Spoiler alert! Do not proceed if you have not watched Wednesday's season finale of Kung Fu.
What's next for Nicky on Kung Fu?
After successfully bringing down her archenemy, Zhilan, in an epic finale showdown, the unlikely heroine took the the first steps in embracing her warrior path. But while Nicky may have a temporary respite from the roller-coaster chase of ensuring the power of the eight weapons didn't fall into the wrong hands, her journey is far from over. In the last moments of the season's final episode, Russell Tan delivered a stern warning to Nicky and those around her: Zhilan wasn't the one she should've been worried about. It turns out that someone even more formidable -- a cousin -- is coming for her.
"She's been through a lot," Kung Fu star Olivia Liang told ET of Nicky's rocky journey so far. "I think it's going to be really gratifying. We'll see at the end of season 1 that we watched her step into this fate or this destiny throughout the season -- at first reluctantly, a bit hesitantly, and then now, really fully embracing what she's meant to do. By the end of the season, it's like, 'OK, what comes after that?' You'll see Nicky be okay with a little bit of the unknown."
"Throughout the season, we watched her be headstrong -- she's after this one thing and she can't stop until she gets there. It's going to be really nice at the start of season 2 that Nicky maybe doesn't have a plan," the actress noted. "She doesn't have any idea of where her life's going to go and she's accepted this destiny as part of who she is and is open to wherever that takes her."
Following Wednesday's finale, Liang offers her own theories on what that final scene means for Nicky moving forward and what she'd like to see in season 2.
ET: In the finale, Nicky bests Zhilan and spares her. But Nicky's troubles are far from over and it seems there's an even bigger obstacle coming her way in season 2. What do you know?
Olivia Liang: All we have to go off of is that finale episode. I know our writers' room is getting back together on Monday. I'm sure they all have things percolating in their minds of what they want to see happen, but nothing has been set in stone yet. It definitely seems like biange has followed her to San Francisco and because of that, the mythology and the magic has also entered into San Francisco where her family lives. I think that we can expect to see the Shens, being a part of this bloodline, become much more involved in what Nicky's doing -- even more so than they already were. Maybe Baba and Mama can get involved, [I'm] not really sure, but that's kind of what I hope would happen. This is just me putting it out there, but I would love for Nicky to meet even more guardians the way that she met Simon and she knows Pei-Ling. It'd be really cool to meet more guardians if they all assemble and they're like, "It's in San Francisco, we got to help." I'm literally speculating now.
Russell Tan's warning at the end is worrisome when he says Zhilan was just a small part of his larger plan and that this is just beginning. That Nicky's cousin is coming.
Totally. With his final words in the finale and teasing that there's a family member of Nicky that is the key to everything, I think that Nicky's put a bit of a target on her back with everything that she did with Zhilan. And Russell seems far more insidious with all of his connections. It almost seems like he was orchestrating this the whole time. He had been watching Zhilan and all of that. Nicky's got a target on her, for sure, and it's going to get quite messy, seeing as perhaps, this cousin that he's been watching -- and I don't know if she's under his jurisdiction. I really don't know any of that yet -- but if her family would become enemies, that would be very hard for Nicky, because family is so important to her.
On a happier note, Nicky and Henry are making strides in their relationship. What do you see for them moving forward?
I would love to see them do regular couple stuff for a little bit, instead of just researching in the library. All of their dates have been about this purpose that Nicky has. I would like to see them go bowling or go for a run or something that's just more normal. I would love to see if Henry has a home, see Henry's apartment because [where does he sleep]?
When season 2 picks back up, there will be a lot of changes for the Shen family. Althea and Dennis are now married, Ryan's trying to pick up the pieces... Is there anything you're pitching the writers?
A couple of episodes ago, Ryan inspires Mom and Dad to go back to their roots and really celebrate Chinese cuisine. I would love to see what that looks like at Harmony Dumplings, hopefully see it booming with business. I still want to see more from Althea's storyline of how she deals with her boss and the aftermath of that. If he goes back to the workforce, I would love to see Ryan blossoming into even more of a young doctor professional and really helping the community. And I think Nicky needs a job. I don't know what she's doing for income!
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