Descendants of the Sun rode atop romance and angsty separations for its first six episodes, but this episode saw a sudden turn. It began to look inward, to inspect the minutiae of humanity and the beauty found in the smallest of human connections. Perhaps the lack of intense romantic interaction is what kept the show from pushing into the 30s, but it came in at a hugely respectable 28.3%, just 0.2% less than last episode.

The little moments built this episode from the ground up.## Even if we hadn’t known the characters, we wouldn’t have had to. Lee Chi-hoon connects with a patient who is, like him, a soon-to-be-parent. Language distances them, but he manages to help her and care for her anyway. Then Doctor Song comforts him as Chi-hoon’s first forays into the hell and misery of natural disaster cause him to crumble inside. Myeong-joo and Dae-yeong reach a turning point as the fear of losing each other overcomes the fear of family and social pecking order. It wasn’t a huge conversation. It was just a few words. A small moment – just like the rest of the episode.

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