Hey guys!
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It’s officially been a year since the first season of ‘13 Reasons Why’ came out. Through this series, numerous conversations about suicide, rape, and bullying have arisen, and become theoretically less hidden and taboo. Now, a year after the initial release and fandom, season two is out; and luckily for you, I just finished watching the whole thing so I’m ready to talk all about it!
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In this season, we get to see the same characters again and unfortunately for us, we get to experience their lives five months after “spoiler alert” Hannah’s suicide. This involves how each of them tries to cope with the pain of her death and shows how they are all, unanimously, still in recovery and in desperate need of healing. Season two stays within the same genre by again tackling issues such as social pressure, drug abuse, rape and gun violence. Only this time, we are delved even deeper into said issues.
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One of the main themes in season two has to be justice and jurisprudence as the majority of the episodes take place in a courtroom. This time through the lens of Hannah’s mother, Olivia Baker, we get to directly see each character’s role in the suicide, as they all stand as witnesses in court. Through the episodes, we see Olivia fight to prove that the suicide could have been avoided if the school had played a larger role in dealing with Hannah’s bullies and rapist. She basically argues that it is partially the school’s fault for not doing enough. Also in this series is a deep and detailed look at how Andy, Hannah’s father coped and is still coping with his grief.
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Another main theme particular to this season, therefore, has to be parenting and the parent-to-teen relationship. As I mentioned before, we get to see a lot more of Hannah’s parents in this series, and we even have the opportunity to see Jessica, Hannah’s old friend, opening up to Olivia. Mr. Porter (the principal) takes responsibility for his actions and throughout several episodes, he tries his best to connect with every student involved in the suicide. He also specifically addresses Jessica’s parents, Tyler’s parents and even Clay’s etc.
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Also in this season is an insight into a different side of Hannah, where we get the opportunity to sympathize even more with her and her decision: we are reminded that even though Hannah was struggling and in pain, she did try to get help twice and failed.
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I think I like this season so much because of how complex it is. Alike the first season, its episodes aren’t straightforward and its plot line isn’t predictable. Even more interesting about this specific season is how they bring the element of gun violence. Currently a serious issue in America, this is something that needs to be talked about. After the Santa Fe shooting, they even canceled the ‘13 Reasons Why Season Two’ premiere – something I thought was a very respectable and noble decision on their part. Specifically as Selena Gomez and the entire cast were super supportive of the students.
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Like the last season, some scenes are very hard to watch but I think they’re important as they all have huge messages behind them, showing us that we must collectively do better as a society to keep our teens safe.
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Now onto something that I really enjoyed seeing, Clay and Justin bonding. We get to see a whole different side to Justin as at the beginning of the season, we see him on the streets, homeless and addicted. Clay secretly brings him home to try and get him cleaned and better put together, they make for a great storyline – showing us how in times of despair, even the strangest duos become close.
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Overall, although I preferred the first season, season two was still equally as moving and complex. It was a true roller coaster of emotions to watch so I would definitely recommend it to a more mature audience (16+). Unfortunately, this season has received lots of negative feedback on Instagram, confirming my belief that although the show is amazing, it does glamorize and glorifies suicide – making it both dangerous and unhealthy. All in all, this show successfully opened up many conversations about topics that were previously taboo.
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To be perfectly honest, I feel that the last episode of this season made for a great end to the series. Therefore I wouldn’t want them to make a third season (and I’m pretty sure they won’t). But if this was the end, then at least it was a good one. Over and out in the best way possible.
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LOVE, as always
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Tiffany Lea