The situation is dire. This year, tvN's weekend drama lineup has recorded humiliating ratings in the 1% range, from the 500 billion won blockbuster ‘Ask the Stars’ to ‘Potato Research Institute’. Meanwhile, the new tvN drama ‘Someday, a Wise Resident Life’ (hereafter ‘Wise Doctor Life’), which was indefinitely postponed due to the prolonged collective resignation of residents protesting the government's expansion of medical school quotas last year, is set to air soon. With the residents' strike still ongoing, public sentiment is not favorable; is this really okay?
Scheduled to air on April 12, ‘Wise Doctor Life’ is a spin-off drama of ‘Wise Doctor Life’ that depicts the growth process of residents dreaming of a wise medical life as they go through a period of uncertainty. It features popular actors such as Go Yoon-jung (as Oh Yi-young), Shin Sia (as Pyo Nam-gyeong), Kang Yoo-seok (as Eom Jae-il), Han Ye-ji (as Kim Sa-bi), and Jung Jun-won (as Gu Do-won). Director Shin Won-ho and writer Lee Woo-jung, who worked on ‘Wise Doctor Life’, are participating as creators.
Originally scheduled as a follow-up to ‘Queen of Tears’ and set to air in May last year, promotional activities were underway with teasers released in March. However, due to the residents' strike and collective resignations, public backlash against medical personnel grew, leading to negative sentiment towards the medical field and the indefinite postponement of the airing.
Amid concerns, the situation for ‘Wise Doctor Life’, which has been confirmed for airing after more than a year, is not good. The current medical situation remains unfavorable.
On the 11th, the Ministry of Health and Welfare reported that “the total number of candidates for appointment in March this year is 1,672, which is only 12.4% of the 13,531 candidates from March last year.” Although the government promised various special measures, it means that 11,859 individuals did not return to the training field.
Patients are still experiencing discomfort due to the medical gap, and negative public sentiment towards doctors has not subsided.
Additionally, the fact that both ‘Ask the Stars’ and ‘Potato Research Institute’, the previous dramas, recorded humiliating ratings in the 1% range is also a concern. It remains uncertain whether ‘Wise Doctor Life’ can achieve good ratings and success in such a negative atmosphere.
However, the Netflix drama ‘Severe Trauma Center’, which deals with the realities of the medical field, gained attention by exposing the poor conditions of severe trauma treatment in Korea, featuring a character based on Professor Lee Guk-jong, who boldly challenges the absurdities of the medical field, presenting a different tone from existing K-medical dramas and receiving positive reviews.
It remains to be seen whether ‘Wise Doctor Life’ can resonate with viewers like ‘Severe Trauma Center’ and break the cycle of tvN's weekend drama slump.
The new tvN weekend drama ‘Someday, a Wise Resident Life’ will premiere on April 12 at 9:10 PM.
[Shin Young-eun, Star Today Reporter]
