Summary
When the Stars Gossip is still moving in the right direction in Episode 6, but there remains an imbalance, with only the relationship between the leads really holding our interest.
One of the problems with When the Stars Gossip – and it’s admittedly a “me” problem – is that I only care what’s going on in one narrow section of it. Episode 6, far from being the highly dramatic turning point in the series that I predicted it might be, is mostly just a reminder of this. Everything involving the core dynamic between Ryong and Eve is pretty solid. Everything else ranges from disposable to actively aggravating.
This isn’t ideal since there are other things to be getting on with, including the earthbound subplots and the lottery ticket stuff. But I’m just not especially bothered. I get the sense that the show’s more compelling formal elements – particularly the general design and aesthetic of the station and some of the novelty in the presentation of certain sequences – are supposed to be doing the heavy lifting. But that only really works if there’s a compelling dramatic core to latch onto. And outside of the two leads, I’m still not sure there is.
At the end of the previous episode there was a pretty major development, and Episode 6 picks up from there, showing two sides of the same coin – Jae-ryong being thrilled that the eggs have been fertilized, and Eve being furious about it, deciding to dispose of them and report the secret operation immediately.
And so, despite objections, it comes to pass. The eggs are destroyed, driving a bit of a wedge between Eve and Ryong, who disagrees with her decision. We mustn’t forget, though, that Eve is still reeling from certain developments in her personal life, and it’s easy to see that her exertion of authority is a coping mechanism. She’s taking control where she can because she feels she has lost it elsewhere.
Given Kang-su’s pending disciplinary action and Eve’s constant surveillance of the necessary tools to fertilize the remaining egg samples that Ryong took earlier, it does seem like all hope for Jae-ryong is lost, and he wears the stress in his physical health, which takes a turn. But while it’s unlikely, it’s not impossible that Ryong can make something happen with those remaining samples. He’s the final hope.
It won’t be easy, though, and Ryong will need the help of the other astronauts. To that end, it’s a good job he has some leverage – the lottery ticket, the winnings of which Seung-jun, Mina, and Santi are planning to split. Mina doesn’t follow through at first, but the others do, resulting in a tense sequence where the first two eggs are destroyed and Ryong is almost caught by Eve while working on the final one (she’s still looking for the alcohol.) With a final hand from Mina, the mission is a success.
It’s a pretty quick turnaround for Ryong, whom When the Stars Gossip Episode 6 is unusually kind to. He’ll be in the Chairman’s good graces for this, and there are also sparks flying between him and Eve, despite their fractious recent exchanges. The show returns to its old trick – remember the fruit flies? – of using the mating of other life forms, in this case mice, as a very loaded metaphor for the romantic connection developing between the leads. As mentioned, this is very much the K-Drama at its best, but I’m both interested and a little cautious to see where it all goes.
