[Jan 27] “My Happy Ending” Episode 9, “Doctor Slump” Episode 1: Ratings & Recap

 “My Happy Ending” episode 9 reveals that Kim Sang-beom (Heo Hyung-kyu), Kwon Yoon-jin's ex-boyfriend was Ah-rin's biological father in the genetic test. Is it true? I hope not. And how about "Doctor Slump"'s debut?

“Doctor Slump” episode 1 rating & recap

JTBC’s new drama “Doctor Slump” made its debut with an average of 4.1% nationwide.

This highly awaited drama is finally here for the viewers to watch and enjoy. It replaces the weekend slot of jTBC's "Welcome to Samdal-ri," which starred Ji Chang-wook and Shin Hye-sun. The mysterious Park Hyun-sik, who played Yi Hwan / Scholar Park in Our Blooming Youth, and the talented Park Shin-hye, who was Kang Seo-hae in Sisyphus: The Myth in 2021, are the main leads of this drama.

The plot revolves around Yeo Jeong-Woo and Nam Ha-Neul, who used to be rivals in their school days, but now lead careers in different fields. However, things take a turn for the worse, and they both decide to quit their jobs and start over. They end up living together in the same house, and their old animosity gradually transforms into something more romantic.

How did Han-Neul and Jeong-Woo meet?

Ha-Neul was a young girl in Busan, who studied for 17 hours a day and timed her breaks. She was the pride and joy of her mother, who lived with her and her younger brother. They inherited a factory from their relatives, but Ha-Neul's aunts were unhappy about it and wanted it for themselves. They fought with Ha-Neul's mother, who was persuaded by Ha-Neul to sell the factory, which was failing anyway, and move to Seoul so that Ha-Neul could attend medical school. 

There, Ha-Neul joined a fancy school, where Jeong-Woo was a student. Jeong-Woo had always been the top student in his class, but he faced a tough challenge from Ha-Neul, who was equally smart. Their interactions were full of witty and humorous remarks, which will be fun to watch.

What is Jeong-Woo up to now?

In the past, both Jeong-Woo and Ha-Neul wanted to go to the prestigious Hankuk University and become doctors. We'll find out later in "Doctor Slump" what happened during the exams, but only Jeong-Woo managed to get into Hankuk University. 

He became a world-famous plastic surgeon, not because of his skills, but because of his charisma and business acumen (what a dream life). He was also a handsome and popular influencer, who won awards for his philanthropic work as a plastic surgeon and had his two best friends from school as his social media managers.

What is Ha-Neul up to now?

Ha-Neul, on the other hand, had a hard time becoming a doctor, and she was living a miserable life. She somehow became a doctor, even though she didn't go to the best school in the country.

But she was treated as a pushover by her seniors. This was probably partly because she went to a "regular university." She didn't let them get to her, and she kept working hard, aiming for a miraculous achievement that seemed like a distant dream.

The tragic events that shatter Ha-Neul and Jeong-Woo’s lives

Ha-Neul has been experiencing severe abdominal pain, but she doesn't realize that it's a sign of a medical problem. She thinks it's just due to her lack of sleep and excessive work. She tries to rest at home, but she gets called back to work. 

She agrees to meet her friend, who is a doctor, for a quick chat before going to see a doctor herself. But by then, the pain has become unbearable. She collapses on the road, and a truck is heading towards her. She faints from the fear and stress. The truck manages to avoid her at the last second, and her friend rushes her to the hospital. 

She finds out that she needs to have her gallbladder removed, which isn't a serious issue. But she's mentally disturbed by the near-death experience. She calls those 3 minutes when the truck was coming the worst of her life. She's haunted by the fact that she wished to die in that moment. 

She goes to a psychiatric clinic because she's scared of crossing the road. Ha-Neul is diagnosed with depression, which shocks her. She has always been a diligent person. The doctor says she needs medication to recover, but she rejects the idea that she's depressed and ignores the doctor's advice.

Meanwhile, in those same 3 minutes, Jeong-Woo is performing a facial surgery on a patient from Macau. The patient was secretive when she came, but Jeong-Woo didn't pay much attention to that. He arranged the surgery and proceeded as usual. 

But during the surgery, something goes wrong. The patient bleeds profusely and dies on the table. Jeong-Woo is stunned by this unexpected outcome. 

He's accused of occupational negligence, and it's revealed that the patient had an anticoagulant in her body. The evidence shows that Jeong-Woo bought the medication and gave it to the patient, but Jeong-Woo has no recollection of doing that. He has never seen the medication or ordered it from a pharmacy.

To make matters worse, the CCTV footage from the surgery is corrupted, making it look like Jeong-Woo tampered with it deliberately. Jeong-Woo loses everything in an instant. His friends turn their backs on him because they have to pay a huge fine for the incident. Jeong-Woo has to sell everything he owns to pay the debt.

How do Jeong-Woo and Ha-Neul meet again?

Ha-Neul comes back home, leaving behind her prescription and buying some beers instead. She plans to drink them with her family, but she ends up drinking them alone on the roof. She sees some bags and a man in the corner. She asks him who he's several times, and he finally faces her. It's Jeong-Woo.

At the end of episode 1 of "Doctor Slump", we see a flashback of Jeong-Woo and Ha-Neul as young rivals, racing to get to school first. Jeong-Woo narrates that Ha-Neul was the girl he fell in love with, even though she was his enemy. The show starts with the two meeting again during the lowest point of their lives. What will happen next? Let's find out in the next episode.

“My Happy Ending” episode 9 rating & recap

TV Chosun’s “My Happy Ending” resumed its season with an average of 2.9% nationwide.

Jae-won’s suspicion & confusion

In episode 9, Seo Jae-won (Jang Na-ra) sensed a strange tension at the dinner table where Kwon Yoon-jin (So Yi-hyun) had invited Heo Soon-young (Son Ho-jun) and Yoon Tae-o (Lee Ki-taek), and asked, "Are you hiding something from me right now?" Then Yoon-jin said, "The divorce of the 2 people you want to believe is a rumor? Or the design leak incident of Professor Heo Soon-young?" and gave a meaningful smile to arouse Jae-won's suspicion. 

Then Jae-won went to her office and searched for articles on the Internet, but she couldn't think of anything and felt frustrated. She recalled the symptom of depersonalization, which is feeling like a different person, that she heard from her friend Jo Soo-kyung (Lim Sun-woo). She also said, "But I think I shouldn't dig up this memory. That way, everyone can be happy." But Soo-kyung made her more complicated by saying, "You're not in that everyone."

Eventually, Jae-won decided to rummage through her diary and found Nam Tae-ju's (Park Ho-san) business card and asked to meet him. Jae-won asked him why he pushed Soon-young into the design leak, and he looked puzzled. Especially, Jae-won checked the videos and call recordings that Tae-ju sent one by one and shed tears in disbelief, saying, "Is this reality or a terrible nightmare?"

When Jae-won returned home, she told Soon-young that she had seen the divorce article and what she had done, and said, "But I don't remember. The person in the article and the video is definitely me, but no matter how hard I think, it doesn't look like me. I feel so strange and scared." 

She asked again if the reason he wanted to divorce was because of her. But Jae-won, who read Soon-young's sincerity in his eyes, said, "I won't ask anymore. I'm not the only one who's trying hard. Don't push yourself too hard." and comforted Soon-young.

Soon-young's dilemma & apology 

After that, Soon-young visited Jae-won's company with Heo Ah-rin (Choi So-yul), and the 3 of them had a cozy dinner and enjoyed a happy time. Soon-young watched Ah-rin playing in the playground and said, "I might have wished for it. I hope your memory doesn't come back." and expressed his happiness. Then Jae-won suddenly felt strange and burst into tears, and said to Soon-young, who was comforting her, "Let's do as you wish. If that's the best for our family, I think that's right."

But later, Soon-young was stunned when he found out that Kim Sang-beom (Heo Hyung-kyu), Kwon Yoon-jin's ex-boyfriend was Ah-rin's biological father in the genetic test. Soon-young, who was furious, went to Sang-beom and punched him, saying, "Why did you do that to her!" 

Soon-young, who came home with a messed up face, suggested a date to Jae-won, and Jae-won apologized to Soon-young in a friendly atmosphere, saying, "I'm sorry that you're living only as Seo Jae-won's husband and Ah-rin's dad." Soon-young said, "You and Ah-rin are more precious to me than work." and then said, "At some point, I stopped trusting you and made an irreversible choice." and apologized. 

Jae-won, who remembered the moment when she asked him to take care of her daughter with tears, asked, "Will I lose Ah-rin if I know?" Soon-young said, "Can't you trust my choice this time?" and reassured Jae-won.

What's happening to Soon-young?

The next day, Soon-young said goodbye to Jae-won, who was going to work, unlike usual, saying, "Everything will be fine, so go with ease." And Soon-young gave him a bright smile, making him feel strange. 

Then Soon-young went to Yoon-jin and asked how she could do this knowing what happened 7 years ago. Yoon-jin said coldly, "I lost everything because of that day. Not Seo Jae-won." 

Soon-young, who was looking at Yoon-jin coldly, suddenly knelt down and said, "I'm sorry. I was short-sighted. Please forgive me once so that I can protect my family." and cried out. Yoon-jin, who couldn't stand the rising anger, threw things around and said, "If I can't have it, no one can." and spewed venom.

On the other hand, Jae-won went to the bridge where she had fallen and was confused by the many memories that came to her mind. From the moment she fell into the water, to the adultery video of Soon-young and Yoon-jin, to the moment she checked her daughter's genetic test... All the memories came to her mind and he burst into tears. She couldn't breathe properly because of the pain and sobbed.

In the last scene, Jae-won, who woke up in the residence, opened the door and was shocked by the police's words, "Mr. Seo Jae-won, you are arrested for the murder of Heo Soon-young." The "emergency arrest ending" was filled with anticipation for the next episode.

After the broadcast, viewers said, "Jang Na-ra and Son Ho-jun, I praise the 2's luxury acting! I can't help but immerse myself because of the 2.", "This drama is crazy! I was completely goosebumps and couldn't move my body!", "Son Ho-jun's death!! This monster-like drama! It makes me unable to move.", "I couldn't get up from my seat... I was crying all the time and I stopped breathing at the ending." and showed various responses.

(Sources: yna.co.kr, newsis.com, khan.co.kr)