It’s clear that Han Seok Kyu isn’t just a veteran K-actor with widely lauded respect for his impeccable acting experience, he’s now got popular success to back him up. SBS Mon-Tues K-drama Romantic Doctor, Teacher Kim has reached a new ratings high heading into the final few episodes of airing. Today’s episode 18 got 26.0% ratings, which the competition continues to flounder with Hwarang losing viewers down to 6.9% and Night Light dropping even more to 3.4%. SBS should enjoy this ratings success while it lasts as Romantic Doctor is ending soon to be replaced by Ji Sung‘s Defendant, and MBC can perhaps reboot it’s own ratings nightmare as Night Light is succeeded with sageuk Rebel: The Thief Who Stole the People. Hwarang will just have to wait and see in two weeks whether it’s fortunes change with the competition refresh.
Those still watching Romantic Doctor can perhaps share latest insights on why this drama has stayed top of the ratings? Good acting and character chemistry aside, are the medical stories well crafted and the personal narrative so compelling? I’m thrilled for the talented cast well deserving of this hit but I won’t jump back in unless I’m convinced this isn’t just viewers sticking with the least sucky of the three Mon-Tues dramas.
Omg this is the first time I might get first. But I have been following this drama too and I’m a bit perplexed as to why its so popular. However, I don’t think I’m the average viewer though. Though I do find the scenes where they highlight the connections that the doctors build with the patients enjoyable.
I love this drama.
I can’t put my finger on exactly why I enjoy it so much… it’s not even that addictive but every week I look forward to new episodes and it’s compelling enough that I always watch the 2 episodes a week in one go.
It’s good acting, good directing, good wrting, good chemistry blended together in a delicious mix. The surgery scenes are top notch. The characterisation of the 3 main leads are well rounded and maturation progresses steadily. The OTP chemistry is equally sizzling and cheesym
The drama is not without flaws, but it’s the usual over dramatisation of hospital politics and villainous characters but not in a way that threatens to be intrusive.
The only thing I’m unsatisfied with is that the writer drops many hints to the backstory of the leads but details are does not fully flashed out yet. Though I heard that there will be 1 ep extension showing “prequel”. Hopefully the 1 ep. Will tell us in more details what happened in the past.
I’m a doctor and I love this drama! One of the best medical kdramas I’ve seen. Very compelling. Everything just works -the acting, writing, directing, editing. More than Legend of the Blue Sea or Goblin, this (and Weightlifting Fairy!) is the highlight of my kdrama week! Can’t wait to watch this week’s episodes!!
My favs too. Im with you on it. Start my week with the intellectually stimulating Doctor Kim and end my week with the uplifting WFKBJ. Best drama weeks ive had in a long long while.
Omg! Me too! Funny how although entertaining and both with a powerhouse cast, Legend and Goblin don’t excite me as much as Romantic Doctor Kim and WFKBJ! ???
@Jancy – yes, Weightlifting Fairy! High Five!! Too bad it is ending…
@Jancy, we have the same tastes. WFKIm Bok Jo and RTDK are my guilty pleasures of the week.
Well done to the Romantic Doctor team! They deserve all the accolades for their ratings success. I was captivated by the drama since episode 1 and was waiting eagerly for Monday and Tuesday nights to come around for more episodes to be released.
Personally I think the interesting story line, excellent acting by all the actors, the sizzling chemistry between the three leads and the charisma and commanding presences of Han Seok Kyu are factors for its popularity.
i love this drama, from han suk kyu, yoo yeon seok and seo hyun jin, theyre really great in acting, even the supporting cast… everyone just great.
i think its the best medical drama ever produced in korea and the only drama recognized by the Active Medical Professionals , they even sent a coffee truck the other day .
For me are the characters that makes me want to watch every week, love each one of them except evil Doc, for me not evil enough feels weak in that area, love the OTP they are just too cute together plus there is not the classic love triangle that almost all kdrama has.
This drama has very flawed characters yet at the same time those flawed, but very interesting characters are the ones pulling me in as the more I want to know how will they grow throughout the show. Their flawed human traits were addressed, their differing personalities and views clashing, that lead us to their thought provoking arguments and headbutts. The main characters fighting chemistry are great (lol). Slowly but surely the characters grow! And warm me! It’s no easy job to tell stories about the growth of non perfect leads but they did it, and this was further enhanced by a great directing and solid performances across the board. And the drama has also has interesting cases where they addressed the social issues and other thought provoking medical issues, and also show how a hospital should ideally be run
All I read about this drama is Han Suk Kyu. I mean, he totally stole the spotlight from those two younger actors. Despite not watching, I have no doubt in my mind that he is truly an acting master. On a side note, I love Hwarang more and more. I just hope it will pick up the ratings once RDTK ended. Love triangle and boys camp has never been this fun.
not actually, all articles about this drama were about the three leads, not only Han Suk Kyu as well as Seo Hyun Jin and Yoo Yeon Seok were getting praised by everyone, so i dont know how many articles you read lol
Hwarang is my favorite among the three. Go Ara may not be the best actress for Sila era. But the two male leads are hot. LOL
so you like Hwarang the most coz the leads are HOT!!!???? lmao… ok move on… *smh*
Maybe its her first time to watch kdramas? Maybe a kpop fangirl who got introduced to kdrama because of her support to her bias? Hopefully the reasoning behind liking a drama changes. Sometimes, it changes after being introduced to other kdramas.
BTW my kpop fandom fellows kept recommending Romantic Doctor to me. Although I’m kinda tired of med drama, I gave a shot to ep1 and it was good. The cast from the veteran HSK to the child actor are really good. So I’m gonna marathon the drama. I do hope K ent should try other professions as story backdrop though. It’s very tiring of watching setting alternating between hospitals and Corporate CEOs’ mansions. LOL
i love this drama but not so addicted …last episode i’ve seen is ep 14, i save ep 15-18 …maybe will continue when i have time to watching it…WFKBJ is more interesting despite the rating is low…
Being in the medical profession myself, I am very critical. Its the only medical kdrama that I applauded. Its not perfect but I did not feel like pulling my hair out like what I did with others. And its kind of realistic that the perennial struggle between good medical practice and marauding corporate politics is evidently magnified yet it comes out downplayed. Thats why Teacher Kim is the Romantic Doctor because he teaches the younger doctors the good old medicine and not to be “Google” Doctors?
RD blow LOTBS away. LOTBS ant even hit 20s.
IKR? SBS didnt even promote properly #RDTK , they didnt prepare new OSTs, they used old songs coz they didnt know that this drama will be a hit. And now, it became their highest drama rating of 2016.
I heard the rating doesnt represent the totality of viewers since it is just a sample of 1000 or more households . I follow this drama too because it makes me feel good everytime good wins against evil. I have a deep sense of justice so Im cheering for the Doldam hospital crew to fight their survival against the chief.
The medical realism is top notch- the cardiac surgery scene is the most accurate I’ve seen ever in a drama (I’m medical), and the acting is great, but that’s not why I watch.
I watch because the doctors are all very human and very flawed but yet really earnest in wanting to do the right thing, even if they may have temporarily gotten lost along the way. And they use the medical cases as a way to allow us to watch them grow and become better people. So you end up rooting for them wholeheartedly to succeed.
And the show dared to touch on controversial topics like the doctor’s struggle of living up to the Hippocratic oath when treating “socially undesirable” patients, and whether doing everything medically possible for life saving treatment, regardless of cost, is necessarily the right thing to do. They also brought up MERS (middle eastern respiratory syndrome) which badly affected South Korea in 2015 when they were struck by the largest outbreak outside of the Middle East- and I think that also resonated with the Korean public since it did directly affect them.
And while we can’t escape from the quintessential hospital politics, the show isn’t too bogged down by it, because they find enough conflict in real to life and day to day hospital matters.
So yes! Do consider watching ?
I’m in medical profession too and this drama is the most medically accurate out of all the medical dramas that I’ve watched. The characters are very compelling, and the drama presents quite a number of ethical issues and dilemmas that people in this line faced day to day. I may have enjoyed this drama a lot more because it hits quite close to home, but aside from that, it is simply a well made drama with excellent directing, and top notch acting. Two thumbs up!
This is definitely not a simply mindless romcom pretending to be a medical drama. It actually shows the medical world quite realistically but of course with a bit over the top dramatisation, but still a very good one. Characters are flawed, but that is where it feels gratifying as we follow their journey of growth. This drama may not be for everyone, as some may feel it overdramatic or the medical stuff too boring, but it is not hard to see why it is getting those high ratings as it is a very humane drama.
Ratings more than deserved. Top acting of all the actors. No one is weak. A lot of others actors should Watch it. It was a drama who came without buzz but what a drama ! Realistic, reflexion about ethics, medical system , … a kind of korean drama version of ER the best medical ever. The daesang should have gone to all the cast. It’s not a top hallyu star drama .
First, I watched it for YYS oppa but then…. I fe in love with HSK ahjussi. LOL
Agreed with most of the comments, well written plot, imperfect characters which we could relate on, and for a drama which mostly shoot only at indoor hospital, this drama could be a prove a great story is better than overseas shooting, lol
This drama is compelling, addictive, and entertaining and it deserves all the ratings and accolades it’s getting. It’s a combination of great writing, good characters and character development and fully talented actors. It’s a pity I can’t really describe why the series has me smiling from week to week, it’ll be a shame when it ends next week.
This drama definitely deserves the high ratings. All the actors are good at acting and the story line is fun. There are politics and power in this drama but life still goes on. Even during the confrontation with Director Do (the evil director who thinks he has all the power), they still have ER patients and surgery to do. There’s a few controversial topics such as MERS and also the soldier that was beaten during his service. Truly a great drama.
Romantic Doctor has a lot of makjang elements which could be addictive, but it is also backed up with some solid acting from the cast. The villains are a bit cartoonish but doesn’t detract from the overall experience. It has a good mix of the light-hearted and emotional moments and I have never felt an episode to be too long or draggy.
The medical cases has raised some realistic ethical issues faced by doctors and nurses that I found refreshing. Although Dr Kim is morally upright, he is portrayed as a flawed character with a huge backstory that is the long arc. The drama wouldn’t be the same without Han Seok-Kyu as Dr Kim. Def worth picking up again or marathoning after it’s over.
I really enjoyed RDTK and not just because the top notch acting of 2nd time Daesang winner HSK and following close YYS and SHJ. The acting and their chemistry is like icing on the cake. Just devine. But under the cake RDTK clearly questions the medical and social issues of not just Korea but the world. Which I believe is the ultimate reason why the ratings are so high. Korea relates to the hidden messages so well and Im glad RDTK is brave enough to tackle on these issues. See Team Doldam tweets with the english subs of the reasons why RDTK is so popular especially in their own country – https://mobile.twitter.com/team_doldam/status/818607378744504320/video/1
https://mobile.twitter.com/team_doldam/status/818617648208449536/video/1
https://mobile.twitter.com/team_doldam/status/818621227719794688/video/1
Let me recount the best things of this drama – the story is broad enough, characters are deep enough and directing is artistic enough to engage the mental and emotion AND, at the same time, gives the actors room enough to showcase their talents. On these counts, I highly recommend the drama. I am glad I did not get put off by the title. Clap! Clap!