’t like how the screenwriter handled it, its like she shoehorned the idea for dramatic effect but didn’t want to bother with it beyond that, it felt like an afterthought, not something she wanted to do.
It definitely added spice and drama to the script, but I felt it wasn’t tackled enough, it was said he was also married but his wife or his associates were never brought up, its like adding the barebone of an idea to a script just to add some flare.
As a chemical engineer who is aware of the R&D processes and how drugs are made, some of the points fail to make sense and its weird that Ha-Neul’s character found such discrepancies in the drug-making process that no one picked up on. I don’t know about the Korean FDA specifically, but I am pretty sure this wouldn’t pass in such a country even if the laws are lax, which they aren’t, per my limited knowledge.
Now onto what I liked about “Doctor Slump.”
I personally liked how the screenwriter tackled mental health, its actually better than about 60% of the kdramas that specifically tackle this said topic. She showed how progress is not linear and how moving on and getting better differs for everyone.
I also liked how the characters took action, sought out help, visited the doctor and followed up, which is a hell of a lot more than some of the biggest kdramas that claim to tackle mental health issues ever did.
I also liked a lot of dialogue and how it talks about people coming to terms with their lives, setting boundaries, forgiving and forgetting, and more. I thought many points were sweetly written and well-thought-out.
But ultimately, even with those points in mind, it was not enough to carry the drama, because they were sprinkled in between a lot of filler content that failed to establish a deeper connection, at least in my opinion.
The screenwriter also had the chance to further explore the plot line of the secondary couple but never did so, which came off quite annoying considering she had all the time in the world to do that.
The characters
I would say all the characters are pretty basic, and pretty average in terms of writing, as in, they’re not particularly interesting or intriguing enough. They’re just fine. They’re sweet, but from a writing perspective, just fine.
I think this was intentional for the most part on the screenwriter’s side, as in she meant for them to be comfortable characters, sweet characters people could easily fall in love with and relate to.
The characters are, overall, not memorable, in the slightest.
Hyung Sik’s character is that of a saint, its like a fictional man character of what a woman would love to meet, a figure that does not exist IRL. A man like him with the circumstances he’s been through shouldn’t and likely wouldn’t exist. His kindness, his attitude and his demeanor does not really match how he grew up. An absolute sweet man, I loved the character and wish to meet a man like that in real life.
Ha Neul’s is also fine, I think she’s meant to present the average Korean woman in her 30s navigating life. Some aspects of the character when it comes to how she studies and near-obsessive behavior were nicely done, I think her character was fleshed out well with her circumstances in mind, she felt more human that Jeong-Woo ever did.
The performances and chemistry
I will start with this, if you don’t like Shin Hye’s acting style, this drama will not change your opinion, so I find people coming at it from that angle odd.
The highlight for me was Hyung Sik’s performance, he’s so playful and has incredible comedic timing without coming off childish, annoying or as if he’s doing the most. He’s always been strong in that department.
The rest of the cast does well like you’d expect them to. Kong Seong-Ha was nice, its my first time paying attention to her, I look forward to seeing how she does in future projects.
In terms of chemistry, I heard many mixed thoughts. I personally thought Shin Hye and Hyung Sik shared great synergy, they felt like teammates. I could tell they worked really hard to establish a familiar sibling-like connection at first, but I wouldn’t say they blew me away with their chemistry. They were fine in my opinion, but if you compare them for example to Hyung Sik’s chemistry with Bo Young, there is an obvious gap.
To me personally, and I’ve said this before, Shin Hye struggles in that department, she has struggled in that department for some time. I can tell she’s a bit more comfortable with intimate scenes now but still, she’s not the type of actress who can easily establish a romantic-like feel with her co-stars. I know some of you will disagree with this. This is all a very personal view, it depends on how each person sees her.
Conclusion
“Doctor Slump” was a cute wholesome drama about adults struggles with life and mental health issues. While it was quite adorable and sweet, the drama ultimately failed to make a lasting impression or impact because of its lackluster 2nd part.
Overall, it’s a fine watch especially if you love the actors involved in the project. However, if you were looking for something unique or out of this world, you will not find it here. The drama is ultimately not quite memorable.
So have you guys seen the drama? what did you think of it?
