Mary Kills People: Episodes 1-2

by solstices

Off to a strong start, this medical thriller propels us headfirst into our heroine’s ethical dilemma – when living becomes too painful to bear, do people deserve the right to choose death? Compelling, contemplative, and suspenseful in all the right places, I’m already awaiting next week’s episodes with bated breath.

EPISODES 1-2

Right off the bat, we dive headfirst into our protagonists’ illegal operation. Unable to endure his chronic pain any longer, the star athlete CHOI KANG-YOON (cameo by Lee Sang-yoon) films a video acknowledging his consent to euthanasia. Behind the camera is the former doctor CHOI DAE-HYUN (Kang Ki-young), while our heroine WOO SO-JUNG (Lee Bo-young) concocts a lethal cocktail. Kang-yoon downs it, and he’s gone in a few painless seconds. Dae-hyun confirms that there’s no pulse, but all of a sudden, Kang-yoon abruptly jerks back alive with a wretched gasp. Left with no other choice in the face of Kang-yoon’s pleas to finish the deed, So-jung utters an apology, then smothers him with a pillow.

Afterwards, Dae-hyun confronts the drug dealer KIM SHI-HYUN (a fascinatingly blonde Oh Eui-shik). It turns out they were ex-cellmates from back when Dae-hyun had been imprisoned for a medical incident, and Shi-hyun admits he diluted the previous bottle just to make sure he wasn’t reselling the drugs. No more of that from now on, Shi-hyun promises. But later on, Shi-hyun’s boss — the true owner of the drug supply — orders him not to sell his stash to Dae-hyun anymore. Scaredy-cat Shi-hyun whines at the intimidation tactics, but somehow he doesn’t quite seem like the type to fall in line…

In any case, our crew’s next case proceeds smoothly with the proper drug dosage, and they send off an elderly woman at the beach that holds her happiest family memories. She offers a different perspective on death – she’s fortunate to have the agency to choose how she leaves the world. We’re also introduced to the last member of our euthanasia trio: the nurse CHOI YE-NA (Yoon Ga-yi), who works at So-jung’s hospital. Ye-na’s helping out so she can pay off her debts, incurred from her twin brother’s hefty hospital bills.

Can I just say that I love So-jung and Dae-hyun’s dynamic already? He’s a bit of an earnestly bumbling sidekick despite his medical competence, while So-jung is perennially unimpressed but doesn’t curb him from his whimsy. The comedic timing in this show is so good, and the humor is right up my alley. I have to give credit to Dae-hyun for most of the levity, which really helps to balance out the show’s somber themes and overall melancholy. Dae-hyun’s face when So-jung’s niece JAE-YEON (Kim Sang-ji) remarks that her aunt won’t develop an interest in him is pure comedy gold, ha.

Talking about Jae-yeon, her friendship with classmate and neighbor WOO-MI (Kang Na-eon) might just be more than that, if the sapphic overtones are any indication. Between Woo-mi’s overly friendly mom RYU YI-SOO (Seo Young-hee) and Woo-mi’s shrewdly seductive demeanor, though, it’s hard to tell whether Jae-yeon’s reticence stems from inexperience or discomfort.

Either way, Woo-mi accidentally stumbles upon So-jung’s stash of euthanasia drugs, pocketing one bottle while Jae-yeon is distracted. Then Woo-mi collapses in the midst of her ballet recital. At the hospital, So-jung diagnoses her with a sedative overdose, and Woo-mi admits to drinking the bottle she found in an attempt to ease her stage fright. But Woo-mi warns So-jung to keep this from her overbearing mother — after all, neither of them want any more attention drawn to these drugs than they have to.

For now, Woo-mi may be complicit in So-jung’s secret, but there are other hounds chasing her trail. The bereaved ASSEMBLYMAN BAEK (Yoo Seung-mok), grieving the son he lost, is determined to track down the euthanasia doctors. To that end, he enlists the expertise of police chief AHN TAE-SUNG (Kim Tae-woo) — or perhaps it’s more accurate to say that he browbeats Tae-sung into doing it.

Tae-sung has managed to identify the key individuals involved in the euthanasia operation, but unfortunately for him, Kang-yoon’s autopsy results paint a picture of death by asphyxiation, with a non-lethal amount of drugs in his system. Talk about a mishap working out in our leads’ favor! Unable to use Kang-yoon’s case as leverage to pursue So-jung, Tae-sung is forced to pivot in a different direction.

Meanwhile, So-jung prepares for her next client, and that’s how we meet our leading man JO HYUN-WOO (Lee Min-ki). The fact that he’s an orphan weighs on So-jung’s mind, and we learn So-jung’s three criteria for screening her clients. They must be deemed incurable by three separate doctors, be in a state of unbearable physical disability, and have no medicine that can alleviate their symptoms. Hyun-woo ticks all the boxes, and with the excruciating pain sending his motorcycle swerving and then driving him to stumble unsteadily into oncoming traffic, that’s enough to convince So-jung.

A flashback further contextualizes her motivation. Two years ago, So-jung confessed her guilt to FATHER YANG (Kwon Hae-hyo) over not being able to do anything for terminal patients beyond having them undergo excruciating yet futile treatments. Disillusioned, she renounced her faith — and that’s how the pious Mary was put to rest, and euthanasia doctor So-jung rose from the ashes.

Still, So-jung continues to help out at the church hospice, and it turns out Father Yang knows Hyun-woo, too. When So-jung finds Hyun-woo hunched over in the stairwell because his vision abruptly went blurry, she offers her hand to support him down the stairs, and Hyun-woo is visibly affected by her kindness. To his question of why she helps dying people, So-jung asserts that she believes people deserve the right to choose between life or death. Then she asks Hyun-woo to contact her once he figures out where his happiest place is.

In the meantime, our crew reach out to the high school student JO SOO-YOUNG (Lee Won-jung), who has barely a fortnight left to live. Though Dad Park Won-sang stifles his grief in private, he agrees to the plan — Soo-young doesn’t want to suffer for his remaining days. Except Dae-hyun suddenly backtracks when he realizes Soo-young has never dated anyone before. “I can’t let him die a virgin or he might haunt me as a resentful spirit,” LOL. So-jung’s expression of exasperated disbelief has me cracking up.

I love that even Soo-young — whom they’ve known for barely two days — calls Dae-hyun out for his unrequited crush on So-jung, ha. On that note, Dae-hyun urges Soo-young to confess to his crush slash childhood friend, but a sudden relapse has Soo-young doubling over in pain before he can follow through.

With the clock ticking down, So-jung’s sympathy grows for Hyun-woo — he isn’t exactly choosing euthanasia, he’s resorting to it because he’s forced into a corner. That has her overriding his wishes and looking into clinical trials, but Hyun-woo snaps. He’s sick of trying — he once wanted to live, but not anymore.

In the aftermath of their quarrel, Hyun-woo goes off the grid, while So-jung attempts to track him down. It doesn’t quite work out, but they end up reuniting when a patient’s abusive husband wreaks havoc in the hospice: Hyun-woo arrives in the nick of time and smashes a flowerpot on the man’s head. Afterwards, So-jung apologizes for pressuring Hyun-woo into treatment again, and in turn, Hyun-woo expresses remorse for his outburst. Then he gives So-jung the hairclips he bought, having noticed her contending with her overgrown bangs. Aww.

Quietly, So-jung asks if he truly wants to end things like this. Hyun-woo asks why she’s hesitating, and she says that despite him meeting all her criteria — despite what all the data says — she hopes he’ll be able to live on. Deeply moved by So-jung’s sincerity, Hyun-woo impulsively leans in to kiss her. Elsewhere, Hyun-woo’s friend calls out to him, and a completely different man turns around — very much not the Hyun-woo we’ve come to know.

Oh, I’m definitely hooked. I haven’t watched the original Canadian series, so I can’t judge how well this drama performs as a remake, but as its own show it’s certainly off to a solid start. Apart from a few transitions where the swift editing and multiple plotlines left me a tad disoriented, I’m thoroughly enjoying the narrative and all the clues — or red herrings — it’s presenting us with so far.

I love the parallel threads of Hyun-woo and Soo-young’s arcs, because the latter contextualizes the act of baring one’s heart in the face of an impending deadline. Though I was admittedly caught off guard by how soon the kiss happened, I can buy the rationale behind Hyun-woo’s impulse. So-jung is the sole person who strives to understand his pain rather than merely trying to cure it; the sole person who goes above and beyond trying to help him; and most of all, the sole person who sincerely wants him to live even more than he himself does.

But with the reveal that Hyun-woo’s identity may not be his own, I’m led to question his motive behind approaching So-jung. While the drama’s teaser material has already provided hints as to his true occupation, I can’t quite bring myself to write off the Hyun-woo we know as a constructed facade. Both his physical pain and mental anguish seemed far too palpable to be entirely an act, and I can’t see why else he’d have kissed So-jung in that moment of vulnerability. Unless Hyun-woo is truly that manipulative — which, while that could be interesting, I sure hope that isn’t the case for So-jung’s sake. She’s grappling with trauma herself, if her nightmares about drowning are any indication, and her stoic demeanor belies a deeply empathetic heart.

I’m wholly invested in So-jung’s cause already, and that can be chalked up to how compelling Lee Bo-young is in the role. She has to hold herself at a distance due to the nature of both her jobs, yet she wouldn’t have started moonlighting in the first place if she didn’t feel so deeply for her patients. So-jung endeavors to grant peace to those who are suffering — but what of her own inner turmoil?

 
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