Drama premieres are slowly starting to ramp up and we have three new premieres to entertain us this week. Two are from tvN: a supernatural mystery and a down-to-earth hospital drama. Our third drama is the return of a Netflix original that dangles the possibility of a zombie apocalypse.
Memorist
Time slot: Wednesday & Thursday
Broadcaster: tvN
Genre: Mystery, thriller
Episode count: 16
Reasons to watch: Yoo Seung-ho stars as a detective with a supernatural ability to read people’s memories in tvN’s latest mystery, Memorist. Although his ability is a huge asset, his tendency to act first and think later has a negative impact on his investigations. It’s not that Yoo’s a hothead, it’s due to the psychological toll of his abilities; when he reads people’s memories, he can literally feel their pain. Due to his wildcard nature, he’s partnered with Lee Se-young, a practical and talented profiler. Her intellect and skills allowed her to rise quickly–yet she resigned from a position as a police academy professor and declined an appointment to the prosecutor’s office to work cases. She has a personal motive for wanting to be on the streets, and it may lie with the ominously nicknamed serial killer, “The Eraser.” The killer has a supernatural ability as well, which means our heroes will be fighting an uphill battle to bring the perp to justice.
Hospital Playlist
Time slot: Thursday
Broadcaster: tvN
Genre: Medical, human
Episode count: 12 episodes
Reasons to watch: Hospital Playlist (previously known as Smart Doctor Living) features a star creative team, the writer and director duo behind the Answer Me series, and a strong ensemble cast. Jo Jung-seok, Jung Kyung-ho, Yoo Yeon-seok, Jeon Mi-do, and Kim Dae-myung play a group of doctors who first became friends during medical school. Now on the cusp of turning 40, they all happen to end up working at the same hospital together. Though they’re at different places in their lives now compared to when they were students, their friendship and devotion to their calling haven’t wavered. They’re just five ordinary people who happen to do extraordinary work in their daily lives. Writer Lee Woo-jung and PD Shin Won-ho do such an incredible job making the ordinary riveting, so I can’t wait to see what’s in store for us.
Kingdom 2
Time slot: Friday
Broadcaster: Netflix
Genre: Sageuk, zombie, thriller
Episode count: 6 episodes (to be released simultaneously)
Reasons to watch: After more than a year’s wait, we pick up again where the first season of Kingdom left off. Our once isolated prince, played by Joo Ji-hoon, had found valuable allies and it seemed that the battle against the zombie spread had been won…then the season ended with a huge cliffhanger. Not all is lost for Joseon, Bae Doo-na was on the trail of a possible cure for the zombie illness when the season ended and Joo Ji-hoon had earned the loyalty of many people (though there may be a traitor in his camp). But with the spread of the mysterious “disease” not nearly contained–and with even fewer limits on Ryu Seung-ryong’s power over the royal court–can goodness and humanity prevail? The entire cast from season 1 returns, and there will be a special guest appearance by Jeon Ji-hyun.