>Given the choice do you want to be TREATED by a GOOD doctor or GREAT doctor ? You would want a doctor **period.**

Romantic Doctor, Teacher Kim is a drama that tells about doctors who try to protect their ~romantic ideals and about doctors who yet have to come to their own ones as they grow with their difficult tasks day by day (and sometimes have to be pushed into the right direction). It's a story that shows what doctors can be like if society and power-ruling wouldn't interfere and darken single souls.

First of all, out of all korean medical dramas I've seen, I really think this one has done the best job. It doesn't take medical elements too lightly, yet it doesn't get too obsessed with 'showing off' medical knowledge either. The story sets inside a hospital, it progresses as they treat patients, there's blood, there's surgeries, and they definitely make you believe everything is real and enjoy every procedure at the same time.


PLOT
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What constitutes as a 'good' doctor? Essentially, the story revolves around that question that seems to have a simple answer; however, there's no real right or wrong answer and everyone has their own definition of a 'good' doctor. Philosophies and ideologies clash and it's just utterly fascinating to watch as morals are questioned and consciences are tested in the face of moral dilemmas.

Asides from the philosophical questions, hospital politics, and the emotional patient stories, the romance also holds its own in this already plot packed drama. The romance, while not at the forefront of the show, is a slow burn that keeps you wanting more, and when it finally happens, it is so satisfying. Gotta love the slow burns that are worth waiting for.
Compared to other romance-medical drama, I'd say this one has less romance. Still, it's definitely there. In down moments when they take a break from their main medical scenes, the romance will keep coming back to remind you that it's there, and it's really cute and worth the wait

There's also comedy in this drama – actually there is a lot more comedy than you can imagine. Teacher Kim's frequent sarcastic remarks are already funny enough, and the quirky supporting characters add a lot to that. It's not the slapstick kind of comedy, by the way. You've got to know that the tone of this drama is not dark or melancholic at all just because it's set in a hospital and the poster looks gloomy. I smiled and laughed a lot.

What made this drama so rough in the first half for me personally was the fact that I found Master Kim to be insufferable for more than the first half of this drama. It wasn't that I disagreed with his reasons for giving such severe "tough love" to the other characters, I just didn't agree with how severe and cut throat he addressed the desired character changes of the younger doctors he was trying to inspire to change. I think there were other ways for Master Kim's character to have been written that would not have made such an extreme impression. The fact that his character was written in such a rough and sharp fashion left me feeling bitter and angry on behalf of the other characters - which some people might say is a "good" thing because the writers got me emotionally involved, but to me, his character was enough to make me want to drop the drama. What actually kept me hooked was the young doctors aspiring to learn and specialize as well as the sick patients that came into the hospital requiring treatment. Which leads me to the acting in this drama.



CHARACTERS
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The characters are probably the show's forte. Everyone is great at what he/she does. There are a lot of dramas/movies that go for the 'clumsy' or 'unskilled' main characters who get by because of their 'cute' or 'nice' personality and basically 'pure luck'. That kind of characters belong to romcoms. Romantic Doctor's characters are rather smart in a very likable way. They're not too good to be true also. They do make mistakes, and they also teach you a lot of lessons as they fix them. ==Characters from main to even some small patients develop in a very satisfying way.==

At the same time, the titular character Teacher Kim is the gem of the show performed by Han Seok Kyu . His every word combines into countless inspirational quotes. He's witty and funny and can be sarcastic at times, yet he's very dependable like a father figure to so many characters in the drama. The term 'romantic' isn't used that often in the drama to describe him, however. I did expect that to happen since it's the title of the show. But after watching the entire show, I finally understand why he calls himself like so. "Romantic" here is as in his 'positive, idealistic, hopeful yet realistic' view of life. It's not the 'love and relationship' kind of romantic. It's not about him and his love interest at all. I rather find this point refreshing.

His co-actors and co-actresses shouldn't be disregarded either. Though they might not yet reach the level of this acting senior, they did a very good job themselves in supporting the story. I liked many of the face to face dialogues as they gave special light to the respective characters and left quite the impact sometimes. But what I really loved and appreciated in this drama were all those small cases that happened all the time (and that helped keeping the pace and suspense of the story). Most times the guest actors were great with their short appearances and their stories really touched my heart. And I was pleased to see doctors deeply care for their patients in a way I imagine a doctor to be.

The three main young Fellows has it tough in the show :
[spoiler]
Seo Jung is a stong female lead, maybe one of the strongest I've ever seen. She developed a lot. I loved the fact that she was honest with herself and her feelings. She overcame her trauma in the best way. She really deserved to be a doctor. But Hyun-jin is a cheerful actress and although i like her in the show I believe she is miscast as we need a dark gloomy actress for this role
I liked Dong Joo since the beginning. Yes, his behaviour was annoying, but he was just a man who lost his path while being next to arrogant people. But he was a good person. He developed a lot, thanks to Master Kim, Seo Jung and Doldam Hospital in general. From a person who only cared about the opinion of the others, he developed into a doctor who only cares about the patients and doing a good job.
Also I can't help but mention In Beom. I didn't like him at first, mainly because of his lies. But in the end, he proved that he can be honest and independant. He also dveloped a lot.
They also under utilized Yeo-hwa the innocent fellow who has crush on Dong-Joo ; they could have developed a quadrangle love story if they wanted to do justice to the show's name :P
[/spoiler]

Every side character brought a different light to the drama. I loved Manager Jang with his kind of foolish personality, Nurse Oh with her intelligence, Nurse Park with his cheerful smile and even the bad guy Yoon Wan wasn't completely unlikable.
The writer showed that rich chaebols are not always bad people which we rarely see in dramas. Chairman Shin proved that.


OST & REWATCH
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I don't remember any song from this drama, but I still think it's a medical drama, so OSTs aren't their main point. I also don't choose to re-watch a drama very easily. I wouldn't choose to re-watch this one so soon also because I personally don't need to see all those technical scenes over again. Hell i didn't watch Season although it has better ratings ** Kim is written well apparently** as the medical drama needs too much focus and dark.

VERDICT
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Romantic Doctor Teacher Kim is a thought provoking and quirky drama that thrives off the strong character development and heart-pulling patient cases that are seamlessly interwoven with the main characters' own storylines.

I think the people who will enjoy this drama are those people who have a severe hankering for medical dramas with melodrama. I would not recommend this drama for someone who wants a light, fluffy, romantic comedy medical drama. I did put this one off for months for the fact that the poster and the title suggest a very melodramatic non-romantic drama; How IRONIC that i was looking for a light hearted romantic medical drama ; when i watched this. If the only thing that keeps you from watching this drama is the title, just ignore it. Give it a chance and you may be surprised by it.

Overall, Romantic Doctor, Teacher Kim is a must-watch. It teaches you so many things. I want to thank Kang Eung Kyung for writing such a masterpiece.