I always struggled with the story of Superman. Sure, he plays a bumbling reporter by day and only trots out his super powers as needed, but how is either of those personas a match for Lois Lane? Clark Kent needed to step up his game to match her wit and drive, whereas Superman turned her into a silent, dependent victim. This is my own humble opinion after watching the old-school Superman movies one time. But you catch my drift. Either way, they just didn’t fit, and it bugged me.

Healer, though. I appreciated the Superman influences and references, but Jung Hoo and Yeong Shin were more evenly matched, which totally made the series for me. Well, on top of Jung Hoo’s excellent fighting skills and the well-crafted plot. The ONLY thing that drove me nuts was the overly loud BGM (background music.) Let’s talk Healer, shall we?

CHARACTERS:

Ji Chang Wook as Healer was perfection. He was believable in his role as the uber-confident errand boy, and in playing the bumbling Bong Soo. I loved that he so ably portrayed being closed off emotionally and then becoming vulnerable when he finally found his reason to exist. Basically, now I’m a Ji Chang Wook fangirl. I will probably watch him in anything.

Park Min Young is also on my list — she was fantastic in City Hunter as Kim Na Na, and I enjoyed watching her play the deeply flawed and yet still cheerful Chae Yeong Shin. She also earns the enviable award of Actresses Who Do Not Cry Badly. I do wonder if her sunny nature is just part of her personality — Kim Na Na was similarly sunny. Either way, she still has emotional range and I loved what she did with her character. There were times I wasn’t certain of her reaction to something, and it was perfectly done to build suspense in the moment.

Kim Mi Kyung. Seriously, is there any role this woman cannot play? I have yet to see it. Her hacker ahjumma was shining. I loved her practicality and her wit and her hastily-made gimbap and her KNITTING. She was fabulous. Ahjumma is totally my spirit animal.

Yoo Ji Tae as Kim Moon Ho — can I please have him for my uncle? He was charming and dedicated and determined and genuinely cared for “the kids”, as he called them. I enjoyed his character so much.

PLOT:

Healer was expertly crafted. What seemed like a simple story on the surface ended up having so many layers and so much depth. There was great tension, both romantically and story-wise, and excellent flashes of humor, too. Song Ji Na did a fabulous job balancing all the essentials. The one hang-up I had was the airport scene — the point of it wasn’t totally clear to me, but I’ll put this one on myself as a viewer and go watch it again.

ROMANCE:

 

Like I mentioned in the opening paragraphs, Yeong Shin and Jung Hoo were evenly matched — their weaknesses and strengths balanced each other. I loved how accepting they were of each other’s limitations and how supportive they were of each other. And the complete trust! I loved how much Yeong Shin trusted Jung Hoo. Great touch that added depth to their relationship.

SATISFYING CLOSURE:

Yep. I was happy with it! I would have liked to see more resolution of the villains’ stories, but overall, I was content.

REWATCH AND RECOMMENDATION POTENTIAL:

This is going on my rewatch shortlist, for sure. And I would highly recommend it for good writing, great action, and excellent romance. Healer is a winner. I’m so glad I watched it.

Come join the Healer discussion over on Facebook TOMORROW. We’ll be having a very spoiler-filled chat about favorite moments, strong characters, and weak villains.

Until then, I remain–

Karie the Maknae

Dramas with a Side of Kimchi