Jeong-woo and Ha-neul might be apart, but their hearts are connected, worrying about each other and showing up when the other needs support.
With more honesty and opening up about what they really feel, they get back together to their sweet dating life.
Bunny S. watches Doctor Slump on Netflix
Episode Recaps: 01 & 02 | 03 & 04 | 05 & 06 | 07 & 08 | 09 & 10 | 11 & 12 | 13 & 14 | Finale Week + Series Review |
Doctor Slump Episodes 9 and 10 Highlights
“I don’t know what you went through but I hoped you could find solace in him. I prayed that Jeong-woo would help you live a life where you didn’t have to torment yourself.”
Following the breakup, Jeong-woo moves out of the rooftop into a studio apartment near Dae-yeong’s clinic, where he will be working. Ha-neul doesn’t come out to see Jeong-woo off. But she peeks at him through the window. They are both in pain and heartbroken.
Tricked by her mum, Ha-neul goes on a blind date, not knowing anything. Needless to say, the date goes south. The only perk is that she speaks up and doesn’t suppress her emotions this time. Luckily, the fight between Mum and Ha-neul doesn’t last long, and they reconcile soon.
In one of the best scenes this week, Mum tells Ha-neul to stop feeling guilty about missing her father’s last call. You see, Ha-neul’s father passed away while she was in high school. That day many good things happened to Ha-neul. Unbeknownst to her, her father was rushed to the hospital and passed away. She felt guilty about being happy while her father was facing his final moments. Since then, she started feeling afraid each time she felt happy as she believed happiness and sorrow come consecutively.
Mum’s words help her muster up the courage to send Jeong-woo one drunken message. That nudge was enough for Jeong-woo to head to the rooftop early in the morning. He will wait for her until she is ready to come to him. So, she would take good care of herself until then.
“To be honest, I was worried. But I thought you were okay since you looked fine.”
Meanwhile, word spread about Jeong-woo joining Dae-yeong’s clinic. Thus, the empty clinic is now teeming with clients, and they are fully booked with surgeries. The catch: Jeong-woo’s PTSD resurfaces while operating on a patient, and the surgery is postponed. Dae-yeong suggests he take over until Jeong-woo gets better. But Jeong-woo insists on continuing with his surgeries.
Though nervous, Jeong-woo gets ready for his next surgery. And guess who is also there to support him? It is Ha-neul. Hearing about what happened from Hong-ran, a worried Ha-neul asks Dae-yeong to let her attend the surgery.
“I didn’t even like you then, but I couldn’t bear to see you in pain. So imagine how I feel right now.”
With Ha-neul by his side, Jeong-woo’s surgery goes well. But this is it. She only scrubbed in to help Jeong-woo, not because she was ready to get back to work. Jeong-woo doesn’t want to be the only one receiving help after she has turned down his pleas to stay together even when struggling.
It isn’t that Jeong-woo doesn’t miss Ha-neul. He is happy and grateful to have her by his side. But her insistence on breaking up with him made him feel like he was an unreliable person she couldn’t lean on. So, he pushed himself to get back to work despite his condition. And messing up his first surgery only made things worse. Jeong-woo wanted to impress Ha-neul but ended up trembling before her.
But who says Jeong-woo didn’t help Ha-neul? All those small things he did helped get her depression better and made her happy. Ha-neul indeed stepped in to help Jeong-woo, but she also believed working together would help them get better.
Her honest words touch Jeong-woo’s heart and make him come around. Hearing their former teacher is scheduled for surgery for a lump on his back. Jeong-woo settles to perform it together with her.
“Tell me you hit him more than he hit you.”
Meanwhile, Jeong-woo learns from Hong-ran about what Kyung-min did to Ha-neul. (That guy is pure evil. Not only did he steal Ha-neul’s work and cause her to quit, but he also spread rumors about Ha-neul and got in the way of her getting a new job.) Jeong-woo confronts Kyung-min and punches him. That scene was so satisfying, and I hope it is the last we see of Kyung-min.
After the fistfight with Kyung-min, Jeong-woo heads to the rooftop to see Ha-neul. She treats his wounds, and they share a tender kiss that mirrors the one we get in the ending scene. Hooray! Our cute couple is back together, and I hope this is the last breakup we get in the drama and what is left for us is only sweetness.
Doctor Slump Episodes 9 and 10 Musings
While we are still enjoying the drama and its heartfelt dialogues, we have to say some issues are taking away from our enjoyment. Ha-neul’s family is taking too much screen time. The conversation with Mum was something Ha-neul needed to stop feeling guilty over missing her father’s last call and enjoy true happiness. But the sequence leading to it was completely unnecessary. We could have gotten to the same point without the fight and the blind date.
We get tons of filler scenes while our secondary leads barely have any screen time. And the way Hong-ran’s character is written doesn’t help a single bit. She is an annoying character who almost only exists to share intel in the worst ways ever. I tried to hold back last week, but telling Ha-neul over the phone about the job offer Jeong-woo got was not a suitable way to relay such news.
Dae-yeong also seems to only exist as a plot device to get our leads together and comic relief when things get dark. His scene with Hong-ran’s son watching insects was really good. And it made me think about what could have been if Dae-yeong and Hong-ran’s story was handled with more care.
Two single parents meeting and falling in love is such a compelling storyline. And Hong-ran’s sweet son contrasts Dae-yeong’s rebellious daughter very well. But all of this is thrown out of the window in favor of much less interesting scenes.
Find encouraging lessons as Jeong-woo and Ha-neul rediscover their purpose in Doctor Slump!
Photos and Videos: JTBC Drama
