Last time on Christmas With a Prince: dedicated pediatric doctor Tasha Miller (Kaitlyn Leeb) reunites with her high school crush who just happens to be Prince Alexander Cavalieri of St. Savarre (Nick Hounslow) who has just broken his leg on a nearby ski slope. He convalesces in hiding on her pediatric ward, which infuriates her, and yet his charm makes her think that she could save him from himself by loving him enough and injecting him with good old fashioned Christmas spirit.

Cut to the sequel, where we join Dr. Tasha on her way to see her prince. He’s busy with some treaty-signing with royals from Vandelien, including princess Miranda, who imagined that she might be the one by his side, so she’s jealously throwing royal wrenches into their happiness, especially after the prince proposes a certain question to Tasha and she starts her journey to “become royal” (ie, plan a wedding, do some neck-strengthening exercises to prepare herself for That Crown). Although, inexplicably her arch-nemesis Miranda will not only be staying for the holidays, but will be helping with the wedding planning too. And if that’s already pushing the bounds of your skepticism, you’re really not going to like what’s coming next. Let’s just say that Miranda is ruthless. But at least her black heart is a kind of motivation we understand; when the other characters baffle us with their choices, there is little to explain it away.

The two leads have a convincing enough chemistry, and are capable enough to anchor a minor Hallmark movie. But some of the other key players are…less so. But when the movie’s not taking itself remotely seriously, not bothering to obey the basic laws of the universe, does bad acting really matter? I mean, it doesn’t matter if you’ve turned it off, which is what you should have done. That’s the appropriate response. Not to worry: there’s be another Christmas movie along in 5-10 minutes. Go raid the fridge for leftovers, find your cozy slippers, and flip the channel for a heart-warming piece of crap you can live with.