When Things Go Very Right or Very Wrong: TVING's Study Group & tvN's When the Stars Gossip
Hello, there!
How are you?
In the past couple of weeks, we saw the end of two — completely different — series: tvN’s When the Stars Gossip (available on Netflix) and TVING’s Study Group (available on Viki). I feel that these two shows represent two extremes of K-drama quality, which makes for an interesting discussion.
Now, let’s start by saying that yes, reviewing series and films is part of the industry standard. That’s why film and drama critics exist: because there’s a science to art that we can use to analyse whether a project can be considered well-crafted or not. We can also understand how certain movies and shows represent or rise up against the period in which it was made.
Art isn’t just about colour, composition, or narrative structure. It always belongs to a historical and socio-political context and that should also be taken into consideration.
But is that the be-all and end-all of quality in cinema or television?
Of course not.
Art is also inherently subjective: what resonates with you might not resonate with me and vice-versa. Every single human being sees the world around them differently thanks to their unique emotions, experiences, memories, goals, upbringing, culture, and personality. So it goes without saying that, even though we’re all watching the same projects, we’re all seeing them differently.
And that’s the beauty of art: how it can carry different meaning and different emotional weight depending on the viewer.
We can say that TVING’s Study Group has been warmly received by both critics and audiences alike. Adapted from Shin Hyung-wook and Ryu Seung-yeon’s webtoon of the same name, Study Group tells the story of Yoon Ga-min (Hwang Min-hyun), a young man who studies at a vocational high school infamous for its troubled students. He has excellent fighting skills but his grades aren’t the best — so he comes up with an unusual solution to his academic woes.
Study Group is genuinely fun and surprisingly heartwarming. With a perfect mix of action, comedy, and youth drama, Study Group is, essentially, a story about courage, friendship, persistence, and fighting for what you believe is right. The show offers social commentary, solid character arcs, and a well-paced narrative that keeps us close to — and rooting for — its characters. The direction, editing, and cinematography boast energy and dynamism. And of course, the fights in the show are very well-choreographed.
Forbes has just published an excellent article on Study Group, called “Popular Webtoon ‘Study Group’ Becomes A Popular K-Drama,” MSN showered the show with praise in “Study Group, K-Drama Review: Fresh, brilliant and taut, Hwang Min-hyun's show adds up to a knockout,” and Singaporean online magazine TheBeauLife called it “an underrated gem” in “‘Study Group’ Starring Hwang Min Hyun Feels Like A Webtoon Come To Life”.
Meanwhile, at the other end of the K-drama spectrum, we find tvN’s When the Stars Gossip.
When the Stars Gossip drowned in its own hype. A record-breaking budget of ₩50 billion (the equivalent of around $38 million), a production process of 5 years, the unique premise of being “the very first K-drama set in outer space,” a superstar cast (that includes Lee Min-ho, Gong Hyo-jin, Oh Jung-se, Kim Joo-heon, and Lee El), and international distribution through Netflix created this enormous expectation in the minds of viewers all over the world.
When the Stars Gossip was supposed to be the K-drama of the century.
The story follows OB-GYN Gong Ryong (Lee Min-ho) who joins a space station as a “space tourist” with a hidden agenda. There, he meets Kim Eve (Gong Hyo-jin), a top scientist and the commander of the mission.
The show’s average TV viewership ratings hit 2.3%, which is an incredibly low number considering the size and importance of this production. It also dropped out of Netflix Global Top 10 in its second week, believe it or not.
Personally, did I like it? No. For a million different reasons.
I thought that all in all, the CGI was good, the cast clearly did their very best with the material given, and the OST had some good tunes.
But the script is simply… tragic.
While the premise of a “space-set K-drama” is very refreshing, the plot completely abandons any sort of logic. Instead of sci-fi, we’re served a distorted view of science that, even with tons of suspended disbelief, it’s light-years away from any sort of plausibility. The show ultimately fails to create a universe in which its rules could be applied or allow the events of the plot to follow a logical sequence.
In addition to that, characterisation and character development are completely absent. But what breaks my heart the most is that the story delivers a misogynistic message in which women have no worth as individuals and no power (or right) of choice — especially when talking about their own bodies.
Am I the only one who sees it this way? Nope. A couple of weeks back, we mentioned an article from The Korea Times about the flop that the show became in the country.
But after the finale last Saturday, we’ve had several others. From India, NDTV’s review is entitled “When The Stars Gossip Review: Lee Min-Ho's Comeback K-Drama Feels Like It's Trying To Hit All The Right Notes But Is Laughably Bad”. From China, the South China Morning Post said that the show went “from lame to ludicrous”. From UAE, Gulf News announced that the show ended “on a bizarre note with low ratings; fans call it the ‘worst finale’ ever”. American newslet ScreenRant also published “Lee Min-Ho's Netflix K-Drama Slammed For Having One Of The "Worst" Series Finales”.
“But, Karen, why are you so evil? I really enjoyed When the Stars Gossip!”
I really hope you don’t think I’m evil. I’m sure you didn’t like some of my favourite shows too 😂 And that’s absolutely fine! For you, I’d recommend a fantastic article from Forbes, “‘When The Stars Gossip’: 12 Things To Know About The KDrama”. Offering a more hopeful review of the first 8 episodes, the article offers a lot of curious facts about the production, the characters, and the symbolism in the first half of the show.
I would like to hear from you: did you watch Study Group or When the Stars Gossip? What did you think about them? Are there any shows that you love but everyone else hates or vice-versa? Drop me a comment! 😊
What You Should Know/Read This Week:
According to Variety, Columbia Pictures has announced an English-speaking remake of 366 Days, a romance inspired by HY’s song of the same name. The film, directed by Takehiko Shinjo and written by Kaho Fukuda, was a major hit in Japan after its release on January 10th, 2025. The article explains:
Propelled by strong word-of-mouth, “366 Days” climbed to No. 1 in total admissions by its fourth weekend and has since become the highest-grossing local film produced by a Hollywood studio in Japan based on an original screenplay. The film has grossed more than $11 million.
Led by Eiji Akaso and Moka Kamishiraishi, the original Japanese film hasn’t received any plans for international release so far.
Talking about Japanese cinema, Yoriko Mizushiri’s animated film Ordinary Days won the Silver Bear Jury Prize for a short film at this year's Berlinale (Berlin International Film Festival)! Meanwhile, Director Satoko Yokohama's heartwarming children’s drama Seaside Serendipity also received a special mention from the Generation International Jury in the Generation Kplus Competition. The jury declared that:
This film touched our hearts with its tenderness and playful humour. A bright and vibrant ode to imagination and creativity, reminding us of the boundless possibilities of art and the joy found in unexpected moments.
FX’s Shogun once again had a big night at the SAG Awards on Sunday, winning 4 out of 5 awards they had been nominated for: Best Actor and Actress in a Drama Series (Hiroyuki Sanada and Anna Sawai) as well as Best Drama Series Ensemble and Best Stunt Ensemble.
Congratulations to all the winners! 🎉
If you’re in Los Angeles, make sure to stop by the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures to visit a brand-new exhibition on Director Bong Joon-ho’s work. Entitled Director's Inspiration: Bong Joon-ho, the exhibition will run from March 22nd to April 14th, 2025 and counts on an in-depth exploration of the director’s filmography. You can learn more about it here.
To Director Bong’s fans, I’d also recommend his incredibly interesting interview with The Korea Times: “Bong Joon-ho explores human resilience with new film 'Mickey 17'“.Since streaming services are all the rage nowadays, South Korea surprised the rest of the world by having their own “homegrown platform TVING [surge] to nearly match [Netflix’s] market share” in the country. In “‘Squid Game’ Powers Netflix in Heated Korean Streaming Wars as Tving Closes Gap, New Data Reveals”, Variety announced that, according to Media Partners Asia (MPA):
Korean viewers streamed a whopping 131 billion minutes of premium VOD content last year, marking an 18% jump from 2023. The sector raked in $2 billion in revenue, up 14% year-over-year, as total subscriptions climbed to 22.9 million.
Netflix maintained its market leadership with a 35% viewership share, but Tving is hot on its heels after surging to 34% – a remarkable 10-point gain from the previous year. The two streaming giants collectively commanded 70% of total premium VOD viewership and snapped up 80% of new subscriptions in 2024.
Quick reminder that recent original releases from TVING include the hit Study Group, Stranger spin-off Dongjae, the Good or the Bastard, Queen Woo, LTNS and Death's Game. In March, they’re releasing I Am a Running Mate, which received its official premiere at the 28th Busan International Film Festival last year. TVING is definitely a strong contender for the streaming crown, I’d say.
Meanwhile, Netflix original Melo Movie came out on February 14th to a lukewarm response from both international critics and audiences. If you enjoyed the series, I’d recommend Park Bo-young’s interview with The Korea Times, “Park Bo-young embraces a new side: 'It's okay not to be bright all the time'“, in which she discusses how Mubee is different from her past — more cheerful — roles.
Here are the articles I’ve been reading this week:
From The Korea Herald, “Delivery worker by night, You Yeong-gwang penned breakout bestseller 'Rainfall Market' at bus stop”: I finished You Yeong-gwang’s The Rainfall Market a month ago or so. Counting on a simple story with a big heart, The Rainfall Market is the kind of tale that makes us think about our goals and decisions, and how everything in life has its positives and negatives — we just need to learn how to look at the world around us. The author’s own story really resonated with me (he wrote a lovely author’s note at the end of the book too) so it was wonderful to find this Korea Herald article about him.
Fan of Star Wars and traditional Japanese art? Then make sure to check this Tokyo Weekender article: “Star Wars Reimagines Characters in Ukiyo-E Style”. The article not only features absolutely stunning illustrations by Japanese artist Takumi but also a little bit about Japan’s influence on the Star Wars franchise.
The Korea Times backed my opinion about the influence of streaming services on the format of new K-dramas (we discussed it a couple of weeks ago when we talked about the Netflix 2025 Korean slate on YouTube) with “K-dramas shift to shorter seasons as 16-episode format fades”. Discussing the trend of fast-paced storytelling and shorter seasons, this is a curious article if you’ve been following the evolution of the industry.
Just as interesting is “Doctors, lawyers write hit dramas, but where are voices of patients and clients?”, another article from The Korea Times. The article discusses how protagonists’ professions have become vital to the plot of many successful shows, allowing “writers with professional backgrounds to showcase various real-life scenarios. Their firsthand experience adds authentic details that boost viewer immersion while reducing criticism over inaccurate portrayals.” But it also highlights that an excess of series about judges, lawyers, and doctors might soon stifle the industry.
After the passing of actress Kim Sae-ron, we’ve seen a wave of articles and videos about celebrity culture in South Korea. I found an article from The Guardian entitled “‘Like a giant Squid Game’: soul searching in South Korea after latest celebrity suicide” to be a very comprehensive read.
Meanwhile, on The Blossom Review:
Last week, we talked about SBS’s wonderful Love Scout. Our complete analysis is now on The Blossom Review (you can read it here) and our video essay with our summarised review is on YouTube (you can watch it here)!
This week, we’re discussing Netflix’s Melo Movie. Our complete analysis of the script will be on The Blossom Review on Wednesday and our video essay will be out on YouTube on Thursday. I hope you stop by!
This Friday, we’re also talking about new K-dramas coming out in March. Visit The Blossom Review on Friday to learn more about our favourite new releases!
I hope you have a marvellous week ahead! Stay safe, okay? 😊