WARNING: The following contains spoilers for The Kissing Booth 2, now available on Netflix.
Netflix's The Kissing Booth 2 continues its focus on the straight relationships between Elle (Joey King) and Noah (Jacob Elordi), as well as with Noah's brother, Lee (Joel Courtney) and Rachel (Meganne Young). The former couple's struggling to adapt to a long-distance setup while the latter's trying to find their own space away from Elle, who smothers Lee because they're best friends.
However, the series' best relationship isn't any of these because it's actually the LGBT romance that comes full-bloom between Ollie (Judd Krok) and Miles (Evan Hengst).
The first film was mostly about the heterosexual side of life, although fans got some quick snapshots of lesbians kissing at the booth at the end. Still, it felt tacked on and there wasn't really any hint at a serious LGBT angle until we noticed Ollie and Miles giving each other cute, not-so-subtle stares. The sequel picks up on this fully in their final year of high school, with Miles (the Student Council head) and Ollie growing more fond of each other.
Elle notices this when there's a volleyball competition and Ollie tells her to pick Miles on her team as he's an expert. It's all a lie as Miles isn't that physical; Ollie just wanted him closer. Elle goes deeper at the beach as she sees Ollie and Miles flirting during a frisbee session, with Ollie admitting he has feelings towards Miles. Elle knows Miles is reciprocating but Ollie's scared, not because there's any stigma against gays in this pocket of Cali, but because he feels he'll be rejected by the smarter Miles.
It's a neat way of normalizing the arc as it's something audiences have seen in so many straight romances throughout film and TV history. Miles clearly wants him to but it just doesn't happen, not until Ollie tries to ask him for a dance at the school's Halloween party. But before they can commit and seal the deal, the jocks rush Ollie and take him away. The gazes pay off, however, when Ollie's brought out blindfolded at the booth in the finale, only to take it off and walk over to Miles. They engage in a passionate kiss with all the guys cheering them on. Everyone knew what would happen, it just took time because Ollie was scared and Miles was too shy.
It breaks that aspect of high-school hierarchy and stereotypes down, as the testosterone-fueled jocks encourage them and are happy for the new couple on the block. It's a bit predictable in terms of the narrative, but there's no heavy-handed approach subverting the hetero-norm that drives so many teen rom-coms these days. Instead, the film opts to just litter this couple in as a sub-story but Ollie and Miles are so pivotal to the booth, they're never underplayed. Sure, there could have been more of them, but with a cast this crowded, it's still an approach that works as it was patiently built up over two films. These two teens are in love and all the wistful glances produce something steeped in substance.
The Kissing Booth 2, currently streaming on Netflix, stars Joey King, Joel Courtney, Jacob Elordi, Maisie Richardson-Sellers, Taylor Zakhar Perez and Molly Ringwald.