REVIEW: ‘LINK CLICK’ Season 2 Episode 11 — “Confrontation”

LINK CLICK Season 2 has been an absolute roller coaster and with only two episodes remaining, it shows no sign of slowing down. LINK CLICK Season 2 Episode 11, “Confrontation,” serves to set up the epic finale that has been building up beneath the surface. Cheng Xiaoshi has gone to exchange himself for Lu Guang, but will they be able to defeat Qian Jin and Li Tianchen?

In line with the rest of the season, LINK CLICK Season 2 Episode 11 starts by re-telling how the last episode ended but with much more added context. It has been an interesting narrative device that leaves viewers on the edge of their seats each week knowing that the wild cliffhangers will be explained later. Here we see the ingenious way that Cheng Xiaoshi planned to trade himself for Lu Guang without actually giving himself up. It’s a rare moment of Cheng Xiaoshi thinking things out instead of rashly acting on pure emotion, showcasing his character growth throughout the series.

The problem is that he isn’t the only one capable of coming up with a creative plan. Qian Jin is proving to be an exceptional villain and has his own idea of how to confront Cheng Xiaoshi. His clever plot to bring Cheng Xiaoshi exactly where he wants him has been building since the start of the season, so seeing it all finally come together felt incredibly rewarding. It also isn’t the matchup viewers would have expected earlier on in the season. Lu Guang has always been the brains of the operation, so to see Cheng Xiaoshi take the lead while Lu Guang is unaware of much of what is going on is an interesting and refreshing approach.

While Cheng Xiaoshi and Qian Jin may be the ones finally facing each other, it is the relationship between the pink-haired sibling duo of Li Tianxi and Li Tianchen that takes center stage. Li Tianchen has been a capable partner to Qian Jin, often showing his ability to be just as dastardly as his older counterpart. Li Tianxen was able to use Qian Jin for his own purposes, prioritizing his relationship with his sister over everything. It doesn’t entirely explain some of Li Tianchen’s more villainous moments and does not necessarily make him a good guy, but it does show that beneath all the trauma he has endured he has a deep and undying love for his sister.

LINK CLICK Season 2 Episode 11 also takes some time to explore Qian Jin’s motivations and ultimate goal. It was revealed earlier in the season that his wife Lisa was tragically killed, but the killer remained mysterious until now. He also suspected Lisa, an actress, of cheating on him with her fellow actor Da Shuai. That suspicion plays against Qian Jin’s twisted sense of what love is and brings out a dark side of him. The reason he wants Cheng Xiaoshi in the first place is to go back and stop Lisa from supposedly flirting with Da Shuai, which he then hopes will bring her back to life.

Qian Jin’s turn from husband to cold-blooded killer is another example of LINK CLICK Season 2 highlighting severe cases of domestic abuse and violence. Like Li Tianxi and Li Tianchen’s father, Qian Jin is an abusive man who wants to control his wife. When he feels like she is betraying him, he lashes out and does the unthinkable. Men like Qian Jin are not just villains in fictional shows, they exist in everyday life, and LINK CLICK Season 2 Episode 11 does a great job of showing how those relationships can play out and makes a point to never show Qian Jin in even a remotely understanding light.

After all of the emotional ups and downs of LINK CLICK Season 2 Episode 11, it’s the ending that hits home the hardest. Li Tianxi, mute for so long, finally tells her brother she wants to go home. It is a flashback to a phrase he taught her in sign language when they were younger, but what happens next throws a massive wrench into things. The series is full of cliffhangers, but this might be the most harrowing and stunning of all and it sets up what promises to be an amazing finale.

LINK CLICK Season 2 Episode 11 deftly brings together all of the major plot threads to set up an exciting season finale. Character motivations and goals are finally revealed and all that is left is to see how it all plays out in the end. Lu Guang and Cheng Xiaoshi have been on quite a ride together, and it is only going to get more intense from here.

LINK CLICK Season 2 Episode 11 is streaming now on Crunchyroll with new episodes every Friday this Summer Anime season.