Let’s get this out of the way first: if you didn’t like the first season of MTV’s Scream, you probably aren’t going to like the second season (or at least the premiere, which was the only episode made available for review). The series retains its teenage melodrama reminiscent of a soapier than usual episode of Pretty Little Liars, but does amp up the violence to please gorehounds. After being met with tepid ratings and even worse backlash from fans after the first season (which I was lukewarm on but still found some things to like about it), MTV surprised us all with a second season renewal. Have the creators taken the criticisms to heart and improved upon the first season? Well, yes and no.
***Minor SPOILERS ahead, but nothing too revealing.***
After an opening tag that is reminiscent of the first scenes of Scream 2 and Scream 4 (it’s just not as creative by a long shot), the season picks up three months after the events of the first season finale. We find Emma (Willa Fitzgerald) returning to Lakewood after some much-needed therapy. She joins the rest of the Lakewood Six: Queen Bitch Brooke (Carlson Young, the MVP of last season), possible Ghostface accomplice Audrey (Bex Taylor-Klaus), movie geek Noah (John Karna), ex-boyfriend Kieran (Amadeus Serafini) and resident douchebag Jake (Tom Maden) as they all try to piece their lives back together after narrowly escaping death at the hands of Piper Shaw. Some are handling the trauma better than others, with Emma suffering several post-traumatic stress episodes throughout the course of the premiere.
The episode does address the big cliffhanger from last season regarding Audrey’s relationship with Piper (her story also gives the episode its namesake: “I Know What You Did Last Summer”). The new killer(s) begins tormenting her via his/her/their signature texts and phone calls, posting photocopies of her letters to Piper (the ones she burned up in the finale) in bathroom stalls for her to see. Not surprisingly, not many answers are given as to what Audrey’s motives are, but it’s a nice little jumping off point for the season.
As was the case with the first season, Scream returns to us as a teen soap opera. If you thought the change in showrunner was going to change the series’ identity, you were wrong. The dialogue can be laughably bad at times (Noah’s “this is just like a movie but it’s real life” monologues are just as grating and forced as ever) and the acting isn’t always up to snuff, but if you embrace the ridiculousness of it all you’re bound to have some fun with Scream. It’s just a shame that the show takes itself so seriously sometimes. It clearly thinks it’s a lot better than it is, which was the main reason the first season had so many issues.
MTV has been touting a major character death during the marketing for the show’s second season, and they do deliver in that regard. The only problem is that said character is kidnapped by the new Ghostface(s) and kept alive for the duration of the premiere for no particular reason. When death finally comes, it makes one wonder why the character was kept alive for so long in the first place. Scream has a little too much fat that needs trimming and this episode’s death is a step in the right direction. That being said, it is a satisfying death that shows the series isn’t going to be messing around this season, though those of you hoping that Emma would be the first to go will be disappointed. She’s the main character guys. As dull as she is, we just won’t be able to get rid of her.
Another thing the premiere gets right is that it is actually fun. The premiere toys with audience expectations, teasing half a dozen possible deaths for nearly every main character involved. Of course most of them are just fake-outs, but it shows that Scream is learning to play with its audience. Ann added benefit is that these characters have clearly grown up since last season. They are more relatable for the most part and since we spent 10 episodes getting to know them last season less time is spend on character development, helping to move the proceedings along at a quicker pace. Of course, since the body count is rising the series has incorporated new characters into the mix and it is handled a little clumsily. The character of Zoe (Kiana Ledé), specifically, is problematic because the show tries to make it look like her and Emma have been friends since childhood even though she didn’t appear once in the first season. The new sheriff (Anthony Ruivivar) and his son (Santiago Segura) fare slightly better.
Look, you know whether or not you’re going to like (or put up with) Scream. If you were able to enjoy Scream’s first season and overlook it’s multitude of flaws, you should have no problem jumping back in with season two. If you hated every second of it, then don’t bother watching season 2 in the hopes that it has become a vastly different show. This is a Scream for a new generation and whether you like it or not, it is what it is. It isn’t the travesty so many people make it out to be, but it certainly has a long way to go before being labeled as quality television.