Teen Wolf, Season 2

[redbrunja]

To spare myself struggle with spoiler cuts, I am going to say right now that I mention things from this article, which has ten tidbits about the third season of the show.

Let me state for the record that I really, really enjoyed the second season of Teen Wolf. I basically watched six episodes Sunday, and at least half of my problems with the show stem from narrative choices of the last episode. Besides that, the streak of episode from the sixth to the second to last were aces, especially, the stuff with Lydia's birthday party, mama!Argent's suicide, the reveal of the kanima's first master, and Stiles' epic summery of the events to the guidance counselor.

Okay, taking this season by character:

Allison Argent

I was 100% on board with Allision’s turn to her hunter roots. (In fact, that was one of the draws of the second season) I think it was foreshadowed beautifully, with her consistent feelings of victimization and her self-loathing regarding her ability to protect herself and others, and the way she turned to violence. (Plus, her conversations with Kate and Gerard.) I was less thrilled that Gerard so blatantly manipulated her and honestly, I’m very sorry that Allison didn’t go darker. Like, she didn’t even kill ANYTHING. Apparently fandom flipped out about this? Because, seriously, I feel like without a death, a violence spiral isn’t complete. I had assumed that Allison was actually going to be the villain of the third season, and I’m really disappointed to be wrong. I am hoping that at the least she is going to be spending the time between season two and three doing hardcore training with her father and could she please start killing things already?

Derek Hale

This boy needs to be someone’s second in command, so bad. He would be SUCH a good second is command but he is SO BAD as the person in charge. That said, he’s better than Peter, and I cannot believe that Derek didn’t just snap Peter’s neck the instant he showed up. Derek, what are you thinking? (The one benefit of this storytline is that it’s clear that the writers KNOW that Derek is not being a good alpha.) I was assumed that Peter was going to be killed in the finale, but no?

Jackson

Ugh, Jackson. If the writers wanted me to buy the whole ‘power of love’ thing they were selling, maybe he shouldn’t have treated Lydia like shit (when he was, note, NOT being influenced as the kanima.) I hear that Jackson is not going to be in the third season, which WOULD make me happy, except that shows have a history of writing off a character I hate to bring on a character I hate more with more screentime. Also, I am super-sorry that they did not kill him off, because that would have been awesome, and SOMEBODY needed to die during that finale.

Lydia Martin

While season two was airing in real time, I remember reading people on my tumblr dashboard CLAWING THE WALLS with frustration over the characters choosing to keep Lydia in the dark.  And I am not going to say anything positive about that narrative choice, because it’s completely moronic. Being prepared for it, however, made me able to really enjoy (as in, it was visually and atmospherically well done) Lydia’s possession arc. I was really sorry that we didn’t get to see Lydia’s worst nightmare until I realized –oh, wait, she’s already living it. Also, I just want to point readers to this gif-set. Get better nightmares, Scott.

The comment from the exec producer (I believe?) makes me hopeful that they have a way to integrate Lydia into the main narrative in a non-romantic AND romantic way because Lydia needs to be integrated into the story as the queen she is, and she has plenty of skills to bring to the table, and I am so happy that she will have a non-Jackson love interest. I am down for Lydia banging a (presumably) hot alpha.

And speaking of Lydia's love interests.....

Okay, so, if I have one Teen Wolf ship, it would be Lydia/Stiles.

I was intrigued by them after this scene, especially when followed by Stiles begging for Lydia’s life later in the episode, and I was totally sold by this scene. Like, Stiles’ speech is 100% entirely selfish, but. I also want to mention my favorite part of that scene, which is when Lydia steps away from Stiles and Stiles IMMEDIATELY STEPS BACK AND APOLOGIZIES. Now, I don’t know if Stiles understands all the reasons why he should be apologizing (and boy, could I write a list) or if he’s solely reacting to Lydia’s discomfort but either way, I cannot help but contast Stiles’s actions with Jackson’s (backing her up against a locker and getting into her face) or Peter’s (LEAVING ASIDE EVERYTHING ELSE whose reaction to Lydia backing away from him was to pressure her to kiss him).

Disclaimer: I am not saying that Lydia should be with Stiles because he’s the least awful of the dudes who are interested in her. I am saying that how Stiles treats Lydia + Stiles’ entire existence + my desire to see Lydia with someone who treats her well + my love of Lydia Martin = the desire to smoosh their faces together.

Also, I really resent how, LITERALLY, 98% of the Lydia/Stiles tag on AO3 is Derek/Stiles.

Scott Mccall

Was the main character?

Stiles

Was, as always, awesome.

Supporting cast:

Papa!Stilinski and Mama!Mccall were aces. Isaac was the only baby!wolf would really worked for me. The other two were completely forgotten about (Boyd) and had nothing interesting to do (Erica). Like, I was spoiled for the “If you want to be Catwoman, I’ll be Batman” line which I originally loved, until I realized that Erica did NOTHING and was doing NOTHING worthy of being compared to Catwoman. Comparing two character to Catwoman and Batman is like comparing two characters to ROMEO AND JULIET, OKAY? It has to be earned.

Things I didn’t like about the finale:

Allison didn’t kill anyone! I have no clue what the logic of Derek and Peter stabbing Jackson and then Lydia power-of-loving him back to life was.  The warehouse scene was a total sausage fest!

Comments

[wolfgenes.livejournal.com]

did you know #KillAllison trended on twitter? because she /hurt/ baby-isaac and she was being oh-so-violent and oh-so-horrible, but it's still okay if derek breaks people's arms for no special reason and threatens them through and through. because allison is the bad guy. allison is the one who should be punished for her aggressiveness. um. okay.

and derek not snapping peter's neck the second he appeared, shows some inconsistency to me. peter killed derek's siter, who was everything he had left -- the show starts with derek wanting, more than his own safety, to get some resolution on laura's death. laura being not only used as a tool but also being completely disregarded now is kind of shady to me. also apparently everyone considers peter sassy awesome peter who ships sterek??? like, idgi. the man's a psychopath. i enjoy his comments, but they show nothing but insanity.

totally with you on how jackson should have died. it would do wonders to the plot itself -- since umm his parents and danny and everyone else actually think he died?? -- plus colton haynes is an asshole anyway, and i'm glad to see him gone. wasn't particularly fond of jackson/lydia either to be honest, but that also has to do with how lydia is written as somebody's something all the time and mostly regarding jackson, which is just. irritating.

personally, i strongly disliked the way lydia's arc was made. it was really good in the whole possession-slash-manipulation thing, except we got a bunch of nothingness. an episode later she's already being used for romantic purposes and shows no signs of ptsd, and even seeing peter alive and next to her doesn't draw her attention away from jackson. i thought it was absurd, everything they done to her.

re: scott's nightmare, i feel like it isn't really about allison cheating on him -- as it's with the kanima, not jackson -- but as allison losing herself, and thus he losing her, one of the people he loves the most. i feel like it's about loss and not being able to protect the ones he loves. but ymmv.

personally i don't ship stiles/lydia, but that has more to do with what i feel is lack of boundaries, at times accidental, so it's really how the show's written and not the fault (?) of the characters exactly.

i have extremely strong feelings for scott, but i guess we differ lmao

my feelings about boyd and erica are of complete anger basically. they both had so much potential, and they were ignored for really stupid reasons. boyd was originally supposed to side with scott (as it's very clear in the ice rank episode) and "betray" derek for scott, and erica was supposed to actually get with derek, but sterek fans freaked out before it actually happened and the asshat writer changed everything not to upset sterek fans, so basically her arc was a mess. and boyd was replaced with isaac (did derek even notice issac's siding with scott?). so basically the writer handled the whole boyd & erica thing terribly.

the finale kind of makes me want to scream.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

did you know #KillAllison trended on twitter?

No, but that makes me want to break someone's face. Sadly, Allison getting hate for being violent while everyone ooohs over Derek doesn't surprise me at all. Fucking fandom.

and derek not snapping peter's neck the second he appeared, shows some inconsistency to me. peter killed derek's siter, who was everything he had left -- the show starts with derek wanting, more than his own safety, to get some resolution on laura's death

Agreed. Personally, I NEVER thought they stressed that Derek lost the last family member he had in the pilot hard enough, and having him be just fine with Peter after Peter comes back from the dead drove me up the wall.

an episode later she's already being used for romantic purposes and shows no signs of ptsd, and even seeing peter alive and next to her doesn't draw her attention away from jackson. i thought it was absurd, everything they done to her.

Yeah, I really hope we get some fallout with Lydia from what's happened in the most recent season but I don't think we will.


my feelings about boyd and erica are of complete anger basically. they both had so much potential, and they were ignored for really stupid reasons. boyd was originally supposed to side with scott (as it's very clear in the ice rank episode) and "betray" derek for scott, and erica was supposed to actually get with derek, but sterek fans freaked out before it actually happened and the asshat writer changed everything not to upset sterek fans, so basically her arc was a mess. and boyd was replaced with isaac (did derek even notice issac's siding with scott?). so basically the writer handled the whole boyd & erica thing terribly.

What? What? That is fucking terrible! Because yes, Erica's arc was such a fucking mess and they had some REALLY GOOD things they could have done with it. Also, I think they had at one point that being a werewolf didn't cure her epilepsy? Which, hot damn, they needed to do more with that.

the finale kind of makes me want to scream.


Yeah, previous episodes were SO GOOD and then that finale did so many things wrong.

[just-shai.livejournal.com]

I'm not entirely sure that was actually power-of-love and not foreshadowing Lydia's future awesome.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

*fingers crossed*

[spirited-lizard.livejournal.com]

I think I had a bit of a problem with Allison going dark that season. Maybe it was, like you said, not dark enough...? If she had gone all the way, killing someone, maybe it would've worked even better. I hated her grandfather influencing her like he did, and it kinda seemed to come out of nowhere.

I'll miss Jackson. He was an ass, like all the time and he was a jerk when it came to his relationship with Lydia, but I still kinda liked him. I guess he was just a sad puppy who never had it easy, with not knowing his birth parents. Of course, that doesn't excuse his behavior. But it really came as a surprise to me when I heard that Colton Haynes wouldn't be in season 3. :(

Lydia. Lydia and Stiles. God, I loved those scenes!! [The ones from the gif sets] She really became one of my favorite characters. I never would've thought that when I started the show. And Stiles is awesome. Fact. Nothing can change that. And really, his dad and Scott's mom are great, too! Couldn't imagine the show without them, either.

I love Isaac! He's a great character! And I'm with you about the other two. I never really could remember Boyd's name, and even though Erica seemed cool, I didn't like her all the time. Just Isaac would be enough for me. ;)

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

Maybe it was, like you said, not dark enough...? If she had gone all the way, killing someone, maybe it would've worked even better.

It really would have. I feel like they got 3/4 of the way into her arc and then lost their nerve, which was too bad, because I LOVED Kate and Kate's relationship with Allison, and though Allison had some great momentum for going dark.

I guess he was just a sad puppy who never had it easy,

Ha, ha, are you kidding? Jackson had two parents who loved him, was rich, was going to be richer, was a lacrosse star, was popular, had a hot, popular gf until he cruelly dumped her. Sure, he had some issues with being adopted but on the whole, life was handed to that boy on a silver platter.

She really became one of my favorite characters. I never would've thought that when I started the show. And Stiles is awesome. Fact. Nothing can change that.

VERY TRUE.

[hungrytiger11.livejournal.com]

Allison- yes. Exactly. I felt like, if they were going to go dark with her (which I totally loved the idea of), I kinda wish they had gone all the way. Or- if she was going to "come back" from being dark, well, I think it needs to be a longer, road with her making more deliberate choices. It felt a little sudden, her change of allegiance. Also, for a group that is supposed to be lead with women making the decisions...we did not see a whole lot of that and need to see more.

Also, I really resent how, LITERALLY, 98% of the Lydia/Stiles tag on AO3 is Derek/Stiles.

SO. TRUE.

I really liked Lydia's storyline (well except for the whole Lydia/Jackson thing, mostly because I didn't like Jackson) and the utter isolation she was experiencing, especially after such crazy things happening to her. I am hoping we see fallout from that and people (especially Allison because female friendships are something we do not see enough of) working to repair that break of trust that happened.

Scott is... it is not that I don't care about Scott when I am watching the show. He's a fine character on the show. But I just find him kind of boring this season. Like, not boring to watch but his personal character growth was not really that much and not that much happened to him outside of Allison breaking up with him. Also- He's not that bright and I prefer smart heros, but... He is puppy-dog lovable, I suppose. (like Derek, I am not sure he would make a good Alpha either).

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

Also, for a group that is supposed to be lead with women making the decisions...we did not see a whole lot of that and need to see more.

I literally had a dream about take-charge Allison when I was napping this afternoon.

I am hoping we see fallout from that and people (especially Allison because female friendships are something we do not see enough of) working to repair that break of trust that happened.

I would love to see Allison and Lydia repair/rebuild their relationship with more honesty in the next season.

He is puppy-dog lovable, I suppose. (like Derek, I am not sure he would make a good Alpha either).

I don't think EITHER Derek or Scot would make good alphas, for opposite reasons.

[sharkflip.livejournal.com]

Watched the first eight episodes, realized I wanted to watch a different story than the series wants to tell. Scott and Allison bored me, Jackson intrigued me for one or two episodes but evidently the writers had planned a different path for him. I want to find Derek interesting, but the writers keep putting him into cliche "sensei" situations. Stiles is great as is Lydia, and if I ship anyone in the series it'd be those two. I cannot fathom why Stiles/Derek is a thing; they have no chemistry that I can see.

Overall, it's too much teens making teenage choices and not enough good storytelling to keep me interested, and it's gardening season anyway.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

Valid points. I'm thrilled that with the change in my work hours and the days getting longer, I can go running in DAYLIGHT instead of in the dark.

[lady-with-cats.livejournal.com]

the stiles/lydia tag on ao3 is such a mess and for a long while i just gave up on getting fic that way. later i found a tumblr saviour type extension that blocks certain tags on ao3 which has been GREAT for that problem.

i largely agree with your thoughts on everything, especially with how blatant gerard's manipulation was (which imo he didn't need to be so pushy about, allison was definitely more than half way there).

DEREK HALE: THE FAILEST WEREWOLF TO EVER WEREWOLF. it's a favourite fan theory of mine that laura was always meant to be alpha (part of why peter killed her) and derek's super bad at it by nature AND training.

JACKSON'S STILL THE WORST. the only problem i have with him gone is that lydia presumably didn't get to drop him in her own time/awesome way.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

the stiles/lydia tag on ao3 is such a mess and for a long while i just gave up on getting fic that way.

It's so frustrating. I don't come to the Lydia/Stiles tag to read about Derek soothing Stiles' rejection by Lydia with the power of his cock!

(which imo he didn't need to be so pushy about, allison was definitely more than half way there).

She really was, that that that arc was were Allison was headed was clear from SEASON ONE. (Also, they totally should have kept Kate around for it.)

it's a favourite fan theory of mine that laura was always meant to be alpha (part of why peter killed her) and derek's super bad at it by nature AND training.,

Isn't it pretty canon she was? I mean, she was alpha until Peter killed her; Derek only became alpha when he killed Peter.

(part of why peter killed her) and derek's super bad at it by nature AND training.

Yep.

[lady-with-cats.livejournal.com]

oh was it established canon? i'd forgotten!!

also another reason why peter hale needs to get murder-ated (again, sigh) asap.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

I think so? If not explicitly canon, it's strongly implied.

Correction, I just remembered - Peter killed the deer to drawn Laura to Beacon Hills to kill her so he could be the alpha. So Laura was the alpha; her death was entirely premeditated.

[lady-with-cats.livejournal.com]

mmh yes it's starting to come back to me. one of the downsides of watching a show in a huge chuck!