Netflix’s teen drama stumbles over itself

It took time XO, kittythe Netflix teen drama that emerged from the To all the boys I’ve loved before Film trilogy, more than half of it first season to really gain a foothold. Given the clunky dialogue and bland voice-over narration from the titular Kitty (Anna Cathcart), acting clearly wasn’t the series’ strong suit.

In case you need a refresher, we last left Kitty at the end of her first semester at the Korean Independent School of Seoul (KISS). She was kicked out and then dumped her long-time boyfriend Dae (Minyeong Choi) because of her feelings for Yuri (Gia Kim), only to have Dae’s best friend Min Ho (Sang Heon Lee) confess his feelings for her on the plane home. There was a lot of drama! The stage was set for the second season. And yet, the second installment of the series suffers from the same problems that plagued the first installment.

“I never thought Yuri would call her mother and come back to get me back, but now that I have a second chance, I won’t screw it up,” Kitty says in the first 30 seconds of this new season. Much of the show is like this, with motives and conflicts explicitly stated in voiceover or dialogue. It’s like watching the results “Netflix mandate” to have characters announce what they are doing for optimal background playback in real time.

The second season immediately resets the time for many developments that already ended in 2023. Kitty rejected Min Ho on the plane, so they went back to “hating” each other. Yuri and her friend Juliana (Regan Aliyah) are together, so Kitty can’t ethically share her feelings. Kitty and Dae cautiously try to become friends. And gay BFF Q (Anthony Keyvan) continues to be the voice of reason for everyone.

But the series also introduces several new characters: Praveena (Sasha Bhasin), another possible love interest for Kitty’s bisexual exploration; Stella (Audrey Huynh), a new roommate who has her sights set on Min Ho; Jin (Joshua Lee), another lackluster romantic partner for Q who deserves better; and Eunice (Ryu Han-bi), who teams up with Dae.



With the increased screen time for Juliana, there are essentially five new characters XO, kitty is unwilling to juggle his original five. Instead of diving into the storylines it’s already worked to build, the series wastes time on these fresh, often pointless characters. And because there isn’t enough time for everyone, some characters drop out for a few episodes only to randomly show up later, and many storylines go nowhere. Unsurprisingly, the second season is strongest when scenes stick with the original cast, with Kitty’s dynamic with Min Ho and Yuri (which builds on last season) being the most interesting. Min Ho’s story in particular is finely developed, but Yuri’s clearly falls short in the second half of this season.

XO, kitty is still a beautiful love letter to Korea as it carefully integrates language, culture, food and music. Kitty’s search to learn more about her late mother and her Korean family continues, yielding even more moving results. And if that’s why you came to the show To all the boys I’ve loved beforea visit from Peter Kavinsky – the originator of the “Covey” nickname, which is of course commented on – might spark some feelings of affection (although Noah Centineo really can’t pass for more than 22).

The second season hits all the pleasant teen show notes, with a little K-drama DNA thrown in: a school dance, a ski weekend where all the secrets come to light, a high-stakes talent show, love triangles galore, a revenge plot , and so forth. The ingredients are there, but the writing is not. And when the finale reveals a potentially more interesting future, it’s hard not to roll your eyes. XO, kitty already invited his audience to fall for it.

XO, kitty The second season premieres on January 16th on Netflix