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Hospital Playlist: Spoiler-Free Mini Review

Jul 26
3 min read

Updated: Sep 22

Five smiling doctors in colorful scrubs walk through a bright hospital hallway; Hospital Playlist Poster with all the doctors

Title:

Hospital Playlist (Season 1) (2020)

Platform:

Netflix

MDL & IMBD Rating:

9.0 & 8.7

Genre:

Contemporary Medical/ Slice of Life

Episode Count:

12

Parental Guidance Rating:

TV-14: Fear, Language, Smoking, Realistic blood/organs shown during medical procedures.


For more info: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11769304/parentalguide/

Starring:

Jo Jung Suk (The Nokdu Flower)

Yoo Yeon Seok (When the Phone Rings)

Jung Kyung Ho (Crash Course in Romance)

Kim Dae Myung (Light Shop)

Jeon Mi Do (Thirty-Nine)

Shin Hyun Been (Reborn Rich)

Ahn Eun Jin (My Dearest)

RBTS Rating:

7/10 Stars: A slice of life, non-soap medical drama that is LIGHT on romance, but refreshingly grounded, following 5 Surgeon BFF's around the workplace. If you like medical dramas, this is probably for you. If not, this won't make you change your mind lol.



Synopsis:

The stories of people going through their days are seemingly ordinary but actually special at the hospital, a place known as the microcosm of life, where someone is being born and someone's life meets its ending. The five doctors are long-time friends of 20 years who started their undergrad in 1999 in the same medical school and now are colleagues in the same hospital and have a band together. @MDL



Stay Tuned: Full Review Still to Come!


Spoiler-Free Mini Review:

Hospital Playlist is a “slice of life” medical dramedy about 5 surgeons who have been best friends since medical school. This is not a plot heavy show at all—it’s just about daily life. They start a garage band (hence the "playlist" part of the title) to blow off steam after work, but it doesn’t play a significant role. With peace and blessings, I fast forwarded any and all band moments. The episodes are quite long, so consider yourself warned.


Five smiling doctors in coats walk outside an Emergency Center; Hospital Playlist Poster

The drama has a ton of hype and high ratings, and I liked it when I watched it, but never felt compelled to turn it on. I felt like it lacked a spark that other K-Drama’s have. There were some moving moments for sure, but it was just missing something. I can see how the show is praised for its characters because they feel very realistic (which is both bad and good), but the patients/family members felt very melodramatic. Obviously, being ill or having a loved one with illness can bring heightened emotions, but it felt very over the top for the kind of grounded story it was trying to present. But it never veers into insanity like Grey's Anatomy, so mark yourself safe from that.


Hospital Playlist poster

Romance is not a big part of the storyline—there are people in relationships, but it doesn’t really show any romance. Be warned if you are squeamish, there are organs and insides shown and they look very realistic. And I must know why on earth are all these surgeons smoking? Wild behavior. I don't think I will watch Season 2 or the spinoff, Resident Playbook, as I'm just not super interested. Also, call me crazy but I think this show is #SponsoredbyEggDrop.



Story=3.5 (There wasn’t an overarching storyline, it felt more like short stories interweaving through the surgeons), Acting= 4 (Everyone did a great job, but some of the acting felt too over the top) , Production Quality=5 (no complaints) , Ending=2.5 (Incomplete ending—there is a season 2), Enjoyability= 3 (This might be more interesting for those into non-soap opera medical dramas or those who work in the medical field, but for me the average Joe it was just fine), Would I rewatch= No


Trailer:


Director: #ShinWonHo (Reply 1994, 1997, 1988)

Screenwriter: #LeeWongJung (Reply 1994, 1997, 1988)


*Disclaimer: I do not own any of the images used on this blog. All images belong to their respective copyright holders and are used for commentary and review purposes. All reviews, opinions, and statements expressed on this blog are my own and are intended for entertainment and informational purposes only. They reflect my personal thoughts and interpretations and should not be considered as factual.



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