After The Hippocratic Crush I and II (On Call 36小時), Big White Duel (白色強人) is another TVB medical drama that centers around the lives of a few doctors. It is one of the big budget productions for the year with real medical professionals being roped in to help in order to create more realistic scenes. But a big budget and powerful cast do not necessarily mean the drama would be a success. The storyline also needs to be engaging. So, what does this drama has to offer viewers? Let me spell it out in the Big White Duel review below.
Episodes: 25
Type: Medical
Release Date: June 2019
Images Credit: TVB
The Cast
- Roger Kwok Chun-On as YT (Dr. Yeung)
- Kenneth Ma Kwok-Ming as Tong Ming (Dr. Tong)
- Natalie Tong Sze-Wing as Zoe (Dr. So)
- Ali Lee Kai-Sum as Kennis (Dr. Ching)
- Kelly Cheung Hei-Man as Yan (Dr. Lui)
- Matthew Ho Kwong-Pui as Tak Zhai (Dr. Poon)
- Crystal Fung Ying-Ying as Ceci (Dr. Fong)
- Wai Ka-Hung as Hugo (Dr. Ho)
- David Keung Tai-Wai as Dr. Lui
- Ram Tseung Chi-Kwong as Samuel (Dr. Yu)
- Ashley Chu Chi-Yin as Hong Kiu
Main Characters
YT
YT is the deputy head of Marshall Paxton Hospital. He also leads the hospital’s neuroendovascular department as its head doctor. YT is a very capable surgeon but also highly ambitious to the point of being unscrupulous. He has a wish to change the existing legislation that governs public healthcare and this often puts him at odds with Dr. Lui.
Tong Ming
Tong Ming is a leading cardiothoracic surgeon. He was arm-twisted by Dr. Lui to serve at Marshall Paxton Hospital. He leads the cardiothoracic department and his main aim is to discharge his duties as a doctor and save lives. His methods could be controversial which could get him into trouble with the Medical Board but he always has his patients’ interests at heart. He has no inclinations to play politics but is often caught in between YT and Dr. Lui in their power play.
Zoe
Zoe is an Accident & Emergency (A & E) doctor at Marshall Paxton Hospital. She is a very attentive and efficient doctor. Married to Tong Ming at one time, they divorced 5 years ago. She now shares an apartment with her good friend, Kennis.
Kennis
Kennis is an up-and-coming cardiothoracic surgeon at Marshall Paxton Hospital. She was expected to fill the vacancy as the department head but was pushed aside in favour of Tong Ming at the last minute. She is a professional and doesn’t let disagreements to affect her role as a doctor. Kennis is a good friend of Zoe and Yan.
Yan
Yan is a neuroendovascular surgeon under YT and has feelings for him. But she is also the daughter of Dr. Lui. Hence, she often gets caught in between her father and YT although she doesn’t care much about the on-going politics. She has 2 good friends in Zoe and Kennis.
Tak Zhai
Tak Zhai is a young cardiothoracic surgeon with Tong Ming being his guru. Despite his inexperience, he is a calm and confident doctor. He is kind to everyone which invites attention from a nurse but his feelings lie with Ceci.
Ceci
Ceci is also a young cardiothoracic doctor like Tak Zhai. They would assist senior doctors during surgeries. She also has feelings for Tak Zhai.
Hugo
Hugo is a cardiothoracic surgeon but is a difficult person to work with. He is rude and often likes to report his colleagues’ mistakes to the management. He likes to go home on time and would not do more than required.
Dr. Lui
Dr. Lui is the head of Marshall Paxton Hospital. He has about a year left into his contract and is out to stop YT from succeeding with the plan to change the legislation before his term expires. He can also be as ruthless as YT which makes him a formidable foe.
Samuel
Samuel is the head doctor of the A & E department. He is also an old friend of Tong Ming.
Hong Kiu
Hong Kiu is the director of a news agency and married to Martin (Max Cheung Tat Lun), head of the Medical Council. She is close to YT and is helping him to influence public opinion on the proposed legislation.
Synopsis
The first episode of Big White Duel lays the background to the politics involved in the debate for a legislative change to the public healthcare system. Due to increasing costs to fund public healthcare, YT is proposing a radical change that would involve privatisation. Dr. Lui is against the idea and this leads to a power struggle that spills over to Marshall Paxton Hospital where they both work.
In order to stop YT, Dr. Lui arm-twisted Tong Ming to become the head of the hospital’s cardiothoracic unit. With barely a year left to his contract, Dr. Lui hopes Tong Ming can check YT’s authority and oppose the privatisation plan. However, Tong Ming has no interest in the political side of things. This does not stop YT and Dr. Lui from getting him to their side and they started scheming to make him comply with their wishes.
In between this power play is the numerous patient cases that are central to a medical drama. On top of that, romantic relationships start to develop. How would things work out between Tong Ming and Zoe with Kennis being in the picture? Would Tong Ming be forced to get involved in the power struggle between YT and Dr. Lui and the politics of the whole healthcare system?
Story Progression
Tong Ming and Zoe reconciled. Being an A & E doctor, she attended to a patient suspected of having the MERS virus. The whole department needed to be isolated. She fell sick with flu symptoms but Tong Ming insisted on accompanying her to wait for the test results. This scene tells the viewers that they still have feelings for each other despite being divorced for 5 years. So, although Kennis has gradually fallen for Tong Ming, she really didn’t stand a chance to pry him away from Zoe.
Dr. Lui is suffering from lung cancer. Eventually, he has no choice but to give up his position as head of Marshall Paxton and the fight against privatisation. Tong Ming took up the fight to try to oppose YT. The straw that broke the camel’s back is YT’s insistence on conducting the surgery of a government minister first although Tong Ming’s patient’s case was more urgent. This re-affirmed Tong Ming’s belief that the new legislation will cause unfairness in the whole healthcare system with the poor being marginalised.
Kennis is a heart cancer patient. She hid her problem when she should have reported it to the higher-ups. Her cancer returned later on in the drama. Symptoms began to show up and Tong Ming became suspicious. He confronted her and eventually convinced her to let him handle her case. By then, complications have set in and her heart operation has become highly risky.
Big White Duel Final Episode (Spoilers Alert!)
YT changed his mind and opposed the proposed privatisation plan during the lawmakers’ meeting to vote on the new legislation. During the preceding few episodes, he was already very angry that his vision for the proposed changes has been hijacked by private investors who care only about profits. The investors wanted the A & E department of Marshall Paxton closed because that is the most costly to maintain and subsidize. When a vocal proponent of the plan himself rejected the proposed legislation, the lawmakers ended up voting against it.
Kennis’ operation was a success. Due to possible interruptions to the operations of Marshall Paxton as the privatisation bill looms, Tong Ming feels that Kennis should resume her post-operative treatment in the US. He also doesn’t want her to rely on him to recover her health. I get the vibe that he does it because he knows Kennis has feelings for him and it is better to send her away to avoid any emotional entanglement.
3 years later, Tong Ming and Zoe are planning to re-marry. Kennis is invited to be a bridesmaid and has promised to return from her duty with Doctors Without Borders in a war-torn country. However, viewers are not given a firm answer as to what happened to Kennis. A gun was pointed to her head when she tried to stop some soldiers from taking away her patients. Then, the camera panned away from the scene and a gunshot was heard.
In the final scene, YT is seen giving a talk about his views on the healthcare system. He vows to come up with a plan that will focus on the people to solve the present problems no matter how long it takes.
Theme Songs
The opening theme song is sung by Fed Cheng Chun Wang entitled 選擇善良. The ending theme song, 沒有你開始, is sung by Hana Kuk Tsz-Kiu which I personally prefer. However, the English song, Can You Hear, by Kayee Tam is the most popular and it is the song used in the drama scenes. Personally, I think they have overplayed the song in the drama that it became a little annoying.
Now, Kayee Tam has also come up with a Chinese version of the song which she duets with Kenneth Ma. Obviously, the English version is much better and Kenneth Ma should just stick to what he does best which is acting!
Big White Duel Review – Is It Another Great TVB Medical Drama?
When I started writing this Big White Duel review, only 9 episodes have been released and I have watched 6 back then. At that time, I already felt that it is a medical drama that is worth watching. It is a bit different from typical TVB dramas because there is a political angle to the plot which is rarely seen.
So while you enjoy the excitement of seeing the doctors saving lives and conducting surgeries, there is a backdrop of a power play between opposing camps to an important piece of legislation. The image that all doctors are ethical and professional is broken in this drama as they too can be consumed with power to get what they want. I got hooked with that part of the storyline just as much as I like watching the medical treatment scenes. It is interesting to see how Tong Ming got dragged into the political side of things despite his reluctance.
I also find the relationship between YT and Tong Ming to be a nice surprise in the drama. Instead of the usual hatred when 2 characters are on opposite camps, there are more layers to this co-worker relationship. While they have different opinions, there is mutual respect for each other’s skills. There are more levels to this relationship that were explored rather than just basic hatred which is refreshing to watch.
Romance
There is not much romance in Big White Duel despite the kissing scene between Kenneth Ma and Natalie Tong garnering much attention. I guess TVB just has to play it up to attract clicks and views. So, if you are expecting a lot of romantic scenes between these 2 leads, then you will be disappointed. Even when we know that Kennis has feelings for Tong Ming, the love triangle subplot is pretty mild.
However, the director did his best to maximize the impact of the few scenes that touch on their relationships throughout the whole drama to make them meaningful. Thus, I can still feel for Tong Ming, Zoe, and Kennis although romance is really not the focus of Big White Duel.
The Finale
Personally, I find that TVB is laying the groundwork for a sequel with such an ending. There are no firm conclusions to the various issues and a lot is left to the viewers’ imagination. I would say that it is a neutral ending which is neither happy nor sad. So, if you like things to be very clear-cut at the end of a drama, Big White Duel would not offer you that kind of satisfaction. In fact, it could be a disappointment.
Minor Complaints
Throughout the drama, the surgery scenes can look very realistic as they zoomed in on the organs. It has the feel of an operating theatre with all the equipment and medical lingo used. Thus, some scenes can feel quite gory as the doctors cut up the patients or drill their skulls. Consequently, if you are the type that can’t stand the sight of blood and organs, you might just need to skip some scenes.
The other things to nitpick about are, of course, the classy hospital and all the beautiful doctors. Marshall Paxton certainly looks too high class for a public hospital while all the leading doctors happened to have a pretty face. It is a little unrealistic but I guess good-looking actors and actresses is part of the reason why we watch dramas in the first place!
My verdict
For this Big White Duel review, I would recommend a watch. The ending might be a letdown for some because there is no firm answer as to what happened to Kennis. Even YT’s relationships with Yan and Hong Kiu is never satisfactorily explained although both are shown to be in love with him. Hence, it certainly opens up a lot of possibilities if there is a sequel.
The important thing is there is an urge to chase the drama until the end. The entertainment value is there despite the not so great ending. It also has a Japanese medical drama feel which is a refreshing change for a TVB production. The plot is new and the pairing of Kenneth Ma and Natalie Tong is also much anticipated. They do have good on-screen chemistry that gives more depth to the Tong Ming-Zoe relationship.
So, do go and watch Big White Duel. You will find this TVB drama different from their usual fare.
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