The bright sun and hot rays that used to touch skin now hide behind shadows and a cool breeze. As the world transitions from a vibrant summer to a mellow fall, entertainment has done the same. On Aug. 6th, Wednesday season two, part one was released, allowing audiences to prepare themselves for the spooky season.
With a new season comes new characters and beginnings. Following the death of Larissa Weems, Principal Barry Dort enters the Outcast world as the new authority figure, along with a new teacher, Isadora Capri. With their intentions concealed in Part One, audiences feel anticipation surrounding the credibility of their true colors.
As for the Nevermore students, the show introduces Wednesday Addams’s new stalker, who later turns into her ally: Agnes Demille. Agnes admires Wednesday, and the two bond over the mystery of the dangerous threats that have been following them around. To add, the audience is then introduced to the newest heartthrob at Nevermore: Bruno, Enid’s new love interest.
However, with these new relationships unfolding, it brings to attention the absence of one character. Xavier Thorpe, Wednesday’s love interest in season one, has left Nevermore to go to a boarding school in Switzerland. This was never mentioned in the previous season, which hints at the idea that Percy Hynes White, who played Thorpe, was fired because of sexual assault rumors.
Pembroke Pines Charter High School junior James Gayoso explains how he “had no clue about the scandal and how Thorpe’s leave felt abrupt.” For most of the audience, Thorpe’s absence left a hole in the storyline.
Although it pains some viewers that Wednesday has no love interest this season, it allows for an in-depth perspective of her family and platonic relationships. Wednesday has always been portrayed as a cold and blunt character who rarely shows emotion towards anyone.
However, with Enid, she not only introduces conflict in their friendship, but she also displays efforts to overcome it in Parts One and Two. With Enid’s life being on the line as portrayed in Addam’s visions, she does whatever it takes to reverse the proposed fate, even if it means putting herself in harm’s way.
Not only that, but the audience is introduced to two very different family dynamics. The Addams family, including mother Morticia and father Gomez, moves near Nevermore as Morticia is now heavily involved with fundraising for the school. Pugsley now attends Nevermore with his sister and experiments with his Outcast abilities.
Pugsley inherits the same powers as his father, in that he can control electricity from his fingertips. This leads into the storyline involving a zombie named Slurp, in which Pugsley is the one to revive and take care of. However, as the plotline progresses, Slurp is revealed to be evil mastermind Isaac Night, who is also Tyler Galpin’s uncle.
Tyler Galpin was introduced to the world as Wednesday’s ‘normie’ love interest until it was revealed that his true form was a dangerous monster known as a Hyde. After attempting to kill not only Wednesday but also to take over the school, he was sent to a psych ward. Ultimately, not only did he escape, but so did his mother, Francoise, who is also half Hyde. Throughout the show, the audience is introduced to a new rivalry between the Galpins and the Addams family, where the Galpins attempt to kill the Addams to save Francoise from dying.
At the end of season 2, the Addams family comes out closer than ever as they manage to escape death against the Galpins. However, for Enid, she is revealed to be one of the strongest alpha werewolves who remains stuck in her werewolf form after the battle.
Senior Blake Stewart comments, “I was really overjoyed to see Enid finally embrace her werewolf side, but I was worried at the same time because of her avoiding the problems that will follow it.”
Wednesday is determined to find her best friend and help her transform back into her true self as she travels the country alongside her Uncle Fester. However, the ending scene leaves the audience in confusion as Wednesday’s aunt is revealed to be writing on the walls of her captivity, “Wednesday must die.” As for Wednesday’s future, it is up to her to see if she can fight this new threat coming from inside her family.
