Yellowjackets made a lot of promises in Season 1, and with most of Season 2 out, the series has not disappointed. Furthering the development of these incredible characters, showing that nothing is what it seems and that the wilderness is more present than the protagonists could ever imagine. Female rage, addiction, trauma, and PTSD are some subjects explored in the story. With a fresh approach to the genre and the characters, the writers and creators made several creative choices that enhanced their storytelling.

One is how their perception of reality, trauma, and the supernatural are embedded into these characters’ different perspectives of what happened to them. These elements are not particularly new to the genre, but the show made them so uniquely their own that they can trick the audience into following a train of thought, only to be surprised later.
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAYSCROLL TO CONTINUE WITH CONTENT

Here’s how reality and its distortion were used in a much-awaited moment in Season 2, as well as how it continues to be developed in the following episode.

Hallucinations and Reality in Yellowjackets

Showtime

There has been a built-up happening since Season 1 and culminating in Season 2: the idea of reality distortion due to trauma or the supernatural depending on the characters’ beliefs. The characters experience profound traumatic experiences; doing whatever they need to survive left a mark on them.

Related: Yellowjackets: Who Is More Unhinged, Shauna or Misty?

Some girls, such as Tai (the teen version played by Jasmin Savoy Brown and an adult version played by Tawny Cypress), experience hallucinations and events she can’t fully comprehend or control throughout the series. Lottie (with a teen version played by Courtney Eaton and an adult version played by Simone Kessell) experiences visions that could be considered hallucinations but are perceived as supernatural by her.

Because the writers set up that hallucinations are somewhat common and are happening to these characters in critical moments, the viewers have that in the back of their minds when something that feels off happens. The reality, for the characters and the viewers, is not set in stone and, most of the time, can’t be relied on. Does the wilderness express itself, or is it the trauma talking? One of the show’s best elements is this faulty perception of reality, and they did a brilliant job exploring it in a much-expected episode six of Season 2, “Qui,” when Shauna (the teen version played by Sophie Nélisse) gives birth.

Shauna Gives Birth

Showtime

A terrifying moment has come: Shauna goes into labor. Many have been speculating on it since the first season when it became clear that the character was pregnant. The brutal reality of being stranded in the woods during winter, the girl’s lack of preparation and knowledge of what to do, and the fact they have been starving for months solidified how hard this would be. The writers knew that fans of the show wouldn’t believe everything was alright. So, to still surprise the audience with the outcome of what happened, they used the devices they had created for hallucinations and trauma and subverted them.

Shauna has difficulties with childbirth and faints. When she wakes up, everything is fine. However, the other girls start to act weird around her, as if there’s something wrong with her son. This makes the audience jump to the conclusion: he is dead and Shauna’s hallucination. This corroborates that Shauna only has a daughter in the present timeline, played by Melanie Lynskey. It’s an immediate thought process that was created by what happened in previous episodes.

Related: Yellowjackets: Why Jackie Deserved Better

Shauna spends some time with her son, and things get better. However, later, she finds her friends eating her baby in a disturbing scene. This was a perfect mixture of what the fans expected to happen and Shauna’s guilt for eating her best friend’s body. Then, Shauna wakes up, and we realize everything was a dream, and unfortunately, the baby didn’t make it. It kept in with the themes and ways of this particular story while surprising the viewers.

Deepening Hallucinations in Burial

Showtime

The series has been building up to the idea of the yellowjackets losing their minds due to what they had to do and what supernatural forces they encountered. Following this thread, in the next episode, “Burial,” the series dives deeper into these themes in the ’90s timeline and the present. It focuses on two characters with deep ties to the hallucinations: Lottie and Shauna.

The audience finally got to see Lottie in the present day in Season 2. Running a wellness center may appear to be working to heal her wounds, but the past comes back — and the wilderness won’t forgive or forget. She is the only one trying to work on her trauma in therapy and using medication to control her visions. However, at the end of “Burial,” it is revealed that she never had a therapist: it was all in her head. Then, the antler queen appears in front of her before disappearing. In the past, Shauna was crushed with grief for her child. It goes to such a deep level that, for a moment, she believed that what she saw while unconscious: the other girls were eating her baby was real.

One of the best things about Yellowjackets is that the show is its own thing, and it knows how to explore the intricate storylines and devices they created. With only a few more episodes left, fans can’t wait to see what will happen next in this brutal yet intoxicating story.