After an extremely large blow-up following the release of season one, it was easily predictable that our favorite Addams character would be back for a second season. Releasing part one on August 6 and part two on September 3, Wednesday season two, directed by Tim Burton, made its glorious way back to Netflix in two separate parts, each released on a Wednesday, of course.
Everything I do, whether it’s a success or a failure, it’s always a surprise to me.
-Tim burton
Nothing is quite like the feeling of watching a season you have been waiting for for nearly three years! With an extremely impressive comeback, the show still had a hard time reaching my high expectations from season one. Though a very admirable production, this season’s fast-paced episodes and loss of focus on Nevermore made it seem distant from the show I fell in love with in 2022.
In this season, the show brings Jenna Ortega as Wednesday Addams, Hunter Doohan as Tyler Galpin, and Emma Myers as Enid Sinclair, in addition to many others, back into the spotlight. Adding to their cast, many new stars were brought to the show, such as Evie Templeton as Agnes DeMille, Owen Painter as Isaac Night, and even the brief appearance of Lady Gaga as Rosaline Rotwood.
Lady Gaga as Rosaline Rotwood. [Photo by: HELEN SLOAN/NETFLIX]
Evie Templeton as Agnes DeMille. [Photo by: HELEN SLOAN/NETFLIX]
Starting with Wednesday’s return to Nevermore for her sophomore year, season two takes off, and like the first season, it builds up into a peculiar investigation. With a different level of popularity at Nevermore, Wednesday finds herself stuck in the middle of every problem once more, meeting countless new faces, old friends, and both old and new enemies along the way. In this season, Wednesday discovers many new secrets about the Addams family, deals with challenges regarding her psychic abilities, and navigates her complicated relationship with her mother.
Directed by the well-known Tim Burton, the quality of this show is nothing short of expectation. From Hyde and werewolf transformations and walking limbs to entire clay animations, the show’s effects can do it all! Beautiful costumes and well-planned colors can be seen all throughout the film, telling characters’ stories and showcasing their unique personalities.
In addition, the new soundtrack brings color to the black and white series. With songs like “The Dead Dance” by Lady Gaga, which includes a stunning dance performance by Emma Myers as Enid and Evie Templeton as Agnes.
Compared to last season, this season focuses a lot more on the Addams family as a whole, which is a great way to highlight the mysterious and intriguing family, but it takes away from the aspects of a teenage school show. Instead of focusing on her school life, this time the show does not follow most of the elements of a coming-of-age school story. Except for the fact that Wednesday still lives at the school, she is never shown attending classes or experiencing the school year.
While season one had a long time between important events, which allowed us time to process what was happening, season two has more events than the entirety of season one in a single episode. This excessive amount of events didn’t give me quite enough time to process what was happening, which sometimes made me feel like the direction of the script didn’t make much sense. Yet at the same time, with a very intriguing investigation and a well-thought-out mystery to balance things out, the show’s captivating plot makes it impossible to turn off the TV.
Critics have very positive reviews of this show! With a higher score on Rotten Tomatoes than the 73% of season one, it scored an 82%. However, the audience itself has very mixed reviews. Many noted that the season has a disappointing script, with a story that does not come together as well as the last one.
If television is losing eyeballs in the digital era, then Wednesday appears to have cracked the code to retaining them.
-Top Critic Rebecca Nicholson
The fast-paced and cramped episodes of this season, in addition to the loss of focus on Wednesday’s school life itself, caused this season to not quite reach the heights of season one for me. However, to finish off, I would say that this season, though very different from season one, is a great addition to the Wednesday show. With an incredible cast, amazing props and costumes, jaw-dropping effects, and a gripping plot, this new season has become the favorite of many!
