REVIEW: ‘When The Stars Gossip’ Episode 11

When The Stars Gossip went far off the rails in Episode 9 and Episode 10. In fact, the last three episodes have left me frustrated as a critic, particularly given the immense chemistry that Lee Min-ho and Kong Hyo-jin have with each other as Gong Ryong and Commander Eve Kim. Now, in When The Stars Gossip Episode 11, the course seems to start righting itself, even if some old frustrations continue to bubble up.

To start things off, When The Stars Gossip Episode 11 takes place a little after the events of the last episode. The astronauts’ rehab has finished, they’re back home, and one thing is clear: they’re lonely outside of Mina Lee (Lee Cho-hee) and Lee Seung-jun (Heo Nam-jun). Kang Kang-su (Oh Jung-se) can’t help but pine for Choi Go-Eun (Han Ji-Eun). Go-eun just listens to “Stand By Me” repeatedly, refusing to believe that Ryong has given up on her.

The Stars Gossip Episode 11 gives the audience a better understanding of the relationship between Kang-su and Go-Eun. Rewinding the story to show the audience when they first met is also the first time I have felt for either of them. As we look at the ex-lovers through the past, Go-Eun is a strong, stoic figure who stepped into the role of CEO without complaint when her brother died. Dedicated to prostrating all 108 times at the wake, she’s clearly a determined person, and for the first time, I see her as something other than pathetic.

Equally, Kang-su isn’t the raging and arrogant mean guy we saw on the space station. Instead, he respects Go-Eun; he admires her accomplishments and that means something as a viewer. It’s a moment where Go-Eun stands taller than the man she is to be in a romance with, and it shows how actress Han Ji-eun can bring more to the table than she has all season.

Choi Go-eun and Kang Kang-su get much-needed depth in When The Stars Gossip Episode 11.

That, of course, makes her continued pining, crying, and refusal to let Ryong go even more aggravating. Her continued refusal to let Ryong go is a weight around the character, pulling her down even when this episode stands to make her a great character.

Ryong is staying with his mothers and dealing with the pressure of needing to marry Go-Eun, with, of course, one of them knowing that there is a beyond zero percent chance that he slept with Eve. And then there is Eve, who is lonelier than ever as she struggles to find her birth parents in Korea and turns down a repentant Dong-a.

But in all the loneliness, the one question that must be asked is why Eve chose to forcefully deny Ryong after saving each other and making a promise to be on each other’s side. As the episode kicks the audience back to the moment in front of the convenience store eating instant noodles, Ryong becomes the audience.

Ryong’s reaction to Eve’s coldhearted rejection is just as confused as mine was. He calls the situation crazy. He cries. Ultimately, Ryong makes you feel for him. Apparently, a crying Lee Min-ho can move mountains in your heart unless you’re Eve Kim. The only answer that Ryong gets is that Eve wants him to forget everything that happened and pretend that the three things didn’t happen. Getting naked, having sex, and a third thing that Eve refuses to name.

The melodrama in this episode is at its peak but perfectly regulated for the developing romantic elements. When Eve and Ryong are brought to Chief Kang’s (Lee El) office, it becomes clear that they can’t just stay split apart—at least not until they complete and file their incident reports, which will be read and available to any astronaut who wishes.

Gong Ryong has a choice: remember their intimacy or ruin Eve’s future as the Kdrama melodrama rises. 

The stage is set with an ominous visit to the doctor’s office and possible pregnancy symptoms, and the space sex is honestly the more important part of this episode. It’s here that everything gets interesting, at least from a narrative perspective. Where Ryong sees omitting their intimacy as an affront to the moment itself, Eve sees it as vital. The audience ping-ponged between the couple’s emotions throughout their back-and-forth about what to include and how to write about the situation.

Eve talks around the elephant in the room. As a female commander on her first mission, having sex with the tourist in her care undermines her reputation. While she doesn’t say it, as the two argue, that shame is present and recognizable to any woman in the audience. She is not ashamed about loving Ryong, so much as she understands what loving him in that specific moment will do to her career and her memory in the space program.

The topic of sex hits the fan when all of the researchers on the ILS get together with the Central Command Center to go out drinking. As everyone drinks more and more, they get combative. More specifically, Dong-a takes issue with what they all saw during the rescue – a naked Ryong and Eve. With one of the command center people mentioning that the situation feels very much like an intimate embrace, it’s been at the top of everyone’s minds.

But when Dong-a lets loose, hitting Ryong in the process, the shame that Eve talked around takes center stage. For Dong-a, as much as he’s a jealous ex fighting with Ryong, he’s also a mentor angry at what sex in space could do to the legacy that Eve leaves. If they had sex, Ryong would cast a shadow on Eve’s command and, ultimately, her competency in a male-dominated field. Still, Dong-a’s jealousy permeates it all.

Instead of outing their fleeting love affair, Ryong denies it all. He takes the blame for ever liking her and for putting her in a situation where her competency could be questioned. He reiterates to his mom’s full restaurant that nothing happened and nothing ever will.

We’re finally rooting for Ryong in Episode 11.

This is probably Lee’s best moment in the series as Ryong. He’s selfless instead of selfish, letting the audience see the leading man we all deserve to root for. Ryong publically defends Eve. He tries to care for her, no matter how pathetic he looks. You can see him coming apart at the seams.

With everyone drunk and just ready for it all to end, When The Stars Gossip Episode 11 felt like it was going to close on a frustrating note. But instead, it comes together. Ryong goes home, Eve follows him, and she pulls every stupid decision in the last three episodes into focus. She confesses.

For Eve, love was an embarrassment for her as a Commander. But after Ryong laid himself bare before everyone, she decided to open up and accept that she didn’t want to forget. It’s an emotional moment that pays off for the series. The kiss, all is right. And then, of course, a pathetic Go-eun shows up at the door. Apparently, it’s been decided that When The Stars Gossip can’t give any of its viewers a satisfactory ending anymore.

Much of When The Stars Gossip Episode 11 will depend on what happens next. But, as someone who is increasingly frustrated with the series’ romance and overall narrative, I must say that this episode is well-managed. It gives people rooting for Lee Min-ho and Kong Hyo-jin something to hold onto. Ultimately, it makes everything else make sense.

When The Stars Gossip Episode 11 is streaming now on Netflix, with new episodes every Saturday and Sunday in February 2025.

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