You can tell that a lot of money was spent on When The Stars Gossip, because not only does it have a massive cast, but there’s so much happening in terms of visual effects. Since most of the show takes place in space, there are some bits where the people floating in zero gravity start to look like balloons or just fabric floating around. But dodgy CGI aside, for the most part, the show looks great and is supremely entertaining. Episode 3 definitely has its “at the edge of your seat” moments and really gets your heart racing in the same way that Gong Ryong gets his going on that treadmill, but we’ll get to that in a bit. In this episode, Gong Ryong tries to get the eggs back while Kang-Su and Eve have to go on a dangerous mission outside. Will they make it back inside, and will Gong Ryong get the eggs back? Let’s find out in episode 3 of When The Stars Gossip.
Spoiler Alert
Why Does Gong Ryong Want to Set Off the Fire Alarm?
Episode 3 begins with Gong Ryong putting up pictures in his bedroom (if I can call it a room at all) of Go-Eun and his family. However, he’s still thinking about Eve and the whole situation from episode 2 after he saved the mouse from dying. Eve interrupts his chain of thought to invite him to eat with the rest of the team, but he refuses, claiming he’s full. She reminds him that things are different in zero gravity and he should look after himself, but he still doesn’t join her. On the other hand, Mina finds a lottery ticket with the words “Stand By Me” written on it and keeps it with herself. In the meanwhile, Kang-Su uses dinner time as a distraction to go fertilize Min-Jeong’s eggs. Back on earth, Min-Jeong and Go-Eun try to convince Go-Eun’s dad to let Gong Ryong handle the eggs, but he wants Kang-Su on it. Min-Jeong is a doctor herself, and her medical history is all with Gong Ryong.
While the rest of the team is watching TV, the lottery show, because Kang-Su made Eve buy lottery tickets for everyone, he goes to fertilize the eggs. Gong Ryong notices something odd and finds Kang-Su in the middle of the process. However, he gets a call from his mom while he’s trying to enter the room that Kang-Su’s in. This works in his favor though, because Kang-Su injects 7 out of 10 eggs, leaving 3 for him to work on. Kang-Su is confident that all 7 eggs will get fertilized, but it seems there are many issues with Dong-Hun’s sperm, which is why Gong Ryong should’ve been working on it from the beginning. Now Gong Ryong makes a plan to steal the eggs. He also talks to his colleague and friend Yi-Man about how to open the cryogenic freezer in which the eggs are, but the guy can’t hear a thing because of the sound of the loud fan cooling down the room.
None of the team wins the lottery, but when Mina looks at the ticket with stand by me written on it, she realizes it’s won the lottery of 500 billion won. This is obviously a lot of money, and she immediately calls her twin back home. Dona tells her that she has to keep the ticket and claim the prize money, but Mina reminds her that whoever wrote “Stand by me” on it is the real owner of the ticket. They then both dream about the lives they could lead with the winnings, tempting Mina to keep it too. For the moment it’s her little secret. On the other hand, Gong Ryong manages to get in another call with his friend, and learns that the fire alarm will go on, turning off the entire system, if the room gets too heated up. This would mean the cryogenic freezer would be unlocked so Gong Ryong could take the eggs freely. This gives him the idea to heat up the room and steal the eggs. But there’s more: it seems Eve and Kang-Su are going to spacewalk because of the little accident that happened on the day they arrived. Gong Ryong had learned before coming on board that spacewalking is essentially a suicide mission, because it’s just really dangerous and very hard to do. Gong Ryong tells Eve that the commander is the last person who should be going, but she dismisses him and tells him he shouldn’t be saying such things as a mere guest. Eve had told him that those who go out tend to leave a will behind in case something happens, so Gong Ryong reminds her of that. She ends up actually writing a will and giving it to him before she leaves.
Back on Earth, the stress gets to Min-Jeong, and she nearly faints. Yi-man helps her, but it looks like he’s always ignored because the hospital director always wants to take credit for everything. Anyway, this makes it clear that Min-Jeong wants Gong Ryong on her case, and when he calls her to confirm, she tells him she wouldn’t have it any other way.
What Happens to Eve Outside?
So, when Eve and Kang-Su head out to fix the space station, Gong Ryong gets ready to exercise, even though it could lead to his heart stopping. He starts to speed up, but when he learns that Kang-Su’s suit has something wrong with it, it makes him worried, and he speeds up more because the guy needs to come back, which gives him less time to get the eggs. This leaves Eve to finish up the job alone while Kang-Su returns to the airlock. At the speed that he’s going, the alarm goes off, and just like his friend said, everything unlocks. Gong Ryong manages to get the eggs just in time for the others to come to check on him and make sure he’s okay. He nearly gets caught, but he distracts them by showing them a device he’s got to play music for him while working out. Actually, it’s for storage, and he’s got the eggs in there. On the other hand, Eve tries to catch a piece of wire she accidentally cut off, which could cause damage if it crashes into something in space. This would be disastrous, but trying to catch it ends up being much worse. Eve loses her grip on the stand and goes flying off into space. It’s so bad that she ends up looping around the solar panels and finally manages to grab hold of a solar panel. However, the panel splinters cut through her suit. If she lets go of the panel, she loses all of her oxygen, and that would mean a jointless death for her (she says the space suit makes you feel like you have no joints earlier in the episode).
At the end of When The Stars Gossip episode 3, Eve can’t unlock the tether, because the hook is stuck. She now has to unlock the tether attached to the station. In the end, while trying to unlock it, Eve accidentally moves her hand, exposing the tear and leading to her losing oxygen in 15 seconds. At the end of the episode, Eve’s unconscious, and everybody is panicked. On the other hand, Gong Ryong reads her will, and we are left wondering what she’s written in it (it’s probably about those fruit flies, eh?). I think Gong Ryong might help bring Eve back, because there was some discussion about Santi going to Airlock 1 to help her, but he was told not to leave his station. Maybe Kang-Su will go because he is already suited up. Whoever goes, Eve will be alright because she is the protagonist of this show. In the preview, we see Go-Eun announce her engagement to Gong Ryong, and this might be as an act of rebellion against her father. I also think there’s going to be a lot of back and forth with the eggs, eventually leading to there being only one or two eggs left to save. What do you think will happen next in When The Stars Gossip?
