Doctor Cha Episode 16 Recap and Review: JTBC’s new Korean drama series, also known as 닥터 차정숙, stars Uhm Jung-Hwa, Kim Byung-Chul, Min Wook-hyuk, Myung Se-bin, Song Ji-ho, Jo A-ram, Baek Joo-hee, Park Jun-Keum, Kim Mi-Kyung, Lee Seo-yoon, So A-rin, Park Chul-min, Kim Byung-Choon, Lim Hyoung-soo and Kim Yea-eun, alongside other cast members.
This Korean Drama series is directed by Kim Dae-Jin and written by Jung Yeo-Rang. Doctor Cha Episode 16 runs for 62 minutes. This series shows the protagonist making a drastic lifestyle change. After pausing her medical resident career to become a homemaker, Cha Jeong-suk decides to start her training all over again when her husband, a chief surgeon and professor at the university hospital, cheats on her. In this episode,
Doctor Cha Episode 16 Recap
While the series is about to end, there is still a big decision left. Jeong-suk’s liver transplant, who will be choosing between In-ho and Roy Kim. She has made her decision so exciting that it almost seems like they will have to take part in some obstacle course to win the privilege of giving their liver. However, Jeong-suk makes it incredibly simple and tells both of them that she doesn’t need either of their livers. She will either wait for a normal donor or will continue with the drug therapy.
The two of them are surprised but accept her wishes. But everything isn’t that simple, and it seems that she will need a liver transplant because her body is failing, and the previously donated organ is facing a failure. She has got everything going for her, but the only thing that isn’t working is the fact that there is no one to give her a liver. Eventually, she gives up the search and decides to go meet everyone one last time and get her affairs in order, including saying goodbye to her children.
She writes them letters, cleans the house, makes food and kimchi and even paints the cabinet doors before leaving everything. However, In-ho comes home and sees all this. He takes Jeong-suk aside and tells her that he will give his liver to her, but not in a way that makes it seem like he will come clinging back to her because he is ready to sign the divorce papers. He hands the papers over to her, and soon the procedure starts.
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Roy Kim starts with the surgery by putting In-ho under anaesthesia first before moving on to Jeong-suk. He is a little sad that he won’t be able to donate his liver to her, but he is happy that she is doing everything in her power to ensure she takes care of herself. After the surgery is successfully completed, we see the two of them at the court, mutually agreeing to the dissolution of their marriage without any conflict.
After this anti-climactic end to their 20-year-long stint as a couple, they have lunch together, and she recalls how the last time the two of them went together somewhere like this was when Jung-min, their son, graduated middle school. In-ho is beginning to understand how deep his mistakes are reaching even years after they have happened. We see something similar happen to Seung-hi, but In-ho manages to apologise to her too.
She decides to break up with him, and he agrees based on everything that happened in the past. She and Jeong-suk also have a conversation where they discuss how they might have been good friends if things hadn’t gone so wrong with their partners. They discuss how this has gone on long enough. Seung-hi apologises for everything she contributed to Jeong-suk’s illness, including the pressure and the family drama.
I-rang has gotten into a good school, and Eun-seo plans to apply later. However, she is saying that she might leave Korea to go abroad if it means that she can get into college this year only. However, celebration is in the air because Roy Kim takes Jeong-suk out on a coffee meeting. He tells her exactly how he feels about her, and she lets him down gently, telling him that is all she needs right now. His words may be like the spring sunshine, but she needs to make her own sunshine.
And she does exactly that. In an absolute utopic ending, we see her making healthy salads at her small cafe. However, she is also a doctor who takes care of her patients as a family medicine specialist. This new venture was also in the paper, making the place extremely popular. She still keeps in touch with all of her friends, her kids and even her ex-husband, who has created somewhat of a reputation for himself. He may have been the absolute worst, but the series shows how someone can get better and receive redemption.
In-ho is now a medical director at the hospital, he has been in a position of lower power, but he was happier. We see that even though things have worked out very well for him, it still doesn’t bring him peace and happiness. His family was the key to making sure that there was a victory in new beginnings. Meanwhile, Roy Kim has moved on from Jeong-suk and started dating someone seriously. Jung-min and his girlfriend, Dr Jeon, are still together and thinking of a future where they have kids and get married. The show ends on this note, with every character exactly the way the universe aligned.
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Doctor Cha Episode 16 Review
This is such a brilliant ending for a wholesome show. Every fan expectation, including the fact that Jeong-suk stays by herself, was fulfilled throughout the episode. It is clear that despite many twists and turns throughout the series, they managed to keep the human experience at the centre of the narrative. There could have been something incredibly sensational in ending the series with some big romantic gesture, but this had just the perfect closure to give us the ending we needed.
Moreover, the show was not afraid to end. It didn’t make some last-ditch efforts to try and revive something that has a very clear ending. It shows just exactly how mature the writing and the actors are. They are ready to try out new things, including having a show that mainly focuses on breaking out of cages while still making it humourous and entertaining. Kudos to the writers and directors.
All episodes of Doctor Cha are currently streaming on Netflix. What did you think of this ending? Let us know in the comments below.
Also Read: Our Previous Reviews of Doctor Cha!
I loved the ending for Dr Cha because not all happy endings require romance or for one to have a romantic partner. ????????
I completely agree! The arc between Roy Kim and Jeong-suk was interesting to see in the series, but I love that they go their separate ways to find happiness on their own.
I found the ending a little flat and anti-climatic. The characters were a little too mature and unemotional at the end. I also feel that the series was too long 12 episodes would’ve been enough.
I think I liked that kind of mature ending. It wasn’t supposed to be a big spectacle. The ending felt true to the characters and explored the reality of what it is like to live with a fractured yet put together family. I agree that some of the episodes were stretched too long, it made the series a little boring in the middle. However, I still stand behind this series as one of the few Korean dramas that managed to nail reality.