“If you can’t kill them with kindness, try lethal injection,” said Wednesday Addams, voice drained of any emotion, in the sixth episode of “Wednesday” Season 2. After three years, in the long-anticipated new season, her familiar unblinking stare has returned.
“Wednesday,” a Netflix show following the experiences of Wednesday Addams — a well-known character who appears in other shows such as “The Addams Family” — at a school for “outcasts,” was released in 2022. The second season, which debuted in September, reached nearly 28.2 million views within one week of release, and even the first season received renewed attention.
Yet while the second season of “Wednesday” is doing well on the charts, the plot is scattered, lacking a clear focus. While the acting quality remains engaging and fun, largely consistent with Season 1, the storyline isn’t as impressive or engaging as viewers would expect.
The opening scenes of Season 2 follow the return of Wednesday and her friend Enid to their school, Nevermore. It is instantly clear that there are still several unanswered questions from Season 1, helping set up tension for the rest of the season. While the beginning of the second season seems to offer new mysteries that will presumably be answered in the later episodes — such as the appearance of strange murderous crows and Wednesday’s mysterious “stalker” — the number of sideplots is excessive and doesn’t significantly move the show forward. In Season 1, most seemingly unrelated side stories were connected in hidden ways. But in Season 2 they simply serve as a distraction from the main plot.
Season 2 feels torn between Wednesday’s brother’s enrollment at Nevermore, Enid’s new boyfriend, and the introduction of several new characters that don’t relate to the main plot. Instead of having the classic murder mystery feeling that viewers expect of “Wednesday,” Season 2 feels predictable and lacks energy. Even the ‘stalker,’ a massive plot point, turns out to simply be a 13-year-old girl. None of this is necessarily bad, but it’s an unexpected shift considering Wednesday’s previously fast-paced, ominous tone.
“Wednesday” Season 2, though highly anticipated, struggles to narrow its focus and falls short of the expectations set by Season 1. Given the distracting side plots and a large number of entirely new characters, it’s difficult to follow the plot. Overall, the show would have benefited from a clear and considerably more focused storyline.
