'Doctor on the Edge' wraps with record ratings as warm finale wins its time slot

ENA's Monday-Tuesday drama "Doctor on the Edge" wrapped with a warm happy ending, following young characters who learned to save lives, find love and grow up. The finale pushed viewership to a series high of 7 percent, capping the 12-episode run on a strong note.

Based on "Jonbeo Doctor," a popular title from Kakao Page and Kakao Webtoon, "Doctor on the Edge" is a medical romance centered on Do Ji-eui (played by Lee Jae-wook), a public health doctor assigned to the notoriously unwelcoming island of Pyeondong-do, and Yuk Ha-ri (played by Shin Ye-eun), a nurse with many secrets.

The finale, released Tuesday, drew a nationwide average rating of 5.9 percent — a new series high — and a minute-by-minute peak of 7.0 percent, placing it first in its time slot and first among Monday-Tuesday dramas. Viewers and critics praised the show for delivering warmth and excitement through the story of two islanders who, surrounded by residents full of heart and hardship, learned to heal others and discover love.

The final episode followed Do Ji-eui and Yuk Ha-ri as they stayed by each other's side, healed old wounds and took new steps forward. Their story — of saving people, learning from life and finding strength simply in each other's presence — remained tender to the last. The growth of the young Pyeondong crew, bittersweet and moving, added to the finale's warmth.

An emergency patient appeared on Pyeondong-do that day just as the local health clinic had been temporarily shut down. Yeom Byeong-cheol (played by Kim Yun-bae), who had been forced to take the blame for everything by Go Chang-mok (played by Kim Hae-gon), was injured in a drunk-driving accident. With the patient in danger of going into shock from severe blood loss, Yuk Ha-ri retrieved medicine from the closed clinic without hesitation, and Do Ji-eui stepped in to treat him.

Yet even the straightforward act of saving a life proved powerless against an administrative order. Facing disciplinary action, Hwang Sin-hye (played by Joo In-young) volunteered to take responsibility, while Choi Hyang-mi (played by Jung Ae-yeon) proposed a compromise: help Go Chang-mok's election campaign in exchange for reopening the clinic. Do Ji-eui refused. Instead, he took the stage at a campaign rally and exposed Go's embezzlement. In the ensuing chaos, Go — his kneecap dislocated — surrendered, and the temporary closure was lifted. The key to victory had been Yeom Byeong-cheol: ashamed that Do Ji-eui had worried only about his injuries to the very end, Yeom handed over evidence of the embezzlement.

The Pyeondong health clinic welcomed a new spring, but the time for goodbyes arrived just as quickly. Do Ji-eui's words — "I used to hate the word 'hold on.' But after holding on, I realized holding on is the strongest thing there is" — moved viewers deeply. Having endured, each character set off on a new path, and a kiss between Do Ji-eui and Yuk Ha-ri on the open sea sealed the happy ending. A final glimpse of Do Ji-eui newly assigned to a prison facility hinted at yet another chapter of perseverance ahead.