By Sienna Thompson, Second year, English
Season Two of Ginny and Georgia (2021-) has finally hit Netflix’s screen. It is undoubtedly one of the more anticipated releases after it gained a massive following in the 2021 lockdown and blew up online. The show’s slightly cringe-worthy but loveable characters returned for a second season as they navigate life in Wellsbury.
This season explores more of Ginny’s (Antonia Gentry) complicated relationship with her wild and youthful mum, Georgia (Brianne Howey). It follows on from the last season, where Ginny and her younger brother Austin (Diesel La Torraca) ran away from home and stayed with Ginny’s father Zion (Nathan Mitchell) after discovering more of Georgia’s dark past.
Online, Ginny, as a character, has been mocked tirelessly for her immaturity and cringey dialogue. However, this season there is a very noticeable growth in her character development. There is still some poor writing with her dialogue that will make you wince, but Ginny does represent a lot of teenagers in today’s generation accurately.
There was an excellent tackle on several aspects of teenage mental health issues. The most memorable for me was Ginny’s battle with self-harm and her parents discovering. The contrast between Zion's and Georgia’s reactions was evident, but both gave emotional performances, particularly Georgia’s. This appeared to be a turning point in their relationship with one another, but they both have a very hot and cold relationship. However, it did give Georgia more of an understanding of her daughter that was not there before.
I was very relieved to see Marcus had practically a whole episode to focus on the effect his depression is having on his life. He was viewed as a comic relief character as well as Ginny’s love interest, so to have this reveal this season was upsetting but also realistic. It reflected the way Ginny’s issues have pushed aside his own serious problems and emphasised more male mental health that I didn’t think the show would approach.
I did hope to see more of Abby’s (Katie Douglas) issues delved into. There were a few scenes that opened a storyline for her extreme body image issues that not many characters realised. They were only addressed by Press (Damian Romeo), who she possessed an odd relationship with as he mocked her body, and she allowed this due to her parent’s divorce shattering her confidence and self-respect.
Gil (Aaron Ashmore) was an extremely uncomfortable character this season. His role as Austin’s father and Georgia’s abusive ex-boyfriend that she sent to prison allowed him a way into their life that posed a terrifying threat. Aaron Ashmore did an amazing job playing this role, as did Ben Caldwell for his flashback scenes where he abused a young Georgia.
Following this up, my favourite scenes from this series were the flashback scenes showing a teenage Georgia raising Ginny and Austin. Nikki Roumel captured Georgia’s essence spectacularly and portrayed the image of an abuse survivor brilliantly. These scenes truly show Georgia’s love for her children and how much she was willing to do for them.
The final episodes (without spoiling too much) were structured so well with this overlaying timeline. It was very enjoyable to see sections of the storyline that seemed abandoned come to light and play their part as we reached the show’s climax. Another brilliant cliffhanger has been left with this season that hopefully sets up a season three in near sight.
If you’re familiar with the first season, then you’ll know this is not a show known for its genius writing or acting skills. But there are still raw portrayals of the teenage struggle through high school that I feel was captured perfectly. If you enjoyed season one, this season does not disappoint at all.
Featured Image: IMDB and Netflix
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