The new Dr. X K-drama titled ‘Dr. X: Age of the White Mafia’ is creating a major box office sensation early in its run. Analysts attribute its rapid popularity to a narrative that directly targets the authoritarianism of the medical community, paired with lead actor Kim Ji-won’s intense performance.
Having premiered on the 9th, ‘Dr. X’ recorded an 11.4% viewership rating for its first episode before surging to 14.9% for its second episode. Global achievements followed closely as well. Within just three days of its release, it climbed to the top spot in the global non-English TV show category on Tudum by the 14th.
Driving this early momentum is the character Gye Su-jeong (played by Kim Ji-won), a doctor who openly criticizes her peers. As a freelance surgeon belonging to the ‘Jang Hee-sook Medical Employment Agency,’ the protagonist receives a flat fee per surgery and leaves work strictly at 6 PM. Dispatched to a branch of Gusan University’s Seonam Hospital—which is short-handed due to a wave of surgeon resignations—Gye Su-jeong boldly critiques the absurdities of the hospital director planning faulty surgeries and her colleagues who focus solely on VIP patients, all while rescuing patients in crisis with her overwhelming surgical skills.
Her blunt lines criticizing hospital authoritarianism in the first episode went viral online prior to the broadcast. A scene where she spends about a minute firing off sharp remarks against fellow doctors who turn a blind eye to the director’s wrongful prescriptions has surpassed 8 million combined views across Shorts and Reels.
Critic Gong Hee-jung noted, “Unlike protagonists in traditional medical dramas, Gye Su-jeong does not belong to a hospital, allowing her to view doctors strictly from the perspective of an outsider.” She added, “While past dramas critiquing the medical system—such as ‘Dr. Romantic’ and ‘Severe Trauma Center’—ultimately concluded with internal reconciliation because their leads were hospital-affiliated doctors, ‘Dr. X’ instills hope that it can break away from this predictable pattern.”
Past medical dramas primarily focused on the camaraderie and sacrifice of physicians. Shows like ‘General Hospital’ and ‘Sunflower’ highlighted medical humanism and sacrifice, whereas series such as ‘Hospital Playlist’ and ‘Doctor Cha’ centered on friendship and romance. Meanwhile, ‘Dr. Romantic’ and ‘Severe Trauma Center’ emphasized a strong sense of duty and the drive to save lives.
Doctors portrayed in the series are often portrayed as incompetent. Gusan Seonam Hospital Director Kim Myung-seob (played by Kim Jong-gu) faints after entering the operating room wearing latex gloves without even knowing he is allergic to latex. Meanwhile, surgeon Do Yoon-sik (played by Kim Young-min) discovers that the cancer cells of a patient he is operating on have spread wider than expected, choosing to close the surgical site rather than remove them.
Professor Koo Jung-woo of Sungkyunkwan University remarked, “As medical-governmental conflicts have persisted for about two years since 2023, the drama’s criticisms and exposés are providing viewers who felt disappointed by doctors’ collective action and healthcare vacuums with a sense of vicarious satisfaction.”
Exceptional performances by the cast also stand out. Lead actor Kim Ji-won completed her character through lower-pitched vocalization, toned-down makeup, and a short, blunt bob to express Gye Su-jeong’s unyielding personality. They are joined by powerhouse actors including Lee Jung-eun as Jang Hee-sook, the agency head and Sujeong’s supporter; Son Hyun-joo as Boo Seung-gwan, who blackmails a bedridden Kim Myung-seob to seize the hospital directorship; and Kim Young-min as Do Yoon-sik, who prioritizes hospital politics over actual surgery.
It remains uncertain how long the hit momentum of this 12-episode drama will last. The exaggerated developments typical of the Japanese original work (‘Doctor-X: Surgeon Michiko Daimon’) could also act as a limitation for domestic viewers. Criticisms have arisen that the series lacks medical research and portrays the medical profession in an overly negative light. A netizen identifying as an orthopedic surgeon wrote, “I requested a review of this drama from the Korea Communications Standards Commission,” adding, “Repeated directing that simplifies medical staff into incompetent villains while ignoring even the uncertainties of medical practice can instill false perceptions about healthcare realities.”
