When the Stars Gossip Episode 1 Review: Stunning Space Life With Veteran Actors Lee Min-ho and Gong Hyo-jin

The star-studded series When the Stars Gossip was the buzz of 2024 and it has finally arrived with it’s stellar plot on January 4, 2025. Directed by Park Shin-woo and written by Seo Sook-hyang, the series follows the an unexpected romance set against the vastness of space. Gong Ryong, a renowned OB-GYN and future son-in-law of Korea’s powerful MZ Group, embarks on a secretive mission as a space tourist to the station.

There, he meets Commander Eve Kim, a perfectionist navigating her first mission while enforcing strict rules in a dangerous environment. Also aboard is Kang Gang Su, a carefree researcher from a wealthy family, drawn to space for a thrilling adventure. Meanwhile, Choi Go Eun, Gong Ryong’s brilliant and capable girlfriend, faces her own challenges as the heir to the MZ empire.

When the Stars Gossip Episode 1 Recap

Episode 1 of When the Stars Gossip kicks off with an explosive blend of intrigue, drama, and some unexpected laughs. It’s October 25th, 2024, and we find ourselves at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The stage is set for a groundbreaking space mission, and our team of astronauts is ready to make history. Or, well, almost ready. Commander Eve is overseeing final preparations, while the rest of the crew is busy with system checks and safety protocols. The mood is tense but electric—until one member of the team decides to steal the spotlight: Gong Ryong, our unassuming ob-gyn turned “space tourist.”

Gong Ryong’s presence on the G.O.-10 mission is as puzzling as it is hilarious. Funded by a whopping 70 billion won from MZ Medical Centre, his inclusion has more to do with PR than expertise. Officially, he’s here to contribute to research on humanity’s unsolved problems, like dementia. Unofficially, he’s a nervous wreck who can’t even pick a take-off song without spiraling into anxiety. His nerves culminate in a zero-gravity puke session post-launch, much to the dismay of his fellow astronauts, who scramble to contain the floating droplets. It’s an undignified start to his space adventure, but it’s also the perfect segue into Gong Ryong’s backstory—a tale as chaotic and compelling as his current predicament.

Raised by eccentric aunts who ran a bar, Gong Ryong’s childhood was anything but ordinary. After losing his mother, he became a scrappy survivor, balancing tuition woes with brawls against thugs. Despite his tumultuous upbringing, he excelled academically, acing his CSATs and breezing through medical school. His journey to becoming a star ob-gyn is a whirlwind of over-the-top montage scenes, complete with adoring patients and viral fame. It’s through this career that he meets Choi Go-eun, a woman whose life—and family drama—becomes deeply entwined with his own.

Go-eun’s introduction to Gong Ryong happens under less-than-ideal circumstances. Following a car accident and a subsequent medical emergency, their paths cross in a way that’s both dramatic and deeply awkward. Gong Ryong’s professionalism clashes with Go-eun’s fiery demeanor, especially when her father, Chairman Choi Jae-ryong, enters the picture. Chairman Choi blames Gong Ryong for the loss of Go-eun’s baby during surgery, igniting a feud that sees Gong Ryong fired and blacklisted from the medical world. The tension between them is palpable, but it’s Go-eun’s unexpected romantic overtures that truly shake things up. Is she genuinely interested in him, or is this just another layer of revenge against her controlling father? The ambiguity keeps their relationship deliciously unpredictable.

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Fast forward to the present, and Gong Ryong’s life aboard the G.O.-10 is anything but smooth sailing. The mission takes a dramatic turn when the frozen corpse of an astronaut collides with the space station, sending everything into chaos. This isn’t some sci-fi hallucination; it’s a suit-sat, a satellite fashioned from a space suit. Commander Eve steps in to stabilize the situation, showcasing her leadership skills and earning Gong Ryong’s admiration. Their dynamic takes an interesting turn when Eve saves Gong Ryong from choking, injuring her toes in the process. Their prolonged, meaningful gaze hints at a budding connection, adding yet another layer of complexity to the unfolding drama.

Of course, no space mission would be complete without a love triangle (or quadrangle, in this case). Enter Kang Kang-su, Go-eun’s ex, who’s conveniently stationed aboard the space station. His presence adds fuel to the fire, especially since he’s still on good terms with Chairman Choi, who’s eager to see his daughter reconcile with Kang-su. Meanwhile, Eve is entangled in her own romantic subplot with Park Dong-a, a man back at mission control whose old space suit happens to be the one that broke apart earlier. The overlapping relationships create a tangled web of emotions, rivalries, and unspoken tensions that promise plenty of drama in the episodes to come.

Back in zero gravity, Gong Ryong finds himself in an unexpected role: makeshift surgeon. When Eve’s injured toes require stitching, Gong Ryong steps up, despite his earlier bravado proving no match for the challenges of threading a needle in zero G. Eve, ever the capable commander, takes over and completes the task herself, proving she’s more than capable of handling her own injuries. Despite the awkwardness, the interaction serves as a turning point for Gong Ryong, who begins to see Eve in a new light. Her resilience and strength leave a lasting impression, hinting at the potential for a deeper connection between them.

When the Stars Gossip Episode 1 Review

Episode 1 of When the Stars Gossip blasts off with a chaotic yet thrilling introduction to its high-stakes, zero-gravity drama. From the moment Gong Ryong, a hapless OB-GYN-turned-space-tourist, awkwardly fumbles his way through the G.O.-10 mission, you know you’re in for a wild ride. His nerves (and unfortunate zero-G vomiting episode) might not scream “astronaut material,” but they provide the perfect comedic contrast to the no-nonsense Commander Eve, who’s all about keeping the mission on track. Throw in a rogue astronaut’s frozen corpse hurtling into the space station, and the stakes escalate faster than a rocket launch. It’s an episode packed with equal parts tension and hilarity.

But this isn’t just a story about space hijinks—it’s a tangled web of drama, romance, and unresolved grudges. Gong Ryong’s messy backstory, complete with eccentric aunts and a fiery feud with his father-in-law, adds depth to the comedy. Meanwhile, the romantic dynamics aboard the space station are downright explosive. Between Commander Eve saving Gong Ryong’s life (and his awkwardly endearing attempt to return the favor with a zero-G surgery), Go-eun’s complicated feelings, and her meddling ex Kang-su hovering in the background, the emotional stakes are just as high as the mission itself. Episode 1 is a hilarious, heartfelt, and utterly unpredictable kickoff to what promises to be an interstellar soap opera like no other.

When the Stars Gossip is streaming on Netflix.

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