XO, Kitty: A+ for Effort
Sometimes TikTok recommendations aren’t always the best.
XO, Kitty races through its plot like a mad-dash. With little time to process that we’re watching the story of Lara Jean’s little sister (yes, that little sister that set the plot in motion in TATBILB), we’re introduced to her overseas boyfriend Dae. Dae is the prime reason – other than to learn more about her late mother – that she wants to attend KISS (insert winky face). KISS stands for Korean Independent School of Seoul. In other words, we’re in for an American K-Drama high school rom-com hybrid.
If you’ve seen the show, you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about.
The first episode introduces the dangling plot threads explored throughout XO, Kitty’s 10-part run. Love and family are seemingly at the forefront, with Kitty lovingly sent off to Korea for 2 main reasons: to see her long-distance boyfriend Dae, and to learn more about her mother’s past in an international academy. It just so happens to be called KISS, or Korean Independent School of Seoul.
Then there’s the standoffish guy Kitty bumps into at the airport who just so happens to go to the same school she does. Kitty then somehow crashes into a car in the streets of Korea, and is saved by Yuri, who also just so happens to also attend the same school she does. Knowing Dae is a student there – albeit a struggling one – already makes for an entertaining show.
The coincidences mount as Dae happens to show up to KISS’s welcome party with Yuri, as – who would’ve guessed – her (fake) boyfriend. Of course, Kitty doesn’t know that. Instead, she’s in for a rude awakending from Dae’s friends: rude airport guy (Min-ho) and fellow American and her future bestie (Q).
Kitty’s mother’s past at KISS becomes a subplot to her romantic adventures right from the get-go. KISS Director Lim turns icy when Kitty recognizes her from a photo she and her mom took together as teenagers at KISS. I’ll leave that story for viewers to find out, but guess who happens to be related to Lim? Yuri. Who, like her relationship with Dae, isn’t all that she appears to be either.
That aside, the show is a wild ride that keeps viewers hooked with new plotlines, almost every romantic trope in the book, and some hilarious moments that make us feel bad for enjoying this kind of chaos. It’s a show that knows its audience: teens and young adults enthralled with K-Dramas but live in the West. Story beats like sneaking around in bushes because of diarrhea, wet dreams about your best friend’s girlfriend, or impassioned speeches from the top of a school lunch table are thing’s you’d only find in shows on Disney or Nickelodeon. But then there are mentions of traditional holidays like Chuseok, Korea’s strict underage drinking rules, and a beautiful fan dance (Buchaechum) complete with traditional dress, that remind us that “oh yeah, this is set overseas.”
Bottom line: watch it if you’re interested. If you’re like me and get endless recommendations for things to watch from TikTok, you’ve probably seen a clip or two from this show. Minho alone (I’ll leave his Instagram here) is enough reason to watch. And you’ll get out of the show what you expect: drama, laughs, and a little romance between everyone.
