# Yong Pal (2015)

> A surgeon operating under the alias Yong-pal is drawn into a dark conspiracy around a chaebol heiress held in a medically induced coma.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/56228

## Facts

- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 18
- Episode runtime: 60 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: drama, thriller
- Network: SBS
- Cast: Joo Won, Kim Tae-hee, Jo Hyun-jae, Chae Jung-an, Jung Woong-in, Stephanie Lee, Jo Bok-rae, Park Hye-su
- TMDB rating: 7.4/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5010664/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: brisk
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: accessible
- Violence: moderate
- Tone: suspenseful, tense, romantic, dark, intense

## Synopsis

Yong Pal (2015) is a South Korean medical thriller series created for SBS, a single-season limited run of eighteen one-hour episodes. Joo Won plays Kim Tae-hyeon, a surgeon who works under the alias Yong-pal and finds himself enmeshed in a dark conspiracy. Kim Tae-hee plays Han Yeo-jin, a chaebol heiress forcibly placed into a medically induced coma, and her plight drives the central intrigue. Jo Hyun-jae, Chae Jung-an and Jung Woong-in fill out the principal circle of rivals, allies and power brokers. The engine of the story is a tense cat and mouse struggle: the surgeon must protect his own identity while probing the powerful family that holds the heiress, and each episode layers new betrayals onto the hospital and boardroom politics. Its tone blends suspenseful thriller beats with a romantic drama thread, so the mood stays taut and emotionally charged rather than purely clinical. Fans of Korean chaebol dramas, medical intrigue and revenge storylines will find resonance with Doctor Stranger and The Glory, both built on privilege, secrecy and a determined protagonist working against wealthy adversaries.

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