Despite having a solid series finale after one season, 13 Reasons Why has returned to Netflix with a second season. Months after the events of season 1, things have apparently calmed down, though the release of the tapes has caused issues for the students. Due to the Baker family choosing to settle rather than go through with a lawsuit, Clay has become apathetic and bitter. Now dating Skye, he insists that he hasn't thought of Hannah in months and no longer cares about her or what happens. His attitude changes, however, when he learns Hannah's mom decided at the last second not to settle. The episode is narrated by Tyler Down, whose tape revealed his stalking of Hannah, as he is on the stand as the first to testify about life at Liberty and specifically for Hannah. Tyler readily admits his hand in Hannah's downfall, explaining how he went from a yearbook member with an interest in her to obsessing over her beauty. After giving his testimony, Tyler is threatened, as he finds the school dark room vandalized. The other students are facing problems now as well, with Jessica being called a drunk slut at school, as her time away allowed Bryce to spin the story of what happened. Her only solace comes from Alex, who, having survived his attempted suicide at the end of season 1, has amnesia of everything that happened a month before his attempt, including listening to Hannah's tapes. His attempt has altered his relationship with his parents, as his father tries to be more caring and his mom has become overprotective. He learns from his mom that he left a suicide note, which she kept, and demands to see it, confused as to what he meant by saying he "could have stopped it." Jessica has her own new situation, as her dad doesn't want her to testify, and like Alex's parents, doesn't want her to go back to school yet. Zach begins to stick around Alex, determined to help him through physical therapy, as the brain injury damaged his ability to use his arms and legs. Throughout the episode, Zach, like Jessica, tries to avoid Bryce, making excuses to be away from him and help Alex. Despite he and Tyler insisting on finally getting the truth out, Clay struggles to decide what he wants to do. His attempts at a physical relationship with Skye repeatedly fail, as he takes issue with her continuing to cut herself. Against his mom's wishes, he goes to see Tyler's testimony, but storms out when Tyler says Hannah was sexting after her situation with Justin. While listening to Tyler's testimony, Hannah's mom thinks back to him asking Hannah to model for him, when she made remarks about Hannah's appearance in the photos, realizing the repercussions her words had on her daughter. After the testimony, Clay has an encounter with Zach, who is in disbelief that Clay says he only cares about school and Skye. The situation moves to Mr. Porter approaching Bryce for a "talk," following him into the bathroom after being brushed off. Bryce is initially confused and nonchalant, until Porter grabs him by the throat and shoves him against a wall, threatening that he will face repercussions if he goes near Jessica. Bryce, finally afraid, notes that Porter can't talk to him that way, to which Mr. Porter simply says that he didn't, before adjusting Bryce's blazer and walking out. In class, Alex becomes frustrated upon learning the others knew of his suicide note, and that Clay won't give him the tapes to listen to again. Afterward, Porter shows a newfound aggressive attentiveness in his job, intervening when Bryce and his friends begin bullying Tyler. Clay, off to the side, discovers a Polaroid in his locker of students at a party, with "Hannah wasn't the only one" written on the back. He goes to Tony, but learns nothing, and the scene goes to the baseball team, where Porter gives a lesson on consent, refusing to let anyone make light of the situation. The mounting pressure begins to weigh on Bryce, who performs poorly at practice, and at the same time Jessica is named a flier for the cheer team, but becomes suspicious of her fellow cheerleaders. Tony has a meeting with Ryan, who is now nervous about the trial, and they discreetly discuss a part of Tony's past that he's been worried about. Over at Alex's house, Tyler visits with junk food, as Alex's mom has him on a strict diet he doesn't like. While washing his hands, Tyler notices some off-color wall tiles, and Alex explains that it's the spot where the bullet he shot himself with hit the wall. The two talk about what Alex has gone through, and Tyler agrees to let Alex see the photos he took of Alex during the coma, intending to document his progression. Things get complicated at the end of the episode as both Clay and Jessica face new problems in their lives. Honestly, I for one saw no need for a second season after I saw the first, as I loved how everything was handled, with the showrunners showing how harsh suicide is, how it affects people, and how we try to sweep it under the rug. One of my favorite small moments of the season was when Clay is in class and his teacher talks about signs of depression. As she talks of changes in appearance, lack of interest, and people just being out of it, she simply brushes past how Clay is staring vacantly at Hannah's seat. To me, the way they handled Hannah's accusations was also excellent, as they show that not everything was exactly as she remembered, and there were things she could have done, like speaking to her parents. This is in no way, of course, to say the suicide was Hannah being weak or dumb; just that there is a problem of people not being able to speak to loved ones about their thoughts and emotions. The finale ended great to me, leaving so much open-ended but showing that numerous people would have to face repercussions and new aspects of their lives. When I got into the second season, however, I was pleasantly surprised by the direction they took as well as how they're handling it. A lot of character progression has taken place over the few months between seasons, and the writers do a good job explaining where the shown characters are at. Clay says multiple times that he "hasn't thought about Hannah in months," a non-clunky way of explaining that he's just avoiding how he feels about the trial and Hannah. Porter was one of my favorite aspects of the episode, with his more assertive nature and how seriously he takes his job. In the previous season, it was obvious that Porter did care about the students, but he was so passive in his approach that it led to him being one of Hannah's reasons. Although he still took more interest than the other oblivious teachers, Porter seemed to not really care at some points while talking to students. The previous season, he seemed to teleport through the halls like Friday the 13th's Jason, always appearing at important moments, and that still happens this season, but in an admirable way with how Porter protects the students. When talking to the baseball players, it was clear the coach was uncomfortable and seemed to take issue with Porter having them give the talk at all. With season 2 starting off strong, I'm hopeful that the remaining episodes will be just as enjoyable as the first.
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