Abhiroop Das
Season 2 of Netflix’s ‘Wednesday‘ continues the adventures of Wednesday Addams, the stone-cold star of the Addams family. The previous season covers her journey into Nevermore, an academy specifically made for the outcasts, a unique set of people with supernatural abilities. While acclimatizing to her new life, she stumbles across a string of murders with deep connections to her past. Thus begins her quest to uncover the mysteries, tapping into the true extent of her psychic abilities. This season continues that thread, with its first episode, titled ‘Here We Woe Again,’ blowing the scope wide open for Wednesday to take on many new threats. However, when a two-pronged attack tests her brains, brawns, and resilience, she realizes that she might just have found her match. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Wednesday Uses Her Psychic Abilities to Catch a Serial Killer
Wednesday’s new saga begins with a cold open, placing her in a mysterious room full of eerie life-sized dolls. With her hands tied and pitch black tears streaming down her seemingly emotionless face, the protagonist begins recounting the story of how she got here. Following her success in the previous investigation, Wednesday made up her mind to catch a killer she had been interested in since her childhood: the Kansas City Scalper. She claims to have mastered her psychic abilities during the summer holidays, in large part with the help of Goody Addams’s guidebook. With this, cracking the case was no big deal. This is especially owing to Thing, Wednesday’s handy assistant, who snuck out a piece of evidence from the case, enabling her to peer into it and see visions from the past, containing the serial killer’s identity and location.
When Wednesday and the Scalper come face to face, however, the former is quickly defeated, which brings us back to the present. As the serial killer readies for what appears to be his next victim, the protagonist flexes her mettle, easily taking him down with some help from Thing. The black tears are still a point of concern, but for now, she chooses to put them on the back burner. The family then reunites for Wednesday’s return trip to Nevermore as a sophomore student. This time, she is joined by her younger brother, Pugsley, who has sprouted powers of his own and can shoot out lightning bolts. Elsewhere, an investigator hides deep in the woods, spying on a couple that is meeting in secret. His job is interrupted by the arrival of a strange, one-eyed crow, which is soon joined by dozens and hundreds of crows.
Wednesday is Welcomed to Nevermore by Friends and Foes
Fearing for his life, the man sends a voice note mentioning a bullpen to an unnamed individual. He then rushes back into his car, only to find more crows lying in wait inside, who waste no time charging at him and taking his life. The scene then returns to Nevermore, which has gone through some changes of its own, primarily with a new principal, Barry Dort. He has replaced Larissa Weems, who died tragically in the previous season. Without skipping a beat, Dort treats Wednesday like an academy hero, a sentiment shared by her classmates, much to her disdain. The principal also invites her to the Founder’s Pyre ceremony which is to be held later that night, but the protagonist chooses to dash back to her room, reuniting with her roommate and best friend, Enid Sinclair.
Enid shares her personal dilemmas with Wednesday. Having only recently found her footing in life as a werewolf, she wishes to end things with her boyfriend, Ajax, but fails to find the courage to do so. However, their conversation is cut short when the latter’s mysterious stalker reenters the fray, this time with an arrow shot into their room with an attached Polaroid picture of Wednesday with Principal Dort from mere moments ago. With the figure confirmed to be a part of the institution, the protagonist’s caution grows. Elsewhere, her brother settles down in the Caliban house, with his roommate being none other than Eugene Ottinger, also known as Bee Boy. The Addams family’s adventure is far from over, as Wednesday is surprised to find her parents, Gomez and Morticia, at Nevermore. The latter is invited by Principal Dort to chair the Gala fundraising committee, and while Morticia is still not sure, this is enough to earn her more of her daughter’s wrath.
A Mysterious Murder Thickens the Plot
More information comes out in the exchange, with Wednesday learning that Xavier has moved from Nevermore to a Swiss Academy called Reichenbach. When the topic of the protagonist’s rebellious nature comes up once again, Morticia expresses how her sister, Ophelia, bore similar traits. She also suggests that they led her sister to a grim trajectory, one she plans to avoid this time around. Meanwhile, Wednesday’s quest lands her in the forest, where she comes across police cars investigating the death that took place earlier in the episode. The new Sheriff, Officer Santiago, informs that the man, whose eyes have been gouged out, was a private investigator by the name of Carl Bradbury. Just then, from the corner of her eye, the protagonist notices a hooded man observing the scene before attempting to escape.
Wednesday’s quick chase ends with the mystery man on the ground, revealed to be none other than Donovan Galpin, the previous Sheriff. He appears to be in a dire strait, still visibly struggling to come to terms with his son, Tyler’s fate. However, that is not the reason for his current presence, as he tells Wednesday that the deceased man, Carl, was originally his partner, and together they were working on a big case. Wednesday and Galpin soon start throwing insults at each other, clearly bearing scars from their past dynamic. Nonetheless, Galpin tries to involve her in the investigation, asking her to follow her hunches and reach out to him. Before parting ways, he drops another ominous statement, reminding her that the “bird is always watching,” pointing to the one-eyed crow overlooking the scene.
Nevermore Packs its Share of Dark Secrets
That night, the Caliban house sits together for a rousing academy legend, discussing the tale of Nevermore’s Skull Tree. Ajax narrates that in the past, one of the students was a genius with an equally frail body. With only a few months to live, the boy invented a mechanical heart for himself. While it did sustain his life, it changed him significantly, unveiling the dark side of ambition. Ultimately, the boy died in an experiment of his own creation, and his body was buried under the Skull Tree. Since then, it has become a test of courage for Caliban students to visit the tree at night and listen to the boy’s still ticking mechanical heart. The story particularly inspires Pugsley, who has so far struggled to make any friends at Nevermore.
Elsewhere, Principal Dort meets Bianca Barclay, the academy’s prodigious siren, and asks her to become the upcoming Gala’s student liaison. While she is initially hesitant, the principal’s true colors soon come to light, with him snidely threatening her scholarship at Nevermore. He intends to put her siren powers to nefarious use and get rich patrons to aid him at the fundraiser. From here, the scene transforms into a montage sweeping through the lives of all of the main players in the game, with Wednesday playing a haunting rendition of classical music in the background. She meets Ms. Capri, Nevermore’s newest music teacher, who advises the protagonist to let music take over her in order to feel its fullest effect, a suggestion Wednesday has no interest in.
Wednesday Has a Dark Premonition
Things quickly begin to speed up for Wednesday when she is gifted a painting from Xavier, who explains in a note that his subconscious hinted that it might be of help to her. The painting depicts none other than the same one-eyed crow from before, putting Wednesday on high alert. Soon, she makes another discovery: her novel’s one and only manuscript, which she spent two years on, is missing. A hint from her stalker suggests that it’s soon to be burned at the Pyre. The memorial ceremony is crowded, but Wednesday spares no effort, quickly breaking through the Pyre’s intricate structure and finding her way inside. Not knowing what’s unfolding, the principal lights it on fire, and the protagonist only narrowly escapes being burned alive, with her manuscript secured at last.
With no time to catch her breath, Wednesday is ushered to the stage as a special guest, complete with an oversized painting depicting her victory over the forces working against Nevermore. This finally pushes her over the edge, and she openly declares to everyone to back off, exemplifying her resolve by burning down the painting, as well as the stage. More trouble unfolds in the forest as Pugsley decides to venture out to the Skull Tree on his own, confident in his ability to defend himself with his lightning powers. Once at the site, he listens by the tree’s hollow, clearly making out the sound of a ticking heart. However, his plan backfires when he slips and accidentally uses his powers on the ground. The electric jolts seem to have jump-started the heart of the legendary genius once again, and soon, the decomposed body of the student rises from the ground, now a zombie.
At the ceremony, Wednesday walks away after the spectacle, and Enid rushes behind, but their touch causes the former to have yet another vision, this time flipping the story on its head. She sees a tombstone of none other than Enid, with voices in her head whispering that she is to blame for this tragedy. The voices soon take material form, with a vision of Enid choking Wednesday, angry at her supposed actions. In reality, we see the protagonist on the floor, convulsing and shedding black tears. Enid begins to panic, but fortunately or unfortunately, Morticia enters the scene, forcing Wednesday’s secrets into the open. The episode ends on a surprising note, showing how Wednesday appears to be a mystery-magnate, this time embroiled in a conspiracy potentially much more dangerous than before.
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