Kill Me, Heal Me // Kdrama review

It’s official. I have found my new #1 Kdrama. Kill Me, Heal Me has replaced W: Two Worlds as my top Kdrama.

I watched this Korean drama on the recommendation of my friend’s sister, who raved about it. And I’m SO GLAD. I had college going on when I watched this and I binged it every free moment I got. Two episodes in and I loved it already.

I actually watched this several months back and made notes as well, but just never got around to reviewing. Even though it’s been months, I’m STILL hyped about it. In fact, my friends (who also watched it after I raved) and I recommend it to EVERYONE. It’s THE Kdrama to watch if you’re looking for mystery and thriller.

What is the drama about?

This drama has a lot going on and in the centre of it all is Cha Do-hyun, heir to the Seoju group companies and diagnosed with multiple personality disorder. He has five alternate personalities—Perry Park, Ahn Yo-na, Ahn Yo-sub, Shin Se-gi, and Nana. After some coercion from his family, he returns to Korea to start working for the family business. The drama follows Cha Do-hyun as he deals with family, responsibilities, his past and his alters.

The drama also focuses on two other characters—Oh Ri-jin and Oh Ri-on. Oh Ri-jin is a psychiatrist resident who ends up being assigned to Cha Do-Hyun after he returns to Korea. Oh Ri-on, twin brother of Oh Ri-jin and writer under an alias called “Omega”, also becomes interested in Cha Do-hyun’s diagnosis and family.

Cha Do-hyun, Oh Ri-jin and Oh Ri-on’s lives become intertwined in the present, and it brings up the past as well.

Kill Me, Heal Me is thrilling, mysterious and will keep you on the edge of your seat.

My thoughts on the drama

• Okay so IT WAS BRILLIANT. I got so wrapped into the show that I ignored pretty much everything else those few days. Even now when I think about the story, I get caught up in it in my head.

• There was never a dull moment. The 20 1-hour episodes were jam-packed with events that kept making me increasingly invested.

• Ji Sung, the actor who played Cha Do-hyun & the alters DESERVES A BIG AWARD. I was completely BLOWN AWAY by his performance and acting skills. I could not stop praising him and being wowed throughout the drama. It was more than the alters’ clothes that made the difference. It was the look in the eye, the gaze, the posture and so much more that makes a person unique. Ji Sung acted as multiple personalities down to the core. It was good that I could recognize which alter is currently on screen without knowing the name, even if they’re wearing different clothes.

• Oh Ri-jin, the female lead, was easily likeable. She’s strong-willed, smart and puts all her might into her work. She genuinely cares for her patients and is pretty good at what she does.

• Oh Ri-on, the other male lead, was very captivating on screen as well. He is a famous author under the pen name Omega, and is a dutiful brother to Oh Ri-jin.

• The three main leads commanded the screen with their presence and I didn’t stand a chance of not liking them. Not only did the acting seem seamless, the chemistry between the actors was perfect for the drama. I got immersed into the story and did not think about how this is not real.

• The plot itself was BLOODY BRILLIANT. I cannot imagine any other show or drama topping this one in mystery. It was just. too. good. I applaud the writers for coming up with this intriguing and captivating story line.

• There was a twist in almost every episode. First of all, that is HARD to write and orchestrate. And two, they caught me off guard every single time. My friends who watched the drama were the same. We couldn’t stop talking about the twists and the amazing plot.

• The drama also includes SO MANY THINGS. It’s not just multiple personalities or just mystery. It’s way more and we get a lot of focus on each of those things. Let me list out the most prominent topics which we follow:
  1. The multiple personalities, which are highly interesting and intriguing on their own. I had never seen a show on multiple personality disorder before so this was new and amazing.
  2. Cha Do-hyun’s life as an heir/chaebol. The struggles of keeping an image, family politics and business politics being the same thing, fighting for power and inheritance etc.
  3. Romance. I actually REALLY liked this! And it really fit in with the plot.
  4. Mysterious pasts that come together in a way which will leave you speechless.
  5. And comedy! Every Kdrama has a comedic element, and I loved how Kill Me, Heal Me had humorous scenes without ruining the vibe of the show. It felt smooth and natural.

• I LOVED THE SOUNDTRACK. I will talk more on this later.

• Initially I felt like 20 episodes were too long for me to make time to binge. I even told my friend that I’ll take a couple weeks. But I finished it in FOUR DAYS. With college and everything. It’s THAT good.

• I was dreading the ending because I didn’t want the drama to end. And, to be honest, I thought the ending was lackluster. For all the amazingness the drama was, the ending did not live up that. I can name ways in which it could have been better. That is the ONLY complaint I have. A brilliant Kdrama should have an equally brilliant ending.

The Characters

Oh my goodness, I’ve been waiting to talk ALL about the characters. Here we go.

Cha Do-hyun.

Cha Do-hyun is the heir to a big and powerful company/business but due to a past unknown to him, he has multiple personality disorder. For the longest, it did not surface, but one day when he was in college, an alter took over him. And it happened again, and again, until he realised something is up.

His plan was to get treated and, at least, be in a compromising/acceptable state with his alters before returning home but gets called back early. He looks for a therapist to see in secret and ends up seeing Oh Ri-jin.

I loved Do-hyun’s journey throughout the drama. The highs, the lows, the struggles, the happiness, the resolve, his acceptance of his condition—all were portrayed damn well. He keeps going around correcting his alters’ actions/wrong doings. He is kind, really nice and somewhat lacking in confidence. He’s also always serious and somber.

Shin Se-gi

Shin Se-gi is one of Cha Do-hyun’s alter personalities, and he is the most prominent one whom we see. He’s the exact opposite of Cha Do-hyun. Se-gi is rude, unapologetic, and bold. He does not hold back from violence and doesn’t care about what people think of him.

Se-gi was really interesting, especially in contrast to Do-hyun. His ultimate goal is to take over Do-hyun completely and not be repressed inside. So, he’s basically against Do-hyun. That was so cool to watch.

(Did I mention what a brilliant actor Ji Sung is? Even if I did, it’s worth repeating. He is SO TALENTED.)

Ahn Yoo-na & Ahn Yoo-sub

These two alters are siblings. I have no clue how this works but after researching a few real stories, it happens in reality as well.

Ahn Yoo-na is a teenage girl obsessed with boys. Her top priority is to go after cute boys and fawn over them. It’s so funny, oh my gosh.

Ahn Yoo-sub is the suicidal alter. He’s a depressed teenager and keeps trying to kill himself. He also always keeps to himself. Not introverted but just sad and alone.

Perry Park

Perry Park is the most fun alter. He is carefree, would rather drink away his days, is very into fishing and is really fun to hangout with. He is also a genius with bombs which is so funny. Like, if you put all the alters into one body and they take turns controlling the body, it’s a recipe for a funny disaster.

Perry Park has his own issues which is very under-the-surface. I did not consider him as interesting but he grew on me.

Nana

Nana is the last alter and she is a young girl. Probably around the age 5. She is always with her teddy bear and draws the bear on paper a lot and writes Nana. She is the young and innocent alter who is stuck at that age.

Oh Ri-jin

Oh Ri-jin is a first year psychiatry resident. My first impression of her was that she is a strong character. She is stubborn, bold and determined. I really liked that she is tenacious and determined to see through any commitment of hers. She’s also really cute.

Hwang Jung-eum acted and portrayed the character very well. She was perfect for the role.

Oh Ri-on

Oh Ri-on is Oh Ri-jin’s twin brother and super famous author under the pen name Omega. He writes mystery books so when he has a puzzle, he becomes very intent on solving it.

Oh Ri-on is kind, is a protective and good brother, and a good person in general. He is attentive yet jolly so he is the perfect company. I really liked his character. Park Seo-joon, the actor, was the perfect person for this role. No one else could have executed it better.

What actually captivated me the most about his was his emotion. I really liked how his inner struggles and emotions were shown. He tries to be a happy go-lucky guy but underneath all that, he is so much more. They way he continues on while struggling internally in secret grabbed me.

The Soundtrack

The entire vibe of the drama was matched so well with the music. The music really ENHANCED the scenes and the vibe.

While all of the songs were good for the drama, one particular song stood out.

Auditory Hallucination by Jang Jae-in MADE the drama’s vibe. And I’m not saying this lightly. It was used very often throughout the 20 episodes but IT FIT the drama like no other. I fell absolutely in love with the song. Now, whenever I listen to it, I remember scenes from Kill Me, Heal Me.

Also, apparently, the meaning of the song is taken to be like the title. The rap parts of the song are supposed to convey or mean Kill Me, while the melodious vocal part is to mean Heal Me. And I FELT THAT. Even before I knew the lyrics, I could relate those emotions with the music, and I could relate the emotions and music to the drama.

So yeah, Auditory Hallucinations is hands down my favourite song from the OST.

Overall

GO WATCH IT.

This is one Kdrama which you WILL remember. Not only was it captivating and intriguing, it also portrays multiple personality disorder SO WELL. I actually did some research and watched some videos after I finished Kill Me, Heal Me.

The drama still has a strong impression on me, several months later, and I’m someone who easily forgets stories. So yes, this is a must-watch. I definitely recommend it.

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OTHER KDRAMAS YOU MIGHT LIKE:

W: Two Worlds (blending reality and fiction!) (thrilling, mystery.)

While You Were Sleeping (dreams that predict the future!)

Doctor Stranger (medical thriller, political, mystery)

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Have you seen Kill Me, Heal Me? Or is it something that you might like? Have you seen multiple/split personality disorder in any other show/drama/movie? Tell me in the comments!