Surgeon Bong Dal-hee

Surgeon Bong Dal-hee
Promotional poster
Also known asSurgeon Bong
GenreMedical drama
Romance
Drama
Comedy
Written byLee Jung-sun
Directed byKim Hyung-shik
StarringLee Yo-won
Lee Beom-soo
Kim Min-jun
Oh Yoon-ah
Country of originSouth Korea
Original languageKorean
No. of episodes18
Production
ProducersKim Yang
Kim Young-seob
Moon Jung-soo
Production locationKorea
Running time60 minutes
Wednesdays and Thursdays at 21:55 (KST)
Production companyDSP Media
Original release
NetworkSeoul Broadcasting System
Release17 January (2007-01-17) –
15 March 2007 (2007-03-15)

Surgeon Bong Dal-hee (Korean외과의사 봉달희; RROegwa Uisa Bong Dal-hui) is a 2007 South Korean medical drama television series starring Lee Yo-won (in the title role),[1] Lee Beom-soo, Kim Min-jun and Oh Yoon-ah. It aired on SBS from January 17 to March 15, 2007 on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 21:55 for 18 episodes.[2]

Plot

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Bong Dal-hee (Lee Yo-won) approaches her life and work with a simple-minded gungho sincerity. She's had frail health since she was a little girl, and after she undergoes heart surgery, Dal-hee decides to pursue her dream of becoming a doctor. She graduates from a little-known medical school in her hometown, the remote island of Ulleungdo, and against all odds, gets accepted into the prestigious Hankook University Hospital residency program in Seoul. Dal-hee is determined to become a cardiothoracic surgeon, all the more so because of her own heart condition. Her old-fashioned name, provincial upbringing and lack of competitiveness mark her as different among the first year residents. She immediately gets on the bad side of Ahn Joong-geun (Lee Beom-soo), a brilliant but extremely strict cardiothoracic surgeon who often gets angry at the mistake-prone Dal-hee. Adding to the negative impression is Dal-hee's friendship with recently divorced general surgeon Lee Geon-wook (Kim Min-jun), who was Joong-geun's rival since their intern years. Geon-wook is attracted to Dal-hee, but he still has lingering feelings for his ex-wife, pediatrician Jo Moon-kyung (Oh Yoon-ah). Geon-wook and Moon-kyung split up after he learned that their six-year-old son was fathered by another man before they married, leaving him feeling betrayed and angry. Meanwhile, as they continue to work together, Joong-geun and Dal-hee grow closer. Called a "troublemaker" by her colleagues but loved by her patients for her compassionate personality, Dal-hee must learn to deal with professional setbacks, tensions on the job, hospital politics, patient deaths, romantic confusion and recurring ill health, on her way to becoming a full-fledged surgeon.[3]

Cast

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  • Lee Yo-won as Bong Dal-hee, 1st year cardiothoracic surgery resident
  • Lee Beom-soo as Ahn Joong-geun, cardiothoracic surgeon
  • Kim Min-jun as Lee Geon-wook, general surgeon
  • Oh Yoon-ah as Jo Moon-kyung, pediatrician
  • Kim In-kwon as Park Jae-beom, 1st year general surgery resident
  • Choi Yeo-jin as Jo A-ra, 1st year general surgery resident
  • Song Jong-ho as Lee Min-woo, cardiothoracic surgery resident
  • Kim Hae-sook as Yang Eun-ja, Dal-hee's mother
  • Kim Jung-min as Bong Mi-hee, Dal-hee's younger sister
  • Baek Seung-hyeon as Kim Hyun-bin, cardiothoracic surgery chief resident
  • Jung Wook as Jang Ji-hyuk, general surgery chief resident
  • Park Geun-hyung as Lee Hyun-taek, chief of general surgery
  • Lee Ki-yeol as Seo Jung-hwan, chief of cardiothoracic surgery
  • Kim Seung-wook as Professor Park
  • Kim Myung-jin as Professor Jung
  • Sung Woo-jin as Instructor Oh
  • Jo Myung-woon as surgical intern
  • Lee Bom as Ah-jeong
  • Im Sung-min as Nurse Go
  • Jo Ah-ra as Nurse Lee
  • Jeon Hye-sang as ER head nurse
  • Jo Yeon-hee as Seon-ju
  • Lee Hyun as Instructor Baek
  • Lee Jong-min as Instructor Seo
  • Jung Sung-woon as chief of emergency medicine
  • Oh Man-seok as Oh Jung-min, Moon-kyung's ex-boyfriend (guest appearance, ep 13-14)

Reception

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Surgeon Bong Dal-hee was a hit; it recorded average ratings of 22.4% and a peak of 29.3%, and was number one in its timeslot for most of its run (beating the competition Dal-ja's Spring on KBS2 and Prince Hours on MBC). The series also received several acting, directing and popularity awards.

Awards and nominations

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Year Award Category Recipient Result
2007 43rd Baeksang Arts Awards Best Actor (TV) Lee Beom-soo Nominated
Best New Director (TV) Kim Hyung-shik Won
Most Popular Actor (TV) Lee Beom-soo Won
SBS Drama Awards[4] Top Excellence Award, Actor Lee Beom-soo Nominated
Top Excellence Award, Actress Lee Yo-won Won
Best Supporting Actor in a Miniseries Kim In-kwon Nominated
Best Supporting Actress in a Miniseries Choi Yeo-jin Nominated
Best Young Actor Joo Min-soo Won
PD Award Lee Beom-soo Won
Netizen Popularity Award Lee Yo-won Won
Best Couple Award Lee Yo-won and Lee Beom-soo Won
Top 10 Stars Lee Beom-soo Won
Lee Yo-won Won
New Star Award Song Jong-ho Won
Choi Yeo-jin Won

International broadcast

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  • It aired in Vietnam on HTV3 from February 9, 2009.

References

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  1. ^ "Dr. Drama". The Dong-a Ilbo. 4 January 2007. Retrieved 2013-07-30.
  2. ^ Kim, Tae-jong (15 January 2007). "Prescription for Melodramatized TV". The Korea Times via Hancinema. Retrieved 2013-07-30.
  3. ^ Cho, Chung-un (31 January 2007). "Medical dramas thrill local TV audience". The Korea Herald. Retrieved 2013-07-30.
  4. ^ "2007 Year-end Korean drama awards round-up". Hancinema. 7 January 2008. Retrieved 2013-08-25.
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