[Recap] From Appendicitis to Murder, "Man from the Stars" Continues to Impress

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This week brought two more solid “Man from the Stars” episodes. Do Min Joon’s past connection to Chun Song Yi is slowly being revealed, creating a rich backdrop to complement his present actions. Song Yi remains a strong, yet struggling character as she deals with a variety of issues ranging from sickness to even a murder case. I love how despite Min Joon’s commitment to noninterference, he keeps getting dragged into Song Yi’s complicated life. Not even an alien can resist fate!

Highlights Include: The Strong Use of Flashbacks

Flashbacks of Min Joon’s past are peppered throughout these episodes. Song Yi’s past counterpart Yi Hwa had a tough life. Not only did she lose her husband at 15, but her family members also want her dead. Min Joon offers to take her home to her parents, only to be poisoned for his help. I can understand why he formed such a pessimistic outlook. He didn’t exactly receive the warmest welcome to Earth.

The nice thing about these flashbacks is that they are well weaved into the present day plot. For instance, when Song Yi remarks about the first snowfall, Min Joon automatically recalls when Yi Hwa told him that the first snow means any lie can be forgiven. This helps to keep the story line fresh and interesting. There is still much to be revealed, and I look forward to to more flashbacks as the story continues to develop.

Episode 4’s Murder Mystery Format

I really enjoyed this different style of storytelling. Episode 4 starts with a body of an actress being found in the Han River. Us viewers can’t be sure who it actually is, but Song Yi’s trademark shoes are our only clue to the identity. Did Min Joon come to her rescue? What actually happened on the cruise ship? I was kept guessing throughout! The story’s timeline goes back and forth multiple times, and it is only at the end that we can be sure that Min Joon actually made the choice to protect Song Yi.

Song Yi’s Vulnerable, Yet Resilient Character

Song Yi has it rough in these episodes. She starts out with appendicitis and ends with accusations that she caused a rival actress’ suicide. She does her best to not let her true feelings show on the outside, but she can’t seem to stop showing her vulnerabilities to Min Joon.

Even when in unbearable pain, she knows she needs to keep up appearances for the public. She can’t just leave her house to go to the hospital wearing pajamas. She must dress up like any other day, her fancy high heels included.

She may hold back the tears in public, but she can’t help but let them through every once in a while.

Min Joon’s Struggle Over Helping Song Yi

Who is she? Is she a reincarnation? A doppelganger? Min Joon refuses to believe Song Yi has any connection to her look-a-like Yi Hwa. No matter how hard he tries, he can’t seem to forget about Song Yi’s well-being. He does so much to fight his urge to help her, but these following five actions speak much louder than his words.

1. Nonchalantly pretending he’s going to the hospital so he can take Song Yi when she has appendicitis. He even takes on the identity of “Manager Do” so that he can stay as her guardian!

2. Faking a horoscope to try and get her to avoid falling into water like he saw in his vision.

3. Bringing her comic books while she is in the hospital.

3. Stealing her shoes to once again try to prevent the future vision from occurring.

4. Letting her hide in his home while reporters flood their building looking for her. Even better, he doesn’t kick her out when she finds his secret library and starts to read his diary!

5. And of course stopping time to save her from falling overboard. (Not to mention also using his ability to magically step onto the boat from his own living room. Being an alien sure has some cool perks!)

Min Joon can’t help but be drawn to Song Yi. I guess once you hear someone fart, your relationship automatically becomes that much closer.

Yoo Ra’s Untimely Death 

Yoo Ra talked the talk, but unfortunately her relationship with Jae Kyung seems to have caught up with her in the end. Song Yi may be getting the blame for causing Yoo Ra’s supposed suicide, but we all know Jae Kyung had something to do with it. I have a feeling whatever information she was going to blackmail Jae Kyung with to get him to marry her is going to be very important in the coming episodes.

Hee Kyung’s Hilarious Work Situation

Hee Kyung’s sweet and oblivious nature makes for comedic gold when he tries to leave work at the normal time of 6pm. Being the CEO’s brother means he’s not quite used to working in a normal business setting. What’s nice about his character is that he isn’t the usual stuck-up chaebol. Instead, he heartedly wants to follow his boss’ advice. When his desktop background of Song Yi is criticized for not being work appropriate he replaces it with one of his family to help motivate him to work harder. Little does he know that this new picture completely reveals his identity. The gig is up, but he still doesn’t know it!

Hee Kyung’s Brother is Evil

There is no other way to say it. Everything hints to him having plotted the death of 3 people in the past 4 episodes! If that’s not evil, I’m not sure what is.

Hee Kyung and Se Mi Belong Together

The sooner Hee Kyung figures this out, the longer the friendships in this drama will last. Se Mi deserves a break already!

Se Mi Needs to Cheer Up

Speaking of Se Mi, her gloomy attitude remains as she continues to pine after Hee Kyung and stands in the shadow of Song Yi. Her mom heard a prediction that Se Mi’s fate would soon improve while Song Yi will have a downfall. Let’s wait and see if she’s correct…

The First Kiss Scene

At the very end of episode 4, we get treated to the first kiss scene between Min Joon and Song Yi. While almost entirely accidental, it is fun to see Min Joon’s surprise when their lips touched! It may have been a drunk Song Yi who initiated the kiss, but Min Joon is starting to be affected by Song Yi’s beauty. He can’t remain stoic forever!

Since the kiss occurred at the very end, we didn’t get to see how Min Joon reacted. Song Yi doesn’t remember the incident so his secret is safe… for now. I can’t wait to see how he deals with this unexpected experience! I’m so glad that nothing seemed to happen to Min Joon due to the kiss. He mentioned earlier that he isn’t allowed to mix saliva with humans, and I’m still very curious to see what this actually entails.

Even better, we also find out in the ending interview that Min Joon has never kissed a girl before! He’d like to make it clear it wasn’t for the lack of interest from the ladies- he just was sure to point out to them that he’s from another planet. I feel bad for those girls since they always thought he was lying!

Final Thoughts

I’m continuing to fall in love with “Man from the Stars.” Each episode has excellent pacing, interesting story lines, and wonderful characters. Min Joon and Song Yi continue to steal the show, but the second leads, especially Hee Kyung, bring their own entertaining quirks. I’m very pleased with the direction this show is going in and I’m excited for all that is yet to come!

What are your thoughts on episodes 3 and 4? How do you think Min Joon will respond to his first kiss?

Feel free to comment below!

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