Mary Kills People Episode 1-2 Review
Director: Park Joon-woo
Date Created: 2025-08-04 19:11
3.5
Mary Kills People Episode 1-2 Review: Directed by Park Joon-woo and written by Lee Su-a, 메리 킬즈 피플 is a Korean adaptation of the hit 2017 Canadian series of the same name. This K-drama has a gripping performance by Lee Bo-young as Dr. Woo So-jeong, Lee Min-ki as Detective Cho Hyeon-u, Kang Ki-young as Dr. Choi Dae-hyeon and others. With its darkly emotional concept of playing with the moral boundaries of mercy and murder, the drama differentiates itself from the very start from the usual medical or crime thrillers.
Based in contemporary Korea, Mary Kills People Korean drama that is based around the life of brilliant and troubled doctor Woo So-jeong, secretly helping terminal patients to die. With the help of her former friend Doctor Dae-hyeon and young doctor Ye-na, So-jeong’s practice is threatened when her next potential patient is a detective and is terminal as well.
Mary Kills People Episode 1 Recap
The pilot acquaints us with the dark truth of underground euthanasia. Mary Kills People episode 1 starts with the video of the farewell message made by ex-footballer Choi Kang-yoon after consuming the lethal cocktail offered by So-jeong. Everything goes wrong, though, when the poison fails to have the desired effect, and So-jeong is left to smother him with a pillow—a cringe-worthy moment that sets the tone for the show.
So-jeong and Dae-hyeon are concerned over the strength of the drug, which they suspect has been cut by their dealer Si-hyun. Their worst nightmares come true during a tense confrontation at a nightclub. So-jeong, meanwhile, attempts to live as normally as possible at home, looking after her niece and nephew, Jae-yeong and Jae-yoon.
Lee Eun-young is their second patient. She is a terminally ill cancer patient who wants to die on the beach, the same place where her family made joyful memories. Dae-hyeon arranges a secluded spot, and Eun-young passes away calmly on the sand of the beach.
Meanwhile, Detective An Tae-sung starts to investigate cases of murder related to euthanasia, such as the sudden death of a parliamentarian’s son. So-jeong, Dae-hyeon, and Ye-na are mentioned during the investigation, coming close to their under-the-table operation.
Meanwhile, So-jeong’s niece Jae-yeon is having a flourishing affair with schoolmate Woo-mi. During a visit, Woo-mi discovers a vial of euthanasia pills and takes one in secret. Later, when So-jeong is out at a school event, she encounters Detective An, whose daughter bullies Jae-yeon.
The episode 1 of Mary Kills People ends with Woo-mi making a pass at Jae-yeon and So-jeong rescuing Hyeon-u—now a patient of hers—just in time to save her from walking into traffic. Pitying his suffering, she agrees to help him die.
Mary Kills People Episode 2 Recap
Episode 2 of Mary Kills People continues from the cliffhanging end of the previous one. Woo-mi collapses on stage during a ballet performance and is rushed to the hospital. So-jeong immediately assumes that the girl has taken the lethal drug she had stolen. When Woo-mi comes around, she blackmails So-jeong and asks her not to tell her mother.
Meanwhile, Detective An keeps digging. His detectives learn about Dae-hyeon’s past record of wrongdoing and Ye-na’s financial problems, both of which would be motives for criminal euthanasia. But no solid leads connect them to the killing of the footballer so far.
Also Read: 5 Kdramas Like Trigger That Deliver Grit, Guns, and an Unmatched Adrenaline Rush
So-jeong and Dae-hyeon then meet a child receiving palliative care. Dae-hyeon promises to help the child make his final dream a reality after realising he’s never uttered that he loved someone. So-jeong also goes to see Hyeon-u’s former doctor and receives a new medication for his treatment. She convinces Hyeon-u to take the medicine, but out of anger, he walks away.
Days go by without a word from him until one day, at a church clinic. So-jeong is attending to a patient when she is assaulted by the patient’s wife. Hyeon-u comes to her aid, injuring his hand. He then inquires as to why she did not go through with his euthanasia.
So-jeong confesses that even though he is a candidate for assisted death, she hopes that he lives. This is a heartwarming scene that results in an impromptu kiss between the two. The series concludes with a detective taking So-jeong’s picture to Hyeon-u’s landlord, leaving the implication that her secret is not far away.
Mary Kills People Episode 1-2 Review
With candour and courage, in its first scene, Kdrama Mary Kills People engages in morally complex ground. The show does not hold back on its taboo topic: mercy killing. Instead, it meets the topic with richly textured, deeply scarred characters and sublime self-restraint in narration.
Lee Bo-young impresses in the role of Dr. Woo So-jeong, a woman who has to bear the weight of fulfilling people’s last wishes. Her rapport with Kang Ki-young, playing the practical but humane Dae-hyeon, grounds the emotional resonance of the show. Lee Min-ki also supports the show with his sinister acting of Hyeon-u, whose hunter-victim ambiguity cannot be separated.
The first two segments have a very strong storytelling rhythm, alternating between high moral dilemmas and realistic, down-to-earth human drama. There are several great scenes between So-jeong’s niece, Jae-yeon and her best friend Woo-mi that create an interesting subplot of youth, identity, and cover that easily fits into the story.
Most evident is the avoidance of melodrama by the series. Whatever the characters do is genuine to the pain, the guilt, or the moral conflict they are experiencing. The script is strong enough to prompt the question: When is it time to let someone go? And more crucially, who decides that?
Mary Kills People Review (Episode 1-2): Summing Up
As the first two episodes of Mary Kills People kdrama conclude, suspense actually intensifies. So-jeong’s emotional investment in Hyeon-u brings an additional layer of vulnerability, as Detective An’s pursuit becomes stronger. Mary Kills People kdrama ep 2 foreshadows additional secrets to be revealed and even more moral ambiguities to be revealed.
Based on the first two, this series is going to be a clever, dark thriller that expects as much from its characters–as from its viewers. Because So-jeong is now indebted to Hyeon-u, and the police are hot on her tail, it is only a question of when the wheels start coming off.
