Kitty’s Senior Year Struggles Amidst Dramatic Plot

As an OG fan of the “To All The Boys I’ve Cherished Earlier than” universe, I used to be excited for Season 3 of Netflix’s “XO, Kitty,” however was left underwhelmed by the dramatic semester with KISS. “XO, Kitty” Season 3, which aired all eight episodes on Thursday, April 2, depicts Katherine Music Covey (Anna Cathcart) rising up after a summer time in New York and getting into her fourth yr at KISS.

For me, the most effective a part of XO, Kitty, has at all times come from the household Kitty present in Seoul. Whether or not it is the group of mates she made at KISS or the long-lost relations she discovered alongside the best way, the guts and soul of XO comes from Kitty, who branched out from a life again in Portland whereas discovering a technique to join along with her roots.

XO, Kitty Season 3 continues that development, however is commonly slowed down by storylines that do not appear to attach for each Kitty and the remainder of her classmates in KISS. This season, I really feel like XO Kitty has misplaced her identification within the technique of popping out on her personal. For a lot of, the relationships inside and round KISS are what this present is all about, and whereas the vibe is constantly excessive within the friendship division, XO, Kitty Season 3’s romances typically battle to seek out their technique to a satisfying place.

Sure, there is a answer to everybody’s burning questions on Kitty and Min-ho (Lee Sang-hong), however the romance is tougher to take care of than I anticipated. The season is filled with highlights, together with the Chuseok celebration in XO, Kitty Season 3 Episode 5, and the drama is enjoyable. However the resolve all through the season felt disjointed. XO, Kitty By the top of Season 3, I could not assist however marvel if there was extra to return, regardless of Netflix’s constant insistence that this was the ultimate chapter.

XO, Kitty Season 3 forged shines in huge ensemble moments

For me, the most effective a part of XO Kitty has at all times been the dynamics between the characters. XO, Kitty The Season 3 forged didn’t disappoint on this entrance, bringing a enjoyable and collaborative dynamic to some key moments all through their senior yr on KISS. I undoubtedly felt like there have been moments this season that did not reside as much as the hype, however the huge scenes with the forged collectively had been actually vibrant spots.

For Kitty, Yuri (Jia Kim), Minho, Dae (Choi Min Younger), and Q (Anthony Keevan), the central characters of XO, the joy of getting the chance to share their senior yr moments collectively oozes by means of the display screen. The radiant, comfortable power that the forged exudes as they have fun their friendship and transfer by means of candy scenes collectively is at all times heartwarming.

XO, Kitty Season 3 has an excessive amount of drama and no satisfying payoff.

XO, Kitty has lengthy been modeled after Ok-drama depth, however the present’s last season too typically goes overboard. Whereas it is nonetheless enjoyable to look at Kitty kind by means of her issues along with her mates, watching every character’s struggles individually typically seems like an excessive amount of is occurring suddenly, with no breaks to catch up.

The present cleverly skips by means of time, with episodes leaping ahead weeks and months to give attention to particular occasions fairly than the small print of Kitty’s first yr of highschool. That is not a nasty concept usually, however the issue with this comes from the truth that, as a viewer, you are consistently being dropped into new moments that you want to compensate for. XO, Kitty Season 3 spends lots of time telling the story as an alternative of displaying it.

One other drawback with this season’s drama is that it is typically too broad to pin down. In previous seasons, XO, Kitty has offered viewers with a central villain to focus their unfavourable power on. Whether or not she resembled Jina Lim (Kim Yun-jin) in Season 1 or Stella Choi/Esther Sim (Audrey Huynh) in XO Season 2, Kitty has given viewers a transparent indication of who the villain ought to be every season.

XO, Kitty Season 3 paints one character in a extra villainous gentle early on, however inside a couple of episodes the floor is misplaced and the position of the villain feels unfold out over too many tales. In lots of dramas, and not using a clear villain, loyalties typically really feel slightly grey, placing a better burden on viewers to take sides.

XO, Kitty’s inflow of drama seems like an excessive amount of for an eight-episode season, particularly when a lot of its payoff does not play out on display screen.

XO, Kitty Season 3 spent lots of time bringing again huge moments for all of the boys

All through Season 2 of XO Kitty, which deepened the familial intrigue between Kitty and her Korean household (together with Hojo Shin’s Jiwon Ahn), I used to be struck by the sensation that Kitty exploring her roots was the cleanest resolution for her character. Kitty, the one sister within the Son Covey household who did not have a relationship along with her deceased mom, finds closure whereas trying to find relations, however that does not essentially imply a lot to Margot (Janel Parrish) and Lara Jean (Lana Condor).

Having Kitty discover her Korean roots felt like a good way to proceed the movement that began through the To All The Boys film, however bringing that film to XO was at all times a smaller chore for Kitty…till now. XO, Kitty Season 3 paid extra homage to the film than I anticipated, and to be sincere, the callbacks typically felt awkward. Whereas it was good to lastly get an opportunity to satisfy LJ once more, the Easter egg second felt like overkill.

From the repeated songs and contours to the stylized graphics, Kitty typically felt extra like Lara Jean than herself. I cherished the dynamic between the Music Covey sisters and cherished watching their interactions, however a part of what made XO, Kitty so pleasurable was exploring Kitty as an unbiased particular person. At occasions, her sister analogy felt like an pointless reminder to viewers of the start of the sequence.

XO, Kitty Season 3 is enjoyable, however the last episode generally is a bit irritating.

It has not been confirmed whether or not Season 3 of XO, Kitty would be the sequence finale, however it appears possible that the present is nearing its finish. Though this season has some moments that really feel extra tailor-made than others, and typically struggles with selecting learn how to inform the story, Season 3 of XO, Kitty remains to be lots of enjoyable.

With the possibility to reconnect with Kitty and the KISS workers at key moments of their lives, XO Kitty Season 3 strikes previous harder and drama-filled moments to substantiate that the household Kitty has constructed through the years is what issues most.

All eight episodes of XO, Kitty Season 3 are presently out there to stream on Netflix.