Doctor X: Mafia in White delivered two sharply different episodes on October 23 and 24, 2026, and together they showed exactly what Kim Ji-won‘s Gye Su-jeong is fighting against. Episode 5 closed the Na Dae-il chapter with a quiet, chilling act of revenge that sent Jang Seung-jo‘s villain into a panic. Episode 6 pulled the show into heavier ground, tying a patient’s bullet wound to the 1980 Gwangju uprising and placing Su-jeong inside a hospital trap built to end her career. Ratings climbed with each episode, and the show stayed at the top of its time slot.
What Happened Before
Episode 4 ended with a discovery that changed the season’s direction. During a surgery on patient Kwon Chung-hyun (Oh Jeong-taek), Gye Su-jeong found the initials “D.N” carved into the man’s liver. The initials belonged to Na Dae-il, a new surgeon at Guseo University Hospital who had been quietly circling Su-jeong with unsettling interest. The carving dated back 15 years, and Na showed no remorse when confronted. Su-jeong had to decide whether to expose him, while the hospital’s leadership watched for any reason to push her out.
Doctor X: Mafia in White is an SBS Friday-Saturday drama adapted from the Japanese series Doctor X: Surgeon Michiko Daimon. Kim Ji-won plays Su-jeong, a genius surgeon who works through a medical staffing agency and refuses to bow to hospital politics. Lee Jung-eun plays Jang Hee-sook, the agency head who protects her. Son Hyun-joo plays Director Bu Seung-kwon, the hospital’s director and Su-jeong’s most persistent internal opponent.
Episode 5: The Ketchup and the Scalpel
Kwon Chooses Silence
Su-jeong photographed the carved initials and told Kwon what had been done to him. Kwon, the family’s breadwinner, asked her to drop it. He feared the attention would cost him his job and his family’s stability. Na Dae-il, far from showing regret, told Su-jeong the carving was not painful and not visible to anyone else. That response pushed her toward a decision.
Na Dae-il Becomes the Patient
A spot appeared on Na’s liver, and he needed surgery. Su-jeong volunteered to perform it. After the operation, she wrote “D.N” in ketchup on his omelette. The message landed exactly as intended. Na, already rattled by the surgery footage, began to wonder whether Su-jeong had carved his initials into him the way he had carved his into Kwon.
“Did I just carve initials like you?” — Gye Su-jeong
Na attacked her in the emergency room with a scalpel, turning the ER into chaos. Jang Hee-sook arrived and used wrestling-style moves to pin him to the ground. Su-jeong leaned in and delivered a warning that carried more weight than any physical blow.
“From now on, if you’re ever hurt or injured, I’ll be your surgeon. I’ll open and close your body, playing with you until you’re in tatters.” — Gye Su-jeong
The Fallout and the Contract
Na Dae-il was detained on charges of aggravated assault and hospital disturbance. Director Bu turned his back on him and moved to have his medical license revoked. Su-jeong, backed by Hee-sook‘s negotiation, secured a formal contract with Guseo University Hospital and returned to the surgical department. The episode ended with her looking down at the subdued Na with a smile that suggested she had only started.
Episode 5 recorded 17.5% nationwide and a peak of 19%, according to Nielsen Korea. The episode set a new Friday record for the drama and stayed first in its time slot.
Episode 6: A Bullet, a Massacre, and a Hospital Trap
The Patient with a Bullet in His Brain
Oh Sang-beom (Jeong Seung-ho) arrived at Guseo University Hospital with a bullet lodged in his skull. The injury dated back 46 years to the Gwangju Democratic Uprising in May 1980, when a martial law helicopter opened fire on civilians. Sang-beom had lived with seizures, spasms, painkiller dependence, and hallucinations of his dead brother ever since. He had also stopped speaking and communicated through a notebook.
The Magnolia Society, a group that included Chairman Kim, Mayor Im, and Dr. Gu, wanted the surgery performed at Guseo for reasons beyond medicine. They believed the bullet was evidence of helicopter gunfire that the 1980 military government had never admitted. They also wanted to use the case to influence a fight over expanding medical school admissions. Director Bu refused at first, worried about the hospital’s reputation. Chairman Kim told him he had no choice.
The Trap for Su-jeong
With rumors that Guseo was in debt and might close, the hospital’s leadership needed a way out. Su-jeong volunteered for the surgery. Director Bu saw an opportunity: if the operation failed, the blame would fall on her, and the hospital could remove her while keeping the Magnolia Society satisfied. Hee-sook was offered a bag of cash to go along with the plan. She turned it down until the surgery was finished, then warned Su-jeong that she was walking into a trap.
The Boy Who Wanted to Buy Shoes
Su-jeong, Hee-sook, Park Tae-kyung (Kim Woo-seok), and Jo Won-jin traveled to Gwangju to meet Sang-beom. The episode flashed back to May 1980. A boy used his savings to buy dress shoes for his older brother, who shined shoes for a living. The shopkeeper gave him the shoes despite the short payment. Tear gas exploded outside, and the boy ran toward the protests to find his brother. A woman tried to hold him back. That woman was Su-jeong, and the memory belonged to her as much as to Sang-beom.
Sang-beom never found his brother’s body. He visited the spot where his brother used to work every day. He believed his brother died because of him, and he accepted living in pain as punishment. Su-jeong told him the surgery could relieve his hallucinations. Sang-beom refused when he realized the operation might mean never seeing his brother again.
The Rooftop and the Helicopter
Sang-beom left his room that night. Tae-kyeong and Won-jin found him on the rooftop, preparing to jump. A helicopter carrying a former president landed at the hospital, and the sound triggered Sang-beom’s memories of the Gwangju attack. He lost his balance and screamed as the past came back. Su-jeong rushed to the hospital, and the episode ended with her thinking about Baraka, the boy from her past who had begged her to save his sister Neema in Lagota.
Episode 6 recorded 19.5% nationwide and 19.2% in the metropolitan area, the drama’s highest rating at that point. It ranked as the fifth-highest Friday-Saturday drama rating in SBS history.
Character Story Progression
Gye Su-jeong moved from exposing a single corrupt surgeon to confronting a hospital-wide system willing to sacrifice a patient for politics. Her revenge on Na Dae-il was psychological rather than violent, and her decision to take Sang-beom’s case showed she understood the trap and walked into it anyway.
Na Dae-il went from arrogant surgeon to terrified patient. His belief that his initials were a private joke collapsed when Su-jeong turned the same gesture back on him. His suspension and pending license revocation closed his arc for now.
Jang Hee-sook protected Su-jeong physically and professionally. She pinned Na Dae-il in the ER, negotiated Su-jeong’s hospital contract, and warned her about Director Bu’s plan.
Director Bu Seung-kwon revealed the depth of his willingness to use patients and doctors as tools. He accepted the Magnolia Society’s demand, planned to blame Su-jeong for any failure, and tried to buy Hee-sook’s cooperation.
Oh Sang-beom became the season’s most emotionally weighted patient. His refusal of surgery was not irrational fear but a refusal to lose the only connection he had left to his brother.
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Release Information for Episode 7
Doctor X: Mafia in White airs on SBS in South Korea on Friday, October 30, 2026, at 9:50 PM KST. Episode 7 will stream on Netflix in the USA, UK, Canada, Australia, India, and other global markets shortly after the Korean broadcast. The drama runs for 12 episodes in total, with new episodes arriving on Fridays and Saturdays.
For more K-drama recaps and SBS drama coverage, keep reading VvipTimes.
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