Three stories.
Three romances.
One satisfying ending

Starring J-Min (Lee Hyun), Kim Yong Seok (Kim An), Lee Kwang Hee (Ma Roo), Woo Hyo Won (Min Woo), Jung Jae Woo (Sung Min), and An Jeong Gyun (Joo Hyuk), the Korean BL Love Class 2 takes its viewers on an ensemble journey that explores three separate romantic tropes.

Lee Hyun and Kim An’s story delves into unrequited love, trauma, and an unraveled mystery. From youthful attraction to university students who don’t give up on each other, it’s a surprising story of healing.

Min Woo and Ma Roo’s story follows childhood best friends whose friendship evolves into something more profound. While Min Woo knows he’s been in love with Ma Roo for years, it takes a little nudge to make Ma Roo realize he’s harbored the same feelings.

Sung Min and Joo Hyuk tell a teacher-student story about a returning college student who realizes he had a fling with a teacher’s assistant from his university. Thus ensues a chaotic story full of flirtation, jealousy, misunderstanding, and love.

While South Korea’s recent dive into ensemble storytelling–Why R U, Unintentional Love Story, Oh! Boarding House–has opened doors to tackling multiple stories inside a single drama, it’s also struggling to do this within the short story format South Korea seems determined to maintain.

Some of the dramas manage to succeed. Some don’t. Love Class 2 succeeds. While it starts off confusing, disjointed, and somewhat hard to follow, it quickly finds itself. And despite the quick pace it must maintain to fit the compact time frame, it gives all of its couples equal story opportunities.

There are moments when the production could be better, the transitions could be smoother, and the writing could be stronger, but Love Class 2 is, all in all, a satisfying watch with good acting and surprising emotional depth.

All of the stories are easy to be drawn into, but Min Woo and Ma Roo’s friends-to-lovers journey somehow managed to steal my heart the most. While I tend to gravitate more toward rivals-to-lovers and angsty, emotional plots, the friends-to-lovers story that unfolds between Min Woo and Ma Roo is compelling. As what they mean to each other is unveiled, so is the nuanced quality of their friendship and romance. They fill a void in each other’s lives while also providing Ma Roo with the type of loyalty he doesn’t realize he’s craving.

All three tales are captivating in their own right. The love lost and found, unrequited romance, and unexpected pairing each story tackles does an excellent job of making viewers feel something for each of them.

Ensemble dramas are fun. It’s nice to fall into a series offering multiple romances. It’s fun cheering for the couple you connect to most. Watching how they all relate to each other, the friendships and gentle nudges, is satisfying.

Love Class 2 had a lot of stories to tell, and while there are things it could have done better, it achieves something the other ensemble stories have not. It smoothly and equally concludes all of the romances without leaving any character behind and without needing a second season to tie any of them up.

While the first two episodes didn’t immediately draw me in, the unfolding drama turned out to be much more captivating than I initially expected, leaving me carrying each couple with me after the final episode concluded.

For a drama that offers multiple love stories, a little mystery, a lot of love, and a good ensemble cast, check out Love Class 2 now on Gagaoolala and Viki.

Rating- 4 out of 5