[Official] "Doctor X" Kim Ji-won Makes a Splash… Ratings Hit Record High, "Approaching 15% in Just Two Episodes"

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

Kim Ji-won's new drama, "Doctor X: The Age of the White Mafia," recorded an overwhelming first place in ratings among all Saturday mini-series, sparking a storm.

Episode 2 of SBS Friday-Saturday drama "Doctor X: The Age of the White Mafia" (Screenplay by Pyun Seong-geun / Directed by Lee Jung-rim) (hereinafter referred to as "Doctor X"), which aired on the night of the 10th, recorded a peak rating of 17.4%, a nationwide average of 14.9%, and a metropolitan area average of 14.7%. This secured an overwhelming first place not only in its time slot but also among all Saturday mini-series ratings, marking the grand beginning of the "Doctor X Syndrome" in just two episodes. Additionally, the 2049 demographic rating, which indicates buzz metrics, soared to a peak of 5.4% and an average of 4.6%, ranking first not only among all Saturday programs but also among all programs aired during the week (based on Nielsen Korea data).

In that day's broadcast, Gye Su-jung (played by Kim Ji-won) consecutively performed surgeries on two patients at the brink of life and death, fully proving her reputation as "Crazy Gye of the Operating Room," who has reached a godlike level. In particular, while Gye Su-jung's actions defying the corrupt bioethics of Gu Seodaeg Hospital, which prioritizes patient status and power, provided catharsis, mysteries surrounding Su-jung's past emerged, heightening tension.

Episode 2 opened with Su-jung's radical behavior. To transport emergency patient Lee Ju-hee (played by Yuna), she threw VIP patient Park Gwang-cheol (played by Kim Ki-cheon), who was receiving an imperial banquet, to the floor and stole his wheelchair. The surgeons regarded Su-jung, who shook the order of Gu Seodaeg Hospital, as a thorn in their side, and ordered surgical intern Park Tae-kyung (played by Kim Woo-seok) to monitor her every move. However, Tae-kyung, who already held respect for her, did not just monitor her but instead took good care of her, even discovering that he could coax her with anything edible, which elicited laughter.

Wherever Su-jung was, there was no end to the commotion. Su-jung and Tae-kyung occasionally witnessed a dispute between Gwang-cheol's and Ju-hee's guardians and stepped in to mediate, while Su-jung's arbitrary diagnosis of patients from other departments led doctors from those departments to come to her to protest, causing an uproar in the surgery department. Eventually, Su-jung pranked Gwang-cheol, who flaunted his power and acted arbitrarily, and delivered a sharp remark to a doctor from another department who valued only procedural issues rather than the patient, re-emerging as a troublemaker at Gu Seodaeg Hospital.

Amid this, the fates of Su-jung and Surgery Department Head Do Yun-sik (played by Kim Young-min) crossed over the surgeries for Gwang-cheol and Ju-hee. Do Yun-sik diagnosed that he should perform a resection surgery leaving part of the tumor to minimize the risk of death for Gwang-cheol, who has pancreatic cancer. Su-jung claimed she could remove 100% of the cancer and pointed out Do Yun-sik's incompetence in front of the doctors. She also expressed dissatisfaction, stating that Yun-sik was confirmed as the VIP attending doctor based on the power structure within Gu Seodaeg Hospital, not his surgical skills.

However, Yun-sik, consumed by ambition, had no intention of handing over the VIP surgery to Su-jung, and Su-jung took charge of Ju-hee's surgery, which had been under Yun-sik's care. Yun-sik provoked public outrage with his selfishness, expressing anger not only about choosing Gwang-cheol out of greed but also about losing Ju-hee, who was an important patient for his case report.

However, Ju-hee was in a situation where she refused surgery, worrying about her disabled mother and her family's difficult financial circumstances. Su-jung persuaded Ju-hee with confidence, saying, "If you don't have the surgery, you'll die within this month. Even if you do, you'll still die. In a hundred years. But on the condition that I do it, I never fail. As long as you are alive, I will definitely save you. Decide. Do you want to die in one month or in a hundred years?" Along with this, she still showed interest in the VIP surgery, and Tae-kyung expressed bitterness, wondering if Su-jung also had ambitions for advancement.

The long-awaited day of surgery arrived, and Su-jung and Yun-sik entered different operating rooms at the same time to begin their procedures. During this, Yun-sik was taken aback by a tumor that had spread more than expected, and out of fear of an arterial resection with an extremely high mortality rate, he chose to simply close the surgical site as it was. In response, Hospital Director Bu Seung-gwon (played by Son Hyun-joo) caused an unprecedented incident by calling Su-jung, who was in the middle of surgery, to Park Gwang-cheol's operating room. As soon as Su-jung received Seung-gwon's call, she moved to the other operating room as if she had been waiting for it. Tae-kyung, disappointed by this sight, blocked Su-jung and protested intensely. However, Su-jung left only the brief answer "priority" to Tae-kyung before moving to the VIP's operating room, raising questions.

However, there was a twist in Su-jung's words. She had already finished the surgery, which was expected to take 3 to 4 hours, in just one hour. Moreover, she challenged an unprecedented surgery involving en bloc resection of the pancreatic head including the artery, and completed it perfectly despite doctors' objections that it could cost her life. As a result, Su-jung successfully performed consecutive surgeries on two patients in just six and a half hours, proving her skills worthy of "Crazy Gye of the Operating Room." Jang Hee-sook (played by Lee Jeong-eun), who is the director of the medical staffing agency for doctors like Su-jung, secured double the labor fee. Watching the news about the search warrant for Gwang-cheol, she delivered a pointed remark, "Well, you have to be alive to receive punishment and pay the price," providing catharsis.

However, near the end of the episode, suspicions surrounding Su-jung's past were raised, reversing the atmosphere. The surgeons at Gu Seodaeg Hospital questioned Su-jung's almost supernatural surgical skills and searched for articles, discovering that there was a doctor named "Doctor X" who had used the same surgical method. Furthermore, the fact that the patient who received that surgery died two months after the operation, and the capture of Su-jung's face in a photo from the article, heightened the mystery. In addition, Seung-gwon warned Su-jung, saying, "You can't keep not failing forever," and Su-jung retorted, "It seems like you have already failed, Director," decorating the ending and heightening curiosity to the peak about how Su-jung's hidden past and her unpredictable actions will unfold.

"Doctor X" is a savior medical noir drama depicting the activities of Doctor X, "Gye Su-jung," the "Crazy Gye of the Operating Room," who shatters huge injustices with genius surgical skills that know no failure or compromise. It airs every Friday and Saturday night at 9:50 p.m.

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original