Viewers are justifiably upset after watching the first episode, but I think this series doesn't deserve to be hated so much.

Admittedly, there are a few undeniable weaknesses, amongst which are:

1. Many fans are expecting a continuation of the Tin/Can story from LBC1. Unfortunately, it is rebooted and the story of Tin/Can is shifted to later in the timeline. Originally, they meet about the time Ae and Pete become a couple, but in the reboot, they meet after the largely unexplained breakup of Ae and Pete. This can be rather disorienting and we have to wait for about have the series before we get the equivalent of the part of the Tin/Can story that LBC1 left us with. (We have to remember that a lot of the issues are directly or indirectly because of the fact that it is now virtually impossible to get both Perth and Saint to star in the same series.)

2. The Tin/Can story is cute but it is not as moving as the Ae/Pete story. It has the potential to at least come close, but there is significant missed potential. We can see why Tin falls in love with the innocent and uninhibited Can, but there isn't enough focus on how much Can really means to Tin. We do see it, but not in a way that really leaves a deep impression. In some ways, Season 1 does this better (although I would like the Season 2 version of Tin a little better if he were a real person). In the end, the depth of Ae's love for Pete (especially because of Perth's good performance) threatens to overshadow the story of Tin and Can that LBC2 is supposed to focus on.

[Ae/Pete's breakup isn't explained in the series except through the reference that Pete has broken up with Ae for Ae's sake. According to the accounts of the novels I have seen, Pete's wealthy father objects to their relationship and does pretty nasty things to Ae's family, and in the end Pete breaks up with him so that he doesn't have to suffer more.]

3. LBC2 focuses on Tin and Can, but Can's character lacks development. Apart from the moment when he acts carefree despite being miserable after losing the football match, he is too much of a one-dimensional character. This is possibly due to the series' tendency to feature too much couples, leaving little time for any proper development of Can's character.

Nevertheless, I find that unfavorable comparisons with Season 1 may also go a little overboard. and there are some things that are likable about Season 2:

1. The focus on too many couples and characters is a problem in Season 1 too, though many of us may just remember the essence of the Ae/Pete story, which is really well done. Unfortunately, for Season 2, the shifts from one character/couple to another may worsen the sense of disorientation viewers have in the first few episodes.

2. Once we realize how the story has been rebooted, the story does get better. The second half of the series (essentially the continuation of the Tin/Can story after what Season 1 covers) is considerably better and closer to the quality of Season 1.

3. there is no reason for Pete to be totally missing from Season 2, but I think the production team has coped quite reasonably well with the problem of not having Saint to act as Pete in Season 2. There is obviously the possibility of replacing Saint with another actor, but the Perth/Saint pairing is too iconic for either of them to be replaced. While Saint (disappointingly) does not even make a cameo appearance in Season 2, there is still a happy ending for Ae/Pete: Ae slowly gets over his misery and starts a social media page in which he posts a picture of himself every day to show Pete that he is well and that he misses him. In the last episode, it is revealed that Pete has been viewing Ae's page all this while--there is even the clever use of an actor for Saint's character: we only see the bottom of Pete's face, but we see tears flowing down. And in the end, Ae receives a message from Pete saying that he is back.

This is probably the last season of LBC and the ending is about as good as it can possibly get given the limited number of episodes and the difficulty of getting all the original actors together.,

[From what I have found out, Pete does return to Ae in the novel version even though it happens after Ae has graduated and become an engineer. Pete's father is dying and can no longer try to separate them.]

4. Ultimately, the series gives us closure for a lot of the characters. Tin and Can have a happy ending. Ae and Pete face problems but the happy ending is more than just suggested. Techno and Kla also end up together (though the issue of how Kla has raped Techno in Season 1 is going to leave many feeling upset). We see Tar (the same character in TharnType who is raped because of Lhong) becoming a happier person, and we see something developing between Tum and Keen (a new character). The conflict between Tin and his brother, Tul, is also largely resolved and Tul also has his happy ending with the man he has always loved, Hin.

Eventually, those of us who have been craving for the happy ending for Tin/Can since Season 1 do get what we want. Although the delivery isn't perfect, we do get closure. At times, the closure seems to come too easily (such as the resolution of the conflict between Tin and his brother who, in a rather labored twist, turns out to be a much less villainous person. However, I'm personally happy that there is Season 2 for closure rather than just Season 1. It's like getting the present I have been wanting although it comes with some defects.