Love Class Season 2 (2023)

Still room for improvement but really good~

I quite liked this season. To be frank, I don't remember too much about season 1, so I don't have much comparison. I do remember the actors, though, so it was great to see them cameo in the middle of the season! I also like that there were three couples and each couple had their own issues to work out (though one couple I seriously could have done w/o).
I think the main couple had a lot of challenges with trust and vulnerability which is why KA didn't talk about his past and LH didn't push about it. Seeing KA's past, it makes sense. He's deeply traumatized, so any form of intimacy makes him scared because he doesn't know what's coming next. Will they leave? Will they betray him? It's hard for him to feel like he can have friends/chosen family or romantic relationships. From there, I like that there was a natural progress of them building trust by relying on each other and demonstrating that they can be trusted with difficult topics. I really appreciated that the whole Love Class/marriage and family theme talked about building relationships in an actually healthy way - there's a lot of build-up to a quality relationship - and that that genuinely helped them to grow together as a couple. I must say, as usual, I am disappointed by the poor kissing by the main couple but...I'm not surprised since LH is an idol IRL. They always let them star in BLs but they don't let them actually make it feel like a true BL. I suppose, at least it wasn't an angle kiss.
The second couple - MR and MW - were a bit confusing at first. Right away I understood MW liked MR, but it wasn't clear whether MR was being dense or genuinely didn't know that his best friend liked him. I didn't really enjoy the manipulation tactics with the faking having a girlfriend in order to get your crush to date you. However, it does force people to face their feelings, MR in this case; in the end, it worked out and they didn't have hard feelings. I must add, too, MR stole the show. His personality and silly antics were super entertaining and precious. I'm w MW on this one - he's too cute not to date lol Also, A- for the kissing. It definitely got better over time but the beginning with non-con kissing...Big question. MR was awake but MW didn't get consent so \o.o/ no bueno.
The third couple - JK and SM - were just...awful, to be honest. I didn't appreciate their dynamic at all, and they were toxic asf. Between the childish "playing hard to get" to the misunderstandings about JK's relationship with his uncle (??? tf, so underdeveloped and confusing), all of it was deeply unimpressive and their relationship didn't make sense to me. I mean, the end revealed that SM knew JK before he left for the army and came back, so did he have feelings then and he developed them now? Idk. Also, let's talk about that weird underwear gift...That whole scene made me cringe big time. Then to threaten him and the whole thing - so fucking unnecessary. A for actually kissing though. The "bed scene" (NC-17 at best, but read a bit PG-13) was decent though it didn't go beyond making out. I guess that's a start considering KBL at the beginning could barely even fit in a kiss lol
Overall, I enjoyed it even though some of the mistakes were a bit bummy. The whole thing with the boom mic really wasn't notable. I only noticed it in one episode a couple of times, but I don't remember it anywhere else. The audio in general could have been a bit better, too.

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University bubble world BL

It has been a long time since I actually enjoyed a korean BL. This one was not half bad but rather unequal. And it was depressing gray and sad: and even one actor's radiant smile only managed to lift the heavy veil of misery for a few seconds!

The drama follows six guys and how they become couples. Three highschool friends enter the same university. The first one is looking for his old tutor who suddenly disappeared one day without a word. We find out later that he has a heavy life baggage. The other two are best friends and maybe more? The third couple is formed by a TA hit upon by a senior art student.

Here we have an ordinary university bl. The guys are nice and sweet and somewhat hot. The story is one already seen many times (hello Thailand!). The cast of characters is only the guys and two side characters: a best girl friend and an evil ex. The girl BFF helps while the evil ex of course wreaks havoc! The story is smooth sailing a bit slow in the beginning because the six main characters needed to be introduced. Those first two episodes seem messy, the conversations are incomprehensible but that is obviously on purpose. We are given the privilege to spy, look on these guys' lives so they are not going to start explaining everything they say to each other! I liked this process! We are allowed to see a part of their lives. Moreover, they are adults, legally, so we never see their family and therefore they are not worried about being accepted for who they are by friends and family: a question frequently arising in bls.

This series is just the bones, the basics of a drama. But even that suffices! The story is told and we are even given so much fluff in ep.10. Pacing is fine, the cast is a varied collection of cute and handsome and talented. Each couple is give a different level of intimacy: while the oldest couple (art student & TA) start by a one night stand, the others slowly explore sleeping together and the youngest guy (student/tutor) practices dead fish kisses. To each according to their level of maturity!

The drama is filled with usual tropes: childhood friends, friends to lovers, teacher/student, unrequited love, misunderstandings, evil ex, fake triangles etc.

The issuI have with this (as well as with most korean bls!) is the production values. They obviously have a bit more money, but money does not make up for the lack of vision and laziness. The cinematography is the usual ugly colourless sad one. The sound is atrocious, as always: those sounds of kissing are not romantic, they should have maybe switched the mikes off when they filmed those scenes or the echo on empty sets.

One tiny pet peeve: Lee Kwang Hee who plays one of the leads has an uncanny resemblance with Jung Hae In from Something in the Rain and every time he was on screen, I was reminded of SITR and would lose attention. Really annoying! So I tried to look him up on Google: the search result comes out as Hwang Kwang Hee, a korean singer!!!!Not even google knows him! Hope he develops his career and changes the hairstyle!

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Spoilers are mentioned at the end so don't hesitate to read :)

Wow. This was so much better than Season 1!!!

Like:
+ I'm a sucker for comedy and this show has some really funny conversations which made me laugh out loud!
+ The show is quite interesting, even tough the plot isn't something new. But the show manages to stay interesting because of their exciting and diverse characters.
Every couple has its own strength.
Lee Hyeon x Kim An: deepest story
Ju Hyeok x Seong Min: funniest story + hottest chemistry
Ma Ru x Min Wu: cutest story
All couples share deep, funny and cute moments, but these aspects stood out the most for me for each couple.
+ I really liked the Outfits and the hairstyles they had. Although, especially in the beginning, I was confused with Min Wu because he is the only one who has different hairstyles and for me it's not soo easy to recognize new actors and characters. And here we had 6 people I need to remember.. x)
+ Every epilogue in each episode has a little flashback to give a little view how the guys had contact in the past. I liked this, because it gives a better understanding of the relationship.
+ Lee Hyeon was probably my favorite character. He's straight forward, honest and isn't afraid to speak open about his feelings. Love that!

Room for improvement:
- Production good have been better. I saw the mic multiple times and sometimes the sound was not clear or cut off (I watched it on Viki, so maybe it was also a problem with Viki, idk)

- Different than other people I didn't have a problem to understand what was going an with Kim An and his past. ^^

- I am even impressed on how much fun this was. The first few episodes (like 2 or 3) were a bit boring to be honest. The plot synopsis is again totally wrong btw. :')
But then I got hooked and it was fun to watch. The characters are really different and it's nice to see how every relationship develope in a different way. The chemistry is good - hot (depending on the couple). Kim An and Lee Hyeon had the lamest kisses, I'm so sorry.. x.x

- But overall, when I think of the dramas I watched so far, which failed to tell a story about only ONE couple in a satisfy way, I am totally happy that I watched this show. To tell a story about 3 couples isn't that easy. But for me, it was made in a way that made me happy. I don't have open questions and I don't feel like something was missing.

- The Acting was quite okay. Nothing major to complain about, but also nothing outstanding that I would remember it. They did a good job, I would say.

And yeah, it's definitely a lot better than Season 1.

Little spoilers, that not everyone would see as a spoiler. ^^'
~ I really liked the cameo from the couple of Season 1!
~ Imho I really liked that the show didn't end when they become couples. Because I like to see characters in a relationship. So the last episode being a camping trip with all guys is really nice!
~ It made me a bit emotional, because Kim An is saying something to Hyeon what really hits me feelings. (Nothing bad, don't worry!)
~ They have never spoken open about fear of homophobia etc, but you can see it in their behavior. So I was really happy when they found a safe space on the camping trip and didn't have to hide anything.

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3 Love Classes: Friends to Lovers, frustrating as lack of communication, a darker one

Finally a show where gay dates really, mostly end ... in ded. Especially for Sung Min and Joo Hyuk . For long firend to lovers Ma Roo and Min Woo not so clearly, as they allready share a bed in their home ... The sinister touched love affair of
Lee Hyun and Kim An ended equally in bed together ... Episode 9 finally showed us a glimpse in true Boylove realities. Shocking? NO! MISSING!

Most BL, written and staged are not really targetting the LGBTAIQA+ members, but heterosexual women as another substitute for wishes and dreams. and its staged anoyingly often and painting a unrealistic view. But even within the non gay target audiences there some more realistic views ... or let´s say views behind the curtain.

Tinted with Love was one of as 180 Degree Longitude Passes Through Us, even if I dropped that show (not for disliking, or the hefty critcised age gap, but other reasons).

Contrary to the Thai BL industry the Korean BL shows and films have a special sincerety and professionality and don´t get anoying even when its a BL comedy. Japanese BL comedies can get anoying too. The crown of anoying comedy is actually the THAI BL show Crazy Handsome Rich with double squeeking sounds and a terrible voice over and irrelevant storyline.

Season 2 of Love Class is a refreshing show with realistic problems, misunderstandings/-interpretations, egos and awkward acting ... while courting the guy of love. Even if the 6 guys are ment to end up in 3 couples. The end in the 10th episode was nice gloss over of the results of union in episode 9 and not too much but touching and warming. Even being wvtl. a cliff hanger for a series of new BL shows theming their time after.

For Lee Hyun and Kim An the coupling wasn´t that clear to end end happy as for the rumours around Kim An and his living with an obvious con man, if not criminal call boy. Being steadfastr up to near stalking is by Lee Hyun is sometimes giving me frowns and shaking my head in disbelieve ... but that may be my Gemini personality, not that I am a bee going from one flower to the next, to the contrary. Lee Hyun had his old crush on Kim An, thankfully not since early childhood. Which is totally unrealistic to me, not only from own experience but watching/knowing other relationships. It was nice to see Kim An opening up to the sincerity of Lee Hyun and finally seeking refugee in his house ... erm ... arms. And the nude back of Kim An suggested his union with Lee Hyun in the night before (Ep.9 Lee Hyun preparing breakfast). It was too supported by the bicking of the 2.

Ma Roo and Min Woo may have their physical union had befor so the acting and storyline suggested in my view. Despite them being fully dressed in bed ... Something I can´t see in real life btw. Especially not after being together.

When they are glamping they reveal they couple situationg, their dating ... erm in real life it would be A obvious B they would have talked or bragged about as Lee Hyun did when Kim An picked up the drunken Lee Hyun.

Anyway this drinking in Korean shows, weather BL or hetero is to me disturbing and kind of gives a bad sample or is it that "normal" to be spacing out ... ? ...

Sara finally got her boyfriend too who will be the coffeeshop owner, who to me long looked like a frustrated "hag" till Ep.9 meeting Sara.
The dating class Teacher was somehow acting as foretelling what would happen or expecting what became in Ep.10 the Kissing Picture of Kim An and Lee Hyun ... and the reaction of the class was ... okay it had to be ... but was great. It was reminding me immediately of my friends group when Io outed myself in front of them during a holiday we had on Ameland. For years we travelled together from Xmas 2nd day till January 2nd or 3rd till we lost track due to jobs, new families and such. My friends back then did not applaude, but okay that´s your lovelife and what do we cook this night?

The show is worth to watch and rewatch. The characters develop within the 10 espisodes logical and so did the kisses till getting steamy ... No akward or anoying forced "comedy sounds" from the off or eye lashes batting to express whatever. A Season 3 in that quality? YES!

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WELL EXECUTED GAY WORLD LOVE STORY

lemme just say that, I loved how they executed this drama, like everyone is gay ! and I love it !
althroughout the drama, the fact that the title is Love class, It did not went out there, like every thing that happened spelled out the title amazingly!
Immana vouch for this drama ! I can't believe it was this good, it is phenomenal, the length of airing time is just right, it doesn't lack anything for me. The main couples story is so cute, little bit dark and stressful but cute and funny and young. The second lead the bestfriends to lovers are so relateable for me, it was so great and the third couple, the teacher to student made this drama sizzling like OMG, they are so sexy together and funny.
This drama is well created, the script had sense to the story, and is convincing, it was balanced, after the heavy part comes the funny or fluttery part to make the audience not grow tired of watching it, the ending is good and so satisfying. I recommend this one, one of the best KBL of 2023
gonna re watch many times in my life

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Not a Traditional Sequel

This is not a sequel in the traditional sense which didn’t bother me. It’s a sequel in the same way that the first few seasons of the HIStory franchise was a sequel, in that it only shared the name. However, there were two links that sort of connects this to the first season (see 1st couple description).

This series was ok, but had problems with the execution due to the script and editing. As for the script, it was inconsistent. It had many great moments that was mix with some poor/questionable aspects. It also does not help that the first episode has a very dark and bizarre beginning with no gradual transition from dark to light subject matter. This episode continues to be confusing, for me at least, because they try to introduce all the main characters in a very short time span. The story progression and pacing was better by episode 3. The cast was great considering what they had to work with. Unfortunately, the character development is off with many of them. The relationship development between two out of the three couples was ok. As for editing, they should have alternated the flashback scenes at the end of each episode between all three couples to help the views understand all of the characters motives. We don’t get to see the flashbacks involving the other two couples until episode 8 which did not help the story progression.

Couple Breakdown (Don’t worry, no spoilers):

1st Couple (Lee Hyun and Kim An): This couple had the only loose links to the first series. They are both in a class with “Marriage and Family” in its title and have a scary mystery element. The relationship development was odd but at least the series gives you hints about their past relationship from the start with flashback scenes. The only real problem is the mystery story element does not get a complete resolution and left some aspects completely forgotten.

2nd Couple (Min Woo and Ma Roo): This had a very basic romance storyline. Their relationship development was ok, but was tedious at times. There were no major bad elements that made me not want to know how they end up.

3rd Couple (Joo Hyuk and Sung Min): This is my least favorite couple. Joo Hyuk was too aggressive at times and played too many mind games. This made their relationship development too cringy for me. I found myself skipping forward some of their scenes. It does get better by episode 8, but it’s a case of too little, too late. I found myself not really caring or being invested in their storyline.

Random Notes:

Once again, the synopsis on VIKI does not match the actual content of the series.

Don’t blink. Kim Tae Hwan and Han Hyun Jun’s cameo in episode 5 happened so quickly that my brain almost didn’t register it. It was cute, but added nothing to the series. It’s interesting that they didn’t attempt to make a connection from their season to this season. It was also weird that the cameo of the lead actors from Private Lesson had a bigger cameo and actual lines.

Although I’m not bothered that this is not a true sequel, I would have loved to see a storyline continuing a possible relationship between the characters Kim Nam Jun and Min Jae. I always felt this was a missed opportunity in the first season.

You can see the Boom mic and other production items throughout the series. The most noticeable one is in episode 5 (time stamp 14:04) in the upper left-hand corner.

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Great for binging

I actually really liked this show. Maybe it was the right show at the right time, but it satisfied everything I wanted from a show. While this season was not a continuation of the first, I think that was the correct thing to do, especially since I didn't like the characters as much as I did here.

It did take me a little while to remember who is who, but once I placed the characters it was much easier to keep track of each of the three couples.

The first couple, Lee Hyun and Kim An, were what I'd call the main couple. Their story (or rather, Kim An's story) was what took up the most screentime. Kim An's backstory was dark but realistic, and the only gripe I have with it is that I wished he would explain it more to Lee Hyun (but maybe that happened offscreen once their relationship is more established). I also think Kim An's not-really-a-friend (can't remember his name) gave up a bit too quickly, but that's likely due to the runtime. I would have liked to see him suffer a bit more for everything he did to Kim An, but I guess it was realistic since bad people don't always get what they deserve. However, being that they're the "main couple," I was a bit disappointed with their kisses, especially when compared to those of the other two couples. I realize that J-min is a kpop idol and might not be as experienced in acting/kissing as the others, but this isn't the first time we've encountered idols in BLs and there have been idols who kissed well (Semantic Error, anyone?). But apart from that, the story was sweet and I am always a sucker for a character that sticks by someone even when things get rough and they're pushed away.

The second couple, Min Woo and Ma Roo were probably my favorite, even though it was full of clichés (maybe because they're done well). I loved Min Woo's pining and Ma Roo's obliviousness, and also super loved the whole "pretend we're dating to make him jealous" trope. I was a bit surprised that they Ma Roo clued into his feelings a lot quicker than expected, but maybe that's to do with trying to fit three storylines into ten 20-minute episodes. Their kisses were much more than what I expected from a K-BL and left me having to replay them, for science ;).

And that leaves the last couple: Joo Hyuk and Sung Min. They didn't get as much screentime but likely because their relationship was comparatively simpler. It was just courting and a slight misunderstanding, and then they got together. I enjoyed watching them on screen, and their kissing scenes were probably the best out of all three couples'.

The last episode was pure fluff and giving the watchers what they want, and I was grateful for it!

All in all, this was a fun watch. It's easy to binge, but I do think if I had to wait every week I would have probably not been as into it as I was watching it all in a couple of days. Even so, it was a pretty solid story. Yeah, it probably could have benefitted from a few more episodes or a longer runtime, but as it is, it's up there among my favorite K-BLs.

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Good ideas and characters, but lacking production

Just binged this show last night, and I enjoyed it. The characters were fun, the comedy was good, and the story concept was compelling. Sadly the execution was lacking. The first three episodes were incoherent and the viewer is left utterly confused as to what the h*ll is even happening. Luckily it does improve a bit after that little hump, but the storytelling and plot are still full of holes throughout the show. A very fun game to play while watching this drama is find the boom mic. Clearly the poor sound crew holding the mic got tired arms, and for whatever reason they just didn't bother reshooting the scenes or even removing it in post.

On to the characters (slight spoiler warning here)

I enjoyed the first couple. They were very cute. Their storyline could have been more fleshed out and better executed, but it was interesting none the less. The actors did a good job with pretty much everything except the kiss scenes. Those were, sadly, dead fish kisses. Based on the other kiss scenes in this show, and other k-bls, I will assume the reason for this is that one of the actors in this pairing is an active kpop idol, and the company only allowed the bare minimum kisses.

The second couple are by far my favorite. I'm a sucker for a friends-to-lovers cliche, as well as the classic black cat x golden retriver trope. Ma ru was by far my favorite character in the show, and I enjoyed watching his antics. Overall the actors did great and had no dead fish kisses to be found.

The third couple. Probably my least favorite couple (but the teachers assistant was one of my favorite characters). Their relationship just felt a little toxic to me. That being said, the actors were not lacking in chemistry, and once again, no dead fish kisses.

Overall it was a fun watch. 4/10 for production/writing but 8/10 for enjoyment.

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Slow start, but good binge!

I started reading reviews after the first 2 episodes because I was wondering if it got any better. Thankfully I did because the rest of the BL is quite solid! The three couples have strong chemistry, but my favourite are the friends to lovers and the student and teacher. The last couple has a somewhat dark storyline which I didn't think added much to this drama particularly. One small thing that took me out of the experience was that I saw the big fuzzy microphone that they use in dramas and films peek out from the top of the screen two times. This is something I can overlook but still a negative in my eyes.

Overall, this drama has good love buildup for the two couples I mentioned, but the main couple left a bit much to be desired. The kissing and intimate scenes from the two couples were also a lot better than the main couple. Still, I recommend this a watch as it felt sizable enough to where it feels like a solid and complete short drama, but not too short like some of these BLs can be.

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Initially Disjointed but Becomes Likeable!

This is a triumvirate story that in the beginning is unnecessarily confusing, obtuse, and almost misleading. Little explanation is given as to who these characters are or what is happening, and the story becomes awkward and needlessly opaque. So many characters are introduced all at once, especially in the first two episodes, that fatuity tends to confuse the audience. The flow of the story becomes disjointed, particularly when you are trying to grasp the nuances not only of the story but the familiarity of the culture and customs that is not fully appreciated. It does settle down in the third episode and from then on, the sagas of each couple become unique and interesting and understandable. I loved two of the three couples; the third couple was a bit more disconcerting for me. It felt darker and more brooding than the other two. This is a likeable series, entertaining with humor and cheekiness to make just about anyone smile.

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