By: @emsel
Doctor Stranger is well known for being a bad drama, but I felt otherwise when I watched it recently for the first time. That is why I am here to convince all the unsuspecting and innocent ones to give it a chance.
The first and foremost reason would be that this drama has not one but two hot male leads — played by Lee Jong-seok and Park Hae-jin — but if you are someone who weighs dramas by the female character, then we have an awesome Kang So-ra acting alongside a plain vanilla Jin Se-yeon.
Yes, I am aware that such frivolous reasons aren’t good enough to motivate people to watch a show that lacks a substantial plot, but there was never a dull moment in any of the episodes. Truth be told, this drama isn’t my favourite or even on anyone’s list of top 50 K-dramas, but at the end of the day it is the entertainment factor that counts, and this drama made sure of having it nailed.
Imagine wanting to be with your lover, but in order to do so, you have to compete in medical surgeries to score points to be a lead doctor in a VIP surgery that involves a conspiracy between North and South Korea. This is not makjang, and certainly not an average medical romance story, but rather a mix of genres to keep everything balanced. Everyone gets to have a taste of something, and I am going to ignore the collective groan I just heard at that point.
The unintentional humor at play is another plus for this drama. For instance, the protagonist fleeing on a motorcycle is cornered by enemies between a staircase and a car in a narrow alley. It is impossible to escape, but this is fiction, so the hero rides straight at the evil guy standing on top of the stairs, and boom! The bike sweeps across the antagonist, in addition to partially hitting him in the process, and continues its onward journey with the lead. Actually, people call this suspension of disbelief or plot armor, but if it does not involve throwing the phone or pulling the hair in frustration, it definitely gets a brownie point.
Although this drama has emotions running high, it doesn’t drain the viewer because the writer and director pull stunts left and right that leave the audience emotionally checked out and enjoying the characters’ reactions to situations rather than wrecking their poor brains. The team behind this drama lets viewers kick back and trust the process, which does not happen often in dramaland.
Did I mention what is also not common in dramaland but was addressed in this specific show? It is the title, and the drama justified its name by beautifully coupling it with the characters’ presumptions and motives. The meaning behind it is, well.. go watch the show for yourself to know it.
Speaking of coupling, I know that the majority disliked the character pairings, but the core of the plot was built on a strong foundation of love, and to break it would mean undoing the entire plot progression and making the entire drama a joke. In hindsight, the quick resolution in the finale episodes does raise the question of whether that was the case. Nope! The couple earned it. The easy way out does not nullify the obstacles in the journey.
All those who have not watched Doctor Stranger yet have the added advantage of going into the show with the end pairings in mind. This leaves a lot of room to observe the consistency in the writing, which we complain about a lot, but never fully comprehend because we watch dramas while wearing our hearts on our sleeves.