Under the Skin Season 2 (2024)

Under the Skin Season 2: A Disappointing Follow-up to a Promising Start

Under the Skin Season 2 falls short of its predecessor, offering a slower-paced and occasionally boring continuation of the crime drama. While it maintains a mature and realistic tone in some aspects, the overall execution leaves much to be desired.
Plot and Pacing
The second season suffers from repetitive storylines, predictable plot twists, and lazy writing. The mysterious elements that made the first season intriguing don't last long, and many events seem to occur solely for the sake of moving the narrative forward. The slower pace and redundant scenes contribute to a less engaging viewing experience.
Characters and Relationships
Main Characters
Shen Yi emerges as the central figure, carrying the drama with his intelligence and problem-solving skills. However, his character sometimes comes across as bland.
Du, the other male lead, is disappointingly underutilized and spends most of the season annoyed at Yi's involvement in cases.
The female lead, a hacker, proves to be one of the more useful characters, providing crucial information for solving cases.
Supporting Cast
The other police officers are largely ineffective, contributing little to the plot's progression.
Du and Yi's Relationship
The dynamic between Du and Yi is particularly disappointing. Their interactions are limited to case discussions or Du's attempts to control Yi's actions. Du's behavior towards Yi is often childish and counterproductive, culminating in Yi's removal from the final case.
Case Resolution and Ending
The season concludes with a cliffhanger that fails to impress. The resolution of the final case feels contrived, with Yi having to convince the criminal to turn himself in. Du's sudden realization of Yi's genius after sidelining him feels forced and inconsistent with his previous behavior.
Production Quality
Despite a production time of only 10 weeks (5 for writing and 5 for filming), the drama maintains above-average quality. However, it relies heavily on dialogue and repetitive locations, likely due to the rushed production schedule.
Recommendations
Fans of the first season may find some enjoyment in this follow-up, but casual viewers might find it boring, lazy, and repetitive. The ending, in particular, may be a turn-off for many viewers.
Positive Aspects
Mature and realistic portrayal of certain elements
Above-average production quality given the short production time
Good music and varying end credit songs
Negative Aspects
Repetitive and predictable storylines
Underutilized supporting cast
Poorly developed relationship between main characters
One-dimensional criminals with inadequate backstories
Lack of visual representation of crimes, relying too heavily on exposition
In conclusion, Under the Skin Season 2 fails to live up to the potential established by its predecessor. While it may satisfy die-hard fans of the series, its flaws in writing, character development, and pacing make it a disappointing sequel overall.

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I felt a decline compared to the first season.

I was very happy that this wonderful series that I watched in 2022 had a new season after 2 years, but there was a problem. There was a difference in this season compared to the first season.

Frankly, I won't be able to write about the events in detail because I'm more interested in the couple than the events. Shortly after I started watching, the lack of scenes of the couple compared to the first season broke my heart. They were only together while solving events and had no other scenes. I think the first season was better in this regard.

The series hasn't ended yet, but there are already rumors of a third season. I would love to see this couple again. I hope they come back with a new season where they solve these problems.

Also, the team remaining the same, the ost, the acting and the Shijia-Jianci chemistry are very nice. I love their bond...


edit: The ending was quite mysterious, I'm already thinking about how I'll wait until 2026...

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I’m ready for the third season.

The first thought I had when I finished watching this second season was that I should rewatch the first one. Not because I had forgotten it, but because of a deep need to revisit certain details addressed here. Not to mention that it has been such a long time... three years! Yes, three years of waiting, but a wait that was absolutely worth it.

I read some reviews about the production, the change of director, writer, and so on, but I chose not to dive too deeply into them since, in the overall context, what I saw pleased me enough to overlook any shortcomings.

The criticisms about editing, development, a slow plot, or the lack of relevance of certain characters did not discourage me. Contrary to what many think, I found this season broad and especially profound in its approach to the cases. Undoubtedly faithful and wise in its casting and character development choices, especially Shen Yi.

**"Our boy has grown up!"**

Shen Yi not only elevated his art but also sharpened his mind and expanded his heart immensely. This can be clearly felt in his final dialogue with Du Cheng. Truly remarkable:

*["The two of us are like a compass. If I can draw a large circle, it's because you are the center of the circle. Wherever you go, the circle will follow... Du Cheng, do you know why I love the Beijiang branch so much? Because there will always be someone on the ground doing everything they can to pull me back whenever I want to fly beyond my limits. Without you, I could have been shattered into pieces..."]*

It’s rare to see a plot with such intense and profound dialogues. So much so that, at times, I allowed myself to rewind scenes to fully grasp the reasoning. This is an aspect that doesn’t always appeal to viewers—thinking can be exhausting—and understandably so. However, this is part of the essence of this drama. Perhaps that’s why its investigative approach to evidence is so straightforward. It’s almost comical how, with a mouse click or the press of a button, Li Han uncovers all the case and suspect details, while Rong Yue dissects a body practically in the blink of an eye.

The story alternates between cases, though some intertwine from the beginning to the final episode. The constant presence of the elusive geneticist looms until the very end.

Even though he displeases Shen Yi’s fans, I appreciated his brilliance, though his selfishness and self-deification eroded my admiration. A mad genius, but still mad—completely detrimental to what remains of our humanity.

Fang Kai Yi, Du Cheng, and Shen Yi shape the morphology of the season. Fang Kai Yi tries to bring Shen Yi back, but Du Cheng closes the circuit with all his strength. Between them, Shen Yi emerges glorious, superb, and masterful.

I enjoyed most of the cases, some lighter than others. Though not all deserve glamour, my favorite remains Feng Xiao Wen's—the Beijing Opera artist. Magnificent!

I also greatly enjoyed the story of the blind boy, the cybercafé arsonists, the mountain tour guide, and, of course, the edited embryo.

As for the rest—OST, direction, script, editing, and characters—excellent choices, excellent production.

As someone who knew how to appreciate the show said: *“I’m ready for the third season. Hopefully, it won’t take as long this time.”*

Meanwhile, I plan to rewatch the first season. The ending of this one is hard to digest.

I highly recommend it, and for those who enjoy the genre, two thumbs up!

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IMO, S2 should not been made. Lack of originality, boring, and dragging.

Under the Skin S2 is a crime drama that starts with Tian Jian Ci and Jin Shi Jia. It picks up where S1 left off, as the team investigates and solves several crimes with new characters and cases.

Season 2 should not have been made because the storyline was bad and draggy. There were too many cases to solve, so it had 28 episodes instead of the shorter episodes in S1.

The dynamic of the BL CP was not as connected and well respected as in S1. They introduced the third ML into S2 to create a conflict between the two MLs, which made the dynamic and communication even more awkward, and the ending cliffhanger was not good.

It was boring and dragging, and I had to watch it at 2.0 speed to bypass some of the dragging episodes. I did not like S2 at all. Any sequel is never as good as the original.

Synopsis: The second season will continue the core of the story of the first season of "Painting Color and Seeing People's Hearts" and understand the complexity of human nature through the outline of the portrait. The Beijiang squad, composed of simulation portraitist Shen Yi, criminal police captain Du Cheng and others, will continue to solve the human puzzle in the second season and chase the real culprit of the case.

My Reviews:
1. Acting: 6
2. Script: 5
3. Music/OST: 5
4. Production Quality: 8
5. Cinematography: 5
6. Onscreen Chemistry: 5
7. Rewatchable: 4

Overall Rating: 5.5

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Spectacular!!!!

As a big fan of Under The Skin 1 and Eagerly waited for this S2 and It is finally here and I am 100% satisfied with this , My god what a performance by Tan Jian ci - I just Love him . I was literally waiting for the stories which depicts art and at the same time crimes . When I saw S1 , I thought Stories were not that simple and one of the reason for waiting S2 and of course I have mention Jin Shi jia , His acting and character is also what I like in this drama , This time they showed the personal details / Stories of other characters which I Love . The new character (Fang Kai yi) is also very special this time and he is good Looking and I particularly I liked his dress code. I Loved the OST's This time and Finally , I really Suggest This drama If anyone is yet to see , Both 1 & 2 Seasons .

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Worth the wait for S2!

Under the Skin is a gem, both S1 and S2. I'm really glad they kept the original cast and S2 opens up with all familiar faces. Seeing all the cases unfold before my eyes, it seems like the team has leveled up somehow.
The cases are complicated, intriguing and engaging multiple truths of life. I can't imagine anyone else playing Shen Yi except TCJ. He is amazing in every role and that deep voice really suits the character, he's calm, gentle and kind.
Just finished watching the 3-4 episode and omg I have no words for it. The case was good, nothing too complicated, but the FEELS! I was crying throughout the two episodes. Really beautifully done! The fact that just an episode before Shen Yi had told Du Cheng that he wants to draw what's in the hearts of people and not just their faces, this episode was proof of it! In such a short time he was able to understand the secrets between Yun Lei and the kid! Just this episode alone could win an award fr!
I still have to watch more episodes, but honestly this season 2 has been worth the wait! Tbh you don't have to watch S1 to understand what's going on here. I think even watching it as a stand alone works. S1 definitely had a underlying backstory for Shen Yi and Du Cheng, but S2 isn’t showing much as of now.
Overall for me it's a 10/10 !

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