Synopsis
The show picks up almost immediately after the events of the last season. Clay and Tony manage to stop Tyler from orchestrating a mass shooting. But while they pull out all stops to save him, Bryce is found dead in the local river and all evidence points to murder.
Theme of Reasons
The show always has a core theme that is explored. The first season was all about Hanna and how the kids affected Hanna. It also shows how it led to her eventual suicide. The second season was all about repercussions and consequences. Season three is all about healing and hope. It really was very different from the last two. Every character has a well-written growth arc that culminates in a fitting way. This season was about proving that every soul can be healed. There is hope, even in the darkest of places.
I think this theme was the right call at the right time (season), as life isn’t always all doom and gloom. There are moments of triumph. More than that, the show needs to show the recovery of both victims and perpetrators. Often TV focuses on the victims, which I totally understand. But truthfully antagonists are sometimes remorseful and even move on to change their lives.
This was mirrored in two cases, Tyler and Bryce. While Tyler didn’t actually commit a crime, he was broken. We get some much-needed light shed on how the broken can re-assemble their-selves into a frightening force. The other case is of the very guilty, yet guilt-ridden Bryce. The series manages to take a vile and vindictive antagonist and slowly get the audience to understand and even care for him.
Story of Reasons
The story is well orchestrated, with more than enough plot twists to keep you guessing. It starts off in the end and tells the story by means of present-day settings as well as through flashbacks. As before, it tries to dedicate a single episode to a specific character. This never works as good as it did in the first season, but it does fail either. In fact, it is done a little different. There is a lot more intertwining or overlapping stories. This helps bind the co-dependent relationship of the kids.
The story isn’t airtight, and while some of the pieces are left out intentionally to be tied up in the now inevitable fourth season. The rest are cleverly pushed back to the end for the big reveal. Yes, the show is masked (to a certain degree anyway) as a murder mystery. But that is merely the catalyst to the drama invoked situations explored. 13 Reasons Why, has always been about high school and the social pressure and all its consequences.
Review
The show is still very much the binge-worthy show we have all come to love and expect. The cast still delivers on quality acting and the multitude of directors helps differentiate each episode as mini stand-alone stories. The show, however, has lost its shock value. That can either be a good thing or bad thing depending squarely on your taste. For me, it was a little bit of a letdown. The final scene of Hanna taking her own life will stay with me forever. It changed me. They were never going to visually replicate this again. And honestly, they shouldn’t have to. It was and will always be the most important event in the 13RW canon. However, emotionally they achieved this with Tyler. When he finally revealed his secret to Clay, tears rolled down my cheeks, for a moment I felt his pain.
And that’s where the show excels. It dives straight down your throat and grabs your heart. Like I said the show is about healing. We get to heal with these characters. We understand why they make the choices they do. Whether they choose to fight back or forgive we get how and why they arrived at that choice. And it is not because of thirteen reasons, it’s because of one. One simple reason. We listened. And that the message of the 3 season-long show. Listen. Listen to your friend, your colleague or even a would-be enemy. You can change their life. You can save their life. Just listen….
Cast
- Dylan Minnette Clay Jensen
- Christian Navarro Tony Padilla
- Alisha Boe Jessica Davis
- Brandon Flynn Justin Foley
- Justin Prentice Bryce Walker
- Miles Heizer Alex Standall
- Ross Butler Zach Dempsey
- Devin Druid Tyler Down
- Timothy Granaderos Montgomery de la Cruz
- Grace Saif Ani Achola
