I’ve only really been focusing on TV for the last year or so. It’s been a journey and I’ve seen some amazing shows over the last year. I had some favorites of 2021 that I was really excited about for another season in 2022. Two shows I was particularly excited about for their sophomore seasons this year were Hacks and Reservation Dogs.
Reservation Dogs was my favorite TV to air in 2021. It was something about these kids on a Native American reservation that I found really captivating.
These kids, along with all the performers, are such a great ensemble that I couldn’t help but root for all of them.
Reservation Dogs, created by Sterlin Harjo and Taika Waititi, follows four teenagers on a reservation in Oklahoma as they deal with the fallout involving one of their friends. The group consisting of Elora (Devery Jacobs), Bear (D’Pharoah Woon-A-Tai), Cheese (Lane Factor), and Willie Jack (Paulina Alexis) share stories and experiences as Native American teenagers along with their family and friends. Reservation Dogs season two is ten episodes and is currently streaming on Hulu in partnership with FX. The series has already been renewed for season three.
Trigger warning! This season continues to deal with the fallout of their friend Daniel’s (Dalton Cramer) suicide. There isn’t as heavy imagery this time around however there are some tough moments to watch about what happens afterward. If this is something that could be triggering for you, a word of caution is in order for this show.
Reservation Dogs continues right after the tornado that hit the reservation at the end of season one. Elora and Jackie (Elba Guerra) have left to go to California and everyone else is still on the reservation. Other than that, and Daniel’s suicide, there isn’t a lot of overlap with season one. We’re left with completely new stories and experiences for this group. It’s one of the many nice things about this show, the episodic nature allows the audience to drop in and not have to worry too much about missing a huge story moment.
As with season one, season two’s best moments involve these teenagers being together. They are such a delight to watch on screen, mainly because they work so well together and they’re all extremely talented. Each of them gets to shine at different moments this season, both as a group and individually. All of them had moments where I laughed a lot and moments where I bawled my eyes out.
Elora might be my favorite character in the series. She has a lot of emotionally devastating moments. Last season, it was the moment where she discovers Daniel after he commits suicide. This season, involves a member of her family being sick. She really has some moving moments that show just how talented she is. She can make you laugh, cry, stand up and cheer, or want to give her a hug. Props for sure go to Jacobs for her amazing performance.
If Elora is my favorite character overall, Willie Jack might be the MVP of season two. She is known for her no-nonsense and sarcastic attitude. She gets a few reality checks this season with run-ins with Jackie along with visiting someone who’s in prison. Her very best moment comes in her high school class when a teacher gives her back a letter she wrote freshman year. She also gets a letter that Daniel wrote as well.
The season finale episode got me good. After they all read Daniel’s letter, they make a decision about what they’re going to do to honor Daniel. Once they finally do it, the emotion you can sense from all these characters is really strong. I was really moved by the final episode, as it shows just how devastated they all were when Daniel dies. There’s something about watching teenagers have a moment of catharsis that makes it really amazing to watch on screen. The finale of this season will be one of my top episodes of the year.
This isn’t to say that Bear and Cheese are a snooze fest this season. Both of them have genuine moments of growing up that they do this season. Bear getting a job and the lessons he learns from it were really great to watch. Cheese dealing with the aftermath of his uncle’s arrest also had some great moments afterward. Both Woon-A-Tai and Factor are great in the role, and I’m curious to see where Bear in particular goes next season after making a big decision in the final season.
There were two episodes that veered away from the teens and they involved Bear’s mom Rita (Sarah Podemski) and Big (Zahn McClarnon). I’m not saying the episodes were bad, however, I did find it strange that they had an episode centered entirely on them. When the show starts to focus less on the teens and more on people on the reservation without the teens even around, I don’t like it as much as when Reservation Dogs focuses on the teenagers. The episodes were good in their own way, and I have no doubt there’s an audience for them. In the end, if the show focuses on teenagers and has other adults around as support, I’d be perfectly fine with that.
Reservation Dogs’ second season is making a strong push for one of the best shows and seasons of the year.
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Its gut-punch moments, rich characters, commentary, awareness, and representation of Native American life make this series stand out in all the best ways. The performances are outstanding and I’m hoping that there’s some recognition coming their way down the road. FX and Hulu’s partnership continues to prove successful and I’m glad that season three will be coming soon enough. This is a must-watch for anyone looking for great television.
Grade: 9/10
