The Virus 더 바이러스 [spoilers as usual!]

This is one bloody fantastic show. 

Bloody being an appropriate word.

In fact, it was so fantastic that I think this entry will be really long.

Once again, I have to say OCN rocks my world for its awesome depth in medical/criminal/forensic shows.

In case you cannot remember who the lead is (like me),

he was one of the supporting actor for Phantom (you know, the bad guy) and Scent of A Woman (the doctor)

엄기준 Eom Gi Jun

So so different with specs one lol.

Anyway, this show is about a mutant influenza virus which has infected Korea, has the capability to spread from human-human, kills the infected person in three days. 

So the Center of Disease Control will have to come up with an action plan to control the spread of the disease (failed) and find treatments for the virus. Pretty much like how we did for SARS back in those days, except SARS didn't, thankfully kill people so quickly

Of course the show isn't that simple. Anything that OCN does isn't lol (being extremely bias here). 

Turns out the virus and the vaccine were both artificially made. o.0

So it felt a little like bioterrorism.

Except that the reasoning from scientists and business people diverge (as usual)

The handsome scientist/doctor felt that the world should be prepared for any unknown virus and hoped that through this process, people can gain immunity from it (through the use of the super vaccine). 

The pharmaceutical firm thought otherwise: panic is the best time for profit. What's more it is a panic that was entirely man-made. 

Obviously the situation is unlikely to happen in the real world. Can't imagine companies like GSK and Sanofi to do that. Reputation is very much at stake unless they can cover their tracks properly. 

Of course when you have people dying by the hundreds and thousands, you best hope that your government is helping instead of killing you. 

Unfortunately, as with many countries, economic growth comes first, so in this show the government lost the golden time to contain the disease and subsequently spent even more money as part of their lesson. 

Turns out however, the vaccine had a severe side effect. Well done. 

Not to mention, the government also tried to fake the number of deaths in their reports to WHO just to make themselves look good. Right, China? Didn't you do that back in SARS days?

So as you can tell, I was extremely pissed off by these despicable acts, at least in the show, the politican's child died and that woke him up. 

This show is highly in depth for it touches on the interests from all stakeholders, pharmaceutical firms, researchers (and the agonising problems they face when government cut scientific grants), brave frontline warriors in the hospital, the public, the police and the CDC. It also touches on virus epidemiology, patent rights, corruption in the political world, the obsessive concern over economy, the need for speed as they race against the spread of virus etc. It should make any layman understand the links between science and money better.

A show fitting for a science person like me :)

I warn you though, that the show, as in many OCN shows, is highly graphic. 

These two are the mild examples of what you see in the show. 

Not too zoom in as well. 

If you can't even take these scenes, you might have to skip a few minutes per episode. 

Okok, I don't be so mean, shall leave you with a nicer picture ok :) 

Literally the most handsome actor in the whole show lol. 

He died btw, as you can tell from the sickly face (but not that way though muahaha).

As with other OCN shows (God's Quiz, Ten, Vampire Prosecutor), there will definitely be a part 2 to this show, because the ending scene showed influenza virus from the past (e.g. Spanish virus)... to the future. Which means, the handsome doctor isn't the only one artificially creating these virus. 

The next location?

China 2014.

Muahahahaha. 

Ok go watch now!