Doctor Cha Episode 1 Recap and Review: To Surgery or Not to Surgery

JTBC’s new Korean drama series titled Doctor Cha (닥터 차정숙) stars Uhm Jung-hwa, Kim Byung-chul, Min Wook-hyuk, Myung Se-bin, Song Ji-ho, Jo A-ram, Baek Joo-hee, Park Jun-Keum, Kim Mi-kyung, Lee Seo-yoon, So A-rin, Park Chul-min, Kimg Byung-choon, Lim Hyoung-soo and Kim Yea-eun, alongside other cast members.

This Korean Drama series is directed by Kim Dae-Jin and written by Jung Yeo-Rang. Doctor Cha Episode 1 runs for 62 minutes. This show shows the protagonist making a lifestyle choice. After putting a pause on her medical resident career to become a homemaker, Cha Jung-sook decides to start her training all over again when her husband, a chief surgeon at the university hospital, cheats on her.

Doctor Cha Episode 1 Recap

A normal homemaker, Cha Jeong-sook is going to visit her friend’s place in the most classy clothing she has at her disposal. However, as her friend reveals, even that is not enough to hide how dull she looks and how her freckles are showing up on her face. In an attempt to cheer her friend up, she gives her a free treatment removing all the freckles from her face. While this gives her confidence, it makes her think about the days when she became a doctor like her friend and had to stop unceremoniously.

On the bus, she ruminates about this when suddenly, a passenger falls over and starts choking. As people start screaming for a doctor, Jeong-sook accidentally blurts that she’s a doctor, and people start shoving her towards the choking man. Even though she has a medical license, she hasn’t practised in 20 years, so this treatment was a complete failure, and she yelled for the bus driver to stop and the passengers to call an ambulance.

The emergency responder asked her to join them at the hospital because she was the one who decided to mildly see and treat the patient. However, a surgeon from the same university was passing by, and he jumped into the ambulance, working diligently to clear an airway for the man, saving his life. As the doctor, kind of doctor duo, exited the building, he asked her why she decided to treat the patient when she knew it was illegal. She explains her precarious situation, and this interaction becomes one of the many coming soon in this episode.

Cut to her husband, carrying himself with the aura and grace of a hardened leader, delegating and assigning jobs like it’s in his blood. Truly a specimen of a man until he gets into the lift, and we see him hold hands with Choi Seung-hi. The two when to medical school together, and this affair has clearly been going on for a long time. The two are very comfortable with each other and are even comfortable continuing their relationship in a public place like a hospital.

They click so well together that he lies to his wife and goes on a trip with Seung-hi, saying he has a conference in Europe. While packing his bags, she notices that his shades have gotten spoilt, so she buys some at the department store. She faints here and is immediately taken to the emergency room, where she is told that her liver is under extreme damage and that she must call her family. Her mother drops everything to be there, and soon, these few days of being admitted to the hospital turn into a full month.

She now even needs a liver transplant to continue functioning as a human being. The pallor on her face has completely fallen, and she cannot even walk a few steps before collapsing. The only ray of sunshine is her doctor, who has been instrumental in improving her life and just cheering her up by speaking to her about the work. They become pretty good friends. On the other hand, her mother-in-law is an absolute menace to her mental health.

Also Read: Has Netflix’s Queenmaker Season 2 Been Confirmed? What is in Store for Kim Hee-ae and Moon So-ri’s K-drama?

Forbidding In-ho from donating his liver and making Jeong-sook’s life miserable has been on her bucket list ever since the whole liver transplant conversation started. The mother-in-law also insulted Jeong-sook’s mother and blamed her for her daughter’s deteriorating health. So much so that after In-ho begrudgingly agrees to sign the consent forms for the transplant and drops the pen to the form, his mother comes and tears the pages.

Somehow, the transplant still happens. The most satisfying part occurs now, when she wakes up from her transplant, looks up at her husband and says just two words, “You Bastard.” The smile on her face after saying this is undeniable. Her kids are just happy to see their mom, who has only worked for the family, awake after her strenuous surgery. The episode ends on this note.

Doctor Cha Episode 1 Review

This is a pretty strong opening to the series. First of all, the protagonist is in a different look than the one we see in the trailer and has been sequestered into a trope that she isn’t too happy being in. However, the best part is that she doesn’t let anyone question the decisions that she makes by herself. It is quite a good piece of feminist text. The female characters are all different archetypes of what it is to be a woman, and the show does a good job of separating them.

Moreover, the premise is already interesting because the main character is growing out of her shell, and the slow-burn structure works well with the context they want to cover. The pressure builds enough for a character to snap, after which the show will start picking up, and we’ll see what lies next for her. The writing is also extremely brilliant because it all slots into place very smoothly, and the humour is also kept alive. While some of the concepts covered can be quite heavy, this show maintains the jovial nature it promised.

Doctor Cha Episode 1 is currently streaming on Netflix. What do you think of In-ho’s character? Let us know in the comments below.

Also Read: Loved Tiny Beautiful Things? Here Are Some Other Similar Gut-Wrenching Shows For You to Watch