Netflix released the second season of 13 Reasons Why last Friday, May 18, and if you’ve binged it, you may feel similar to how I do: completely and utterly overwhelmed. The 13 episodes, all narrated by different characters, focused on recovery, justice (or lack thereof) and the act of letting go. There were so many cliffhangers by the end that 13 Reasons Why season 3 seems crucial in order to understand it all. So, what’s the fate of this third installment? First, a recap.
What happens in 13 Reasons Why season 2?
Every character dealt with Hannah’s death differently and, one after the other, each had to fend off inner demons as well as those haunting the halls of Liberty High. In short, we followed Jessica’s journey coming to terms with life after her rape, walking the thin line between “victim” and “survivor” that can somehow seem synonymous at times. We saw Alex push through physical and mental frustration post-suicide attempt. We saw Clay’s anger (at Hannah’s ghost) translate slowly into forgiveness and Tyler’s visible decline of mental health.
Justin’s addiction to heroin was another serious topic in 13 Reasons Why season 2. Also, there was the all-too-real idea that money and power will get you out of reaping what you sow. Bryce, who raped multiple people, including his girlfriend Chloe, received three months of probation resulting from Jessica’s criminal case against him. Justin was charged with accessory to felony sexual assault, received six months of probation and was stranded in juvenile detention.
The 13 Reasons Why season 2 finale gave us a memorial service for Hannah where many characters found closure. It also gave us a violent rape scene that left Tyler bleeding in the school’s bathroom. Clay stopped him from shooting up the spring dance, but after helping him escape, Clay was left on Liberty High’s lawn holding the teen’s assault rifle. Justin and Jessica stood by his side as police pulled up, and the last words were simply, “What do we do now?”
Questions after 13 Reasons Why season 2
Though this season was focused on recovery, Liberty High was left as broken as ever — so broken that a 13 Reasons Why season 3 seems essential to the unfinished storyline. Here are all the questions we were left with:
What will happen to Chloe now that she’s pregnant with Bryce’s baby?
Who will Jessica choose: Justin, who she allegedly had sex with during the school dance and keeps running back to, or Alex, who has been there, despite his own recovery, to help with hers?
Will Clay find out that Justin is using again now that they’re living under the same roof as brothers?
Why did Nina allegedly steal (and burn) the box of Polaroids?
What will become of Tyler now that Tony and Clay helped him escape? More importantly, what will happen to Clay once police find him with the assault rifle?
Will Monty and his friends get in trouble for sexually assaulting Tyler in the school bathroom?
Controversy of 13 Reasons Why season 2
13 Reasons Why season 2 received backlash for its graphic rape scene in the final episode. The Parents Television Council issued an urgent warning to parents and schools about this content, stating it has “called on Netflix to pull the series entirely.” Some fans are even calling for the show’s cancellation.
AFTER THAT BRUTAL SCENE WITH THE MOP AND TYLER, THIS SHOW NEEDS TO BE CANCELLED. Obviously the people behind this show only gives a fuck about shock value and not about rape or suicide. #13ReasonsWhySeason2 #13reasonswhy
— Callie ✨ (@CallieCalburn) May 19, 2018
“We’re committed on this show to telling truthful stories about things that young people go through in as unflinching a way as we can. We fully understand that that means some of the scenes in the show will be difficult to watch,” 13 Reasons Why creator Brian Yorkey said in a statement sent to Vulture. He pointed to the crisis resources readily available on 13reasonswhy.info.
Yorkey continued, “But the fact is that, as intense as that scene is, and as strong as [our] reactions to it may be, it doesn’t even come close to the pain experienced by the people who actually go through these things.”
13 Reasons Why season 3 news
So, will there be a 13 Reasons Why season 3? Yes.
Netflix officially announced in June that 13 Reasons Why will premiere its third season in 2019. For everything you need to know, click through to our guide on 13 Reasons Why season 3.
