With most of the plot wrapped up in the previous episodes, the finale turns its attention to more minute details concerning the characters and their growth. As our leads face a new chapter, they experience a turning point in their lives and learn to move forward as better individuals who cherish themselves. While more misfortunes will eventually find our main couple, I’m confident that they will get through it together this time around.
EPISODES 15-16
Having resolved most of the major conflicts already, these final two episodes focus on tying up loose threads, and for our main couple, this means taking the next step in their relationship. Since the moment he saw Ha-neul wake up from her accident, Jung-woo knew that he wanted to marry her and prepared a ring. He just needs the perfect moment to propose, but his waffling only causes more misunderstandings. After receiving some advice, he ends up buying a full set of jewelry to cover all his bases, but no number of shiny rocks help solve his problem.
Meanwhile, Ha-neul is more preoccupied about Jung-woo’s well-being as people try to use him again for their own gain. The latest offender is her hospital marketing team, and she gets affronted by their actions on his behalf. They spend the night drinking, and when Hong-ran joins them, it becomes an odd impromptu date with the boyfriends carrying their drunk girlfriends home.
As Jung-woo drops Ha-neul off, she calls her mom and lies about having to work overtime right in front of her. She tells Jung-woo that she wants to stay the night at his place, and Mom beams at her future son-in-law as she gives the couple some space. Ha!
In the morning, Jung-woo smiles to himself as he remembers Ha-neul’s drunken antics fondly, but when he opens his door, he finds another surprise waiting for him: his old friend is here to apologize. The night before, Ha-neul promised to make everyone apologize to him and called up his friend as well as her hospital. She did it because she wanted him to be happy, but Jung-woo thinks to himself that he is because of her. She taught him the power of warmth, and now, he wants to share what he learned with others.
His first recipient is the little girl he is sponsoring, and with the lead surgeon’s blessings, Jung-woo is placed in charge of the upcoming reconstructive surgery. During the operation, they run into some trouble, but Jung-woo handles it calmly with Ha-neul’s help. Though this case is neither serious nor particularly tricky, it becomes their turning point as Ha-neul realizes that Jung-woo has overcome his trauma, and Jung-woo sees that Ha-neul has found her place.
As the show wraps up Jung-woo’s issues and has him make up with his friends, the last remaining task on his list is the proposal. While they hang out in his room, Ha-neul suggests that he move to a bigger place, but Jung-woo tells her that he enjoys spending time with her family. She says that he should become her family, then, and Jung-woo cuts himself in shock. Ha-neul rummages through his drawers to find a bandage, but instead, she discovers the trove of jewelry boxes. Jung-woo sheepishly admits that he bought all of them for her and makes Ha-neul wear every single piece — including a tiara. Heh.
Jung-woo finally proposes to Ha-neul, asking her to be his family, friend, wife, and the love of his life. Before she can answer, her phone rings, but Jung-woo pulls her back onto his bed. He tells her to lie about needing to work the night shift since he won’t let anymore interruptions ruin this moment, and he kisses her.
Just as everything seems to be going smoothly for our couple, life throws a wrench in their plans, and the story shifts to Ha-neul. She received an offer to study abroad for six months, and while a part of her wants to go for the experience, another part wants to stay with Jung-woo. She shares this conundrum with him, and though he hates the thought of her leaving, he tells her to seize this opportunity. He assures her that six months will fly by, and in the meantime, he will come visit her every chance he gets.
Of course, our couple still cries over the idea of being separated for so long, but their tears are wasted since, the next morning, the offer is rescinded. As Ha-neul wonders how she will break this news to Jung-woo, he ends work early to spend the day with her. They eat snacks and play games like they used to do, and then to top it all off, he throws her a surprise farewell party with the rest of her family.
As the situation grows out of control, Ha-neul grits her teeth, ready to reveal the truth, but before she can say anything, Jung-woo stops her mid-sentence. He saw the apology text pop up on her phone just now, and having put the clues together, he tries to give her an out and save face. Thus, he begs her not to leave, but Ha-neul knows him too well and asks how he figured it out.
He admits to seeing her text and worries about her since these were the same kind of problems that caused her burnout in the first place. She tells him not to worry since she spoke her mind this time, and we see that after her boss told her the bad news, she confronted him about the hospital politics. She only returned to her old workplace after promising herself to no longer suppress her feelings, and though she was upset in the moment, she is genuinely over it now.
While past Ha-neul might have blamed herself for this misfortune, the current her knows not to dwell on things she cannot control and, instead, look towards future opportunities. When she shares these thoughts with her doctor, he comments on how strong she has become and believes his services are no longer necessary. As he walks her out for the last time, she notices all the patients in the lobby and asks him what it means to be “better.” He thinks it means accepting the fact that misfortunes will always be a part of life but knowing that life will be okay as long as we have the strength to endure.
Before reaching the end, the show gives everyone a proper send-off. Dae-young and Hong-ran confirm their feelings for one another and learn to move on from their failed relationships. They realize that they are deserving of love just the way they are, and their family grows bigger together.
As for Ha-neul’s family, her younger brother finds a dream of his own and learns that his parents always valued him, too. He was never seen as lesser than his sister, and while she was named after the bright sky, he was named after the sparkling ocean. For Mom, she stops growing cabbages and finally fulfills her promise to her husband to raise their kids well in his absence. Lastly, her uncle reunites with his first love and starts a new chapter in his life filled with happiness.
With everyone getting their happily-ever-after, Jung-woo and Ha-neul get theirs as well, and our main couple go off to see the sunrise they missed the first time around. As they watch the sun peek over the horizon, they reflect on their journey of healing and the lessons they learned. At first, getting out of their slump felt impossible, but together, they learned to treasure their happy memories and move forward.
Jung-woo points out that Ha-neul still hasn’t given him a proper answer to his question, and though she reminds him that their wedding shoot is in a week, he wants to hear her say it. She gives him a flat response and then giggles since she finds it too embarrassing to say aloud. He chases after her along the beach, and the two of them laugh as they make another memory together, ready to endure the future no matter what it may bring. In the epilogue, the show reveals Ha-neul and Jung-woo’s wedding photos, and the final curtain falls on this adorable couple.
These last two episodes were spent making neat little bows for all the storylines with some being more satisfying than others. While I did find the episodes a tad longer than needed which made the pacing lackluster at times, overall, I thought the show was entertaining and the ending relaxing. Most of the tension was resolved last week, so the finale was more about giving our leads a proper goodbye and making sure they were truly healed. Though this did mean most of the last-minute conflicts were inconsequential to the plot, they were meant to reflect the characters’ growth and reassure the audience that Ha-neul and Jung-woo have truly learned to cherish themselves and not fall back on their old habits.
For Jung-woo, the show focused on his ability to refuse requests and put his own well-being first for once. As a result, he was able to turn down the marketing team and forgive his old friends, signaling that he has moved on from that incident. While I thought the actual reconciliation was shoehorned, I still enjoyed the sentiment and thought it was a nice reflection of his growth. It highlighted Jung-woo’s empathetic nature without taking away from the lessons he learned because forgiving his friends wasn’t about helping them but about allowing himself to let go of any lingering self-pity and loathing. He opened up communications with them in hopes of moving forward in his life, and unlike before, he doesn’t immediately step in to offer them help. Likewise, his friends don’t depend on Jung-woo to solve their problems for them, and instead, they strike out on their own.
While Episode 15 was about Jung-woo, the last episode shifted towards Ha-neul and her problems. Though she still struggles with work-life balance — and will probably wrestle with it for many more years — the point of her arc was more about her attitude towards her work environment than the actual hours. As a result, the study abroad dilemma was thrown in last minute and resolved just as quickly in order to demonstrate her new resolve. Rather than blame herself for “failing,” Ha-neul now knows that this empty treasure chest isn’t the only one she’ll come across. There are plenty of chances in life, and failing is simply another step towards achieving her goal. Personally, I think the message veers a little too individualistic for my taste — I don’t think calling out your boss is enough to remedy the situation in the long run — but in the grand scheme of things, it falls in nicely with the general themes of the show. In that regard, I enjoyed seeing Ha-neul’s growth and was happy to watch her finally feel confident in herself even in the face of misfortune. All in all, Doctor Slump was a fun, cute show about a pair of endearingly dorky human beings who fell in love and became each other’s best friend, and while the show had its fair share of bumps, I enjoyed our adorable leads and their enemies-to-friends-to-lovers relationship.