The thread is open.
It’s on Netflix starting tomorrow. I appreciate reviews. Thank you.
Please, please, please, drama gods! Don’t make this Lee MinHo drama as lame as “The Heirs” (2013).
Let’s enjoy the show.
The thread is open.
It’s on Netflix starting tomorrow. I appreciate reviews. Thank you.
Please, please, please, drama gods! Don’t make this Lee MinHo drama as lame as “The Heirs” (2013).
Let’s enjoy the show.
Please, please, please. 🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼
If it is, I’ll rewatch The King, Eternal Monarch . 😂
I’m not sure what to expect really.
i’m a fan of Gong Hyo-jin and also Sci fi(I was a Star Trek and Battlestar Gallactuca fan as well as an avid Jules Verne and Robert Heinlein reader)so I’m hoping that the CGI is good. South Korea is known for its tech industry and it should translate to K Dramas. I am also wondering if Gong Hyo-jin will be speaking English and if she has an Sustralian or American accent(she did live in Btisbane and is married to a New Yorker). Australian actors do pull off American accents. I am also interested in the pairing of Lee Min ho and Gong Hyo jin i’ll be interested in reading the comments here after the first few episodes.
SPOILERS BELOW
SPOILERS
Review of Episode 1
I watched the trailer and decided to give this Show a try. It looked like a space rom-com of sorts and so far it’s been fun. The name, IOU Mission Control made me laugh. We know there will probably be lots of problems in space, but not necessarily of the space kind!
Episode 1 – Gong Ryong (LMH) gets entangled with a chaebol’s daughter and is forced to go into space or have his marriage to her cancelled. As an OBN-GYN he is to spend 8 days in the space lab to look into how human infertility might be solved. GHJ is Commander Eve who impresses him in the way he had hoped to impress his patients. We find that several characters are in relationship and the question is whether they will remain faithful to their partners.
Show does not take itself too seriously. It’s quirky and funny with several veteran, familiar comedic actors, GHJ who is great, a cameo (so far but he’ll have a bigger role later) of OJS, and LMH being a mess and a klutz (for a change) and making a fool of himself. I didn’t know whether to cringe or laugh.
There are even cameos by Park Jin Joo and Jo Jung Suk.
Within a few minutes we get the gist of the background on the relationships of the several characters on earth and in space, and can foresee a mile off, the love triangles that will ensue.
The computer graphics and camerawork are good and the zero-gravity movement of things and people look realistic enough. This is going to be a depiction of several likely messy human relationships playing out in space and on earth. I don’t know how it will end but for now it looks like it’s going to be entertaining.
Watch out for the Epilogue. Shades of Snow White in reverse where the black queen saves the prince. 😉
@GB I was surprised! Like LMH not looking grand and like king of the universe? Really? I’ll be trying this show just because LMH has dared to look less than immaculate. I like the FL too, no surprises there.
People. Like GB says, we don’t know how this show will pan out. But just for the surprise of a clumsy and human looking LMH, ep 1 seems worth it !
Hello Ladies!
I really enjoyed the first episode. LMH is more relaxed as an actor and let himself shine even in a shitty environment… 😅
I had a good laugh in the first half of the episode.
@Cleo, at last LMH does not mind being seen as an inefficient loser and sort of unkempt. That hair and fringe was annoying. I’m glad he cut his hair before the space trip. Yes, I find that he’s more relaxed and at ease in this role. Less of obvious acting and more being the character.
I find that all the actors, even those who’re senior, have been skin smoothed or something… they look so young! It’s like I’m seeing them as they were some 10-15 years ago. Very pretty!
From the look of the production, and the number of well known actors, I’m not surprised that it is one of the most expensive dramas made. Even if the plot falls apart later, at least it looked convincing!!!
@Arihsi, I liked that LMH has become relaxed enough to laugh at himself. He was a good doctor on earth but a hopeless space tourist.
The drama is worth the watch for the laughs (and cringes) and the pretty good looking space views. Quite impressive to my unsophisticated eyes.
Unnie kalimera! How are you feeling!?
I think Panchiko did him a good service. In Korea LMH is /was stereotyped into being a Prince, then a King. He couldn’t break free and when he did, it gave him the artistic space to be fully himself as he truly is.
I really like him. His Lee Gon is one of my most favorite ML characters ever. As an ob – gun, he made me laugh and it was so unexpected!
It is also nice to see Oh Jung Se as the antagonist. He looks amazing too.
And Lee El! I really like her since watching Goblin. I truly believe that her talent is unrecognized. She is not only a pretty face.
I agree with you, that they all look fabulous! Most likely they went to their dermatologists for that glow up.
I really like Gong Hyo Jin. She is a natural beauty and her playing goes smoothly.
Let’s see how it will go… 😊
@Cleo, by the skin smoothing, I meant that the lighting and editing of the film did the trick of removing lines and stuff that ages us. It happens a lot in period cdramas and I felt it was happening in this kdrama because the skin of our actors all looked too perfect and some looked so young!
I’m not complaining though. 😁
Omg ep 2 ! At the risk of @pm3 throwing me out of this blog… Does LMH look cute or what ! My first time finding him as such !
On a more BoD appropriate note, I’ve worked in a Rat lab ! I’ve dissected rats for experiments personally. And that scene of them and the Rat was cool with real instruments used in a rat lab and a proper Swiss Rat (the standard for experiments.) Very very cool. I’m impressed… Especially since the reality quotient has hit record low after WTPR 😜
I’ll be continuing this drama as of now !
Also… The part where non-rat scientist community may feel they’re over reacting in the drama… I’d like to assure them there is no over-reaction.
Genetic modifications made to study specific diseases, treatment with specific experimental drugs to study long term effects, for ex blood pressure medication ( ALL drugs are animal tested) make these animals extremely precious. You can’t lose a Rat you treated over 10-12 months. Also, most scientists are very cognizant of the fact that they’re treating a real, live animal and don’t take random loss of life lightly.
I once knew a research student who took great liking to a small Rat pup. He kept it in his pocket and the Rat became his pet. Of course this was caught on the CCTV and he got servere scolding. It wasn’t an offence per se because the pup wasn’t an experimental animal and the animal was never taken out of the official facility but he just couldn’t bear the thought of letting it be culled. He avoided disciplinary action but cried and cried that he had to let the Rat go.
I have just one serious problem. It’s a Rat, Netflix. A Swiss Rat. Standardized and genotyped for all experiments. It is not a mouse. They keep translating it as mouse !
Netflix? Hello ? Netflix?
Thank you @Arihsi, (and @packmule3 for giving us BOD). Here is another example of what we nonscientists learn here. I will never think about lab rats in the same way again. We so depend on these creatures for the scientific and medical research that has done so much for us. BOD again comes through. And am looking forward to watching this drama…
Dear Ladies, how have you been? Just starting Episode 1. Poor Gong Ryong!
Lately I drop Korean Dramas a lot, so crossing my fingers!
Around 40 minutes. Wow. Both Mr. Gong and Ms. Choi’s families are complicated. At least his has lots of love. Hers only has duty.
You could say both are poor but in different things.
Hi @FGB! It’s good that you’re trying a kdrama after having a hard time continuing to watch them. You may find the weird, bizarre world of the Gossiping Stars more intriguing. I’ll be sticking around and hope to see you on the thread!
Loved the cheeky history about how he ended up eating that apple. A funny nod to the purported butterfly effect.
He is both stubborn and lacks common sense… what can go wrong? 😉
Dear @GB, if you find it interesting, it must be worthwile even if could end up not finishing it 😉
How are you doing?
Dear @Cleo, Kalinichta from my side of the World (well, almost Kalimera, it is 11:58 PM here)!
Dear @Arihsi, glad to finally meet you again!
Dear @OAL, how have you been?
@FGB, as usual you succinctly state something that should be obvious but isn’t until you say it! Yes, that rich girl is poor and the poor guy is rich, if only they could judge from a different point of view.
I didn’t like that entitled brat that she is, GE practically insisted that they get married and that GR took the path of least resistance. He’s going to have to pay for it as shown dramatically by the bad omen of sudden lightning and thunder that scared them when he decided in his mind to marry her, not out of love, but because she is rich.
GR is not smart, definitely lacking in common sense, stubborn to boot even when he’s not capable. He’s his own worst enemy.
Girl’s father is slightly smarter… sends him off into space LOL to prove himself, and the dummy obeys while terrified.
And now we’re going to get GR trying to figure out the infertility of his dead “brother-in-law to be” out in a space lab, as he does IVF with “sister-in-law to be’s” eggs. Too funny.
GE is on the phone with ex-bf Kang Su in space. In front on the big screen is a humongous pair of scissors. A reminder that she wanted a scalpel, then a pair of scissors with which to castrate Kang Su. (I admit to giggling).
I guess it must be karma of some kind that the discarded space suit of Eve Kim’s current boyfriend was the thing whose arm hit their space module and caused the panic. The thing is that boyfriend Dong A is pleased to see his space suit but he almost died in it, and it caused such an emergency. But he’s almost proud of it, whereas the night before he’d just told Eve that he couldn’t wait a year for her to return.
I imagine everything is going to get messier (hopefully sillier) as we go along. Heheheh!
Kalimera from my side of the world @FGB!
I was thinking of you lately! Are you okay? It is so good that you have started watching this show with us!
It has both some comic relief but also some serious issues. As the chakkanim said it has to do with Life and Death and we have seen that theme repeatedly in the first two episodes…
Also, about the Apple. We have got the Apple, we have got Eve.
At the same time, did you know the ancient greek myth about the apple of discord / the golden apple or μήλο της έριδος;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMMv9XQvnAU
*winks*
Kalimera Unnie,
I didn’t realize what you were referring to! 🤦♀️
Hi @Cleo! I too didn’t know about skin smoothing until recently. But looking at how smooth some skin looks compared to how I recall they looked before, I suspect some special effects to make everyone look more young and attractive.
What a good catch that I missed. Of course, the apple and Eve. Let’s have fun and look for the Tree of Life and Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil!
I was thinking in terms of Snow White or in this case, of Prince Charming who foolishly forgets or does not care that he had been told to fast before the launch (just like Snow White was told not to talk to strangers)! He is tempted and takes a bite of a beautiful red apple only to almost choke to death later. Instead of a kiss, he’s saved by the Heimlich Maneuver LOL. Quite the opposite of a kiss! But despite this, I wonder if he’s still asleep like Snow White who appeared to be dead. Maybe he’ll need a proper knock on the head and a real kiss to wake up!
Unnie Kalo mesimeri!
I think that we are going to learn a lot of things and we might ponder on them. Specifically, about Life and Death since it is the theme of the series.
The little girl gave him an apple. I don’t think she was the devil, most likely a deity herself. We could say an Aphrodite. So, Eve saved him with the Heimlich Maneuver.
I really believe that the ML wants to be acknowledged sincerely for his abilities. Especially by the ones he cares for. Eve reacted in his idea of rescuing Mice 1 and made his heart beat faster. I think he will fall for her, because she is oblivious to her effect on him.
Eve is an astronaut, but also a scientist and a tomboy, although she is very feminine herself. She accepted him as a scientist first and she will get to realize that he is not the person she believed he was.
We shall see, right?
EPISODE 2 – SPOILERS
Kalispéra kai geia dear Doensaeng Cleo, how are you doing?
I finally got down to watching Ep 2 of this crazy space show and had a good time. It does not look like show will continue along the lines of the Garden of Eden or Snow White at the moment but yes, we’ll see.
You’re right. The thing that attracts GR to a woman is that she acknowledges his ability and his person, instead of seeing him as an object to be owned. Because he is poor and struggling, he took the easy way of agreeing to marry the heiress, Go Eun, but in the end we find that he only agreed to go to space, not in order to marry her, but to do the IVF successfully so that the Mirae Group Chairman, GE’s father would build a fertility clinic in space to help mankind. LOL So he had a more lofty purpose than just to get rich.
I feel that because he made such a poor impression at first on Eve, was hopeless in space, and was suspected by her of bringing poison in the ice-cream; but then was able to prove himself as a real doctor who could save the life of the rat, and then earn Eve’s approval and warm regard, it meant all the world to him. From being a zero, he was a hero.
LOL while the male rat’s heart was beating nicely, Eve’s congratulatory hugs got GR’s heart to beat extra fast too. I find it true that a person who finds one attractive, also becomes attractive themselves, so now Eve is very attractive to GR and he ignores Go Eun’s call.
I foresee that the next episodes will be the hunt for the eggs and the sperm and the race to do the IVF so that GR can do what he had aimed to accomplish. Now he will want the chance to show that he’s not such a hopeless wimp as he had appeared to be.
Hey Unnie!
I am fine. A bit sleepy I guess… How are you feeling?
Yes, It was pretty obvious to me, why he was attracted by Eve.
GR is not that petty or has bad schemes in his mind. His only goal is to help people in reality and don’t get rich himself. For that he won me over. He wants to help and not gain fame and money. He is way better than that chaebol family.
Yes, and I also think the antagonist will try to steal Eve’s project with the fruit flies for his gain.
EPISODE 2 SPOILERS
I was trying to think how to review Episode 2.
One can watch it for the funny-serious talk on mating and reproduction of humans, rats and fruit flies. I wonder how much is true and if it’s educational LOL.
One can watch it for the comedy that’s only possible in space because GR just can’t get his space legs or accomplish what he came to do (yet).
One can also watch it to be amazed at how realistic everything looks. The rest of the crew really look like they’re floating in zero gravity.
The surgery scene was quite an eye-opener too with the hilarious view of 2 guys clamping down on GR’s legs so that he could stay still enough to work.
Or one can do what @Cleo and I are doing ie waiting to see if more Aphrodite and Snow White metaphors pop up! So far in ep 2, I might stretch it to say that GR (our Snow White) has been mostly asleep, just doing what he’s been forced to do, but the hug of Prince Charming (Eve Kim) has woken him up and given him a faster heartbeat LOL. Now it’s time for him to take some action and prove that he’s not such a wimp.
One can even watch it for the crew, especially for GR flailing LOL
There’s:
– The Science Prodigy, Lee Seung Jun, studying Alzheimer’s in rats.
– The Twin Sisters,Mina and Dona, one on earth and one is space, studying the differences in human aging and diseases.
– Santi (Santiago Gonzalez Garcia, Spanish veteran astronaut also known as The Crooked Sperm (who discovered that his crooked sperm straightened out in space).
– Selfish Gene, Kang Gang Su who’s Go Eun’s ex-boyfriend but who intends to get her back by doing the IVF successfully. He is heir to a global bank with more branches than fruit files in the world LOL. He does research on fruit flies, on infertility and rare diseases.
– Eve Kim, The Captian, an expert in rats and aiming to achieve rat pregnancy in space.
Or watch it for the scenes when Eve pulls out a gun on GR over an ice-cream and Gang Su spins GR about in zero gravity. Heh!
@FGB4877 hello hello !!!
@Cleo, Thanks for the link to the video clip on goddess Eris and the golden apple.
We might say that those eggs or the opportunity to do the IVF has now become like the golden apple. They are a source of contention and strife on board the space station and even on earth. Eris is Chairman Choi who tossed the eggs (like the golden apple) into space through GR, but chose Gang Su to do the IVF.
He has definitely behaved like a god of Discord since his daughter, daughter-in-law and GR are determined that GR should carry out the IVF while Choi and Gang Su have the upper hand and can prevent it.
More later after Episode 4!
So far am liking this. I find that GHJ and LMH are an interesting pairing. Right now they seem like coworkers who have different approaches to their assignment. This is touted as a romance but to me it seems like the “love” part has a way to go. I am most impressed right now with the overall depiction of weightlessness. It is done well and shows the sophistication of Korean filmmakers. I am also interested in seeing Oh Jung se flesh out his character(there is something sinister about him). I am also interested in our male and female leads’ backstories. Lots of stuff to enjoy here.
Starting to watch Episode 2 (I know, I know… 😉 )
First of all, the Chaebol daughter reeeks like a teen girl dating the man her father would hate the most. As a teen girl you want to facepalm at her, as a woman in her mid to late 30’s… well madam…
The Chaebol father does not seem as a true villain. He lost his successor and beloved son, and maybe he will lose the opportunity to have grandchildren at all due to Dr. Gong. Dr. Gong did the right thing at the right moment for her, and his good deeds didn’t go umpunished.
The Chaebol dad just lashed out on someone he could. The way he saw the rocket being hit by thunder made me think he thought he maybe had overdone it.
He also lets his daughter some leeway and does not chastise his staff when she imposes her will over his.
Will assume that the whole Fruit Fly segment is putting a Chekov’s Gun in the wall. Also to show some special effects.
@FGB, you are correct. The fruit flies will become significant in some way, but I’m not sure how significant yet. However this whole drama is about reproduction in space, hence even fruit flies having babies is relevant!
Yes, the Chaebol Go Eun is sadly just a spoilt brat who wants her way. She’s not gone past her rebellious teens. We will get to see a battle of wills and action between daughter and father who both want their own way. The ex-boyfriend, Gang Su, is also determined to get Go Eun back, regardless of whether she wants him or not… and her dad is willing to sell her to him in exchange for grand kids … so tiresome, so archaic.
Kalimera friends!
I haven’t been able to watch the latest episodes, so I won’t be commenting until I am up to date!
😊
Hi @Cleo, I’ve did watch Ep 3 and 4, but I’ve no time to comment yet. I look forward to your views on the episodes when you get down to watching them.
I only just managed to watch (with FFDing) up to episode 6.
It’s still interesting but feels more like I’m watching an American show than a kdrama. Something about it is so familiar. It’s all pretty far fetched but the ideas about what can be done in zero gravity on a space station are creative. Show continues to deliver some weightier thoughts with the funny, with LMH making a fool of himself.
Everyone on board is invested in getting new life to begin, but at the same time Gong Ryong’s question is apt. Is the space station a womb or a tomb, as he considers what is allowed to live and what is discarded. Is saving a life more important than following the rules?
There’s the ethical question of whether fertilised eggs should be considered human beings or just cells and space trash.
It’s not all peaceful on the station but real chaos is lurking with a possible windfall that is bringing out the greedy human in each character. I liked how the temptation to get their hands on money that is not theirs has darkness descend on each person while the light at the end of the ‘tunnel’ shines only on the money. Commander Eve is going to face a mutiny.
The discussion here proves that this is a multilayered drama with lots of points of views. I like seeing the moms and aunts on Earth and their reactions; the staff at mission control; our chaebol Dad and his concerns; the stories of fruit flies and lab rats… Am happy that BOD has participants who have scientific knowledge. This K Drama has some American notes. I think it’s because it is a space drama but it also has a Korean sensibility. It is interesting to me that GHJ lived in the English speaking world of Australia for a time and is married to Korean Ametican Kevin Oh. She, in one person can give off cross cultural vibes. And although I like LMH, I find OJS to be a great antagonist. And lastly, the set is fantastic and the art direction makes me feel like I’ m actually aboard a space station.
On a personal note, am still hoping that my husband’s cancer can continue to be treated. BoD and Kdramas are my respite. I am also reading a great book, rec9mmended by my husband, The Last King’s of Shanghai about the Jewish connection to China. 9ne of my Jewish college friends had connections to India. And a family member fought in the Korean War. So it’s no coincidence that I’m attracted to Asian dramas.
@OAL, thanks for news about your husband. I was wondering how he is. Usually cancer treatment is not continuous and you get breaks. After a series of treatment(s), there are reviews. I hope he’s getting all the treatment he needs.
I’m glad that you’re still taking some down time for yourself by coming here and by watching our beautiful but ridiculous ‘Gossiping Stars’ show. You need all the respite you can get!
Yes, this Show is quite a bit of fun, and I’d enjoy it more if only I had more time to invest in it. While LMH works to hold his own, I find the veteran actors are very strong. Even the mums on earth and the droll shaman/fortune teller. She seems to be the real deal! I’m even somewhat invested in Min Jeong and her eggs and really want to see her become a mum.
I agree that the design and whatever special effects we are getting is so good in this Show, I’m convinced that the actors are just hanging around in zero gravity. I’m glad it’s not just a silly romance in space type of Show but is touching on (although I don’t think it will tackle in depth) some important questions.
I like that GR was quite honest with Eve about how he feels and amused that when she was castigating men for being unfaithful, he felt that he was being harshly accused when she was thinking of Dong A.
I’d like to see the lottery money go towards a good cause and for Min Jeong and Go Eun to be able to be free of the controlling CEO Choi. We still have some 10 episodes to go, therefore I hope Show can keep up the shenanigans that go on, both on earth on in space, and give us a meaningful and logical conclusion.
I’m up to Episode 8 which was chock full of suspense. I had to keep FFDing to relieve the stress!!
It was meant to be a perfectly safe and easy time in space, a mere 8 days for the Tourist but what gets them now is space garbage ie debris that seems out to perforate the space lab and Eve who’s outside.
Then the engine of the module that would have brought them home explodes and the next possible rescue might only come in 7 days’ time but GR and Eve only have life support for 2 days.
It seems that Eve who seemed to have slept through all of GR’s ministrations to her injured toes, had actually been awake and heard him offering to date her again. She seems to be all for it now.
All goes downhill in the space station and our couple are stuck together to survive or die (with the fertilised egg that had turned into a morula). What else could possibly go wrong? 😟🫣🫢
Perhaps I’m the only one here still watching this show, but it’s been good. Episode 9 was full of laughs and suspense, with the balance weighing more on the suspense side. It was exciting, and it continues to look realistic. I’m just wondering if the morula is still in space or not. I’ll find out in Episode 10.
It occurs to me that we should collect the debris we leave in space, but I read that only the big junk like satellites can be retrieved or destroyed. The smaller bits of debris may remain in space indefinitely to cause trouble if they ever collide with anything else in space, especially a manned station or craft. We created a mess in space as well!
@GrowingBeautifully, I’m still watching this and loving it. I think that there are lots of philosophical issues that are addressed from creating life to what are we doing in space to all the issues surrounding space debris left by humans. On another note I think that Lee Minho has been given an opportunity to stretch his acting range. He is not a chaebol-yay!I am a Gong Hyo Gin fan and here she is given a great part as a woman leader. And O JungSe makes a great antagonist. I think he may surprise us. I also like the now juxtaposition of their lives on Earth. and I think the budget for this drama was huge given the talent, the CHI and the sets So @GB, you have me as a watch partner.
Hi @OAL, it’s great to have you keeping me company while the Stars Gossip!
I finally watched Episode 10. Fewer LOL moments but still there were some. Interesting that in 10 days the web of inter-relationships became so complicated. I liked the ending scene, that started from the empty ramyeon bowls … (yes we know what that signified) a collage of the different protagonists watching the one person they each admired but could not be with.
I agree that LMH has really improved in this Show, OJS and GHJ are always great. I was amused by the emotions that Gong Ryong’s socks aroused … disgust then sheer delight, even to the extent of having a near heart attack LOL.
They did the scenes where the twin sisters were together very well. We never got to see them both facing us at the same time. They must have gotten look-alike actors to play the other twin who was facing away from us, or maybe they had help from CGI and AI?
Aloha BOD’s – it’s been so long. After LoveLy Runner, i went under the radar haha
I came here to check what everyone thinks of this show as it is ending this week.
enjoyed reading you all.
Glad to hear that LMH’s portrayal of Gong R. as a not so perfect human being is perfect. Yes, i’d rather see him as the kingly Lee Gon but it’s so amusing to see him as Gong R.
Yes, the cast is stellar! indeed. for this Gossiping Stars show.
This show is not your typical space show – i love it. that it has to do with testings and making human life better. but it’s so dangerous. IDK how people want to be in space. there’s so many risks. but i like how they even held a memorial for the dead lab rat mom. so sad.
i think the temptation with that dang Lottery ticket is so funny and yet a good dilemma. would you do the same? they sold their soul for that thing and they lost it to the orig owner in the end. omg. i love Santi. haha. So many english speaking koreans here. love it.
how many times did LMH got beat up? poor guy. gosh. GR’s moms – one mom is a lot to handle, but three? wow. and Eve finding out who her real mom is – so heartbreaking. but she was able to forgive her coz she’s living her life, better life. idk. smh. i love their simple dates on earth.
but the dramas – in space and on earth with that morula/fertilized egg. wow. it’s so ground breaking and yet breaks all the rules. yes, i do love the space and rescue drama as well. as well as GR and Eve rescuing each other at different times (space walks). i was on edge.
Just wanna say, @GB and OAL – i’m here with you. Hope to hear more of what you think from Ep 11 on.
@HK_Lady and @OAL
I’m still trying to find time to watch and since I left off for more than a week, I couldn’t recall where I stopped. I jumped into Ep 13 just to see if I’d watched it before, but I hadn’t and went back to watch Ep 11…
What strikes me is how complicated the issue of having babies is depending on the situations. I guess that’s the theme. Having a baby is a wonderful thing and life is to be protected and celebrated:
– even the new life created by fruit flies and lab rats.
– human life is ‘sort of sacred’ (it is but this show does not portray that it is) and most desired, so that 3 women were prepared to care for the baby of their friend (GR’s mums) and Mirae Group’s Choi is prepared to spend millions to get an heir.
– lives are to be saved as far as possible so everything is allowed in the name of survival and those who risk their lives to save others are heroes (as in the case of Eve and GR trying to stay alive).
– In the worst case situation of dying, Eve allowed that the morula should survive since it was GR’s dearest wish.
EXCEPT …
– when it’s illegal to fertilise human eggs, then the poor morula are crushed (as Eve crushed the eggs fertilised by Dr Kang)
– when the mother does not want the baby (the case of Eve’s mum).
– when the good name and survival of the KSA is at stake. And so the same morula that Eve agreed to allow are to be destroyed by the same Eve. *sigh*
Wouldn’t it be easier in this show, if all would admit that every fertilised egg was already a human being in the making and should never be destroyed, no matter what the circumstances that brought about the fertilisation? (Then we might ask if this might be taken out of this show and applied to other difficult circumstances… )
Through the episodes, I was wondering if Eve herself might be pregnant and still not know it. I’d love if she was and was able to beat the odds to have a normal baby.
The other theme is family. It was at the lowest point for Eve, when her mother had unknowingly ‘abandoned her again’ by saying that she had not wanted her baby… and when the mother rat almost died, that GR comes and offers her family. He sort of rescued her emotionally without knowing it.
GR notes that he and Eve were similar as they had no mothers’ names to enter for their marriage registration, but he wanted to register their marriage so that Eve would know that she had family. He said that family was simply those who loved each other. I’m glad that Eve will get the unconventional family of 3 mums as well, which includes her own biological mum.
I feel that Eve forgave her mum for abandoning her, because she understood how mum needed to survive, and that mum had been feeling guilty for 37 years over it. Eve herself was once a bunch of cells and could have been aborted as a fetus, but she had been given a chance to live and grow, and was doing well as a scientist and astronaut. Whether she can bring this perspective into how she views fertilised human eggs is what we watch to find out.
To All, No matter how you view this drama, it is very profound, bring8ng u0 existential questions. I hate to see it end because it raises so many questions. I also wonder how they treated actual lab rats in the production of this drama. And I love the three mothers and all of the coincidences. I also wonder if English is the language of space flight, although the Russians were first with Sputnick.
My Thoughts after Episodes 15 and 16
I’m still thinking about this show. If that is a mark about how good a show is, that it holds on to one and gets one thinking serious thoughts long and hard, then I will say this was a great show. It was able to create the convoluted situations that get us thinking about what is truly right and just, and who should have the power to decide. And all this while keeping everything logical, everyone consistent, and what they were able to do in space plausible, while pushing the limits.
I’m considering the legalistic aspects and the ethics. My heart ached for Eve, for the impossible dilemmas she was faced with. The terrible decisions she had to make, while others could stick to their legal and moral high ground and condemn her regardless of what decision she made. It was a choice between duty as Commander to the wider space agency or duty to one’s beloved. Being right according to the letter of the law meant being morally wrong.
What a bitter-sweet ending and what irony. While circumstances had estranged Eve and GR and made enemies of GR with Gang Su and with Dong A, all was forgotten in the bid to save Eve and the fertilised cells that would become baby Byeol. All were willing to risk the reputation of the KSA now to save Eve and her baby, whereas they had protected it before by killing other fertilised cells that could have become babies. How humans split hairs to justify the killing of some human life and not others.
The ironies and signs of true love abounded:
Regardless of how annoying Kang Gang Su was and is, he exemplified love for Go Eun until the end. He remained unchanging in how he hid the truth, and took the punishment so that Go Eun and her horrible father never got into trouble. He also never wavered in wanting to marry only Go Eun. In the end, it was as well that he got all the lottery money and never shared it, because he was able then to carry out the wish of his enemy, Gong Ryong – an irony in deed. In the end it was Gang Su of MZ Group and not Go Eun’s father of Mirae Group who built the fertility centre in space, as GR had requested.
The scientists were in space to find out if life could be reproduced in zero gravity. But while zero gravity enabled the fertilisation of eggs, it also caused the loss of bone and muscle mass that could lead to fractures and death. The astronauts who helped the illegal fertilisation of human eggs out of greed and then allowed those eggs to be destroyed so as to save themselves, were also the ones to enable the birth of a child in space.
Eve was the one who chose to save the KSA by destroying the fertilised cells, the morula, that would have become a baby if implanted. But when the cells were inside her body, she chose to sacrifice herself to keep the unborn alive.
What irony that Na Mi’s maternal blood would be rejected because it could awaken the auto-immune reaction in Eve. How long the 3 mums must have sacrificed their booze and smokes in order to qualify to give blood. How sad that Na Mi had found her daughter only to lose her.
Go Eun also exemplified true love for GR. She protected him from her father, never revealing that she knew he had betrayed her.
Gong Ryong was the hapless doctor who was used by Mirae Group, but he became the tragi-comedic hero who chose to sacrifice his own well-being for his wife and child. He was the victim who lost the most in worldly terms, but he was also the pioneer who paved the way for human reproduction in space. He lost everything, including his abiliity to walk and see and his wife, but he had his child, his peace of mind and his mums.
I liked that the pace was good and that there were no fillers. I liked that everything made sense, was based on what is possible now in space medicine and that the ending was consistent with what was plausible and likely. It would have been too much of a fairytale ending if everyone had lived happily ever after, but I like that the ending was ‘real’ while it continues to give hope.
SPOILER
I forgot to add that my surmise that Eve would be pregnant came to pass, which amused me heartily, (but of course! How could the Show avoid such a delicious irony!) and I loved that she imagined what it would have been like if she could have her family back on earth and she could watch Byeol grow. Her imagination made up for the sad reality that it would not be meant to be.