13 Reasons Why season three is a copycat, confusing, drag along rollercoaster that gave viewers some comfort after the not-so-favored second season.
Season three copies a lot of the first season, stealing some elements that made season one memorable, such as using certain methods to signify the past and present.
In the first season, viewers were able to determine the present when Clay Jenson, the “hero” of the show, is wearing a band-aid on his forehead. Whenever the band-aid was absent it would signify the story was now taking place in the past.
In the third season there is a play with color. The past is a lot brighter with vibrant color, whilst the present is gloomier with a blue atmosphere. This change in color is distracting, unappealing and often becomes hard to notice when something isn’t a memory.
Also, like the first season, season three uses flashbacks to place pieces together which will eventually uncover the mystery of each character’s relationship with the person of interest who has passed away.
For season one, the character of interest was Hannah Baker who committed suicide after being physically or mentally damaged by 13 people.
In season three it’s Bryce Walker who was murdered on the night of the Homecoming football game.
This element was very nostalgic and well done as every flashback felt like another one of Hannah Baker’s tapes.
Another element that came to attention was the position of Hannah Baker. In season one, Hannah Baker was the narrator.
In the third season we are introduced to Amorowat Anysia “Ani” Achola, who has almost taken the place of Hannah Baker. Ani is thrown into the group and almost instantly knows everything about everyone in Liberty High School, and her reason is because she’s a “real good listener.”
Ani getting involved in everyone’s business is an annoyance, especially in moments when she makes a comment on certain topics that she has no business being involved in.
However, Ani does show that she cares for the outcome of the group and for Clay.
She’s also helpful in uncovering the truth of Bryce’s murder and the innocence of Clay, but her character is almost sweeping Hannah Baker under the rug like she never happened.
These elemental copies practically make season three a reboot to season one, but instead this season is dealing with the problems of murder, conflicting friendships and more controversial issues.
There are also these confusing relationships that the show wants to force upon the viewer in a very unrealistic manner.
For example, Tyler Downs almost became a school shooter after being abandoned by his friends and being sexually assaulted by Montgomery “Monty” De La Cruz, but Clay Jenson miraculously stands in front of Tyler’s gun and talks him down from committing the act.
Regardless of being sexually assaulted, Tyler almost committed a very serious crime that shows some mental instability in him and instead of going to the police, Clay takes matters into his own hands. Clay tries to give Tyler help through friendship and school counselors.
Also, Tony Padilla, a good friend of Clay Jensen and Hannah Baker, goes as far as to hide Tyler’s guns from the police thus tampering with evidence.
At the start of the season, Clay and his friends are committing a serious crime, yet we ignore that to form a relationship and care for these characters and their well-being – especially Justin who routinely abused drugs, dealt drugs, tampered with evidence and even went as far as to almost get another person killed so they wouldn’t talk to the police. Also, we start to confusingly form a relationship with Bryce Walker.
Bryce Walker is a main character throughout the series who positions himself as the King of Liberty High, but viewers know him as the bully who has sexually assaulted many young female students.
In season three, Bryce is this character of interest after he is found to be murdered on the night of the Homecoming football game.
Ani and Clay slowly uncover secrets of their friends as to how they had a relationship to Bryce over the three months time frame after the season two Hannah Baker trial.
Slowly the viewers get this sense of Bryce just being a troubled boy hoping to seek redemption. This gives off mixed emotions, as viewers are left wanting to feel sorry for Bryce, but at the same time not wanting to forgive the terrible acts he’s done.
This gradually becomes a constant theme of feeling sorry for someone despite their bad behaviors.
The way the show goes about these situations is very unrealistic and unfavorable because at the end Alex Standall gets away with murder.
The immunity that the characters get is hardly relatable to the viewers. Season one of 13 Reasons Why portrayed the reality of how bullying can affect someone else and how suicide often gets overlooked.
Season two tried to reach those who were silent victims to speak up, but the message of 13 Reasons Why in season three gets lost with the drama that unfolds.
This rollercoaster of emotion in the third season is overall better than the previous second season and gives us the elements that made 13 Reasons Why a good show.
The way they handled controversial topics such as suicide and drug abuse may not have been favorable, but it still portrayed the reality of how these problems are dealt with by certain individuals.
However, this could have been a more connective experience if it wasn’t revolving around a murder. The ending does throw hints at a fourth season that could relate to what happens after Tyler’s guns are found and what Winston, the student who had relations with Monty is going to do with the information pertaining to Ani’s orchestrated lie.
Will there be another trial like in season two or will it involve another traumatic incident amongst the group? Guess we’ll have to wait.