Yellowjackets Season 3 Episode 1 and 2 Review: It’s a Feral Girl Summer

This review contains spoilers for Yellowjackets season 3 episodes 1 & 2.

The third season of Showtime’s Yellowjackets has left the harsh, unforgiving winter behind in favor of the warm comforts of summer, and with this change in seasons comes an incredibly strong dual episode season opener.

The first episode begins with what looks to be yet another feral chase through the woods. It appears as though the young Yellowjackets have given in further to the calls of the wilderness since we last left them, and are still hunting each other to appease whatever mysterious forces they believe to be at work out there. But it’s all just a game, and we come to find out that the Yellowjackets seem to still be holding on to some semblance of civilization.

Despite losing their cabin to Coach Ben (Steven Krueger) in the middle of winter, the young Yellowjackets have come back stronger than ever. They’ve crafted their own shelters, cultivated their own crops, and are hunting and raising game. Natalie (Sophie Thatcher) remains their leader, but Lottie (Courtney Eaton) still seems to have a spiritual hold over the group. They praise the sacrifices and miracles that led them to this point as they prepare to celebrate the summer solstice.

Shauna (Sophie Nélisse), however, has become disenfranchised by the whole thing and all but refuses to participate. Unlike the others, she is angered and ashamed by what they did and doesn’t believe that they’ll be able to go back home, even if they’re rescued. In episode 2 she even goes so far as to move where her baby is buried to a secret place, not wanting him to be included in her teammates prayers and rituals.

As good as Nélisse’s performance is in both of these episodes, and it is quite stellar, Steven Krueger is the true star. Even though the Yellowjackets have done their best to convince themselves that he didn’t survive the winter on his own, we see him making his way through the woods, setting traps, and discovering a stash of MREs presumably hidden by one of the cabin’s previous residents. 

When he later captures Mari (Alexa Barajas) in the hole he dug to retrieve them, he utters a subtle, but creepy laugh that sends chills down the spine. It’s clear that the girls and Travis aren’t the only ones who have begun to lose parts of themselves to the wilderness, and that setting the cabin on fire might not be the first or last time that Ben puts them in danger. This becomes even more evident when he ties Mari up after helping her out of the hole, not wanting her to go back to the others and tell them that he’s alive. He denies that he set the fire, but knows that no one else will believe him, and later Mari hears him talking to himself. Ben is clearly still becoming unhinged, but Krueger plays it subtle enough that we can still hope that he hasn’t totally lost his mind yet.

In the present, the survivors, sans Lottie who is presumably still seeking mental health treatment, process Natalie’s (Juliette Lewis) death the best they can. Misty (Christina Ricci) isolates herself, even from Walter (Elijah Wood), blaming herself for the tragic events. She even goes so far as to start to act like Natalie, wearing a leather jacket she finds in her storage locker out while she gets drunk on whisky.

Meanwhile, Shauna (Melanie Lynskey) and Callie (Sarah Desjardins) bond over smoking pot and standing up to bullies. Jeff (Warren Kole) is kind of alarmed by how much Shauna seems to be supporting Callie spilling guts on girls at school, but it seems like Shauna is excited to finally see some of herself, her true, more feral self, in her daughter. At least until Lottie (Simone Kessell) comes back into the picture in episode 2 and Shauna sees how interested Callie is in her. Not wanting her daughter to fall under Lottie’s spell, she asks Misty to come watch the two of them. A plan that works perfectly well until Callie spikes Misty’s drink and knocks her out.

But despite everyone in both timelines trying to find some semblance of normalcy in their lives, there’s just enough creepiness woven in to keep us on edge. Callie finds a package with a mysterious tape addressed to Shauna on their porch. Shauna is haunted by a mysterious stranger in a restaurant bathroom. A relatively young waiter dies of a heart attack chasing Tai (Tawny Cypress) and Van (Lauren Ambrose) when they ditch their bill at a fancy restaurant, and not long after Tai sees the man with no eyes. In the past, the wilderness seems to scream at the Yellowjackets during their Summer Solstice celebration with eerie chittering, growling, and even a baby’s cry coming from the woods around them.

After two seasons, we know that the series tends to build tension slowly over the season – making us wonder what’s real and what isn’t as the Yellowjackets in the past and present do the same. While this season opener doesn’t exactly reinvent the wheel, both episodes still serve as a strong, creepy start that has me intrigued and eager to continue watching. By this point, the show’s writers know the right number of breadcrumbs to drop and how to keep viewers engaged, and these episodes are no different.

This season of Yellowjackets might just be the most feral and wild season yet, and I’m excited to be along for the ride. The Yellowjackets in the past and the present are on the verge of giving in to their more base desires. We see it in how Tai and Van have reverted back to teenage behavior in the present. We see it in how Shauna bites Mari during the Summer Solstice chase. We see it in Lottie and Travis’ ritual and desire to commune with the wilderness through drug-induced means. 

The show continues to make one wonder whether or not there are supernatural forces at work, or if it’s just overwhelming trauma and less-than-ideal coping mechanisms that have driven these survivors to worship the wilderness. Toeing the line between terrifying and realistic takes immense skill, and Yellowjackets has once again crafted a season premiere that will keep us guessing what’s real and what isn’t for the episodes to come.

The first two episodes of Yellowjackets season 3 are available to stream on Paramount+ now. New episodes will premiere Fridays on Paramount+ and Sundays at 8 p.m. ET on Showtime.

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