Greetings, my intrepid friends!

Have you ever watched a tv series that surprised you by how good it was? It blew your expectations out of the water?

Well, that’s the case with today’s review!

Ghost Doctor is a Korean medical drama series available on Netflix. It revolves around this premise: thr spirit of a skilled doctor possesses a young inexperienced surgeon in order to perform life-saving surgeries before he can return to his body.

Fascinating, isn’t it?

The story begins with young Dr Cha Young Min, a successful, brash and arrogant doctor. He possesses extraordinary skills that make him the top surgeon in Eunsang University (and perhaps all of South Korea).

One day he welcomes a new first year student to the hospital, a young Koh Seung-Tak, the grandson of the hospitals administrator. Much to his chagrin, resident Koh is lazy, lackadaisical and carefree; downplaying his training under Dr Cha.

Dr Cha believing in cold and ruthless efficiency has no patience or love for the optimistic, devil-may-care student. Our successful surgeon shows him around the hospital and welcomes us to his life at Eunsang University, one where patients are treated in terms of viability of survival and where colleagues are routinely criticized and put down for their failures.

This cold hearted approach upsets the happy idealistic Koh. He, although lazy and listless at times, shows care and concern for both his patients and his colleagues. However, Koh is not a skilled surgeon and often refuses more responsibilities than not. For this he is stationed in the ER.

One day Dr Cha receives word that a prominent businessman, Chairman Jang (insert company here) is coming in for surgery. The wealthy chairman has his egotistical son and altruistic daughter join him at the hospital in preparation for his procedure. Unbeknownst to Dr Cha, the chairman’s daughter is the lovely Jang Se-Jin, Cha’s former flame.

Dr Cha reveals (through flashback) that he was once a warm and idealistic med student until Jang Se-Jin abandoned him without warning, leaving him behind for a career in America. It was an event that left him cold, cynical and afraid to be vulnerable. This change drove him to prioritize a successful career with no friends other than his small pet.

On the day of Chairman Jang’s surgery Dr Cha performs the procedure well without complication. Per protocol, he stays by the chairman’s side until he receives a mysterious text. The message asks him to meet at the old tryst for him and Se-Jin. He abruptly drives off only to be aggressively stalked by a motorist who then causes him to crash.

Dr Cha awakens from his accident only to see that he is a spirit and his body is in an ambulance broken and bleeding. Frightened and shocked, Dr Cha enters the ambulance and follows his body into Eunsang Hospital. No one can see, hear or touch him.

Once at the hospital he learns, much to his dismay, that Koh will be forced to operate on him.

The young Koh struggles with anxiety and lack of experience, nearly damaging Cha until the flustered ghost reaches out and grabs Koh’s hand. Miraculously, he possesses the young med student and performs a successful surgery on himself, stopping the bleeding.

Dr Cha exits Koh’s body, unaware of how and why this happened. In the hospital he meets more ghosts including the wonderfully wise and cryptic “Socrates” (“Tess” as he wants to be known). Tess explains to Dr Cha that he is a “coma ghost” and that he is not fully dead but his soul is fully awake while his body remains asleep. The wise specter also warns him that there are consequences to possessing the living.

Dr Cha realizes soon that he cannot leave the hospital due to his body creating an invisible boundary around it which he cannot cross without possessing someone. He also learns that he can only possess Koh. Frustrated and angry, Dr Cha follows him around and berates him. He blames Koh for his own miserable existence and chides him for how sloppy and undisciplined the first year resident is.

Several episodes later Koh suddenly faces him mid-sentence and answers him face to face, revealing that he could indeed see and hear him this entire time.

Aghast and outraged, Dr Cha demands to know how this is so. Koh reveals that he has been seeing ghosts since he was a small boy. The event was likely brought on by his own near-death experience. Koh, seemingly cursed to see and hear every specter, simply refuses to acknowledge them.

Dr Cha and Koh begin bargaining their plight: Dr Cha agrees to possess Koh to help him become a successful surgeon and Koh permits the sad coma-ghost to experience the world as an alive person. But, Dr Cha can only do so with Koh’s consent; a fact that creates mounting tension.

We watch the duo grow as a team and as individuals: Dr Cha helps Koh take his life more seriously and he helps the first year resident learn the skills needed to be a good surgeon. Koh confronts Dr Cha about his arrogance and aloofness, softening his touch by reminding him saving people is what doctors are all about; something Dr Cha believed years ago.

But, can the duo revive Dr Cha, uncover the plot around his suspicious accident and hide their supernatural partnership from nefarious forces?

I loved this miniseries. Even though it is one season it doesn’t really need a sequel. This show has heart, good acting, intriguing story arcs and top notch drama.

There aren’t many shows that make me care about it’s minor characters. But this one did. Apart from the Netflix Witcher series this show managed to expertly weave a story that intertwined the main characters with all of its lesser characters. Dr Cha, Dr Jang and Koh interact and grow with others like “Tess”, the hospital director and the small boy needing invasive surgery. This show makes you care about all of them and their subplots.

Furthermore, the series includes real world medical terminology and actual anatomy lessons. This is a clever touch: allowing the viewers to learn practical science while being entertained by a fictional story!

I highly recommend Ghost Doctor if you love a good bromance, a fun K-drama or a good medical drama that pulls at your heart strings.

Thanks for reading.