Early Access: Hospital Playlist E1 (Patreon)

E1. Ooh. I like this one right away. And I have never felt that way about a hospital drama before, ever. Trust the Reply team to pull that off. I mean, I did enjoy A Poem A Day, but that was not quite in-yo-face emergency calls and surgeries; that was physiotherapy, which has a different, more laidback vibe and rhythm. In Hospital Playlist, even though our characters are in the thick of the action, battling to save lives, this manages to feel well-balanced and human. I like it.

I am thrilled with the cast. It's such a treat, just to have Jung Kyung Ho, Yoo Yeon Seok and Jo Jung Suk sharing the screen, at the same time. And even better, they're friends. So I feel like I'm just watching them hang out and be friends, and that's somehow enough to give me a sustained thrill.

And their individual characters feel perfect for them. Jo Jung Suk made me laugh with his Darth Vader hat mishap-cum-surgery, which is just the kind of dorky thing I'd associate with him; Jung Kyung Ho is perfectly detailed in his competence, yet just slightly neurotic in his protests and complaints; Yoo Yeon Seok is all heart, giving up the chance to be Chairman of the hospital foundation so that he can be a doctor, and then giving his whole heart to his patients and sobbing when they don't make it.

I'm not familiar with Jeon Mi Do, but I like her character already. She's coolly competent and always seems to stay on top of things while looking effortless about it, and yet, there's real compassion and emotional engagement, when it comes to her patients.

I haven't seen Kim Dae Myung since Misaeng, and he's quite amusing in this so far, as the dorky mama's boy OB-GYN who doesn't care about money and only wants to form a band with his friends. And hahaha, I do like that band. I love that the cast all practiced learning their respective instruments since summer 2019. Very cool.

That running gag of Jeong Won's elder siblings all being either priests or nuns was so silly, but I laughed anyway, and Kim Hae Sook is a cool mom, for not getting all crazy, when her only hope for the Chairmanship requests to remain a doctor. Aw. Yay that we seem to be steering away from hospital politics! Also, Sung Dong Il is Kim Hae Sook's son? Pfft. That's quite ridiculous, but I'll buy it coz it's funny, and this team always has a token character who looks much older than his supposed age anyway.

I love that flashback of how the five of them became friends at orientation because they all were looking for a place to hide, away from the embarrassing festivities.

This is very efficient storytelling indeed. Just one episode in, I already feel like I know these characters, somewhat, and I already like them. An impressive achievement, considering this is an ensemble drama.

So far, I love this. I love that even in the midst of a cycle which places them face to face with the survival and deaths of their patients, that our gang of doctors remain warm and compassionate and human, through it all.