Okay so first off, let me say that I am posting this review in March of 2024, as I not-so-patiently wait for season 3, which is many months away. I recently decided to re-watch YJ's first 2 seasons. After re-watching the pilot, I came to a realization, which prompted me to write this review. Until recently, I would have said that either "Alias," "Lost," or "24" has the best pilot, but YJ's S1E1 now has the title. From the instant-classic truly brutal cold open, to the riveting montage as the girls prepare to leave (accompanied by Paloma Faith's excellent cover of INXS' "Never Tear Us Apart"), to the spine-tingling climactic campfire scene, this is pure gold from beginning to end.
It doesn't take too long for viewers to find out that this nice group of supposedly squeaky-clean soccer-playing girls is anything but. Shauna and Jackie seem like life-long besties until we're shown a shocking act of behind-the-back betrayal. Another girl, who is supposedly one of the leaders of the team, commits a brutal act of violence on a teammate that will ironically turn out to be the best thing she could do for her. Another girl is a paranoid schizophrenic who has to be forced to take her meds, which will of course run out when they're stranded. Yet another girl is clearly a sociopath (she likes throwing rats in her pool and watching them drown; as an adult, she enjoys inflicting mental and emotional abuse on her patients, as she is a nurse at a nursing home). There's also an alcoholic drug addict on the team. Yeah, so we're taking a group of unstable teenage girls and putting them into basically hell on earth (cold instead of hot). Talk about a recipe for disaster.
I saw an interview with producer Jonathan Lisco, who said they have faced some criticism from some who have said the 3 or 4 infamous scenes from the pilot (no spoilers, but most of you will know the scenes I am talking about) give away too much. His response was that the show is not to be about IF they get to that point, but HOW and WHY. This show would not work if they didn't have those scenes. Even though - through the end of season 2 - S1E1 is the only episode to have scenes from that point in the story, these scenes hang over every second of the entire show. In the past, we know what fate is in store for these girls, and how bad it will get for them, and it's terrifying. In the present, we know that - even 25 years later - survivors of such a horrific situation will be permanently scarred and haunted by these events. Yes, the producers took a huge risk doing it this way, and it's utterly brilliant.
One more quick note: I would say that YJ has easily one of the best casts of any show ever, particular the younger cast. In the hands of lesser actors, a show with such a brutal and bizarre premise would come off as campy and absurd. The whole cast is great, but my personal fav is Sophie Thatcher (young Natalie) whose performance, especially in season 2, is jaw-dropping.
