Yong-pal
Promotional poster
Also known asThe Gang Doctor[1]
GenreAction
Medical
Romance
Written byJang Hyuk-rin
Directed byOh Jin-suk
StarringJoo Won
Kim Tae-hee
Jo Hyun-jae
Chae Jung-an
ComposerPark Gi-heon
Country of originSouth Korea
Original languageKorean
No. of episodes18
Production
Executive producerMoon Bo-mi
ProducersPark Young-soo
Kim Si-hwan
CinematographyYoon Dae-young
Choi Je-rak
EditorsLee Hyun-ah
Jung Il-won
Running time65 minutes
Production companyHB Entertainment
Original release
NetworkSeoul Broadcasting System
ReleaseAugust 5 (2015-08-05) –
October 1, 2015 (2015-10-01)

Yong-pal[2] (Korean: 용팔이; RR: Yongpal-i) is a 2015 South Korean drama series starring Joo Won, Kim Tae-hee, Chae Jung-an and Jo Hyun-jae.[3][4][5] It aired on SBS from August 5 to October 1, 2015, on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 21:55 for 18 episodes.[6] Originally slated for 16 episodes, due to the high ratings and popularity of the drama, it was extended by two episodes.[7]

This drama reunites Kim Tae-hee and Jo Hyun-jae who first worked together in the 2004 drama Forbidden Love.[8]

Synopsis

Kim Tae Hyun is a talented surgeon. Desperate for money to pay for his sister's medical bills, he adopts the code name Yong-pal and offers his medical skills to those in need of medical attention but who cannot do so publicly, dealing with criminals and corrupt plutocrats.[9] Joining a team of corrupt physicians Kim rescues "sleeping beauty" Han Yeo Jin, a chaebol heiress, from a medically induced coma, leading to unintended consequences.

Cast

Main

A skilled surgeon, who under the alias Yong-pal moonlights as a mercenary doctor for hire. He falls in love with Yeo-jin.
A chaebol heiress placed in a coma by her enemies to get their revenge. She falls in love with Tae-hyun.
Han Yeo-jin's half-brother, who covets his sister's inheritance.
Han Do-joon's wife.

Supporting

Special appearances

Original soundtrack

Yong-pal OST
Soundtrack album by
Various artists
Recorded2015
GenreSoundtrack
Language
LabelNeowiz Entertainment
Daum and HB Entertainment

Part 1

Released on August 12, 2015 (2015-08-12)
No.TitleArtistLength
1."To My Love" (사랑하는그대에게)The One (singer)3:41
2."To My Love" (Inst.) 3:41
Total length:7:22

Part 2

Released on August 19, 2015 (2015-08-19)
No.TitleArtistLength
1."A Nightmare" (악몽)Yong Jun-hyung (Highlight) and Heo Ga-yoon (4minute)3:51
2."A Nightmare" (Inst.) 3:51
Total length:7:02

Part 3

Released on September 2, 2015 (2015-09-02)
No.TitleArtistLength
1."Actually, I'm..." (사실은내가)Jung In4:16
2."Actually, I'm..." (Inst.) 4:16
Total length:8:22

Part 4

Released on September 9, 2015 (2015-09-09)
No.TitleArtistLength
1."So we are" (이렇게우리)Baek A-yeon3:57
2."So we are" (Inst.) 3:57
Total length:4:14

Part 5

Released on September 16, 2015 (2015-09-16)
No.TitleArtistLength
1."Come to me" (내게 와줘서)K.Will3:57
2."Come to me" (Inst.) 3:57
Total length:4:14

Part 6

Released on September 24, 2015 (2015-09-24)
No.TitleArtistLength
1."Only remember me" (나하나만)Park Hye-soo3:57
2."Only remember me" (Inst.) 3:57
Total length:4:14

Part 7

Released on September 30, 2015 (2015-09-30)
No.TitleArtistLength
1."I Hear you" (니가들려)Ahn Se-ha3:23
2."I Hear you" (Inst.) 3:23
Total length:6:46

Part 8

Released on September 30, 2015 (2015-09-30)
No.TitleArtistLength
1."Suddenly one day" (어느날갑감자기)Jin Min-ho3:48
2."Suddenly one day" (Inst.) 3:48
Total length:7:22
Disc 2:
No.TitleArtistLength
1."Main theme of Yong-pal" (Opening Title)Various Artists3:32
2."Black Room"Various Artists2:36
3."Hero"Various Artists2:09
4."Its not that"Various Artists2:11
5."I never get caught"Various Artists2:35
6."Let's be friend"Various Artists2:48
7."Light of Hope"Various Artists3:07
8."My Mother"Various Artists2:59
9."Persuit"Various Artists3:07
10."Precious Family"Various Artists3:27
11."Run and Run"Various Artists3:30
12."Sleeping Witch"Various Artists2:45
13."The Battle"Various Artists2:22
14."Tae-Hyun's Family"Various Artists2:55
15."Wound of a question"Various Artists2:18
16."Yeo Jin's Destiny"Various Artists2:44
17."Yeo Jin's Theme"Various Artists2:47
18."Yong-pal"Various Artists3:12


Viewership

Since it began airing, Yong-pal recorded steadily increasing viewership ratings, eventually hitting an impressive 20 percent by its sixth episode. It consistently topped other shows in its Wednesday-Thursday timeslot, eventually becoming one of the top-rated Korean drama primetime miniseries of 2015.[12]

Ep. Original broadcast date Average audience share
Nielsen Korea[13] TNmS[14]
Nationwide Seoul Nationwide Seoul
1 August 5, 2015 11.6% (4th) 12.9% (3rd) 9.2% (9th) 11.2% (5th)
2 August 6, 2015 14.1% (3rd) 16.0% (3rd) 11.8% (5th) 14.9% (3rd)
3 August 12, 2015 14.5% (3rd) 16.3% (3rd) 12.5% (5th) 15.8% (3rd)
4 August 13, 2015 16.3% (3rd) 17.8% (2nd) 15.3% (3rd) 18.8% (2nd)
5 August 19, 2015 18.0% (2nd) 20.3% (2nd) 16.4% (3rd) 19.4% (2nd)
6 August 20, 2015 20.4% (2nd) 22.2% (2nd) 18.1% (3rd) 20.7% (2nd)
7 August 26, 2015 19.2% (2nd) 21.4% (1st) 17.1% (3rd) 21.2% (2nd)
8 August 27, 2015 20.5% (2nd) 22.8% (2nd) 18.4% (2nd) 21.9% (1st)
9 September 2, 2015 17.0% (3rd) 19.1% (2nd) 15.7% (4th) 18.2% (2nd)
10 September 3, 2015 17.4% (2nd) 19.3% (2nd) 16.3% (2nd) 19.3% (2nd)
11 September 9, 2015 19.3% (2nd) 21.7% (2nd) 15.9% (3rd) 18.4% (2nd)
12 September 10, 2015 19.1% (2nd) 21.0% (2nd) 18.2% (2nd) 21.3% (2nd)
13 September 16, 2015 21.5% (2nd) 23.7% (1st) 18.0% (2nd) 21.0% (2nd)
14 September 17, 2015 20.9% (2nd) 22.3% (2nd) 19.5% (2nd) 21.8% (2nd)
15 September 23, 2015 20.0% (2nd) 22.3% (2nd) 17.8% (2nd) 20.0% (2nd)
16 September 24, 2015 20.2% (2nd) 22.3% (2nd) 19.2% (2nd) 21.0% (1st)
17 September 30, 2015 18.4% (3rd) 20.0% (2nd) 16.4% (3rd) 18.2% (2nd)
18 October 1, 2015 20.4% (2nd) 21.6% (2nd) 19.6% (2nd) 21.4% (2nd)
Average 18.3% 20.2% 16.4% 19.1%
  • In the table above, the blue numbers represent the lowest ratings and the red numbers represent the highest ratings.

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Recipient Result
2015
8th Korea Drama Awards[15]
 Grand Prize (Daesang) Joo Won Nominated
Best Drama Yong-pal Nominated
Top Excellence Award, actress Kim Tae-hee Won
Best Screenplay Jang Hyuk-rin Won
4th APAN Star Awards[16]
 Top Excellence Award, Actor in a Miniseries Joo Won Nominated
Top Excellence Award, Actress in a Miniseries Kim Tae-hee Nominated
Best Supporting Actress Chae Jung-an Won
2015 Hallyu Awards[17]
 Best Drama Yong-pal Won
Grimae Awards[18]
 Grand Prize Yoon Dae-young, Choi Je-rak Won
Best Director Oh Jin-seok Won
23rd SBS Drama Awards[19]
 Grand Prize (Daesang) Joo Won Won
Top Excellence Award, Actor in a Miniseries Joo Won Nominated
Top Excellence Award, Actress in a Miniseries Kim Tae-hee Won
Special Award, Actor in a Miniseries Jung Woong-in Nominated
Jo Hyun-jae Nominated
Special Award, Actress in a Miniseries Bae Hae-sun Nominated
PD Award Joo Won Nominated
Top 10 Stars Joo Won Won
Kim Tae-hee Won
Chinese Netizen Popularity Award Joo Won Won
Kim Tae-hee Nominated
Netizen Popularity Award Joo Won Nominated
Kim Tae-hee Nominated
Best Couple Award Joo Won and Kim Tae-hee Won
2016
52nd Baeksang Arts Awards
 Best Actor (TV) Joo Won Nominated

Remake

There was a talk that the drama Yong-pal which starred Joo Won and Kim Tae-hee could be remade for American audiences.[20] It was reported in December 2015 that a Russian remake produced by Sony Pictures Studios was in development.[21]

References

  1. ^ "[English] The Gang Doctor". SBS International. Seoul Broadcasting System. Archived from the original on January 6, 2018. Retrieved January 6, 2018.
  2. ^ 《BEST》 Yong Pal 용팔이｜ 김태희, 자신 구하러 온 주원에 "올 줄 알았어"...'오열' EP18 20151001. YouTube (in Korean). SBS Drama. Archived from the original on March 22, 2020. Retrieved January 6, 2018.
  3. ^ Ahn, Sung-mi (July 30, 2015). "Kim Tae-hee plays Sleeping Beauty in new medical drama". K-pop Herald. Archived from the original on October 16, 2015. Retrieved August 5, 2015.
  4. ^ Park, Ji-ryun (May 22, 2015). "Joo Won and Kim Tae Hee Both Positively Considering New SBS Drama". enewsWorld. Archived from the original on October 8, 2015. Retrieved July 22, 2015.
  5. ^ Jin, Min-ji (June 13, 2015). "Kim Tae-hee confirms drama". Korea JoongAng Daily. Archived from the original on July 25, 2015. Retrieved June 17, 2015.
  6. ^ "Yong Pal Releases First Intense and Emotional Teaser Featuring Joo Won and Kim Tae Hee". Soompi. July 16, 2015. Archived from the original on October 4, 2015. Retrieved July 22, 2015.
  7. ^ "Joo Won and Kim Tae Hee's Yong Pal confirmed for an extension". Allkpop. September 14, 2015. Archived from the original on November 19, 2015. Retrieved September 15, 2015.
  8. ^ "Jo Hyun Jae joins Kim Tae Hee, Joo Won, and Chae Jung Ahn in SBS series Yong Pal". DramaFever. June 26, 2015. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
  9. ^ "Joo Won Leaps Across Rooftops for Yong-pa". Dramabeans. July 23, 2015. Archived from the original on July 24, 2015. Retrieved July 23, 2015.
  10. ^ Jo, Yeon-kyeong (July 30, 2015). "Joo Won Says He Fell for Kim Tae Hee's Looks and Personality". enewsWorld. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved August 3, 2015.
  11. ^ Kim, Jin-seok (November 10, 2015). "Kim comfortable in supporting role". Korea JoongAng Daily. Archived from the original on November 17, 2015. Retrieved November 10, 2015.
  12. ^ "The Gang Doctor Gets Two Extra Episodes". ONE TV ASIA. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
  13. ^ "AGB Daily Ratings: this links to current day-select the date from drop down menu". AGB Nielsen Media Research (in Korean). Archived from the original on December 26, 2013. Retrieved August 5, 2015.
  14. ^ "TNmS Daily Ratings: this links to current day-select the date from drop down menu". TNmS Ratings (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 28, 2013. Retrieved August 5, 2015.
  15. ^ Lee, Hye-won (September 9, 2015). "Candidates for 2015 Korea Drama Awards revealed". K-pop Herald. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved September 9, 2015.
  16. ^ "2015 APAN Star Awards – Nominees List". November 23, 2015. Archived from the original on September 6, 2016. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
  17. ^ "'용팔이', 한류대상 드라마부문상 수상…'용팔이 잘지내니' - #용팔이 - 대한민국 No1. HD포토뉴스". topstarnews. December 10, 2015. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved December 11, 2015.
  18. ^ "Yeon Jeong-hoon and Soo-ae to receive Excellence in Acting Awards at Grime Awards 2015". Hancinema. December 10, 2015. Archived from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved December 11, 2015.
  19. ^ "2015 SBS Drama Awards Winners". joencorner. January 1, 2016. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved January 1, 2016.
  20. ^ Jones, Julie (November 10, 2015). "Will 'Yong Pal' Be Adapted For American TV?". kdramastars. Archived from the original on December 24, 2015. Retrieved December 24, 2015.
  21. ^ Javabeans (December 24, 2015). "Drama news bites: December 23, 2015". Dramabeans. Archived from the original on December 24, 2015. Retrieved December 24, 2015.

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