Ready to watch Netflix's hit high school drama now the series has been released? Check out our full spoiler-free guide to the new season including plot, trailers and new characters
“Their story isn’t over”. 13 Reasons Why season one may have ended where it started with Hannah Baker’s tragic suicide, but Netflix is not done with one of its most successful series ever launched.
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Season two was released on Friday 18th May with 13 brand new episodes. The cast are acutely aware of the tough issues they will be confronting in the new run, recording new content warnings and explaining what viewers can do if they are affected by the series.
However, the series is once again set to be one of the most talked about shows of the year. Here’s your updated guide to everything you need to know about 13 Reasons Why season 2 on Netflix (updated 18th May 2018).
When was 13 Reasons Why season two released on Netflix?
The first season of 13 Reasons Why was released on 31st March last year, but one year later there was still no news of a season two release date.
Finally, though, the date was revealed: 13 Reasons Why season two would be released on Friday 18th May 2018. The show landed around 8am UK time, and fans have been quick to start streaming the new episodes.
It’s arguably unfortunate timing though for UK fans, with exam season just getting underway. We talk about that in more detail here, but Netflix has said in a statement that if anyone is concerned about the distraction to revision, they can use PIN controls to limit access to certain shows.
“As 13 Reasons Why is a global show, season two will launch at the same time on the same day in all our 190 markets. In the UK, it coincidentally coincides with exam period, but within regular school term in other countries,” a statement explained.
The release date announcement followed a short tease for the new season along with the tagline, “The truth is developing”. Later trailers and the official season two synopsis confirmed that Polaroid photos would be key to the new episodes, replacing Hannah’s tapes from season one.
The truth is developing. pic.twitter.com/rwCobzhbC0 — 13 Reasons Why (@13ReasonsWhy) April 30, 2018
Read more: 13 Reasons Why cast record new content warning video ahead of season two
Is there a trailer?
Yes, a FULL trailer for season two was released on Tuesday 8th May 2018. The spine tingling footage features all sorts of premonitions for what could happen in the upcoming episodes, from mysterious Polaroid photos to Clay possibly drastically taking matters into his own hands.
Watch in full below.
It’s the first proper look we’ve had at the new series after weeks of build-up. The stylish date announcement video below shows all the major players in season two in freeze frame surrounded by polaroid photos, all but confirming that these will be the new “analogue technology” creator Brian Yorkey teased last year.
Oh, and if you’re wondering what the song playing in the 13 Reasons Why trailer announcement above is, it’s Depeche Mode’s 1993 single I Feel You.
Who’s in the cast for 13 Reasons Why season 2?
Dylan Minnette as Clay, Brandon Flynn’s Justin Foley and Alisha Boe as Jessica Davis all return, along with Christian Navarro (Tony), Miles Heizer (Alex) and Justin Prentice (Bryce).
The cast is also set to include Ross Butler as Zach and Michele Selene Ang as Courtney.
Even season one star Katherine Langford is set to return, although in a very different form to season one. She appears in flashbacks, but also as a kind of hallucination inside Clay’s head. Her presence, for better or worse, is keenly felt in the new episodes.
“The Hannah that we saw in season one, we were able to tell her story fully and she didn’t really come back in the same capacity or sort of as the same Hannah,” she recently told W Magazine. “It’s a different Hannah that you see in season two.”
era A post shared by KATHERINE LANGFORD (@katherinelangford) on Apr 16, 2018 at 5:26am PDT
There are also set to be a number of new faces, both young and established actors. Tony Award-winning Kelli O’Hara makes her show debut as anti-bullying campaigner Jackie, with at least 10 other actors confirmed to be joining the series.
Read more: 13 Reasons Why adds new actors to season two cast
New cast member Anne Winters – who’ll play a new high school ‘It’ girl named Chloe in season two of the Netflix drama – has said we should “expect A LOT more answers” ahead. She along with fellow new character Scott Reed is one of the most intriguing new characters, as she is introduced as Bryce’s boyfriend.
Given what we know about Bryce from season one, Chloe is set to be a very divisive character.
Speaking to Flare, actress Winters said, “The people [in the show] who are doing wrong maybe don’t even understand that it is wrong… this season will explore a little of those grey areas—it’s not as black and white as last season—so that when people raise the question of, ‘Well wasn’t it her fault that she did this or that?’. This season shows a different take on it. You’ll have a lot more answers this season on why people are doing what they’re doing.”
What could happen in 13 Reasons Why season 2 (no spoilers)?
What we know about @13ReasonsWhy season 2 — so far pic.twitter.com/PMUaIe6Zy8 — Netflix US (@netflix) May 9, 2017
“No more tapes” – yep, those retro cassette tapes are no more. Apparently there will be “a new piece of technology for 13-year-olds to Google”.
The recent teaser and season two synopsis confirmed that that “new piece of technology” will be Polaroid cameras and photography. Check out the trailer above and the new video below.
The truth is developing. A post shared by 13 Reasons Why (@13reasonswhy) on Apr 30, 2018 at 7:10am PDT
UPDATE: creator Brian Yorkey and star Dylan Minnette have been speaking about what season two holds, and how Hannah Baker’s “whole story” has still not been told. Read more
Season two will continue to explore many of the characters’ issues that fans had only just begun to understand at the end of season one.
The series is also set to make some bold new changes to how it depicts the story. For an example of what to expect, find out more about the unique opening scene to season two episode seven.
Netflix has released an official synopsis for season two, teasing a “sickening secret” that is uncovered through a series of Polaroid photos.
Season two picks up in the aftermath of Hannah's death and the start of our characters' complicated journeys toward healing and recovery. Liberty High prepares to go on trial, but someone will stop at nothing to keep the truth surrounding Hannah's death concealed. A series of ominous polaroids lead Clay and his classmates to uncover a sickening secret and a conspiracy to cover it up 13 Reasons Why season 2 synopsis
Star Dylan Minnette told Yahoo that the action will begin “a couple months after season one, and there’s a lot that’s happened to Clay in between.”
Meanwhile, showrunner Brian Yorkey says that he knew very early on that the story could not end with the tapes at the end of season one.
“We realised at a certain point that we would end season one with a young woman who was just beginning to come to terms with the fact that she was a victim of sexual assault; with a young man who was suffering from severe social isolation and thinking of making a pretty tragic choice in response to that; with a character, Clay, who was really just beginning to grieve a girl that he loved and to understand what that grieving process was; and a whole community that had been traumatised in a number of specific ways, most centrally by Hannah’s suicide,” Yorkey said at a recent panel to discuss the show. “In a way it felt that to leave them there would be unfair to the characters and also to the viewers who really had come to care about them.”
Welcome back. A post shared by 13 Reasons Why (@13reasonswhy) on May 2, 2018 at 4:11pm PDT
He said that Jessica’s storyline in particular would be explored more in the new episodes.
“Jessica in particular, her experience continues to be a central part of season two. We wanted very much to look at her recovery. To look at what it is to go from being a victim of sexual assault to being a survivor of sexual assault,” he added.
Mr Porter meanwhile, the school counsellor who questions Hannah’s account of her sexual assault in the days leading up to her suicide, will face the repercussions of his actions.
“Mr. Porter, in particular, will be coming to terms with the mistakes that he made, with the ways that he let her down, and will be, I think, very determined not to let any kids down in the future,” he said.
“In fact, I think that his story is, I think, one of the most sort of compelling to me in season two. And we’ll see a man who is determined to reach every kid who needs to be reached and help every kid who needs to be helped. Whatever it takes.”
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There were plenty of unanswered questions at the end of season one, and with season two picking up where the last episode left off, it’s probably worth reminding yourself of some of those cliffhanger moments below.
The lead is now a ghost (of plot devices past), and though it still tackles big issues, the structure of this high-school teen drama has crumbled
When Hannah Baker killed herself, she left behind a box of cassette tapes explaining why she’d done it. That was the first series of 13 Reasons Why, adapted from the book by Jay Asher.
Originally destined to become a film, Netflix got hold of it and gave it the Netflix stretch. It did attempt to explore important issues – not only suicide but rape, self-harm, bullying, high-school sexism – sensibly and seriously, even if any messages to emerge came across as simplistic and a bit preachy: be nice to people, be a real friend, otherwise bad shit goes down. It meandered, but the cassettes and the 13 reasons in 13 episodes gave it a structure of sorts. The performances, especially from Katherine Langford and Dylan Minnette as Hannah and her friend Clay, were good.
The second series continues to explore the same big issues sensitively, as well as taking on board some of the criticism and controversy the first generated (it now comes with a public service announcement, delivered by the actors, links to relevant resources, plus the parents – Clay’s especially – are more aware of what their kids are going through). And that’s about all that’s good about series two.
It’s a few months later, and there’s a civil lawsuit going on against the school for failing to protect Hannah. There’s a lot of dragging through the same stuff all over again. But this time without the framework of the tapes and the reasons. The trial, of which there isn’t much, perhaps provides the crumbliest of structures, and some photos are turned up that show Hannah wasn’t alone in suffering bullying and abuse. But if the first series meandered, then this circles aimlessly with its head to the ground.
Some of the acting remains decent, though Langford, the stand-out in the first season, now has to do hers as a ghost. The ghost of Hannah. The ghost of a lame device past.
I’ve only watched three episodes. But that was enough. It’s like being locked in a room with a bunch of self-obsessed teens, occasionally saying things like “the truth can free you if you let it” or “sometimes it seems that no matter what you do people see you the way they want to”.
I know teenagers are only concerned with what others think of them. I know if I was one I might connect better with this (it would be interesting to hear from them). I know the issues are very real, very important and, in fact, deadly serious. But they deserve a better vehicle. As drama this is pointless, cumbersome, baggy, badly written, ponderous and boring. That’s less than half of the 13 reasons why you shouldn’t bother.
In the UK the Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123. In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-8255. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is on 13 11 14. Other international suicide helplines can be found at www.befrienders.org.
Photo: Beth Dubber/Netflix
The second season of 13 Reasons Why begins with the suggestion that, perhaps, you shouldn’t watch it.
In a video disclaimer that precedes the first episode, several of the show’s stars appear out of character to explain that, just like season one, the series will deal with potentially disturbing subject matter, including sexual assault, substance abuse, and teen suicide.
“If you are struggling with these issues yourself, this series may not be right for you,” says actress Alisha Boe, who plays Jessica, a cheerleader who, in the first season, was raped by the most popular guy in school. “Or you may want to watch it with a trusted adult.”
This is honest guidance that, coupled with the crisis-resource-driven website 13reasonswhy.info, which is mentioned at the end of each episode, represents Netflix’s attempt to frame the series in a more responsible manner. But here’s some even more honest guidance: Even if you or someone you care about is not currently struggling with those aforementioned issues, the second season of this series still may not be right for you. While it contains some touching moments as well as tender performances from its ensemble cast, the second season of 13 Reasons Why is, above all else, a string of 13 episodes struggling to justify their existence.
The first season, adapted by Brian Yorkey from the YA novel by Jay Asher, more or less followed the basic structure of the book: After Hannah Baker (Katherine Langford) commits suicide, she leaves behind a series of cassette tapes that explain, via a focus on numerous peers who affected her life, the 13 reasons why she decided to slit her wrists and end it all. Through flashbacks and present-day attempts by her close friend Clay (Dylan Minnette), her parents (Kate Walsh and Brian d’Arcy James), and others to get to the bottom of what happened to Hannah, season one provided a window into the teen psyche and, by the end, a measure of closure. In other words, the first season didn’t exactly beg for a second.
But after 13 Reasons Why became one of Netflix’s buzziest shows last year, in part because its unflinching look at suicide kick-started a conversation among teens, educators, and parents, a second season was announced. I was skeptical at first that it was necessary. After watching the entire thing, that skepticism seems justified.
Without the cassette tapes to provide a narrative spine, Yorkey and his fellow writers rely on the ongoing trial that springs from a civil suit filed by Hannah’s parents against Liberty High School to provide one. As the Bakers and their attorney, played with a dignified lawyerly air by My So-Called Life alum Wilson Cruz, attempt to make the case that the school system didn’t do enough to help Hannah, many of her friends and peers take the stand and rehash for a jury the same conflicts that were discussed in-depth on all those cassettes. But in many of these testimonials, we get entirely new pieces of information about Hannah’s personal life. In theory, this furthers the underlying conceit of season one: that there are always multiple sides to every story.
The problem is that some of these new sides — including the revelation of a romantic relationship between Hannah and a fellow student that was never even hinted at in season one — fly in the face of the way the characters related to each other in the first season. It’s one thing to offer new perspectives on a complicated narrative. It’s a whole other thing to add layers that drain the emotional logic out of what we saw before.
In keeping with the analog theme, the other central story line involves a stash of Polaroid photographs that could implicate the show’s primary villain, jock/serial rapist Bryce Walker (Justin Prentice), as well as Liberty High’s culture of denial and self-preservation. In addition to the trial and the business related to the instant photos, the show continues to follow the individual struggles of numerous characters, including Clay, who is dating his longtime friend Skye (Sosie Bacon) but still pining for Hannah; Jessica, who is trying to find a new normal while dealing with the after-effects of being raped; Alex (Miles Heizer), still recovering emotionally and physically from his own suicide attempt; Tyler (Devin Druid), a loner who finds a new compatriot who shares his mistrust of authority; Justin (Brandon Flynn), Jessica’s ex and a former love interest of Hannah’s who’s homeless and mired in heroin addiction; and Olivia Baker (Walsh), who continues to mourn the loss of her daughter while focusing her energy on the lawsuit and the hope that some amount of justice may be served.
This is only a partial list of what’s going on in 13 Reasons Why Part Two, which tells you how relentlessly heavy this season is, and that it’s biting off more narrative than viewers can comfortably swallow. There are too many episodes, and every one is 15 minutes longer than it needs to be. At times, I was wading through this show rather than watching it. (When I got to the finale and saw that it was 70 minutes long, I let out an internal scream.)
To its credit, 13 Reasons Why takes the concerns of young adults seriously. But it also heightens and exaggerates them for dramatic effect, which can make all those mined-from-the-real-world worries seem like the stuff of soap operas. Take the fact that Langford’s Hannah is still a regular character, appearing both in flashbacks, which is fine, and as a ghost who is constantly haunting Clay. Which is … weird? This is hardly the first time that a departed character has remained a visible TV entity — it’s happened on The Leftovers, Six Feet Under, and plenty of other dramas. But the presence of Hannah here feels more like a convenient way to keep Langford, the most recognizable face of 13 Reasons Why, in the show. Her presence signifies Clay’s inability to move on, but it’s handled in such a hokey way that it just doesn’t work. “Are you corporeal?” Clay asks the first time Ghost Hannah appears before him. “That seems like a science-fiction question,” she says. “Can I touch you?” he asks. “That seems like a loaded question,” she responds. Like most teenagers, this whole dynamic is way too self-conscious.
Even when the dialogue is a little awkward, though, the actors continually elevate the material. Minnette and Langford still have nice chemistry together, even if Hannah is technically a mere specter to Clay. Heizer, Boe, and Druid, in particular, evoke their characters’ vulnerabilities without ever chewing scenery. Derek Luke, who plays school counselor Luke Porter like he’s perpetually sleep-walking, finally gets a chance to prove he can actually emote in episode nine. In every episode, Prentice is — and this really is a compliment — a spectacular asshole. He’s not just the bad dude in every ’80s movie, he’s James Spader in Pretty in Pink and every member of the Cobra Kai dojo rolled into one privileged, popped-collar, sexual assaulter. It is impossible to like him, and that’s as it should be. And then there’s Kate Walsh, who is the heartbreaking standout of the season, not just because she’s in a lot of scenes that bring her to tears, but because of the moments when it’s obvious that Olivia Baker is actively holding herself together so she won’t publicly break.
13 Reasons Why generated a lot of controversy in its first season, particularly from those who worried that it would lead to Hannah Baker copycats. That criticism is addressed directly in episode nine, when Principal Bolan (Steven Weber) gets into an argument with Clay about Hannah’s tapes, noting that they could cause “suicide contagion.” The show seems to side with Clay in this back-and-forth, who suggests that people like Bolan don’t really listen to kids and that there’s more good than harm that can come from talking about things like suicide. That is clearly the show’s point of view as well, and in general I don’t disagree with it. I’m just not sure 13 Reasons Why is executed with enough nuance and depth to generate the kinds of substantive conversation that a show like, say, season two of American Crime did.
At a certain point while watching this second season, I grew concerned that 13 Reasons Why would ultimately go to a very dark and dicey place. In the season finale, that’s exactly what it does. Those final moments will certainly get people talking about and criticizing the series again. They also will have some wondering whether there may be a season three.
The ending is open-ended enough to suggest that may be the case, which makes me hope that the team behind it takes the advice that Olivia Baker ultimately offers to the young men and women who knew her late daughter: that it’s really time to move on.
