Kim Ji-won’s SBS medical drama ‘Doctor X: Age of the White Mafia’ is back above the 20% mark. Episode 10, which aired on November 7, peaked at 20.2% in minute-by-minute ratings and averaged 17.7% nationwide and in the Seoul metropolitan area, according to Nielsen Korea — a sharp rebound from episode 9’s 15.3% and the show’s fifth consecutive week at No. 1 across all channels.
The rebound ends a two-week slide that followed the show’s early surge. ‘Doctor X’ opened on October 9 with a 12.9% peak and an 11.4% nationwide average, the strongest miniseries premiere of the year, then climbed to a 21.3% peak and a 19.5% nationwide average by episode 6 — enough to rank fifth among all SBS Friday-Saturday dramas ever. Ratings dipped in episodes 8 and 9 as the story moved into a hospital strike arc, but episode 10 restored the drama to the top of its time slot and of all programming for a fifth straight week. Viewers aged 20 to 49, the key commercial demographic, averaged 7.2% and peaked at 8%.
Episodes 9 and 10 centered on an eight-year-old pediatric cancer patient, Lee Hyun-ah, whose rare tumor had spread across six organs. The only hope was an almost unthinkable operation: remove all six organs from her body, cut away the tumors, and transplant the organs back. Gye Su-jeong, played by Kim Ji-won, had built her reputation on never failing and never compromising — but this time she did something viewers had never seen her do: bow 90 degrees and ask her colleagues for help. When the child said she might not wake up, Gye Su-jeong promised her, “I never fail.”
The surgery went ahead without approval, and one by one the doctors who had turned their backs joined in. Jang Hee-sook, revealed as Gye Su-jeong’s mentor, scrubbed in alongside her; Do Yun-sik, her teacher and fellow surgeon, took his place at the table; hospital director Bu Seung-kwon used his authority to keep the operation going after the Mokryeonhoe foundation ordered it stopped; and emergency medicine professor Kim Seong-jin lent his support. In the end, eight doctors — from the hospital director down to the interns — completed the surgery together.
The victory came at a price. The Mokryeonhoe foundation moved to discipline the medical staff and terminate Gye Su-jeong’s contract, only to back down after Hyun-ah’s mother — who had coordinated with Jang Hee-sook in advance — threatened to sue both the hospital and the foundation. At the disciplinary hearing, Park Tae-kyung, played by Kim Woo-seok, said he did not regret taking part. Then episode 10 delivered its shock ending: Kim Seung-hyo, the respected founder of the medical volunteer group White Wings, arrived for a heart transplant, naming Jo Won-jin as his guardian and Gye Su-jeong as his surgeon — only for Park Tae-kyung to try to suffocate the sleeping Kim Seung-hyo with a pillow as Jo Won-jin watched in tears. Gye Su-jeong intervened, and Kim Seung-hyo greeted her with the words, “Long time no see, Doctor X.”
The domestic ratings rebound caps a strong run abroad as well. According to Netflix’s Tudum chart, ‘Doctor X’ reached No. 1 among global non-English TV shows within three days of release and entered the top 10 in 36 countries, holding No. 2 in its third week. In Korea, Gallup’s October survey of favorite broadcast programs put the drama at No. 1 with 9.8%, and Kim Ji-won has topped the integrated TV-OTT performer buzz ranking for three consecutive weeks. The series is a Korean remake of TV Asahi’s long-running ‘Doctor-X,’ which ran for seven seasons from 2012 to 2021.
With two episodes remaining, the questions now pile up: what past connects Park Tae-kyung, Kim Seung-hyo, and Jo Won-jin — and can Gye Su-jeong stay the surgeon who never fails? Episode 11 airs on November 13 at 9:50 p.m. KST.
