Viewers should pay more attention to the titles in this drama series.

Here’s the backstory of the parrotbill (or “baepsae” in Korean) in this episode.

The much-awaited doctor from Season 1, Dr. Kang, had just concluded a disastrous operation. His first patient upon his return to Doldam Hospital died on the operating table. His second patient was waiting for his attention. They needed a CT surgeon but since Dr. Cha was still in surgery, Dr. Seo asked if they should call Master Kim.

To me, Dr. Seo’s suggestion was the correct move to make. However, Dr. Kang chose to interrupt Dr. Cha’s surgery with a phone call.

Why?

Because he’s a nitwit with a colossal ego.

Kang: (ordering a nurse) Can you get Dr. Cha Eunjae on the line? (talking to Dr. Cha) Dr. Cha.
Cha: Yes, I’m listening.
Kang: The trauma patient from the traffic accident is bleeding in the lungs because of a rib fracture. What will you do? Dr. Cha. Don’t you work for the Trauma Center? A patient who needs a CT surgeon is lying in the Trauma Center right now. It’s a flail chest with a damaged lung. I’m asking you what will you do?
Cha: (sighing)
Kang: Dr. Cha. Aren’t you going to answer me?
Cha: I’m sorry. I’m doing an aorto-biiliac bypass now.
Kang: (shouting) That’s why I told you. A member of the Trauma Center is not allowed to treat or operate on a non-trauma patient.

Really? Is this the guy the fangirls have been mooning about??

Are they that blinded by the actor that they can’t see the obvious flaws of the character? Let me list them.

1. Dr. Kang OBVIOUSLY thought he could do everything single-handedly, ala Master Kim.

Describing the patient to Dr. Doil, he said, “It’s a massive hemoperitoneum from a livery injury. We’re not sure about any other injuries. He’s in impending arrest, so I’ll block the aorta for damage control. I’ll do a crash laparotomy, pack him, and stop the bleeders. Then, see if he needs anything else in the second look surgery.”

But he isn’t Master Kim, OBVIOUSLY.

2. He OBVIOUSLY has an arrogant “lone gunman” complex. He thinks he can act on his own, without needing others.

3. He OBVIOUSLY didn’t listen to Dr. Doil who urged him to call for backup from the Doldam ER since they had two other patients in the Trauma Center.

Dr. Doil and Nurse Oh were Master Kim’s proxies. They were sent by Master Kim to observe and monitor Dr. Kang.

4. He OBVIOUSLY let his ego get the better of him.

To me, his ego was the primary reason he didn’t ask for help. He wanted to prove that he could do better than Master Kim. He fully expected his trauma operation at Doldam to be successful so when an unexpected crisis occurred, he became mad.

5. He’s OBVIOUSLY taking out his anger on Dr. Cha because his first ever operation after his return failed. It must have been a blow to his ego AFTER he insisted on going at it alone.

Hubris.

6. He’s OBVIOUSLY looking for somebody to blame for the death. And Dr. Cha was his convenient scapegoat. In his mind, if Dr. Cha had been there, he wouldn’t have been short-staffed and pressured to do the surgery on his own. But he ignored Dr. Doil’s counsel to call for backup….

7. He’s OBVIOUSLY a nitwit.

A little earlier in the episode, when Dr. Cha was getting testy with her resident, Dr. Lee, Nurse EunTak reminded her to take a deep breath.

If a nurse understood the importance of a surgeon’s composure during an operation, then I don’t get why Dr. Kang would rattle a colleague halfway through a surgery. How would yelling at her make her speed up her surgery? Would scolding her about her duties as a Trauma Center doctor help or exacerbate the situation?

His actions here just made him look like a petty tyrant. OBVIOUSLY.

In contrast, Dr. Seo demonstrated more restraint and better judgment. He wasn’t intimidated by this hotshot Dr. Kang. He took the phone from Dr. Kang to speak to Dr. Cha in a firm voice. I like that he didn’t shout like Dr. Cha was a deaf colleague. I also like that he was able to medically prioritize the surgeries.

Seo: Cha Eunjae, don’t let it get to you. According to the CT, the worst of the bleeding is by the liver. I’ll take care of that for now. You can finish up your surgery and come over. Focus on the patient in front of you now. Got it? Over and out.

+50 points to Dr. Seo for dealing with the crisis with level-headedness.

+50 points to Dr. Seo for showing that Dr. Kang was a power-tripper. More than anything, Dr. Kang was upset with Dr. Cha because she disobeyed his “royal edict.”

Kang: What are you doing?
Seo: And what do you think you’re doing?
Kang: Didn’t you hear me scolding Cha Eunjae?
Seo: And are you scolding her for saving a life?
Kang: Yes, in this situation, she should be scolded.

Heck, no! In precisely this situation, she should NOT be scolded because she was in the middle of surgery. He could scold her AFTER the surgery and IN PRIVATE, but not before/during the surgery, and in public. His action was unproductive and over-the-top. It showed him to be inflexible, autocratic, and…bullying.

Kang: (continuing) She has no common sense as a trauma surgeon. She forgot her duties and broke the rules as she pleased! She put the patients in the trauma center in danger. She’s saving a life? Does it look like she’s saving lives here right now?

Gee. Thank you for bad-mouthing your colleague in front of others when she couldn’t defend herself. How unprofessional!

Well…in the same token, I could say that he killed his first patient because he didn’t listen to Dr. Doil’s advice to ask for back-up.

Seo: Rules or whatever, we’re just doing what Master Kim taught us to do.
Jung: Yah. Why are you guys doing this? Dongju? Woojin?
Doil: You two shouldn’t be arguing right now. We need to get ready for surgery.

Again, the voice of reason spoke. But did Dr. Kang listen again?

Nooooo. He didn’t want to listen to Dr.  Doil because he had his next victim in sight: Since Dr. Seo dared to defy him, too, he wanted to put him in his place.

Kang: Dr. Seo Woojin. Do you know why the parrotbill dies while chasing the stork?

Note: Dr. Kang was referring to a famous Korean proverb, “If the ‘baepsae’ follows the stork, its crotch will rip.” Given that a stork has long legs, it can take big strides. But despite the best efforts of a “baepsae,” it can only take tiny strides since its legs are tiny compared with a stork.

source: @worldbirds32’s twitter

The boyband BTS had a song called “Baepsae.”

Note this, too. The Episode title has a drawing of a Cessna plane being followed by a hang-glider in stormy weather. Same principle: the hang-glider cannot catch up with a single-engine plane. And when the hang-glider tries to follow the plane during a storm, the hang-glider is certainly risking death.

By insinuating that Dr. Seo was only a “baepsae,” Dr. Kang OBVIOUSLY intended to insult Dr. Seo. But Dr. Seo ignored the barb.

Kang: (continuing) It’s not because it can’t keep up with the strides. It’s because the parrotbill loses its way while hurrying to chase the stork. The moment it loses its way, everything is over.
Seo: What do you mean?
Kang: The only person who can be like Master Kim is Master Kim himself. Don’t hurry after him, trying to keep up with his pace. You might lose something else and not just your hand next time.

As Dr. Kang exited the room, he was met by Master Kim. I’m sure Master Kim heard their conversation because he looked disapproving.

As he walked away, this thought was running in his head, “Do you know what? You might represent what our approach should be, but you cannot be our goal. If you do (become our goal), we will never be able to succeed.”

My comments:

1. Do you see now why the title is “The ‘Baepsae’ Paradox”?

It’s a paradox because the REAL “baepsae” in this episode doesn’t even realize that he was a “baepsae” himself. His argument is self-contradictory; he literally contradicts his own argument.

Dr. Kang’s lack of self-awareness makes him oblivious to his hypocrisy. While he believed that he was teaching Dr. Seo a lesson about not aiming too high above his skills, he was actually criticizing Dr. Seo for a fault that he himself displayed.

He, too, was in a hurry to chase after Master Kim and to prove himself as competent as his former mentor.

Seriously, he should learn to heed his own advice.

He believed that his two-year stint in the US had given him enough experience and wisdom to rival Master Kim’s, when in reality, he still had much to learn about leading people and inspiring their loyalty…as we would see in the next episode.

2. In the following Episode 9, Dr. Kang demonstrated the extent of his cluelessness.

Seo: It seems like you’re causing problems and conflicts between people on purpose.
Kang: We don’t have the time.
Seo: What time?
Kang: Time for friendly conversations and persuasions. I’d rather go head-to-head to see who’ll make it and who won’t, who’ll go together and who’ll give up. It’s better to quickly determine who stays and who goes. That way it’ll be less tiring and time won’t be waster.

Tsk tsk tsk. He’s worse than Professor Cha.

Many fangirls hated Professor Cha. But at least, Prof Cha admired the staff, their professionalism, and the general atmosphere at Doldam. That’s why he wanted to be head of the Trauma Center and fought to protect the staff from lawsuits.

In contrast, Dr. Kang found the whole hospital strange. In his own words, “This teacher is still strange. The people are still strange. This hospital is still strange. And I have returned to that place.”

In my opinion, his lack of genuine affinity for the people in the hospital has made it easy for him to break it up and rebuild it according to HIS taste. It’s no wonder, too, that he didn’t reciprocate the effusive welcome the staff showed him. I hope I wasn’t the only one who noticed that he had nothing warm and friendly to say to them, like, “I missed you all when I was in the US” or “I’m glad to be back here with you.”

Seo: Is that how you sort people?
Kang: If it’s necessary.
Seo: Master Kim trusts you.
Kang: I know.
Seo: However, you do things very differently compared to Master Kim.
Kang: The goal may be the same, but we have different ways to achieve it.
Seo: Master Kim thinks the process is more important.
Kang: (scoffing) He had many irregular methods of achieving his desired results.
Seo: Yet he’s never violated his beliefs and principles.

Here, it’s beginning to be obvious who Master Kim’s true disciple and devotee is. It’s Dr. Seo. Not Dr. Kang.

Kang: There can be different interpretations. Anyway, how did it feel watching my operation?
Seo: May I ask why you acted so rashly?
Kang: That’s because Master Kim is my opponent. I should go against him properly even if I have to be rash about it.
Seo: It sounds like you’re trying to beat Master Kim.
Kang: (scoffing again) I t seems like you understand. You’re right. That’s why I came back. I wanted to see if I can beat Master Kim.

His arrogance is revolting.

And to think he called Dr. Seo a “baepsae” for wanting to chase Master Kim! Well, I’m looking forward to see his legs ripped apart.

3. I also think Dr. Kang got it mixed up.

Master Kim’s vision of medical profession (e.g., to do one’s utmost to save lives) should be everybody’s goal, but the method/approach/procedure is up to the individual doctor.

I don’t know where Dr. Kang got that idea that Master Kim wanted his pupils to see him as a “goal.” When Dr. Seo almost got himself killed confronting the soldier in Episode 8, Master Kim told him not to copy him that way.

Based on what I’ve seen of Master Kim in these episodes, I think he expected his students and colleagues to show discernment, but he would never impose his will on them. Moreover, he consistently demanded that the ends should NOT justify the means. (And I’ve been saying the same principle on this blog since forever.) In other words, an unethical, immoral, or unjust process CANNOT be employed to achieve a desired goal, no matter how purportedly good or beneficial that goal might be.

Seriously, I’m baffled and disheartened to see so many people nowadays find this axiom difficult to comprehend. But I’m glad that it’s one of the major themes of this kdrama. Hopefully, it will sink in with the viewers.

4. Again, in the following episode, we see Dr. Bae, the orthopedic doctor, clarify the “baepsae” condition. He added his take on it.

Bae: WooJin. There’s only one way a parrotbill can keep up with a stork. It can be done by looking at the same direction as the stork. Without feeling intimidated by the stork’s pace and going at its own pace. It may take some time, but it will eventually arrive at the same place. It won’t lose direction or tear its legs apart.
Seo: (thinking to himself) But Dr. Bae, I don’t want to arrive late. I want to arrive together.

Methinks, Dr. Seo senses that his mentor’s time at the hospital may fleeting, hence his urgency to work by his side. I also like that he sees himself as an assistant of Master Kim, and not his rival or competitor.

Also, when I think about this, there’s another way for the stork and the “baepsae” to arrive together. That’s when the stork carries the “baepsae” on its back.

5. Since I didn’t watch Season 1, I can critique Dr. Kang without bias or favoritism. I call it as I see it. If he doesn’t change his overbearing ways soon, he only deserves to be an “interim” boss of the Trauma Center, and not the permanent leader the hospital needs.

That’s all, folks.