For this installment of Coming Attractions, I’ll be getting you ready for season 2 of Yellowjackets. Despite being one of the most talked about series of winter 2021-22, I didn’t see much fanfare around the internet when the trailer dropped. This is fine and just makes me think it’s still finding its audience, something that this post will hopefully help with.
What is Yellowjackets about?
Even a full 10-episode season in, this is a hard question to answer. The plot concerns a high school girl’s soccer team whose plane crashed in the Canadian wilderness back in 1996. The show jumps between their wilderness time in 1996 and the present where some of the people have survived (and some haven’t). This structure is one of the most inventive things about the show as it keeps viewers puzzled not only about the mysterious stuff seeming to happen but also about how we arrived at the present at. These gaps are further reflective of the waves of trauma the women navigate frequently.
Where can I watch Yellowjackets?
Season 1 is streaming on Showtime with season 2 premiering on March 24th on the app and March 26th on cable.
Where is the story currently? (spoilers ahead)
Season 1 tied up a lot of loose plot threads going on in the present while opening up more mystery about the 1996 events. In the present day, Natalie (Juliette Lewis) just got kidnapped and Taissa (Tawny Cypress) won her senate race. At the same time, Taissa’s wife, Simone (Rukiya Bernard), finds the decapitated head of the family dog, a childhood toy of their son, and what might be a human heart arranged in a basement shrine. Also, there is the mysterious symbol that shows up several times back in 1996. Does this mean Taissa used dark magic of some sort to win the election? Back in 1996, winter approaches and Jackie (Ella Purnell) freezes outside overnight exactly like the end of The Shining (Kubrick, 1980). It’s far from the only reference like that to classic horror moments. Following this Lottie (Courtney Eaton) does a sacrifice with a bear heart. It’s clear that Lottie will play a big part in season 2, as we end the season in 1996 with her and get a reference to her being alive in the present earlier in the episode.
What do we see in the trailer?
Winter is coming! The shots of 1996 (soon to be 1997) show a lot of snow and wintery struggle. Is the expected cannibalism imminent? In the present, the girls seem to be dealing with a lot of personal demons and reverberations of trauma. We get a bunch of cult-y images that pass so quickly they don’t reveal much, but it does seem that season 2 will be darker and more horror-tinged than season 1. The trailer ends with Misty (Christina Ricci) interacting with exciting newcomer Elijah Wood (exciting because Elijah Wood is always a great addition) while we get a couple more cult images.
Why should you be excited about season 2?
Whether you count it as a 2021 show or a 2022 show (season one aired Nov. 14, 2021-Jan. 16, 2022), it’s one of the best and most promising new shows of the last couple of years. This and Severance towered over everything else I saw last year. So first and foremost, you should be excited because season 1 was incredible and season 2 looks to be more of the same. This show is the perfect mix of horror, thriller, and mystery, so if you’re a fan of Lost, Twin Peaks, or Hannibal, it’s probably for you. Beyond that, it has so many badass women in front of the camera and behind it. It’s also really queer, both in explicit storylines and general sapphic vibes. There’s really nothing else airing right now that scratches the same itch as Yellowjackets.
I haven’t been this excited for a show to return for season 2 in probably a decade. Comment below if you’re excited about season 2, and follow me on Instagram where I will post about it incessantly once season 2 starts!
