Recap Korean Drama "Sh**ting Stars" Episode 16 (Final Episode)

The season finale of Shooting Stars starts with Gong Tae-sung waking up thinking of Oh Han-byeol with the hope of seeing her soon. In the elevator, he meets with Lawyer Do Soo-hyuk and Reporter Cho Ki-ppeum and is curious about the reporter’s presence.

Lawyer Do clarifies that she was at his house but Tae-sung is further shocked to learn that the two were dating. The new couple leave after Tae-sung’s incessant territorial questions about latte and more.

Ki-ppeum and Soo-hyuk leave in his car, and the jealous actor claims he is on his way to see his girlfriend. Han-byeol calls him asking Tae-sung for a rain check because photos of his recent gig of pretending to be an office worker at Starforce Entertainment had been leaked online.

During the day, Han-byeol grabs a drink with Ki-ppeum and the two girlfriends discuss the controversy caused by Tae-sung. Han-byeol reveals that reporters have caught Tae-sung hugging Han-byeol in the office parking lot and fans of the celebrity were getting curious about his presence in the office.

During her conversation with Ki-ppeum, the reporter tells Han-byeol that she was dating Lawyer Do. Meanwhile, Manager Park Ho-young is on her way back from her trip to Japan when her boyfriend, Manager Kang Yu-sung, surprises her at the airport to pick her up.

Later that night, Tae-sung and Han-byeol are on a video chat and the actor tells his girlfriend that living apart from her is almost like breaking up. The next day at work, Han-byeol offers to treat PR Team One to coffee in order to end their mid-day blues but Manager Byeon Jung-yeol enters their office with coffees for all four of them.

The team members thank him for the treat but Han-byeol wonders who of the three he was dating. She is on the roof on a call with Tae-sung when PR Manager Hong Bo-in walks in with a sad Jung-yeol following her.

The two bicker and Han-byeol, with Tae-sung listening to the conversation, finally figure out that the Manager is dating his colleague – Bo-in. Tae-sung asks Manager Yu-sung to sneak Han-byeol into his apartment without the media noticing. Han-byeol hides in the back seat of Yu-sung’s car and is about to be dropped off at Tae-sung’s apartment.

Just then, the manager receives a call from Actor Yoon Jae-hyun that makes Yu-sung drive away without dropping Han-byeol off. Jae-hyun and his pregnant girlfriend actress Jin Yu-na break the news to Managers Yu-sung and Han Dae-soo in the presence of PR Manager Han-byeol. 

The two managers are left shell-shocked and worried while Jae-hyun declares that he and Yu-na had already decided to get married and had prepared everything for a wedding that was going to happen the following week.

At Han-byeol’s house, the girlfriend gang discusses the controversy that will soon unfurl and that Jae-hyun and Yu-na had decided to visit Jeju Island for their honeymoon. Han-byeol states that she had never been there and wanted to pay the holiday destination a visit.

Meanwhile, Lawyer Do is looking up flight tickets when a sad Tae-sung arrives at his door with a demand for two lattes. The actor informs the lawyer that he was not allowed to meet his girlfriend and was heartbroken by it. The two discuss how actors have it way worse than common people because they cannot date their partners freely.

The episode then moves on to the day of Jae-hyun and Yu-na’s wedding where the staff from Starforce Entertainment and DS Actors as well as the families of the two actors are the only ones invited.

Han-byeol is busy attending calls, being their PR Manager, while she has asked Tae-sung to skip the wedding to avoid being photographed with her. With Chairman Choi Ji-hoon officiating the wedding of Jae-hyun and Yu-na, get married with a roar of applause.

Just as the couple is joined in marriage with a kiss, Tae-sung shows up shocking Han-byeol, who is standing in the corner and grabs her hand, telling the girl that he missed her.

Later that evening, Ji-hoon and Manager Yu-sung are back at Starforce Headquarters when the Chairman asks about Yu-sung’s reaction to Jae-hyun being married at a young age. The Chairman then reveals that it was finally time for him to leave the company to Yu-sung and head abroad.

A flashback from three years ago reveals that a younger Ji-hoon had promised to hand the company over to Yu-sung in the next three years and eventually retire. Back then, Yu-sung had asked his Chairman to notarise the promise as a joke.

At their respective houses, Tae-sung and Han-byeol are packing their bags to go on a trip to Jeju Island.

Tae-sung shows the PR managers his carefully calibrated plan to avoid the reporters during their trip. After trying on multiple wigs and mustaches to disguise himself from reporters, the actor settles on a pair of glasses, a baseball cap, and a dust mask to avoid being noticed by the flight attendant or his fans.

While on the flight, both Tae-sung and Han-byeol are seated in seats far apart from each other to avoid any rumors about the two going on a trip with one another which is successful. When they land at Jeju Island, Tae-sung leaves the airport first to bring their car out front but is noticed by his co-actress and Number 1 fan, Baek Da-hye.

She is on the island for a shoot with the rest of Starforce Entertainment employees for her new drama opposite Actor Kang Yu-sung. Tae-sung is greeted by the two actors and Managers Yu-sung, Ho-young who both help him get away with a lie.

In the car, Tae-sung is sulking about not being able to have alone time with Han-byeol but she tells him that there will be a lot of things for the two to do without running into people they know. The couple is on their way to a “hidden gem” of a restaurant that Tae-sung found online but Han-byeol is not too sure about it.

The restaurant is jam-packed when the couple shows up and it is because the newlyweds, Jae-hyun and Yu-na were enjoying their meal there while being on a honeymoon. Tae-sung is upset but the two drive away immediately. Next, the couple visits an open field of flowers only to be interrupted by the rest of the crew for Da-hye and Actor Yu-sung’s new drama.

Tae-sung and Han-byeol wait for the crew to leave as they hide out in their car where the actor is visibly upset that all his plans were shattered. Managers Yu-sung and Ho-young hand them out a packed lunch and reveal that the crew was going to be in the field all day asking them to go somewhere else.

Tae-sung and Han-byeol enjoy the meal some distance away but the actor is sad because he was not able to treat his girlfriend the way he had planned. Han-byeol notices a much smaller field with similar flowers and the couple takes photos there.

On the drive to their accommodation, Han-byeol notices that news about Tae-sung being on a trip has already been spread online but masks her worry as the couple arrives at their villa. Han-byeol states she doesn’t mind staying indoors with him and asks him to not make any plans for dinner.

She then ends up falling asleep on the couch when Tae-sung wakes her up stating that he has made plans for a perfect dinner. The couple drives to a remote restaurant where they are taken to a secluded dining table with four guests present.

The table has Managers Yu-sung and Ho-young, as well as Lawyer, Do and Reporter Cho Ki-ppeum are at the table which shocks Han-byeol. A small flashback reveals how Tae-sung called up the manager and invited him over for dinner after posing a small threat of not resigning with Starforce Entertainment when his contract would soon mature.

At the same time, he also calls Lawyer Do and asks him to immediately fly to Jeju Island with Reporter Cho for an all-expenses-paid trip to which Soo-hyuk immediately agrees. For the first time, the girlfriend gang is having a dinner with all three of their boyfriends and the entire dinner is fun as the couples chat up and take fun pictures.

Lawyer Do and Reporter Ki-ppeum eventually take off, stating that they have other plans. Managers Yu-sung and Ho-young leave for their private date too but Tae-sung is upset because it is just him that can not take his girlfriend out publicly without the fear of being exposed.

Han-byeol reassures him that she is always happy as long as she is with him and the couple walk down an empty street. Han-byeol notices shooting stars and asks Tae-sung to make a wish. Tae-sung reveals that he wished to be able to have a public relationship with Han-byeol which has the PR Manager thinking.

As they reach the villa, the atmosphere has grown awkward between the two because the couple is finally alone for the first time without any interruption. Tae-sung and Han-byeol start making out and eventually make love and fall asleep in the same bed.

The next morning, the couple wakes up cuddled next to each other and think about having the best day. Tae-sung plans to take Han-byeol to see a beautiful sea radish field but she informs him that Soo-hyuk and Ki-ppeum had already called dibs on it. Walking hand in hand in the field, the lawyer takes photos of the reporter, and the two eventually kiss.

From his car, Tae-sung talks about going to the Secret Forest but the PR Manager reveals that the manager couple, Yu-sung and Ho-young, were already walking down the forest in secret. The actor then states that he and Han-byeol could go to paint cups but she stops him right away, claiming that the actor couple Jae-hyun and Yu-na had already made a public post about their getaway painting cups.

Jae-hyun has made three cups, one for the Nation’s fairy – Yu-na, one for himself, and one for their soon-to-be-born baby. Meanwhile, Yu-na has only made one very small cup leading Jae-hyun to believe she made it for the baby. The Nation’s fairy Yu-na reveals that it wasn’t for the baby but it was a shot glass for her to drink soju from.

Tae-sung is finally giving up and Han-byeol tells him that driving around is fun too. The couple ends up finding a location close to the tip of the island and Han-byeol is excited on seeing the view.

As the two are about to kiss, the PR Manager gets a call from one of the reporters asking her if Gong Tae-sung was on a trip with his non-celebrity girlfriend. She informs the reporter that as his PR, she will check with him and release an official statement.

Turning around to face Tae-sung, now as his PR Manager, she asks him if he was dating a non-celebrity – Oh Han-byeol – and the actor states that he is. The PR Manager tells the actor that she would be releasing an official statement based on his confession making Tae-sung extremely happy. The couple finally kiss and declare their love for each other and the camera pans out.

Back at Starforce Entertainment Headquarters, Manager Kang Yu-sung has turned into a Chairman as he receives a call from Ji-hoon who warns him about what is in store for him in the days to come. Meanwhile, Manager Park Ho-young has been promoted to his former position of being a Team Leader.

On the other hand, Reporter Cho Ki-ppeum’s boss is happy with her getting more and more exclusive stories. Lawyer Do Soo-hyuk is ready to leave from work and calls the reporter asking her to meet up after work but Ki-ppeum informs him that she will be late due to a last-minute exclusive story.

Manager Byeon Jung-yeol too has been promoted as a senior and is now training the new interns at the Entertainment company by giving them certain rules based on his past experience.

Actress Baek Da-hye also has gotten a different promotion when she is promoted as the manager of a Gong Tae-sung fan club. Actor Kang Yu-sung too has shot to fame due to his sincere acting in his recent drama and has gotten a huge amount of fan mail.

DS Actors’ Dae-soo too is ecstatic after he receives a call stating that the soon-to-be parents, Jae-hyun and Yu-na have been asked to shoot a commercial for a luxury baby rattle that is selling very well all thanks to the couple.

PR Team 1 is now handling calls about Han-byeol’s dating announcement while the PR Head – Oh Han-byeol is out on a trip with her now-public, celebrity boyfriend, Gong Tae-sung. 

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The Episode Review

Shooting Stars has finally ended on a happy note. There are so many couples on this show that it is becoming hard to keep track. Jae-hyun and Yu-na started from hating each other to falling in love to dating on and off and are finally married to have a baby soon. The couple still seem too toxic for one another but to each their own because they do make a cute pair.

Kang Yu-sung – the manager turned Chairman – finally finds a better place in the company with Choi Ji-hoon’s departure. His relationship with Manager Head Park Ho-young is strong too which is reassuring. Meanwhile, Lawyer Do Soo-hyuk dating Reporter Cho Ki-ppeum is as pleasing as it can get, and watching two practical people dating is refreshing in a chaotic show.

On the other hand, Tae-sung and Han-byeol are finally official to the world but it is a shame that actors and celebrities from the Korean Entertainment Industry have to be worried about trivial things like falling in love when there are much bigger problems in the world that should concern people. Nevertheless, the show ended on a positive note.

The show also ended by revealing to fans that Manager Byeon Jung-yeol was dating PR Team’s Hong Bo-in which was pretty obvious from the initial episodes of the show. It is marvelous how the manager managed to keep his personal life away from the actor he managed.

Former Chairman, Ji-hoon is moving abroad and it is pretty obvious he is going to be with Eun Si-woo – Tae-sung’s mother. Does this mean Tae-sung’s father figure Ji-hoon will possibly be his stepfather in the future? What a small world!

I wish the show was renewed for a second season and fans get to see actors Kang Yu-sung and Baek Da-hye fall in love with each other. They are secondary characters but they both deserve to have romantic angles too.