When the world is grey and bleak, you need an agent of chaos to come in and stir things up – and, let’s face facts, there are few more chaotic than Kitty Song Covey (Anna Cathcart).

The last time we saw the eponymous star of Netflix’s XO Kitty, she’d been kicked out of KISS (aka the Korean International School of Seoul) after it was brought to light that she’d been secretly living in the boys’ dormitory all semester long – and readmitted again so quickly that she almost gave us whiplash.

Our young hero was also left reeling over her split from longtime boyfriend/penpal Dae (Minyeong Choi), crushing hard on her would-be nemesis Yuri (Gia Kim) and blindsided by a romantic declaration from wealthy playboy Min Ho (Sang Heon Lee). So, yes, you’d best believe that the much-anticipated second season leans hard into all of this drama.

Watch the trailer for XO Kitty season 2:

Of course, that’s not necessarily Kitty’s intention. In fact, she goes into her second year at KISS hellbent on ignoring any and all matters of the heart so that she can focus her attention wholly on uncovering any long-buried secrets about her late mother and her Korean family. Too bad, then, that she and Yuri are forced to live out their best (worst?) Glinda and Elphaba lives and share a room together for the semester. Even more (ahem) wicked than that, though? Yuri’s girlfriend, Juliana (Regan Aliyah), is there in the mix, too… and she can all but taste the romantic tension.

So far, so complicated. Throw in a fourth love interest in the form of Praveena (Sasha Bhasin), an unexpected Song family reunion, ever-increasing emotional intimacy with an old favourite, and a Simon Cowell-esque style music competition (I know, I know), and you have one of the most watchable teen dramas around.

Yes, it can be cheesy at times. Yes, it can get as slushy as the London pavements after drizzle hits snow. And yes, fine, it’s not high-brow telly – but it’s so much fun.

XO Kitty’s sophomore season is chaotic, messy and unerringly able to spark joy in all as it plays with every romantic trope going (including this writer’s favourite, the classic enemies-to-lovers archetype). And it even panders to longtime fans of To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before with a Noah Centineo cameo, thus confirming once and for all that, yes, Peter and Lara Jean are very much still an item. Hurrah!

Essentially, it’s very much the show we all need when the world feels dark – in every sense of the world. It’s a reminder that love can be swoonworthy, life can be fun and exciting and the future can be full of hope. Plus, it’s filled with plenty of wonderful LGBTQ+ representation… which, in light of recent world-shaping events, is no small thing.

XO Kitty season two is streaming now on Netflix. 

Images: Netflix