This review may contain spoilers
A revenge drama through and through, Doctor Prisoner delivers in many aspects.It was fast paced, and the plot was basically characters outsmarting one another for their selfish wants. If revenge best served cold is your type of thing, this is the place for you. Taking the stay of execution, the writer made a revenge drama into a thriller worth watching. it was creative to see the prison as a setting, and see the ML take it from there. The strength of this drama also include the hate-trio, that is, Lee Jae Jun, Director Seon, and Dr Na.
Now, to point out the flaws:
While the plot went along smoothly for the most part, the flashbacks hindered the viewing experience. The comedy was out of place - I laughed more at the characters laughing in tense scenarios than in the "light-hearted" moments. With this, had they stayed loyal to the dark tones and kept the mystery (that is, no flashbacks, or minimum) it would have been a favourite. Another let down was not dealing with certain characters the way they should have, and allowing only one to be punished; and there was the under-use of the FL. Lastly, certain scenarios' conclusions got predictable.
The acting was top-notch. Choi Won Young was easily the star of the show. He has control over his expressions and body language like a true actor. He has played a similar role before, but he still manages to make the characters feel different. Nam Goong Min was good, but I feel he should have turned off his charm (his signature expressions, although delightful, still left me wanting something new); however, since that's personal preference, I won't deduct any points from this. And we have Kim Byung Chul - I will forever remember his crazy smile. Overall, great casting choices.
The beep, beep, beep was a personal favourite when it accompanied turning points. The BGM could be a little loud, but I still liked it.
If I have to rewatch anything, it would be the scenes featuring Choi Won Young.
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CAST/ACTING: Nam Goong Min was just phenomenal. How he portrayed Na Yi Je from being a kind doctor to a vengeful and power seeking character. His signature expressions was everything!! He truly became one with his character. Kim Byung Chul was just stellar as Seon Min Sik, seriously that smile was creepy, and at times i did find him annoying, but in the 2nd half he really played his cards well. Choi Won Young was great as Lee Jae Jun, the way he had such great control over his expressions and body language to portray his character and the illness. I wish Nara's character was more developed and incorporated. I felt like the female lead was just left as a side character, but whatever scenes Nara had, she was great. And i also loved the supporting cast members, they were soo good! Loved Prosecutor Jung and Miss Oh's interactions a lot!
OST: I personally really liked the soundtrack. They fit in well with the ambience of the drama. There were songs that felt hopeful, but then also sad and agonising.
REWATCH: I don't really re-watch dramas, but there are definitely some scenes that i would watch again.
One of the most well scripted, well directed and well cast drama i have seen in a long time!! This drama is gonna take me a while to digest.
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But after a couple of episodes I started to feel bored. Na Yi Je (the main character) was just too smart and too prepared. It wasn't about what is going to happen next, it was about how he is going to outsmart everyone with his new magic trick. It took away some of the excitement. Also the characters were really one dimensional. I found the last two episodes absurd, it was absolute makjang lol.
I was also annoyed with the fact that no one view Lee Jae In as a heiress to the company although she was one of the smartest and most competent characters in the series (second only to Na Einstein - a god among humans).
Also the medical part of the drama was really bad but it probably won't bother too many people.
Overall it's a decent drama and I do recommend it if you have some time to kill and like the revenge genre.
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Doctor Prisoner is a great cat and mouse, revenge drama. The pacing of the story is spot on, I rarely felt that a scene or arc, for that matter, was dragging on for to long. The story stays true to the original premise throughout the show. It is sometimes quite predictable. But, more often then not the they story stays one step ahead to keep the suspense and intrigue.
Acting/Cast: 8.5
I thoroughly enjoyed the acting in Doctor Prisoner and found the cast to amazing fits for their respective characters. I would have loved to see more emotional range from Nam Goong Min who plays the main role as Na Yi Je. His character often feels a bit one dimensional, as 99% of the time he is a mysterious, stoic character that shows little to no emotion. My rating might be lower if not for Kim Byung Chul as Sun Min Shik and Choi Won Young as Lee Jae Joon. Their acting was spot on and often had me at the edge of my seat.
Music: 8.0
I am not to picky about the music in the dramas I watch; all I ask is that it not be over the top or over used. Thankfully Doctor Prisoner mainly uses music too enhance scenes and often it is in the background. It is never over the top and never finds itself out staying its welcome. Nothing blew me away, but at the same time nothing bothered me about it.
Rewatch Value: 6.0
I don't see myself ever re-watching this show. Not that its a bad show, but their are much better shows I would watch if I wanted to re-watch something.
Overall: 7.0
I would recommended this show if you are looking for a interesting revenge story that is not crazy dark or you just want to watch something that is not a romance drama for a change of pace.
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The acting was decent, Kwon Nara while being seriously hot, her acting could use some improvement, she felt a little artificial. The cinematography was good, and the story was okay. The premise was good while the delivery was a bit dragged out as it expanded, eventually it became a bit boring.
Music was decent, nothing too memorable though. The casting was good, as the characters were represented pretty well and the characterizations had some reasonable depth to them,
Can't say this was great, maybe it were a movie it would've been phenomenal but as a drama, they just stretched the plot out to almost inconsistent levels.
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When smart people get selfish revenge
This was a good drama about people trying to outsmart each other while using their knowledge of medicine and the judicial system. Each one things they are smarter than the other, and this proves true for both is different scenarios. It really shows that even if you think you are the smartest in the room today, you may not be tomorrow.The acting is good and the story is fast paced and as exciting as a non-action can be (there is one small rough housing scene every 5 or so episodes), but the constant flashbacks and jokes that totally miss their mark, make is hard to re-watch.
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The story is spectacular. I didn't come to this drama with a high expectation because crime series is not a KBS forte, but they totally nailed this one. In the beginning, at least there is one chess move that's undertaken by the protagonist to trap his enemy, only to be cancelled in the later episode (the two main leads Dr. Na Yi Je and Dr. Seon Min Shik are equally cunning and smart). As you progress in the second half of the drama, you are thrown more twists in one single episode which makes the whole viewing experience even more thrilling and satisfying.
What makes the writing of this drama so spectacular and compelling is that the thrill of a 16 hour episodes is not reduced down to some filler cases where the story of our main leads are cast to the side, rather the entirety of the storyline is built around these three main characters and more (which greatly explains how the suspense has not slowed down at all the moment it began - yes I strongly disagree with other reviewers saying this story dragged or became boring in the middle). Voice is the crime drama that I can think of which weaves in the episodic filler cases in between the main leads effort to entangle and come closer to the main culprit, and thus having the consequential probability of losing its steam midway the series, which skillfully didn't happen here.
There is an unexpected love line, the character growth of one antagonist character and several gang members in the prison which brings out the much-needed lightheartedness into the story. Therefore, although this is similar to other OCN crime shows in genre, the insertion of light-hearted comedic reliefs is what differentiates this show to others, and makes it truly unique and special. Hello Monster is the only other crime story I can think of that delivers this balance brilliantly, which also has Choi Won Young as the other main lead.
This is in fact my favourite way of executing a crime drama, with some tender light-hearted moments instead of a constant stiffness that permeates the entirety of the story, something like Voice or Confession. I started this just randomly when I've already completed 13 episodes of Confession, and thought that I was just going to take it easy and watch the first episode only. Boy was I wrong, I couldn't stop moving onto the next episodes!
The acting of all three main leads are amazing! They literally carried the whole show on their barebacks. This is the first of anything I have seen Namgoong Min in, and I am definitely checking out his previous works. He's truly an exceptional, chameleon and a well-deserving Daesang actor. Kim Byung Chul was as amazing as the cunning medical director of the Western Seoul Penitentiary who serves no one's interest but only himself. Choi Won Young did such a spectacular job playing a sociopath chaebol heir who's suffering from major childhood trauma. Every cheek muscle movement, bulging neck veins and shivers are a testament of how brilliant of an actor he is, and how he has outdone himself in Hello Monster. Park Eun Sook deserves a special mention as well as the arrogant jerk who was given the most important characterization as the support character other than the three main leads, and he delivered his character with ultimate finesse. This young actor is definitely a main lead material whom we can all look forward to in the future.
The BGM of this show was deliberately minimalistic to accentuate the lighting and mood of the drama, and the ending beep heart sound at the end of every episode is just what is needed to keep an audience member engaged.
The rewatch value for this is always high, especially if you are a fan of spectacular performance by actors who execute cunning and wicked antagonist roles brilliantly. Definitely very rewatchable for the acting, if not for the story!
I am a sucker for crime-revenge series with genius main leads, and in my opinion, this show was definitely written better than Stranger. Yup, there I said it. Therefore, the rating average should be as high as Stranger on MDL, if not better. The part where they explain the role of stay of execution where people of power/money can especially exploit to get out of incarceration is so interesting and insightful to me; I am so glad to have watched the drama. It gives a better closure/context to some of the frustrations expressed by prosecutors in other law dramas where it's already extremely hard to catch the powerful bad guys, but even if you manage to do it, they will definitely exploit medical assessments to avoid imprisonment. Such is the reality of a capitalist world. Enjoy!
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"You can't win a fight without getting your hands dirty" - Na Yi Je
The one thing from the get-go that stands out in this drama is the protagonist. He isn't your run-of-the-mill hero. He is someone more on the dark grey side, doing questionable or even downright messed up things.This drama is a war of wits, who gets to check-mate the other. Na Yi Je and Dr.Seon are constantly fighting to get the upper hand compared to the other. Both of them and the people surrounding them are cunning and intelligent, the story is gripping with more and more secrets being revealed at every point. The writers keep things fresh.
The actors are BRILLIANT, the cast does their job phenomenally well, Nam Goong Min is such a versatile actor, his micro expression changes to fit the mood and atmosphere, not missing a single scene is incredible. I have to say the same to the other actors as well, especially Kim Byung Chul. His psychotic expressions were on point.
Overall, Doctor Prisoner is a unique take on the revenge plotline, with a more dark take on it regarding the protagonist. You can't always face a fight by being on the white side of justice. Sometimes you have to sacrifice your humanity to gain something.
9/10.
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There are so many connecting stories are related to the main plot. Nayije the main lead was exceptional with his performance and also the all the negative characters. Yes it was an open ending climax for sequel.
I think it's a bery good drama and you should give it a try
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About the drama, it was great at the start, fast-faced that has left me wondering how the heck are they going to fill in a 16 episode drama with the way things are unfolding? That's where I bet that its gonna get draggy and redundant in the somewhere in the middle and sadly, that's what happened. This has a potential in the making of a great drama, but due to lacking events, the writer keeps on circling that the last 2 episodes left rushed. Like, that's it? From episode 1-10 has full of climax but it went a bit downhill until the last episode.
But over-all, I still enjoyed it. It was the better drama among the ones being currently aired (ahem Her Private Life and My Fellow Citizens). The acting of Nam Gong Min, Dr. Seon and Lee Jun Jae and his brother was really good though the main actress, Nara needs some acting school to improve his expressions. 8/10 for me
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