Resident Playbook Episode 2 finds our weary residents descending deeper into the trenches of hospital life—and it’s as much a psychological battle as it is a physical one. With back-to-back shifts, no sleep, and barely time for a decent meal (one of them scarfs down a triangle kimbap like it’s fine dining), the gang’s collective unraveling is both hilarious and deeply relatable. If Episode 1 was chaos, Episode 2 is collapse.

At the center of the storm is the dreaded nightly group report—a bureaucratic horror designed by Dr. Myeong Eun-won (Kim Hye-in), who continues to wield her seniority like a scalpel. Not only is she making the residents compile reports, she’s using them to curry favor with higher-ups while our first-years slowly disintegrate. It’s giving “corporate villain with a stethoscope.”

We also start seeing the emotional cost of this grind. Each resident hits a breaking point—some quietly, others dramatically. They cycle through the five stages of grief like it’s part of the curriculum, while the attending professors behind closed doors strategize how to stop the new hires from quitting before payday.

Oh I-yeong (Go Yoon-jung), meanwhile, can’t catch a break. A moment of hesitation during a surgery—she admits she’s not comfortable with suturing yet—puts a target on her back. Dr. Myeong, proving pettiness is an art form, fabricates a late-night “emergency,” sends I-yeong on a wild goose chase, then pretends it never happened. The result? I-yeong looks both incompetent and insubordinate. Brutal.

Elsewhere, Eom Jae-il (Kang Yoo-seok) becomes a walking disaster. He forgets to feed a patient, accidentally implies another is pregnant, and basically spirals into self-doubt. Eventually, he’s benched—left with no assignments and no dignity. His screw-ups end up falling on Pyo Nam-kyung (Shin Shi-ah), who’s so overworked she might as well set up camp in the on-call room. She takes on the care of a high-maintenance patient who demands dressing changes four times a day, at exact times, with the fervor of someone booking BTS tickets.

Kim Sa-bi (Han Ye-ji) isn’t spared either. Her blunt, by-the-book approach lands her in hot water when a patient reports her for lacking empathy. While Professor Kong gives her a scolding, Professor Seo advises her to work with what she is good at—which turns out to be subtle acts of care. When the same patient collapses later, Sa-bi is right there to catch her. What follows is one of the most quietly moving scenes in the episode: a raw moment of shared grief between doctor and patient over the loss of a twin.

Just as it seems I-yeong might finally quit for good, a Code Blue hits OB-GYN. Without thinking, she runs in and helps save both mother and baby. Professor Seo walks in, sees her in action, and immediately knows who the real problem is—not I-yeong, but Dr. Myeong, who was supposed to be on call. Consider that karma, sutured and sterilized.

The episode shifts tone as I-yeong accompanies a pregnant patient to another hospital branch. The ride is tense, but calm—until we get the warmest cameo yet: Dr. Chu Min-ha (Ahn Eun-jin), now a glowing fourth-year resident and newlywed. She gives I-yeong an envelope (supposedly for Do-won), but we later learn it’s empty—just a clever ploy to stop I-yeong from fleeing the hospital. It’s subtle, sweet, and a perfect example of this show’s quiet brilliance.

Back at Yulje, a lingering misunderstanding between I-yeong and Anesthesiology is cleared by Gu Do-won (Jung Joon-won), who continues to be the low-key MVP of the senior staff. Even Dr. Myeong, backed into a corner, admits her “emergency” was probably a “miscommunication.” Sure, Jan.

Meanwhile, Nam-kyung finally snaps and bolts—literally—but returns in a panic, only to find her patient alive and weirdly affectionate. Turns out, she kept asking for Nam-kyung because she genuinely appreciated her skill. A surprisingly wholesome payoff for a thread that started with yogurt-related shame.

As night falls, the residents manage to coax Jae-il back into the fold. And just when they think they’re stuck with another torturous group report, they’re told they’re free—because Do-won negotiated with Dr. Myeong on their behalf. Soft-voiced hero alert.

The episode closes on a small, well-earned win: the residents, exhausted but triumphant, step outside the hospital for once… just in time to receive their first paychecks. It’s not quite happiness—but it’s the beginning of something like hope.

Time slot: Friday
Broadcaster: tvN
Genre: Medical, slice-of-life, friendship, light romance
Episode count: 12
Global streamer: Netflix