13 Reasons Why Season 2 Review: It’s Time To Let Go

When 13 Reasons Why dropped on Netflix last year, it instantly became a sensation.

The show that deals with issues like bullying, suicide, and sexual assault, was so immensely popular that it got picked up for a second season, even when the source material of Jay Asher’s novel was used up completely in the first season.

Of course, Netflix couldn’t let a hit slip from its hands, but was bringing the show back justified, or even necessary?

As it were, 13 Reasons Why Season 2 isn’t essential viewing.

The episodes are too long, storylines are a slog, and the episodes rely on graphic scenes that feel so gratuitous that you want to skip them altogether.

Season 2 revolves around the trial in which Hannah Baker’s parents sue the high school for negligence. Each of the students who were featured in Hannah’s tapes, as well as Mr. Porter, take the stand to not only testify that the school was aware of the bullying that occurred in its halls but also to offer their own perspectives of the events that Hannah recounts in Season 1.

Hannah is still dead, but the season’s conceit involves Clay imagining her, which isn’t a strong choice on the show’s part. To have Hannah exist in flashbacks told through the other teens’ lens works, but having Clay manifest her in his mind doesn’t.

It’s a tired trope and an inorganic way to incorporate Katherine Langford more this season.

There’s a lot more that doesn’t work this season, including the unfocused plotlines, the expansion on characters we don’t care all that much about, and the show’s reliance on shock value masquerading as a conversation starter.

13 Reasons Why never shied away from controversial scenes. But on the Season 2 finale, it outdoes itself by depicting Tyler’s horrific rape.

Tyler, who the show teased as a potential perpetrator of gun violence last season, is pushed to the edge when a group of bullies, led by Montgomery, sodomizes him with a broom handle. Tyler then rounds up all his arsenal and heads to the school dance.

In the 13 Reasons Why aftershow, showrunner Brian Yorkey defended the scene, saying that it was meant to wake people up on the atrocities that happen to young people all over the country and to contribute to the discussion on guns, but to what end?

Granted, no gun violence is actually committed at the end of the finale. Clay and Tony intervene and convince Tyler to step away, but it doesn’t feel like the show is doing anything groundbreaking or important.  It actually feels cheap.

The latter half of the season revolves around the takedown of Bryce — Hannah and Jessica’s rapist, who gets off nearly scot-free for what he did. It’s an ugly truth too close to reality, and while viewers are unquestionably furious about the injustice, it stands to portray how this happens all too often in our world.

And then there are moments that do work this season, rare scenes that remind us that in the midst of the dour and morbid plotlines, there is a delicate underbelly of the show.

For example, Kevin Porter, the high school guidance counselor who let Hannah down before she committed suicide, has an intensely gutting scene when on trial where he asks for Olivia’s forgiveness. His remorse is palpable, and it’s absolutely soul-crushing scenes and performed beautifully by Derek Luke.

But still, maybe there is something that lies underneath, an astute perception of teenagers perhaps, that the show could explore deeper if it gets picked up for a third season.

Jessica’s story, for example, is particularly strong. How she deals with the trauma of being raped is done well, and it shows how young people can rely on the support of their families to help them recover.

Another strong part of the season is Alex, who is revealed to have survived his suicide attempt. His own recovery process is a messy one, but with the help of Zach, with whom he develops a sweet friendship with, he makes real progress towards a healthier mental health.

Miles Heizer and his sensitive portrayal of Alex remains one of the best things about the show, and his scenes with Zach demonstrate how the relationships are more interesting than the actual stories are.

Clay and Justin’s unexpected brotherhood is also exemplary of that. After finding Justin on the streets, Clay takes him in, and the two forge a surprising bond that is heartening to watch. If you didn’t care for Justin last season like I didn’t, you will now.

Brandon Flynn gives in a really touching and sad performance of a person so racked with guilt and self-loathing that he turns to drugs to cope.

The tragedy of Justin’s character proves what the show does get right about teenagers — that above all else, they want to feel safe and loved, and to have a place of belonging.

Alicia Boe as Jessica in 13 Reasons Why

13 Reasons Why Season 2 has many flaws and problems. And while it occasionally cuts through and reveals something profound about the chasm of teenage life, those moments are few and far between.

If there is a third season, we know that Katherine Langford won’t be returning as Hannah, and that opens up more opportunity to move away from her suicide and the tapes. But, where does the show even go from here?

If Season 2 was about healing and about letting go, just as Clay does with Hannah at the end, then maybe the show should follow its own themes and move on.

What did you think of this season of 13 Reasons Why? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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13 Reasons Why is streaming now on Netflix.

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