'Wednesday' Season 2 Part 1 Might Be The Improvement Netflix Needs
- Christopher Mills
- Aug 6
- 7 min read
This review contains minor spoilers for 'Wednesday' Season 2 Part 1.
Shine a light (or turn the brightness down) because Wednesday Addams (Jenna Ortega) is back for another year at Nevermore Academy alongside her friends, inconveniences and, most importantly, the Addams family, who are more present during this first half of the season. Netflix has found a brand with Wednesday, which is noticeable with its new gothic Netflix indent. Audiences quickly fell in love with Wednesday, but what upsets them once again is the second season being split into two parts after an already long hiatus. I mean, one look at Pugsley (Isaac Ordonez) between seasons shows you how long it has been.
Netflix has found recent practice in taking their popular IPs and staggering the release of their future seasons, with one half being released before the second half, usually a month later. While it continues to anger audiences, it clearly works for Netflix; otherwise, it wouldn’t be tradition. Wednesday Season 2 Part 1 fixes the issue that most staggered releases have, and that’s that it was clearly written and filmed with its release pattern in mind.
Wednesday Season 2 Part 1 follows Wednesday Addams as she returns to prowl the Gothic halls of Nevermore Academy, where fresh foes and woes await. Wednesday must navigate family, friends and old adversaries, propelling her into another year of delightfully dark and kooky mayhem. Armed with her signature razor-sharp wit and deadpan charm, Wednesday is also plunged into a new bone-chilling supernatural mystery.
While audiences, critics and almost everyone around me found a new love in Wednesday, it never connected with me. The potential was there but was hindered by its writing, which brought it back 10 steps when the story took 1 step forward. Wednesday Season 2 Part 1 rectifies the issues of the first season and comes back stronger, packing a psychic punch. The first half of this season having great, consistent, writing is one of many firsts for the show. Wednesday Addams goes through a few firsts herself, with her return to Nevermore Academy being the first time she’s ever found herself returning to a school. Upon her return, she’s (un)welcomed to this new fame after saving the Academy the previous year, which for her is out of the ordinary and bothersome.
Wednesday finds herself with a stalker who seems to know her as well as she knows herself. This is a storyline that only plays over the first two episodes, but what they do with it doesn’t only keep the show entertaining, but it also tests Wednesday as she’s up against a force that for the most part proves to be too good and smart for her. Alfred Gough and Miles Millar do an excellent job of building this mystery surrounding the stalker and keeping the audience on their toes, but its revelation falls six feet deep into a grave.
The revelation of the stalker’s identity is not one that feels worthy of how well set up their mystery is. Although this is the case, and at first it can feel like a waste of a storyline, this is only the first half of a season. The second half could flip this entire story arc around, as Wednesday’s relationship with this stalker is a very present part of the overarching story, but only time will tell if this new character’s addition was even worth the screen time.
Wednesday finds herself in the middle of a new murder mystery (or more, it finds her). What hinders Wednesday as she tackles this new murder case is that she doesn’t have her psychic abilities to hold onto as an anchor to help solve her mysteries. This doesn’t just create a rift with Wednesday and her own identity but also with her relationship with her mother. Unlike the first season, this season does its best to delve into the mind of Wednesday so that the audience can better understand her feelings. Jenna Ortega might deliver a great deadpan performance, but there are layers hidden underneath that finally get revealed as Wednesday allows new people into her life and gets her hands dirty.
Wednesday Season 2 Part 1 takes its slight turn and feels like a grounded mystery story with the lack of Wednesday’s psychic abilities. With the removal of this, it also allows for great risks in the show, which the writers don’t hesitate to take advantage of. The fourth episode is by far the most exhilarating, as all the pieces finally begin to connect with all the central characters in one location. It’s also written and treated like a mid-season finale instead of just another episode in the season, which favours Netflix’s release schedule with Season 2.
It’s not just Wednesday that has returned but also her closest friend, ride or die, and roommate, Enid (Emma Myers). There’s a slight lack of attention to Enid’s relationship with the wolf pack, and while this would’ve been the ideal angle to tackle with her becoming more in control of herself, instead the show gives her boy problems. The downfall of Season 1 began when Wednesday found herself in the middle of a love triangle. Not only was it out of character, but it was unnecessary and added nothing substantial to the overall story. Wednesday Season 2 Part 1 thankfully makes fun of the idea that Wednesday was ever in such a ridiculous situation as that. Now, instead of Wednesday being in a love triangle, Enid finds herself in one this season as she tries to turn away Ajax (Georgie Farmer), who’s still in love with her, while she’s falling in love with Bruno (Noah B. Taylor).
There’s a strong lack of romance with Wednesday this season, and it’s very noticeable, as her story doesn’t sidetrack once in this season. That isn’t to say that the show lacks any romance. It’s clear that even with Jenna Ortega as a producer, the writers still want to involve some sort of romance storyline in the show, and Enid was their opportunity to do that. While it takes away from her having a better-written storyline that focuses on her and her wolf pack, it doesn’t feel out of place for the character to be in a love triangle. Alfred Gough and Miles Millar have realised that throwing all the romance to the supporting character allows for the overarching story to move forward without any distractions that will just slow down the pace of the story for the worse.
The biggest change with Wednesday Season 2 Part 1 is that the Addams family have a much larger role than in the previous season. Pugsley is finally attending Nevermore Academy, but his one issue is that with Wednesday distancing herself from him, he struggles to make real friends and like people just for being him. There are a lot of supernatural creatures that appear in Wednesday from witches and hydes to wolves, but now there’s a new introduction, Slurp, a zombie that Pugsley befriends and sees as his one true friend. This first half of the season dives into Pugsley’s social troubles and does so creatively but at times can fail to return to the character, leaving him on the backburner.
Morticia (Catherine Zeta-Jones) and Gomez Addams (Luis Guzmán) also find themselves staying at Nevermore Academy to help with the Gala Fundraising Committee for the school. Gomez doesn’t get as much attention, but Morticia feels at the foreground of what’s been set in place for the second half of the season. There’s a new principal at the school who goes by the name Barry Dort (Steve Buscemi), and while he may put on a friendly face, he seems rather corrupt in getting things done his way, as he uses Bianca Barclay (Joy Sunday) as a puppet to control the playing field. Bianca, similarly to Wednesday, is dealing with her own complexities and the struggles of her siren abilities, which she is able to keep in check but also highlights how easy it is for such a powerful ability such as that to corrupt the people around you. For a character that has less screentime than Enid, her story is not only strong but is only the beginning of the hardships she’s being put through.
Wednesday Season 2 Part 1 takes a more serious tone compared to its previous season as it drops its titular character into a situation that forces her to tackle obstacles in ways that are foreign to her. It’s darker, and while still far from a horror, this season is more attuned to its horror genre and does an excellent job of setting up eerie and creepy moments that make Wednesday feel closer to a horror than it has before. Jenna Ortega makes the role of Wednesday hers with a performance that’s almost as iconic as Christine Ricci’s. With its complex storylines and risks that will leave you wanting to sleep in a casket until September 3, Wednesday Season 2 Part 1 is the best improvement that Wednesday could’ve asked for.
Rating: ★★★★☆
About Wednesday Season 2 Part 1
Part 1 Premiere Date (episodes 201-204): August 6, 2025
Part 2 Premiere Date (episodes 205-208): September 3, 2025
Created By / Showrunners: Alfred Gough & Miles Millar
Directors: Tim Burton, Paco Cabezas and Angela Robinson
Executive Producers: Al Gough, Miles Millar, Tim Burton, Steve Stark, Andrew Mittman, Tommy Harper, Karen Richards, Kayla Alpert, Jonathan Glickman, Gail Berman and Meredith Averill
Cast: Jenna Ortega, Steve Buscemi, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Emma Myers, Joy Sunday, Luis Guzmán, Hunter Doohan, Billie Piper, Isaac Ordonez, Victor Dorobantu, Georgie Farmer, Moosa Mostafa, Evie Templeton, Owen Painter, Noah Taylor and Luyanda Unati Lewis-Nyawo
Synopsis: Wednesday Addams (Jenna Ortega), returns to prowl the Gothic halls of Nevermore Academy, where fresh foes and woes await. This season, Wednesday must navigate family, friends and old adversaries, propelling her into another year of delightfully dark and kooky mayhem. Armed with her signature razor-sharp wit and deadpan charm, Wednesday is also plunged into a new bone-chilling supernatural mystery. Creator/showrunners Alfred Gough and Miles Millar return for the spine-tingling second season of WEDNESDAY, alongside executive producer and director Tim Burton.
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