Park Eun-bin can do anything. She's a versatile actor with a very broad range. She handles the characters she plays with care, as she proved when she famously played autistic lawyer Woo Young-woo in "Extraordinary Attorney Woo".
As an aside, I'm still hoping we get a second season. I need more of that Park Eun-bin/Kang Te-oh chemistry.
In "Hyper Knife" she does a complete 180 degree turn in the role of Jung Se-ok, a brilliant, cocky neurosurgeon. The previews portray her as someone who performs "unnecessary surgeries". That's not entirely accurate. After being removed and blacklisted from the medical community by her mentor, Choi Deok-hee (played brilliantly by Sul Kyung-gu), she becomes a sort of mercenary brain surgeon, performing illegal surgeries for people whom legitimate doctors have given up on. The more salient point, though, is that she's a serial killer. She effortlessly and without remorse murders those who threaten her livelihood or that she sees as a problem.
The story kicks into gear when Deok-hee shows up unexpectedly and asks her to perform surgery on him. He's developed a rare form of brain tumor that is fatal unless removed, and he believes she is the only person who can do it successfully. Most of the series focuses on Se-ok's refusal to do the surgery, and Deok-hee's efforts to force her into it, as well as Se-ok trying to get him to admit he's a killer, just like she is. My review will remain spoiler-free, but I'll say that the back and forth between these two, whether they're on screen together or not, is very suspenseful and entertaining.
At 8 episodes there's not an ounce of fat on this script. It moves quickly and with intention, slowly peeling back the layers of Deok-hee and his relationship with Se-ok. The ending leaves a bit of mystery (who was that masked man?) and keeps the door open for a second season, but personally I'm satisfied with how they wrapped things up. I'm not the type of person that needs every question answered. "Hyper Knife" is a complete story as is.
"Hyper Knife" gets my highest praise. It is equal to, yet completely opposite Park Eun-bin's performance in "Extraordinary Attorney Woo".
Hyper Knife (2025)
Type: TV Show
Genre: Drama, Crime
Director: Kim Jung-hyun
Cast: Park Eun-bin, Sul Kyung-gu, Yoon Chan-young, Park Byung-eun
Runtime: Not specified
TMDb Rating: 7.9/10
Plot Summary
Seok, an eager yet genius neurosurgeon is reunited with Deokhee, the professor who ruined her life long ago. Once, the two surgeons cared for each other more than anyone else. But now with nothing but hatred toward each other, Seok is furious that he is back in her life and vows to take revenge.
Information provided by The Movie Database