Storytelling (Yellowjackets)
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Episode 9
| "Storytelling" | |
|---|---|
| Yellowjackets episode | |
| Episode no. | Season 2 Episode 9 |
| Directed by | Karyn Kusama |
| Written by | Ameni Rozsa |
| Cinematography by | Shasta Spahn |
| Editing by |
|
| Original air date | May 28, 2023 |
| Running time | 61 minutes |
| Guest appearances | |
| |
"Storytelling" is the ninth episode and season finale of the second season of the American thriller drama television series Yellowjackets. It is the nineteenth overall episode of the series and was written by executive producer Ameni Rozsa, and directed by executive producer Karyn Kusama. It aired on Showtime on May 28, 2023, but it was available to stream two days earlier on Paramount+ with Showtime.
The series follows a New Jersey high school girls' soccer team that travels to Seattle for a national tournament in 1996. While flying over Canada, their plane crashes deep in the wilderness, and the surviving team members are left stranded for nineteen months. The series chronicles their attempts to stay alive as some of the team members are driven to cannibalism. It also focuses on the lives of the survivors 25 years later in 2021, as the events of their ordeal continue to affect them many years after their rescue. In the episode, the women conspire to get Lottie committed, while Kevyn and Matt close in the commune. Flashbacks depict the team eating Javi's body, and Ben reaches his breaking point.
According to Nielsen Media Research, the episode was seen by an estimated 0.134 million household viewers and gained a 0.02 ratings share among adults aged 18–49. The episode received mixed reviews from critics, with many polarized over the decision to kill Natalie.
Flashbacks
The girls return with Javi's body, devastating Travis (Kevin Alves). Misty (Samantha Hanratty) informs Lottie (Courtney Eaton) about their intentions to eat Javi, which she is not pleased with. Misty then leaves, and the girls dismember Javi's body. When Ben (Steven Krueger) returns, he tells Natalie (Sophie Thatcher) about Javi's hideout and wants her to come with him, but she feels guilt for his death. Dejected, he leaves alone to Javi's hideout.
Travis is unable to bring himself to eat his own brother, but Van (Liv Hewson) convinces him in doing so by not letting his love and sacrifice go to waste. That night, Lottie tells the group that the wilderness no longer needs her as their leader because they can all communicate with it now and declares Natalie to be the new leader. Ben returns and steals matches. Later, the cabin is set on fire. Shauna wakes up the other girls and they manage to break down the door (that has been barred) using an axe. The girls barely escape the cabin, staring in horror as it burns, and the season ends without us knowing for sure who - or what - burned down the cabin.
Present day
Before Lottie (Simone Kessell) gets them to drink the cups, Shauna (Melanie Lynskey) states that "it" wants them to select the sacrifice based on a hunt like they did in the wilderness. The others play along and Lottie leaves to get the commune out of their area, unaware that they are conspiring to get her committed to an institution. As Misty (Christina Ricci) checks out, she runs into Walter (Elijah Wood), who reveals he has a plan.
Jeff (Warren Kole) and Callie (Sarah Desjardins) arrive at Lottie's commune, followed by Kevyn (Alex Wyndham) and Matt (John Reynolds). While Kevyn and Walter talk, Jeff decides to surrender himself, claiming he killed Adam. However, Kevyn collapses, with Walter revealing he poisoned him. During this, Lottie gets the women to draw cards again, with the person getting the Queen of Hearts selected as the hunted. Shauna draws it, and despite her resistance, she is forced to run while the others chase her across the commune.
When Matt checks the car, he finds Kevyn's unconscious body, and Walter suddenly appears and kills Kevyn with a gun. Walter explains that he framed Kevyn with Adam's murder, providing the needed evidence in his bank accounts, and that he can cooperate by supporting the claim or also be framed for it. While the women chase Shauna, Callie takes a gun from Jeff's car and shoots Lottie in the shoulder, forcing them to retreat. Taissa (Tawny Cypress) and Van (Lauren Ambrose) then reveal that they called off the assistance to commit Lottie, having decided she does not deserve it.
When Lisa (Nicole Maines) arrives with a shotgun, Misty charges towards her with a phenobarbital injection. However, Natalie (Juliette Lewis) jumps in the way and takes the injection, dying in Misty's arms. While Misty cries over her body, Natalie imagines boarding a plane with Javi, Lottie and her young self. The authorities arrive, taking Natalie's body, and also taking Lottie in an ambulance. Before leaving, she tells them that "it" is satisfied, telling them "you'll see."
Development
Production
The episode was written by executive producer Ameni Rozsa, and directed by executive producer Karyn Kusama. This marked Rozsa's fifth writing credit, and Kusama's second directing credit.[1]
Writing
Regarding Natalie's death, Ashley Lyle and Bart Nickerson explained, "As upsetting as it always is to lose a character who is as important to our story as Natalie, the fact is that the stakes of the world are life and death. The ritual itself awakens something in them that had been dormant for a really long time. What we're trying to do with the present-day story is to show that that force is not one that ends when they get rescued."[2] Sophie Thatcher explained Natalie's young self in the plane scene, "she's been so far removed from herself and gone in and out of these suicidal feelings and thoughts, I think my character is talking about when she let herself go in the wilderness."[3]