‘The End of the Fucking World 2’ Review: Still One of the Best Shows on Television
Spoilers ahead.
‘The End of the Fucking World’ has just premiered its second series, and it’s just as good as the first one. To put it simply, the show you know and love is back, with an even more spectacular cast and writing. Season 2 has a very familiar feel to it. We’ve spent 2 years away from TEOTFW and with episode 1 the show immediately jumps right back into that quirky, dark, comical atmosphere that it became so known for.
The season takes place 2 years after the events of Season 1, which is probably the best choice the writing team could’ve made. Marketing for the season led fans to believe that James (Alex Lawther) had died after that riveting cliffhanger at the end of the previous series, when in reality he is (very cleverly) revealed in episode 2.
Most viewers could see the James twist coming from a mile away, but it didn’t make the reveal any more exciting. These two characters have become so lovable yet began so painstakingly unrelatable. Season 2 attempts to close the gap between Alyssa (Jessica Barden) and James in terms of both character development and their relationship.
“We establish very quickly that Bonnie is reluctant and capable of change, but somehow I was still so on edge”
While we see a lot of character development in Season 1, this series explores the emotional toll of all the actions committed prior. We see both James and Alyssa develop very obvious signs of PTSD, something which Alyssa has been struggling with since Season 1. Not to mention the cast is joined by Bonnie (Naomi Ackie) who shows much quicker signs of development. Throughout the entire series, we see her initial hesitance to do harm, and the harm she does do are all accidents.
We establish very quickly that Bonnie is reluctant and capable of change, but somehow I was still so on edge and terrified during Season 2 Episode 7, when Bonnie has both our protagonists at gunpoint. There is a specific scene where Bonnie imagines killing both of them and the camera lingers on the shot of their corpses, and my jaw usually doesn’t drop - but man, it did. The shot holds just long enough to keep those racing thoughts in your head going, and then we, of course, see that it was her imagination.
“The show still has its mojo, but it doesn’t shine as brightly.”
While this series was pretty predictable in terms of what would happen, the actual delivery of said twists and plot turns was extremely well done in both terms of writing, pacing and camera work. I’m writing this review just after finishing the series, so thoughts are still flowing through my brain, but I can say that the ending of the season is satisfying, it ties up all loose ends from previous episodes and last season, and it opens the door to either series 3 or an end to the show entirely.
In terms of what Season 2 does wrong, I’d say that it’s trying too hard to send some sort of message. While Season 1 delivered very clear themes about consent, crime, and nature vs nurture, Season 2 attempts to replicate it but falls flat. The show still has its mojo, but it doesn’t shine as brightly.
