Yellowjackets (Season 3)

Creators: Ashley Lyle and Bart Nickerson
Starring: Melanie Lynskey, Tawny Cypress, Christina Ricci, Simone Kessell, Sophie Nélisse, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Sophie Thatcher, Samantha Hanratty, Steven Krueger, Warren Kole, Courtney Eaton, Liv Hewson, Kevin Alves, Lauren Ambrose, Sarah Desjardins, Ella Purnell, Nia Sondaya, Alexa Barajas, Elijah Wood, Hilary Swank, Ashley Sutton, Nelson Franklin, Joel McHale
Original Airdate: 2025

**The Following Review Contains Plot Spoilers For The First Three Seasons Of 'Yellowjackets' **

★★★ ½ (out of ★★★★)   

There comes a point in nearly every cult mystery series where all the groundwork's been laid and fans demand answers, maybe assuming its writers have run dry of ideas. Then comes the big twist, completely altering the trajectory of the story and causing viewers to rethink what came before. For Lost, this happened in its third season finale, "Through the Looking Glass," when an infamous line of dialogue reveals a possibility we never considered. 

A similar shock comes in Yellowjackets' third season episode, "Thanksgiving (Canada)" when the missing Wyskayok High School girls soccer team's disturbing wilderness celebration is interrupted by three unknown visitors as a seemingly promising surprise leads to violence and volatility. No longer the same people they were when that plane crashed, the issue is less getting home than how many still want to. 

Whether you believe the wilderness has a "plan" or it's all just a reflection of their own fractured psyches, they're no longer a team, friends or even really a collective tribe. We know they'll be rescued, but as Craig Wedren and Anna Waronker's grungy opening theme makes clear, there's still "No Return," for those who make it back. And from its start, the show's played fast and loose with certain details, as doubt and plausible deniability continue to surround these characters' fates. 

It's spring 1997 and after a cabin fire that left the team without shelter, newly anointed leader Natalie (Sophie Thatcher) and the rest of the Yellowjackets have built a new camp. This while accused arsonist Coach Ben (Steven Krueger) is still on the loose and a fuming Shauna (Sophie Nélisse) continues to emotionally unravel after losing her baby and best friend Jackie (Ella Purnell).

Forming a toxic bond with the clingy Melissa (Jenna Burgess) Shauna channels her rage toward rival Mari (Alexa Barajas) and Ben, who Natalie and Misty (Samantha Hanratty) suspect could be innocent. Meanwhile, Spiritual guru Lottie (Courtney Eaton) continues to hear voices and see visions, recruiting Travis (Kevin Alves) and Akilah (Nia Sondaya) to help decipher the wilderness's messages. But a shocking arrival causes battle lines to be drawn, forcing inseparable couple Taissa (Jasmin Savoy Brown) and Van (Liv Hewson) to take sides.

In 2021, the group is grieving Natalie's (Juliette Lewis) accidental death at the hands of an inconsolable Misty (Christina Ricci), who starts hitting the bottle and rejects quirky boyfriend Walter's (Elijah Wood) attempts to help. But when an unhinged Shauna (Melanie Lynskey) suspects she's being anonymously stalked, the surviving Yellowjackets, her husband Jeff (Warren Kole) and daughter Callie (Sarah Desjardins) become increasingly concerned. Looking for answers from surprise houseguest Lottie (Simone Kessell), Callie intercepts a tape intended for her mom, the mysterious contents of which can ruin them all. And as Taissa (Tawny Cypress) and Van (Lauren Ambrose) struggle with the latter's deteriorating health, Shauna confronts a familiar face from the past.

Everything this season revolves around Shauna Shipman. While she was never the portrait of mental stability or even a well adjusted wife and parent, that was expected given what happened 25 years earlier. And if it was ever a time to view the cannibalism within the context of their dire circumstances, it's long passed. Something happened to them out there, and whether it's in their heads or related to the wilderness's metaphysical hold is irrelevant. All that matters is how far they've fallen.  

We've seen Shauna's need for control, but the loss of her baby last season has caused her to unleash a torrent of mental and physical abuse on her tribemates. Bloodthirsty and sadistic, she loves what she's become, mainly because it's the antithesis of what she was before. 

Respected, hated, feared and a leader, Shauna's somebody now, even if that evolution comes at the highest cost. And Sophie Nélisse is ferocious in this role, commanding the screen when plotting in silence with a nasty glare or barking orders at the top of her lungs. It's also an ideal compliment to Lynskey's performance in the later timeline, as both actresses subtly incorporating the other's more definable characteristics, even in their quietest scenes. 

Shauna's worst qualities take center stage when Ben's brought back to camp and put on trial for a crime everyone seems to know he didn't commit. That rigged system leads to the season's most intriguing monologue, as the exasperated, one legged assistant coach pleads for his life. With corrupted sidekick Melissa by her side, Shauna tips the scales of justice with the ultimate power play, even as Lottie believes he holds a greater purpose in somehow facilitating their path home. But the torment he suffers only has him wishing he went sooner, sparing him the knowledge that these girls he once coached are unrecognizable from the sociopaths they've become. 

Despite a pallor of tragedy hanging over the principal players, the 2021 timeline initially boasts a looser, more comedic tone that can partially be attributed to Christina Ricci's continued brilliance as the wacky, obsessive Misty. Her boyfriend and fellow citizen detective Walter is right in questioning why she's letting these "friends" use her, but the real fun comes when Misty gradually reaches that same conclusion, particularly when it comes to Shauna. Manufacturing problems for thrills and excitement's sake, even Callie and Jeff can't stand her anymore, recognizing the danger she's put them in. 

Last season's MVP Sarah Desjardins again impresses as Callie, who forms a strange, parasitic bond with Lottie to learn more about her mom's past. But it's Lottie who senses something stronger inside Callie, and whether that's her mental illness talking, what we've seen so far still seems to confirm it. 

Callie's definitely her mother's daughter, accompanied by all the baggage that lineage entails, dating back to what happened in those woods. The tape Shauna's threatened with holds the answers, even as Taissa's demonic side reemerges, taking desperate measures to buy a dying Van more time. Between her disturbing visions and continued obsession with sacrifice, she joins the rest in knowing she'll never feel or be "normal." 

Aside from how late in the game she arrives, what's most surprising about two-time Academy Award winner Hilary Swank's turn as Melissa are the ramifications of her face-to-face reunion with Shauna. Certain Melissa's behind the tape and Lottie's murder, Shauna's approach sure isn't subtle, making for the season's most suspenseful showdown, intrinsically tied to everything we've seen occur in the past timeline. Swank's only in two episodes, but she makes them count, causing us to constantly second guess Melissa's true motivations.

The episode "Croak" serves as a huge departure, using its first 20 minutes to focus entirely on frog scientists Edwin (Nelson Franklin) and Hannah (Ashley Sutton) and their survivalist guide Kodiak (Joel McHale). After exploring their purpose and personalities, we'll see how the strangers stumble upon the Yellowjackets' cannibalistic feast, where Lottie's impulsive actions set in motion their eventual imprisonment and deaths. They'll be seen less as lifelines than witnesses capable of spilling the girls' darkest misdeeds to the outside world, exposing them as a murderous cult. 

That development takes the story where it was foreshadowed to go since the pilot, when we wildly speculated on the identities of Pit Girl and Antler Queen. Both are revealed as this feuding tribe splits in two, with only a maniacal Shauna standing in the way of those ready to leave, terrified of relinquishing power and returning to her old life. But while we already know captive researcher Hannah's ultimate fate, she still holds the cards as a pivotal new figure, ingratiating herself into the tribe for a shot at survival, and seeing her daughter again. Instead, she'll pass along the damning evidence that haunts the Yellowjackets decades later.

The longstanding love-hate relationship between Natalie and Misty is given new context in the aptly titled finale, "Full Circle," adding poignancy and context to the tragedy that concluded last season. And if Juliette Lewis' departure left a hole, Ambrose's Van meets a similarly tragic end, culminating in another powerful dream sequence that features both Ambrose and Hewson sharing the screen.

All those allusions to Natalie being responsible for getting them home are starting to play out as we approach the home stretch, with Thatcher skillfully shouldering the weight left in Lewis' absence and solidifying herself as the show's lynchpin opposite Nélisse. And in a series known for its inspired 90's needle drops, they save their best for last when Natalie makes it to the top of that cliff with satellite phone in hand, frantically hoping to hear a voice on the other end. 

With rescue suddenly feeling closer than ever, it would be a massive disappointment if this series somehow wasn't granted the chance to complete a story that hasn't peaked. But even while confusion over this Showtime/Paramount streaming situation and the questionable availability of rapidly rising stars like Thatcher present logistical challenges for renewal, neither seem insurmountable.

What sets this apart from any current drama is  creators Ashley Lyle and Bart Nickerson's ability to make the tough decisions, as proven by a death toll that reaches alarming new heights this season. For better or worse, and to fans' occasional frustration, no one's ever safe. But for all the obstacles facing the series as it winds down, it remains one of TV's most addictive shows, primed to cross the finish line as something more than just a giant "what if.."                                            

Yellowjackets (Season 2)

Creators: Ashley Lyle and Bart Nickerson
Starring: Melanie Lynskey, Tawny Cypress, Sophie Nélisse, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Sophie Thatcher, Samantha Hanratty, Christina Ricci, Juliette Lewis, Courtney Eaton, Liv Hewson, Kevin Alves, Simone Kessell, Lauren Ambrose, Elijah Wood, Ella Purnell, Steven Krueger, Warren Kole, Sarah Desjardines, Alexa Barajas, Rukiya Bernard, Aiden Stoxx, Alex Wyndham, Nicole Maines, Nuha Jes Izman, François Arnaud, John Reynolds, John Cameron Mitchell
Original Airdate: 2023

**The Following Review Contains Plot Spoilers For The First Two Seasons Of 'Yellowjackets' **

★★★ ½ (out of ★★★★)   

Sometimes the big test for a dramatic series is whether its showrunners can make the tough, uncomfortable decisions that serve the story's larger purpose. And now after Yellowjackets' latest nine episodes, it's becoming easier to envision there is one. In ending its first season with a major character's death, the psychological survival thriller hinted it wouldn't be shying away from those difficult calls, generating optimism and dread surrounding what's next for the 1996 plane crash survivors and their emotionally traumatized adult counterparts. As such, this entire second chapter may as well share the same title as its eighth episode, "It Chooses." 

What "It" is has emerged as a show defining question, or even the dividing line that separates real from imagined and past and present. But whether the catastrophes in these two timelines can be traced to a supernatural entity or exists primarily in the survivors' heads is becoming harder to distinguish. Whether it's a combination of both, or neither, there still isn't a way for them to change what's happening. We're getting a lot of answers, as creators Ashley Lyle and Bart Nickerson rarely drag their feet, reeling us in by introducing new complications and dangling some unresolved threads awaiting a pay off. 

They know we're hooked for the long haul, and even if this season is noticeably different and crazier, there's no drop-off, with the 90's timeline becoming increasingly unpredictable despite knowing the fates of some involved. And after hints and glimpses of forthcoming tribal violence, attempted murder and cannibalism, this follows through, retaining its dark, twisted sense of humor in the process. And it all culminates in a finale that will have fans scratching their heads as to what lies ahead. "It" may have chosen, but not without shocking consequences that will surely take these characters to even more disturbing places. 

It's late 1996 and the team of plane crash survivors struggle to make it through a brutal winter in the wake of Jackie's (Ella Purnell) death, turning to their anointed leader Lottie (Courtney Eaton) for spiritual guidance, believing she can talk to the wilderness. But as a guilt-ridden, pregnant Shauna (Sophie Nélisse) remains incapable of processing her best friend's death, Taissa's (Jasmin Savoy Brown) nightmares and sleepwalking incidents escalate to alarming levels, with girlfriend Van (Liv Hewson) desperately trying to contain the problem. 

Natalie (Sophie Thatcher) helps Travis (Kevin Alves) continue the search for his missing brother Javi (Luciano Leroux) while Misty (Samantha Hanratty) forms a bond with quirky teammate Crystal (Nuha Jes Izman). Depressed and withdrawn, the one-legged Coach Ben (Steven Krueger) is the odd man out, morally disgusted by the girls' actions as they fall deeper under "Antler Queen" Lottie's mystifying spell.

The adult Yellowjackets aren't faring much better in 2021, with Shauna (Melanie Lynskey) enlisting the help of Taissa (Tawny Cypress) and Misty (Christina Ricci) in covering up her boyfriend Adam's (Peter Gadiot) murder. But with cops closing in, husband Jeff (Warren Kole) and daughter Callie (Sarah Desjardins) prove surprisingly invaluable in protecting Shauna and keeping their family intact. 

Plagued by escalating hallucinations and a personality disorder that's put estranged wife Simone (Rukiya Bernard) and young son Sammy (Aiden Stoxx) in grave danger, Taissa finds Van (Lauren Ambrose), which introduces a new set of challenges. And in reluctantly teaming with eccentric fellow online "Citizen Detective" Walter (Elijah Wood), Misty attempts to rescue a kidnapped Natalie (Juliette Lewis), realizing all roads lead back to Lottie (Simone Kessell), whose woodsy spiritual retreat more closely resembles a cult, dredging up painful memories for the Yellowjackets.                       

After the finale tease of Lottie being behind Natalie's abduction, one of the bigger curiosities heading into this season was the potential addition of more adult survivors. But Lottie and Van's presence is a little more complex than anticipated, at least so far as the former's motivations, as she psychologically teeters on the edge, hinting at something more sinister. Then again, the same could be said for everyone who made it out of the wilderness in one piece, yet remain permanently shattered by the experience.

Simone Kessell keeps us guessing as the middle-aged version of the Lottie, now going by Charlotte. On one hand, she's credible as a spiritual guru you want to believe has the purest intentions in helping Natalie, until realizing that's exactly how cult leaders operate. Still, it's clear both the younger and older iterations of the character suffer the same painful effects of being able to see what no one else can. Upon their arrival at her compound, the team again becomes quickly entangled in Charlotte's web, discovering what Nat and troubled followers like Lisa (Nicole Maines) already know. Forgiveness is a nice idea, but letting go is harder than it looks. 

As owner of the incredibly named "While You Were Streaming" video store, adult Van also hasn't moved on or dealt with what happened twenty five years earlier. And Taissa showing up does little to improve that, even if their connection is still immediately apparent and seemingly stronger than ever. It's fun contrasting how fan favorite Lauren Ambrose plays Van character in comparison to Liv Hewson's '96 take. While there are still shades of her younger counterpart's sarcastic humor, whatever joy she had as a teen has been wiped clean away in the decades following the crash. And the fatal medical diagnosis she's withholding from Taissa only makes her depression that much worse. 

Adult Misty further pushes the envelope of what we perceive she's capable of after eliminating Taissa's hired investigator Jessica Roberts (Rekha Sharma) last season. Her unbridled excitement at helping Shauna dispose of Adam's body is typical Misty, even as the plan implodes, bringing her no closer to achieving the respect and acceptance she's always craved. The arrival of true crime soulmate Walter provides reassurance, bringing out a certain vulnerability, energizing her with the possibility someone truly sees and accepts who she is. 

Ricci and Elijah Wood's Ice Storm reunion is the highlight of the season, if not the entire series thus far. If you thought Misty and Nat road trips had spin-off potential, a show with these two joining forces to solve crimes would easily top it, as Ricci continues to play Misty as the show's most desperately likable sociopath. She and the equally eccentric Walter each harbor legitimate doubts they can trust each other, while we speculate whether he'll even survive the season. Walter's obsessive interest in Adam's disappearance raises Misty's suspicions, even as their relationship takes some outrageous detours, including a surreal Twin Peaks-inspired musical dream sequence featuring John Cameron Mitchell. 

Even with Misty's criminal expertise, Shauna's doing enough on her own to attract suspicion from detective Kevyn Tan (Alex Wyndham), as Jeff temporarily shelves his shock and anger over Shauna's affair to help cover up Adam's murder. But considering how Jeff's blackmail plot with buddy Randy (Jeff Holman) partially led to this mess, he proves surprisingly loyal, with Warren Kole adding some needed dimension and humanity to his overgrown jock character. 

Sarah Desjardines basically steals these episodes as Callie, flipping the script on last season's angry teen trope and proving the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. When Callie's involvement with undercover detective Saracusa (John Reynolds) jeopardizes everything, she quickly adjusts, showing an aptitude under pressure few expected from this previously irritating character. Of everyone, she might be the shrewdest, as an impressed Lottie eventually finds out firsthand. But as sad at it seems, it took Shauna killing someone to finally bring her and Callie closer.

It's not difficult to see how the loss of Shauna's baby would directly inform that dysfunctional relationship with Callie later on. Shauna's doomed pregnancy is hard to watch, as is the team staring in stunned silence as she later beats the hell out of Lottie, nearly killing her. But the group's impromptu Midsommar-like feast (with Jackie as a main course) is a bridge too far for the disgusted, suicidal Coach Ben. He's haunted by his decision to board that plane and leave behind an unexplored life with boyfriend Paul (François Arnaud). Misty's friendship with Crystal goes south, as we knew it would, but more revealing is how she covers up her bestie's barely accidental death, planting seeds for the Citizen Detective she'll become.

Nat makes some morally questionable calls in dealing with Travis before her number seemingly comes up. It's alarming how quickly the team's bloodthirst kicks in, becoming all too eager to hunt and kill her because the wilderness "chose." But if what happens to the returning Javi is any indication, it's the Yellowjackets calling all the shots. They could have saved him and didn't, instead getting another meal and paving the way for Lottie to pass the Antler Queen baton to Nat.

Adult Nat won't be so lucky, but at least goes out sacrificing herself to save Lisa. This is as big a death as it gets on an ensemble drama like this, placing the remainder of Nat's story in Sophie Thatcher's hands. And she often doesn't get enough credit for channeling Juliette Lewis's mannerisms and voice, with many opting instead to focus on a perceived lack of physical resemblance (which isn't true upon looking at clips and photos of a younger Lewis). 

Heightened by the use of Radiohead's "Street Spirit (Fade Out)," Nat's strangely moving death sequence is more notable for seeing Thatcher and Lewis act side-by-side in the same scene. As the character passes over to the other side having apparently found some kind of peace, you remember just how interconnected everything is. Because the format can sometimes make this feel like two different shows, any chance to see the older and younger versions of these characters interact on screen is bound to feel special. And this definitely does.

With adult Shauna apparently in the clear over Adam's murder thanks to Walter, Misty will have to wrestle with the fact she's directly responsible for Nat's demise. Beyond that, everything's a question mark in that timeline, almost as if it's wrapped up. The past looks a little clearer, as more death, betrayals and dark days seem inevitable until rescue. Feeling increasingly dispensable, Coach Ben's burning of the cabin indicates he's officially gone off the rails, setting him up as a far bigger threat and making those brief glimpses of the team's 1998 return home even more intriguing.   

Like most second seasons, this tries to jam a lot in, but even as we're sometimes left perplexed by character motivations or storytelling holes, it's kind of shocking how steady it remains. And while the musical choices seem a little more on the nose compared to last season, it's tough to complain about such an impressive catalogue of mid 90's hits, along with an Alanis Morrisette cover of Craig Wedren and Anna Waronker's brilliant "No Return" opening theme.

Considering its perilous setting and a plot dependent on physical survival, the makeup and costuming needs to be unmatched, which it is. This also seems to be outgrowing all those early, superficial comparisons to Lost, as you sense the writers know the importance of having enough creative guardrails in place to prevent the series from devolving into an impenetrable puzzle-box. But based on what we've seen, Yellowjackets is still headed in an upward trajectory, delivering a tight sophomore season that doesn't overstay its welcome and still has us clamoring for more. 

Yellowjackets (Season 1)

Creators: Ashley Lyle and Bart Nickerson
Starring: Melanie Lynskey, Tawny Cypress, Ella Purnell, Sophie Nélisse, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Sophie Thatcher, Samantha Hanratty, Steven Krueger, Warren Kole, Christina Ricci, Juliette Lewis, Courtney Eaton, Liv Hewson, Kevin Alves, Rekha Sharma, Jane Widdop, Sarah Desjardins, Rukiya Bernard, Aiden Stoxx, Peter Gadiot, Alex Wyndham
Original Airdate: 2021 

★★★ ½ (out of ★★★★)  

Lost meets Lord of the Flies in Showtime's Yellowjackets, which already managed to stand out as a major achievement in an increasingly crowded TV field. But what's most intriguing about this psychological thriller created by Ashley Lyle and Bart Nickerson is how it superficially appears to be taking us down a familiar road, before developing its premise in increasingly inventive ways that set it apart. At this point, the "mystery box" genre is basically an art form unto itself, often accompanied by demanding viewers' fears they'll only get burned in the end. And that's a real risk here, as questions and plots continue to accumulate, possibly increasing the odds of eventual frustration. Then again, maybe not. 

Considering how much is still likely to come, it's worth stopping to appreciate a series that feels as if its potential is limitless. And judging this season in a vacuum, freed from expectations of what's next, it's pretty astounding. While a truly accurate verdict can only come once the succeeding chapters play out, it's still impossible no to revel in its addictiveness. Whether or not this is the high water mark, when you get a ten episodes this meticulously constructed and suspenseful, the optimism feels warranted. 

Straddling two timelines, the show invites a rewatch for clues and details that could easily go unnoticed the first go-around. A chilling, occasionally gory survival tale and darkly comical coming-of-age story, it's most interested in how one event can leave lasting emotional trauma that shapes and scars its survivors well into adulthood. And in reframing the idea of what actually constitutes "surviving," it also provides some underappreciated 90's actresses the best roles of their careers, while being backed by a lineup of younger talents who match them at every turn. With a killer soundtrack and unmatched eye for period detail, it's a throwback that's also timely, digging deeply into current culture's true crime obsession.

It's 1996 when a plane carrying the Wiskayok, New Jersey high school girl's yellowjackets soccer team crashes in the Canadian wilderness en route to nationals in Seattle. They'll be stranded for 19 months, scouring for food and struggling to stay alive, holding out hope for a rescue that doesn't look imminent. Among the survivors are team captain and popular queen bee Jackie (Ella Purnell), her best friend Shauna (Sophie Nélisse), stubborn, super-competitive Taissa (Jasmin Savoy Brown), class burnout Natalie (Sophie Thatcher), wisecracking goalkeeper Van (Liv Hewson), schizophrenic Lottie (Courtney Eaton), devoutly religious Laura Lee (Jane Widdop) bullied, awkward equipment manager Misty (Samantha Hanratty) assistant coach Ben (Steven Krueger) and Travis (Kevin Alves) and younger brother Javi (Luciano Leroux), sons of Coach Martinez (Carlos Sanz), who perished in the crash. As winter approaches and the need for food becomes increasingly urgent, tensions bubble over, fragmenting the group. With the woods possibly holding some dark secrets of its own, it's heavily hinted they may soon be resorting to cannibalism to survive.

In present day, we meet the yellowjackets as middle-aged adults when they start receiving mysterious postcards marked with a familiar symbol, reuniting them to protect the secret of what really happened in the woods 25 years earlier. An impulsive Shauna (Melanie Lynskey) feels trapped in a sexless marriage with Jackie's ex-boyfriend Jeff (Warren Kole) when she's approached by suspicious reporter Jessica Roberts (Rekha Sharma), who's attempting to extract information about the crash. 

Taissa (Tawny Cypress) is running for state senator while trying to keep her family out of the public fray. Fresh out of rehab and struggling with her sobriety, Natalie (Juliette Lewis) attempts to locate recently missing ex-boyfriend Travis with geriatric nurse and self-proclaimed "citizen detective" Misty's (Christina Ricci) help. Clingy as ever and still desperately trying to be liked and accepted by the group, there's little she won't do to solve this mystery. With the crash's effects still impacting their lives, finally facing the truth might be the only way out. Unless a threatening blackmailer exposes it first.

Flashbacks and video footage are utilized in showing the public attention the accident has gotten, while we meet the team in the days leading up to the '96 crash. There's a heavy focus on Jackie, who's anointed team captain more for her influence over the others than soccer skills or leadership abilities. Her close friendship with sidekick Shauna seems partially built on a power dynamic that keeps Jackie  the center of attention as she runs around with Jeff (Jack DePew). But there's this subtle tension between the two girls you sense early on, as well as a gigantic secret that completely alters their relationship once the accident occurs, prompting Shauna step out of her friend's shadow. Physically and emotionally suffering in the wild, Jackie's social standing proves irrelevant when pushed this far outside her comfort zone.

With Taissa emerging as the group's leader, previously ostracized Mindy proves medically invaluable in the wilderness. And she knows it, the satisfaction of being needed causing her more manipulative, sociopathic tendencies to surface (like an obsession with Coach Ben). Samantha Hanratty is revelation in the role, which becomes even more apparent when you take Ricci's performance into account as the adult version.

Plagued by substance abuse and a rough upbringing, Natalie unexpectedly bonds with a very distant Travis. And off her medication, Lotti is having eerily prescient visions that are rapidly separating the believers from everyone else. That these sub-plots aren't entirely divorced from real teen problems in the 90's give them even more weight, as many of them were already bubbling under the surface before that fated flight took off.

Perceived pecking orders and hierarchies are flipped once everyone's thrown into a do-or-die scenario that exposes their strengths and weaknesses. It's not surprising things get ugly fast, but the series excels most in depicting the tiny, uncomfortable details that aren't talked about or don't initially come to mind when considering the challenges of being stranded in the woods with no help in sight. 

Credit the makeup and effects team for believably depicting some gruesome deaths and injuries that only intensify in number as this wears on. If episode 7 ("No Compass") contains the season's scariest and most shocking event, tensions reach a peak in the ninth ("Doomcoming"), when the group trips on hallucinogenic shrooms, causing all hell to break loose. What happens next ensures there's no turning back from the darkness. Some will embrace that, even as others don't.  

Ella Purnell's complicated and nuanced performance as outgoing, insecure "mean girl" Jackie creates somewhat of a dilemma since she's the lead and her character isn't seen in present day.  That we immediately assume the worst only increases the intrigue level, prompting speculation as to whether the writers would actually kill off such a major player this early. And if so, why? While there's a genuine sense no one is safe, many reasons work in explaining why we haven't met certain adult versions of the girls. At least as of yet. Everything's on the table, with the only guarantee being that the worst is certainly still ahead. 

All the older actresses are accurate ringers for their younger counterparts in looks, demeanors and personalities, so even as Jackie's future absence remains conspicuous, Shauna, Taissa, Natalie and Misty more than carry the load. Stuck in a state of arrested development, Shauna has a terrible relationship with her rebellious daughter Callie (Sarah Desjardins) and in therapy with husband Jeff when she embarks on an affair with the younger Adam (Peter Gadiot). A suspicious artist who happens to land in her life just as the yellowjackets are being blackmailed, he immediately sends up all sorts of red flags. 

Lynskey carries much of the present day story and it might go unnoticed just how consistently effective she is in playing a woman so used to burying her trauma that she can hardly recognize herself anymore. Based on recent life choices, guilt-ridden Shauna should be the the series' most unlikable character, but in Lynskey's capable hands she's actually sympathetic, and a times hilarious with a twisted, deadpan sense of humor. Part of the our attachment to her may stem from what Sophie Nélisse does as the teen version just seeing what she went through out there. It's just not the kind of emotional trauma that heals overnight, making it easier to see why she'd be prone to these disastrous decisions.  

What hasn't changed about adult Taissa is the stubbornness, throwing herself into the public eye with a senate run that not only draws unwanted attention to the group, but compromises the safety of wife Simone (Rukiya Bernard) and their troubled young son Sammy (Aiden Stoxx). What's going on with her is viscerally disturbing and on an entirely different level than the other survivors, suggesting a full-fledged dissociative disorder of some kind. Tawny Cypress does an exceptional job conveying the growing panic of someone whose private and public personas are simultaneously unraveling. The biggest danger Taissa's family faces just might be her, and she knows it.

Few would complain if the whole series were a middle-aged Misty and Natalie buddy comedy, as their onscreen chemistry is priceless, providing Ricci and Lewis the ideal outlet for their distinctive talents. Misty is who she is, and unapologetically so. If the rest were forever changed by the crash, you get the impression she's always been like this. Thirsting for acceptance, unable to read social cues and yet strangely comfortable in her own skin, there's hardly a moment of reflection or regret for this toxic caregiver, even when leveraging others to further her agenda. Everything is a means to an end, but Ricci brilliantly imbues this painfully self-aware character with such funny, likable quirks that you can't help but want to believe good intentions could be buried beneath even her most deluded behavior. 

Misty is the ideal foil to Nat, played by a manically unhinged Juliette Lewis at the top of her game. Wildly unpredictable and constantly on the verge of substance relapse, she doesn't suffer fools, which Misty appreciates. Nat actually does seem to need her help, but isn't above above using manipulation or blackmail either, representing a stark change from the brave, resourceful girl we see in the woods in '96. It's obvious Nat's had the roughest post-crash existence, greatly contrasting with how highly she's been spoken of by Shauna and Taissa. But that was the past and this is the present. What happened in between is still largely unknown, despite an abundance of clues and bread crumbs dropped throughout.

The show's already mastered the lost art of classic opening title sequences, with Craig Wedren and Anna Waronker's theme, "No Return" seemingly arriving via time machine from the mid-90's. It's accompanied by a grungy, VHS-style assortment of obscure shots sure to have fans frantically searching for Easter eggs. And the rest of its Gen-X infused soundtrack lives up to that musical promise, featuring an onslaught of cleverly placed, period specific needle drops from the likes of The Smashing Pumpkins, The Offspring, Jane's Addiction, Hole, Collective Soul, Liz Phair, The Cranberries and Belly. 

It's hardly a spoiler to reveal that the Eduardo Sánchez-directed finale ("Sic Transit Gloria Mundi') contains multiple surprises and tragedies, as the events of 1996 continue to inform our evolving perceptions of 2021 and its current characters. The tensions between young Jackie and Shauna will have to reach a head, the repercussions of which still clearly reverberate decades later. Adult Misty's desire for control reaches alarming levels as the fragility of Taissa's mental state proves even more precarious than initially suspected. And how about the postcards and blackmail? What about Adam? But maybe more importantly, who's the Antler Queen?  

A genre mash-up of sorts, this feels like the kind of series we've been waiting for, even if it's necessary to temper those expectations with the possibility it can just as easily fly off the rails. While there have already been teases of the supernatural, it's probably too risky a proposition to build the series around it. It's been at its best when exploring the interpersonal relationships and psychological trauma resulting from the crash's aftermath. There's likely to be a continued emphasis on the mystical horror/sci-fi elements, but that tends to work better in a less literal sense, instead reflecting the characters' fractured psyches. How to balance that is a decision they'll have to make before the show can truly know what it is.

If the writers play their cards right, they can expand not just this story, but the series' entire universe. The media circus and the public obsession with the crash seems like fertile ground for future episodes, as does the eventual rescue itself, assuming that's what happens. We could also get a glimpse into what the survivors' lives were like after their return, or even further before the flight. And we'll definitely be getting more older versions of the '96 characters, only further fueling speculation.

Supposedly, the creators have a five-year plan in place, and while it's easy to imagine there's enough story to sustain that, the details will be what matter most. In the meantime, it's safe to bet on many twists and blindsides, as the series continues to show all the signs of evolving into something really special. Whether what follows is capable of sustaining its creative ambition is another matter. Either way, what comes next is anyone's guess, so it's probably just best to buckle up and prepare for a wild ride.