Kung Fu: Olivia Liang Reflects on Nicky’s Journey, That Zhilan Surprise in the Season 2 Finale

Kung Fu ended its second season tonight on The CW with Nicky Shen (Olivia Liang) and Zhilan (Yvonne Chapman) teaming up after Russell Tan not only stole the body of his son, Kerwin, in the penultimate episode, but managed to ring the bell and open up a portal to a mystical realm. With everything at stake, the finale saw some major moments in this part of Nicky’s journey and according to Liang, it’s something that will change Nicky’s entire worldview going forward — not to mention that emotional Zhilan surprise as well.

Warning: spoilers for the Season 2 finale of Kung Fu, “The Source”, beyond this point.

I the episode, Russell Tan goes into the realm he’s opened with the bell, determined to take all of the power from the Source for himself. As doing so will not only destroy that realm but also make him all powerful and immortal, Nicky and Zhilan team up — a Warrior and a Guardian — to enter the realm and go after him. But along the way, Zhilan encounters the spirit of her mother and has an emotional moment with her, until the woman learns of the things Zhilan has done and rejects her. Nicky later finds Zhilan and tells her that she was wrong. Zhilan is not a monster and that everyone can change. Nicky’s faith in Zhilan, in a sense when they fail to stop Russell from taking the Source’s power. With the realm collapsing, Nicky, Zhilan, and Mia (Vanessa Yao) fight to keep Russell trapped there to save the world. Zhilan ultimately stays behind to imprison him, sending Mia and Nicky back to safety.

“Nicky, she’s been so black and white about good and evil since season one and audience members got to see Zhilan and how she became who she is,” Liang told ComicBook.com. “But Nicky doesn’t know any of Zhilan’s story. All she knows of her is that she murdered her shifu, who was her sister, and a lot of other people and seems to have absolutely no remorse for it. So, when Pei-Ling urges her to work together with this person that Nicky thinks is pure evil, is a monster, as she said a couple episodes ago, and then getting to see that this person isn’t really a monster, is just a broken person who needs forgiveness, who needs to be loved and who can be redeemed. I think that changed Nicky’s entire world view.”

She continued, “And so, going through that in the realm and then coming out after Zhilan sacrificed herself for the greater good, I think has completely changed Nicky for the better.”

Liang said that Zhilan’s sacrifice was one that she was particularly moved by even in reading the script, noting that she wasn’t ready for Zhilan’s final line, a throwback to the antagonist’s derogatory way of referring to Nicky.

“I truly sobbed when I read Zhilan’s final line to Nicky,” she said. “‘Go home, little monk.’ I was like, ‘oh my God. No Now it’s a term of endearment. Are you serious?’ Yeah, I was not ready for that.”

What did you think about the Kung Fu Season 2 finale? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section!