And finally, Yellowjackets has arrived at the cannibalism it has been teasing for the previous eleven episodes. The second episode of season two, Edible Complex, ended with the 1996 plane crash surviours consuming the carcass of their former team-mate, Jackie (Ella Purnell). It was a chilling scene that rewarded the loyal viewer’s anticipation. Before arriving at that pivotal scene, and rewinding to the episodes beginning, the group were not faring too well. A lack of food mixed with the extreme cold had tensions fraying. Add to that Travis’(Kevin Alves) insistence that Javi (Luciano Leroux) remains alive (behaviour encouraged by Lottie) and Shauna (Sophie Nélisse) playing dress-up with Jackie, and you have the perfect pressure cooker environment.
Stepping into the present, Edible Complex explores the fallout of Callie’s (Sarah Desjardins) discovery at the end of episode one. Try as they might have, Shauna (Melanie Lynsky) and Jeff (Warren Kole) didn’t manage to burn all evidence of Adam. The BBQ they cooked his ID on handedly managed to destroy everything except his driver licence picture. The discovery proved to Callie that her suspicions about her mother were correct, though rather than confront her parents, Callie opted to act out. In typical teenage fashion she threw her toys out of the pram, refusing Shauna’s offer of a girl’s shopping trip.
Interestingly though, Callie doesn’t turn to the police, in fact she goes out of her way to help Shauna when Kevyn (Alex Wyndham) pops over to prod her for information. As mentioned on this blog last week, Callie seems to be a chip off of Jackie’s block. The first season was full of examples of Jackie’s manipulations, could Callie’s aversion to seeking justice the traditional way point to her wanting to get revenge in her own way? Later in the episode, after having broken up with boyfriend Kyle (Khobe Clarke), Callie is drinking in a bar. There she starts conversing with an older man, confiding in him about her mother’s affair. Little does Callie realise the man in question is a detective working on the case with Kevyn. This surely won’t end well for Shauna…
Back in 1996, Natalie (Sophie Thatcher) is growing increasingly more concerned about Travis’ growing connection to Lottie (Courtney Eaton). The two having been romantically entangled before Jackie intervened, many view Natalie’s apprehension of Lottie as jealousy. As with everything Natalie does though, it is because she cares too much. By feeding him the idea that his brother is alive, Lottie is further postponing Travis’ grief. Believing the longer this goes on for, the harder it will be, Natalie takes drastic action – she grabs some of Javi’s remaining clothes and stages a death scene, tearing the clothes up and smearing them with blood. It’s not the most robust evidence, but is enough to snap Travis out of his bullishness and into the throws of grief.
The Natalie (Juliette Lewis) of the present mirrors her past self. Although fully welcomed into Lottie’s (Simone Kessell) commune, she remains distrustful of her former friend. It is clear that whatever issues they had in the past, have never been resolved and the two women continue to lock heads. Once again, Travis is the sticking point between them. Lottie admits that she was the last one to have seen Travis alive and reveals the circumstances of his death, which reveals that Lottie is still suffering from her ‘visions’. As Travis is dying, Lottie glimpses the visage of the fallen Laura Lee (Jane Widdop). Just what is going on with Lottie and what does it mean for Natalie?
Someone else experiencing strange visions in the present is Taissa (Tawny Cypress). Her son Sammy (Aiden Stoxx) turns up having snuck out of school. Knowing this will not sit well with her estranged wife, Simone (Rukiya Bernard), Taissa reaches out to her. Upon Simone’s arrival, Sammy is missing and the pair begin a frantic search for him. A child going off the rails when their parents are going through a separation is a common occurrence and so the two women, and the audience, rationalise his behaviour away. It is only when Simone receives a call from the school asking where she is, that the penny drops; Sammy was never really with Taissa. With the strange occurrences now affecting her waking life, Taissa is in a lot of trouble.
Edible Complex marks the on-screen debut of Elijah Wood’s character. Like Misty (Christina Ricci), his character is a member of the online Citizen Detectives. His voice was heard last week as Misty searched the message boards surrounding Adam’s disappearance, but Misty now meets him in real-life. He pops up at her place of work under the guise of being a prospective client, before covertly leaving Misty a message. He has information that might help her quest to find Natalie, and it looks like we’ll get to see Misty in a new double-act this season.
As intriguing as all the present narratives are, Edible Complex is all about the events of 1996. After Taissa (Jasmin Savoy Brown) discovers someone has used the pee bucket to poop in, she finally breaks. She storms out and goes to find Shauna. She doesn’t find the pregnant teen however, and instead witnesses the garishly made-up body of Jackie. Releasing that Shauna is not well she demands that something be done with Jackie’s remains. With the ground still too hard to dig into, she makes the suggestion to burn her. The burning ceremony is an emotional one, Sophie Nélisse communicating Shauna’s heartache beautifully. What should be a respectful goodbye to a beloved friend, will soon become the stuff of nightmares…
And so attention turns to the main event. Whilst the 1996 crew slumber, snow tumbles on to the inferno intended to cremate Jackie’s corpse. With the fiery temperature reduced, instead of burning away, the body starts to cook. The scent of BBQ awakens the group and their ravenous desires take over. Rather than watch the group pick Jackie apart, the visuals display a beautiful woodland banquet. All are dressed in their purest finery, but as they begin to devour the feast, the image flickers, inter-cutting with the grotesque horror of the Yellowjackets’ reality. Played over the top of all of this comes the moody and atmospheric song Climbing Up the Walls by Radiohead. It’s a superbly constructed scene that has been carefully built up throughout every episode that has come before.
Perhaps the most chilling image of the final sequence is Coach Ben’s (Steven Krueger) reaction. He is the only member of the group who doesn’t succumb to his appetite and his fear and disgust at what his students are doing is written all over his face. Worse still, now the group have fed and gained a taste for human flesh, might he be next?
Yellowjackets is most certainly not resting on its laurels this season. Having built a rabid fan-base during its first outing, the show-runners are keen to reward that loyalty. Edible Complex sets up some suitably curious plot threads in its present day narrative whilst finally arriving at the start of the 1996’s groups decline. Other shows would, and have, teased big events season after season, keeping the audience in a state of limbo. By already showing its hand, Yellowjackets satisfies viewer hopes, whilst also affirming there are much worse things to come. If there is accidental cannibalism in episode two, what are the girls going to be up to come the season finale? Consider us 100% reinvested.
Yellowjackets: Edible Complex
Summary
Edible Complex builds on the strong foundation built up in both the season premiere and last year’s story, giving the loyal fan their wildest dream come true.
Yellowjackets Season 2 screens exclusively on Paramount +.
