Doctor-X: Surgeon Michiko Daimon Explained

Native Name:Japanese: ドクターX〜外科医・大門未知子〜
Starring:Ryōko Yonekura
Narrated:Taguchi Tomorowo
Composer:Kan Sawada
Country:Japan
Language:Japanese
Num Seasons:7
Num Episodes:59 + 1 special
Producer:Seiko Uchiyama
Location:Japan, New York City
Runtime:54 minutes

is a Japanese medical drama that premiered in October 2012 on TV Asahi. It stars Japanese actress Ryōko Yonekura.

Plot

The show follows Daimon Michiko, a freelance surgeon who works at university hospitals in Japan.[1] Also known as Doctor-X, Daimon is introduced at new hospitals by walking into surgery staff planning review sessions, where the conditions of her work are established. She is depicted as challenging a medical system in crisis, which follows the laws of the jungle.

Her trademark line is "I never fail", and she is willing to do high risk surgeries that other surgeons are not, sending those patients elsewhere when they are deemed non-operable. Her success in treating high risk patients is a result of always putting the patient first, prioritizing their health above performing medical firsts or innovative techniques, and to adapt the right surgical methods on the spot when needed. This practice often puts her into conflict with other doctors. Beyond being a surgeon, she also served as a vet, combat surgeon and resort doctor.[2] Daimon is supported by her manager Akira Kanbara and anesthesiologist Hiromi Jōnouchi.[1]

First season

Daimon Michiko, a lone wolf freelance surgeon who hates authority and groups, joins Teito III University Hospital, where her way of practicing results in conflict with hospital administrators.

Second season

Daimon continues her practice of doing risky surgeries to benefit patients. This practice continues to create conflict with hospital administrators.

Third season

The Hospital" and the West's "Seikyo University Hospital". is brought in to try to minimize these conflicts and bring a more patient-focused approach.[2]

Fourth season

Daimon returns in the fourth season to the Totei University Hospital. Shigekatsu Hiruma serves as the primary adversary for Daimon.

Fifth season

Daimon returns to Totei University Hospital to assist in bringing a more patient-driven approach. Her main antagonist is the Japan Doctor's Club chairman.

Sixth season

Daimon clashes with Totei University Hospital's new administrator Nicholas Tange, (a 2nd generation Japanese-Brazilian, aka "The Vulture"), whose aggressive cost-cutting threatens the integrity of the hospital.

Seventh season

Coming back from New Zealand, Dr. Daimon returns to Tōtei university hospital amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. The internal medicine department is now a priority over surgery with Dr. Hachisuka leading it.

Cast

The show stars Ryōko Yonekura as Doctor-X – Daimon Michiko.[1] [3] Yonekura was a former fashion model who had performed as the first Roxie Hart in the Japanese theater production of Chicago in 2008. After learning English, Yonekura made her Broadway debut in the same role in 2012 and reprised it in 2017. The actress has said that she overuses her character's catchphrase, “私、失敗しないので" (“I never fail") in her personal life. Yonekura also sees the character as a lighter, less stressed and more free reflection of herself.

Shirō Itō and Ittoku Kishibe were both veteran actors who joined the cast for the first season.

Yuki Uchida appears in all 7 seasons playing Jonouchi Hiromi, an anesthesiologist who works for the same agency as Michiko Daimon.

Ryōko Yonekura, Takeshi Kitano and Kei Inoo all appeared in the special.[4] Takeshi Kitano returned to acting after a two-year absence for his role in the special. He had taken time off to work behind the camera.[4] Michiko Tanaka was also a regular in the fourth season, playing the secretary of the hospital director.[5] Tanaka was nervous during the whole three months of filming for the season because she had to work with Toshiyuki Nishida.[5]

The fourth season also starred Toshiyuki Nishida as Shigekatsu Hiruma.[3] He had previously appeared in Nobunaga Concerto and State of Union.[3]

Yonekura returned for the fourth season despite an earlier intention not to do so. During the break between seasons, Yonekura had starred in the Broadway production of Chicago. The actress and former model gave as her reason for previously declining to appear in the fourth season that she had not had an opportunity to star in the same TV series for an extended run and she never had the confidence to respond to people’s expectations. However, because it was a role she really liked, and she felt able to reprise the role. Traditionally, dramas run for only one season in Japan.[6] [7] [8]

Masao Kusakari stars in the fifth season.[9]

Main cast

A freelance surgeon who takes on the most difficult operations using unorthodox and dangerous methods. Her favorite catchphrase is "I never fail".

The owner of Kanbara Medical Referral Agency and a former surgeon. Also another Doctor-X who was stripped of his medical License in Cuba. Known for his exorbitant prices and giving melons as gifts, given the nickname of Melon-Ojisan by Hiruma Shigekatsu.

A anaesthetist who originally worked Full-Time in Season One. Resigned in the final episode and joined Kanbara Medical Referral Agency. She is a single mother, her ex husband is also a doctor who appeared in the series.

One of the surgeons working for the University Hospital. He is known for his expertise in laparoscopy. Dr. Kaji calls Dr. Daimon as "demon" due to how she doesn't follow status quo. This character is the only one with a spin-off in the series "Doctor-Y".

One of three recurring surgeons working for the University. Dr. Daimon calls him "Kin-chan".

One of the surgeons of Tōtei University Hospital, he is portrayed as someone weak to authority. He tries to be on Director Hiruma's good side by following his orders.

One of the main antagonists of the series. In the series, he has been promoted, demoted, holding the position of hospital director or head of surgery. He tries to gain power by controlling top staff, taking advantage of Michiko's assignments, or through corrupt means. He also has tons of mistresses in and outside of the hospital.

Secondary Cast

Appearances: Season 1 and Season 5 - A surgeon who left at the end of Season One to hone his skills overseas. In the premiere of Season 5, he returned to work in a rural area, but was transferred back to the main hospital by Shimura Madoka. In season 7 he returns briefly in episode 7 to Tōtei but now as a medical "Extuber" helping to provide good publicity.

Appearances: Season 1, 2 and 3 - The Director of the Hospital in Season One until he was fired due to underhand tactics by Hiruma Shigekatsu. In Season Two, he re-appeared to help Daimon Michiko in fulfilling her wish to operate on a patient. In Season Three, he appeared in the premiere and was rescued from an explosion on a cruise by Daimon.

Appearances: Season 7 - A former surgeon under Hiruma, now practicing internal medicine. He is the Director of internal medicine & Acting Director of the hospital when season 7 starts. He has a crush on Daimon Michiko, he also got his surgery done by her at the final episode.

Guest appearances

Season one

Season two

Season three

Special

Season four

Season five

Season six

Season seven

Broadcast history

Doctor-Xs first season aired from October 18 to December 13, 2012, on Thursdays on TV Asahi in Japan.[1] It frequently was one of the top ranked dramas on private television in its time slot.[10]

Season one

Premiering in 2012, the first season had 8 episodes and averaged a viewer share of 19.1%.[2] The final episode of the season was 15 minutes longer than other episodes.[11]

Season two

The second season aired in 2013, and included 9 episodes which averaged a viewer share of 23.0%.[2]

Season three

The third season aired in 2014.[2]

Special

The two-hour special followed the third season, airing in July 2016.[3] [12] Daimon is in Kanazawa, with action centering around the country's vanguard hospital for drug testing Cross Medical Center serving as the hospital backdrop.[12] National politician Aiko Ichinose, played by Kayako Kishimoto, collapses on the street following an intimate interlude. Daimon finds him on the street, and sees to his transport to the Cross Medical Center. She then immediately operates on the politician after getting him there.[12] Meanwhile, reigning world figure skating champion Kojiro Himuro, played by guest star Hey! Say! JUMP group member Kei Inoo, is suffering from chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension ahead of the upcoming world championships. Medical Center of the Cross director Kantaro Kurosu asks Daimon Michiko to perform the surgery.[4] [12]

Season four

Doctor-X continued to run on Thursday nights in the 9:00 PM time slot on TV Asahi.[10] [13] The fourth season contained 11 episodes and aired in late 2016. It finished with an average market share of 21.5%.

The maximum viewing share during the season was the last episode, during a scene featuring 43-year-old Japanese comedian Daimaou Kosaka. It finished top in the rankings among Japanese dramas in 2016. It was the top ranked show for the first half of its run in the fourth season.[10] The final episode of the season had a market share of 22.8%. The third episode had the highest market share for the season at 24.3%. The fourth episode had a rating of 21.3%. Among viewers who saved the show to watch later, the show ranked third in October 2016.[10]

The airing of the third episode was slightly delayed as a result of a live program about the bombing of Hiroshima.[10]

Season five

The fifth season aired Japan in late 2017.[14] After five episodes, the show was averaging 20.1% market share and was the top ranked drama on private television networks.[14]

Season six

Production team

Miho Nakazomo was the main writer for the first season. She had experience writing dramas with her 10 years of work on "Woman's woman ~ Tax collector inspector" and on the original story she wrote called "Haken no Rika".[11]

Awards

Ryoko Yonekura was awarded best actress at the 21st Hashida Awards for her performance as Doctor-X.[15] It was her second time winning the award, previously winning it for her performance in the second season. Yonekura was also recognized with the Kuniko Mukda prize in 2013.[2]

Miho Nakazomo co-won the best writer award at the 21st Hashida Awards, sharing the honor with Kobayashi Nenjyutsu.[15]

Spinoffs

Doctor-X: Surgeon Michiko Daimon was spun off with the show , featuring Masanobu Katsumura playing Hideki Kaji.[16] It started airing on September 29, 2016.[16] Katsumura was surprised and pleased that his character was spun off and he became the lead of the new series.[16]

Distribution

Doctor-X: Surgeon Michiko Daimon is distributed internationally via Netflix and Amazon Prime in selected countries with English language subtitles.[17] [18] [19] In India, Doctor-X is dubbed in Hindi language on the occasion of International Women's Day and it is as of 2018 streaming on Indian Digital Platform ZEE5 for Season 1 and 2 only. It's not available anymore in the app. However, all six seasons are now available in India through the Netflix streaming service. Japan Foundation also distributed the first seasons in some Latin American countries (Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador and Bolivia) in 2017, dubbed in Spanish.[20]

In Southeast Asia, WakuWaku Japan aired all six seasons of the series with subtitles, and is scheduled to air the seventh season on a near-simulcast basis starting in October 2021.[21]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 米倉涼子：視聴率18．6％で主演木ドラ自己最高を更新 - MANTANWEB（まんたんウェブ）. MANTANWEB（まんたんウェブ）. ja-JP. 2 December 2017.
  2. Web site: キャスト｜ドクターX ～外科医・大門未知子～｜テレビ朝日. www.tv-asahi.co.jp. ja. 2 December 2017.
  3. News: Nouveautés drama Octobre 2016 – J-Drama Partie 2. 16 October 2016. Just Focus. 8 December 2017. fr-FR.
  4. News: Nouveautés drama Juin 2016 – J-DramaPartie 1 - Dramas. 21 June 2016. Just Focus. 8 December 2017. fr-FR.
  5. News: ＃１ 初めて手にした役は〈魔性の女〉 「萩庭桂太 YOUR EYES ONLY」. 8 December 2017. ja-JP.
  6. News: Ryoko Yonekura to return for 4th season of 'Doctor X'. Japan Today. 8 December 2017. en. 24 June 2016.
  7. Web site: Japanese Superstar to Return to Broadway Cast of Chicago Playbill. Playbill. en. 8 December 2017. 24 January 2017.
  8. News: Japanese Star Ryoko Yonekura to Return to CHICAGO as 'Roxie' This Summer. BWW News Desk. BroadwayWorld.com. 8 December 2017. en. 24 January 2017.
  9. News: Ryoko Yonekura, Masao Kusakari win Best Smile awards. Japan Today. 8 December 2017. en. 8 November 2017.
  10. News: 「ドクターＸ」第８話は２０・７％ ６週連続７回目、また大台超え - スポニチ Sponichi Annex 芸能. 株式会社スポーツニッポン新聞社マルチメディア事業本部. スポニチ Sponichi Annex. 2 December 2017. ja.
  11. Web site: Doctor−X：米倉主演ドラマ最終回視聴率は24．4％ 今年の民放ドラマ最高 瞬間最高は29．8％ - MANTANWEB（まんたんウェブ）. MANTANWEB（まんたんウェブ）. ja-JP. 2 December 2017.
  12. News: 'Doctor X'; 'The Man With the Divine Tongue" Kagome The Japan Times. The Japan Times. 8 December 2017. en-US. 1 July 2016.
  13. News: 『ドクターX』第7話は22.2％ 集団行動シーンが話題に. ORICON NEWS. 2 December 2017. ja-JP.
  14. News: ドクターXの配役に感じる違和感 キャスティングが無理やり？ - ライブドアニュース. ライブドアニュース. 2 December 2017. ja-JP.
  15. News: 米倉涼子、2度目の橋田賞受賞 『ドクターX～外科医・大門未知子』が高評価. ORICON NEWS. 2 December 2017. ja-JP.
  16. News: 「ドクターX」初のスピンオフドラマ配信決定、勝村政信演じる加地秀樹が主人公 - 映画ナタリー. Inc.. Natasha. 2 December 2017. ja.
  17. Web site: Doctor X: Surgeon Michiko Daimon. Netflix.
  18. Web site: Watch Doctor X Surgeon Michiko Daimon 1 | Prime Video . Amazon .
  19. Web site: Doctor-X Prime Video. Amazon Prime. 2 December 2017.
  20. Web site: Doctor X - Japón en la TV . Japón en la TV . . 8 July 2018 . japontv . Spanish.
  21. Web site: The eagerly-awaited new season "Doctor-X 7" starts from October on WAKUWAKU JAPAN! . WAKUWAKU JAPAN . 14 October 2021 . en.

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