First things first...if you haven't watched the second season of "13 Reasons Why" yet and want to avoid spoilers, this article is not for you.
Season two of "13 Reasons Why" just recently came out on Netflix, and like many others, I avoided all of my responsibilities and finished the season in two days. While watching the show (and scrolling through tweets upon tweets about the show), I was struck by a couple of thoughts. I have a very love/hate relationship with this show.
For starts, as someone who has had a long history of mental illness and has even gone through the works of getting help after contemplating suicide, I personally enjoyed the show. But I know a lot of people in the same boat as me who were trigged and deeply disturbed by some of the scenes or storylines. And that's okay. Everyone is different and everyone reacts to things differently. What is helpful or insightful to one person might not be to another.
With that being said, the warnings and disclaimers (which I will admit were absent during the first season) are there for a reason. Please do not ignore them and watch at your own risk.
With that being said, I feel as if this season kind of ruined Hannah's character in a way. They delved more into Hannah's story and what happened to her, but by doing so, they created storylines that were never on the tapes, to begin with. I guess it can be argued that Hannah only told the side of the story that she wanted people to hear and that's why there was more to the story. However, the more backstory we learned, the more it seemed the narrative of Hannah "blaming people and looking for revenge" flourished.
Secondly, I'm still incredibly angry at the fact that Bryce Walker walked away with only three months probation after committing three (that we know of) rapes. He is one of the vilest characters I've ever come across but also seems to be the most privilege.
He has done so many things wrong to so many people...yet the school, his parents, and even other students look at him like he's some type of God. It's sickening and maddening. I hope he gets what's coming to him in season 3 (which season 3 hasn't been confirmed yet, but with the cliffhanger ending and all the still unanswered questions...there's no doubt in my mind that there will be a season 3).
Something I was extremely shocked to see in this season was the fact that they alluded to a school shooting. Tyler, one of the characters, was severely bullied and at the end of the last episode, it shows him gathering assault weapons.
He gets in his car and drives to the school, which is hosting a dance. His intent seems clear, but Clay stops him before he has a chance to commit mass murder. My mouth actually dropped when I realized what was happening. It seemed almost crazy that they were including this kind of storyline....especially with what is currently happening in our society.
One thing that I do applaud this show on is how they don't shy away from sensitive topics and the things that are very prevalent in our society today, but no one talks about. They do a very good job of making you uncomfortable, and it is uncomfortable because it's true.