MTV’s Teen Wolf returns next week with two episodes — first, the season premiere, “Omega,” which follows the MTV Movie Awards; and then on Monday night in its regular time slot, with the second episode of the season, “Shape Shifted.”
It has been quite a long wait for fans of the show who haven’t seen new Teen Wolf since August. Fortunately, though, the series picks up right where it left off, and it starts building momentum again instantly.
Many people including myself have pointed out that Teen Wolf, on paper, sounded like an instant bomb. It appeared to have very little to do with the Michael J. Fox movie aside from the first name of the protagonist and the fact that he has a best friend named Stiles. But somewhere along the line — either thanks to some clever writing and direction, fun characters, and a likeable cast — people who dared to tune in realized “Hey! This is pretty fun!” For me, I think I was roped in because there were certain tropes that reminded me of past TV favorites of mine including The Vampire Diaries and Smallville.
So what do we have to look forward to? (Spoilers may follow; you have been warned)
We’re going to see what exactly happened to Lydia and Jackson following the events of last year’s finale — and if it’s not totally explained, it appears that it will be. We’re going to see shirtlessness and [tastefully covered] nudity, both male and female. As a new Alpha Derek has a new approach that might be different from something that Scott would agree with. Scott and Allison try to keep their relationship secret, but that might become more difficult once we meet her grandfather, played by the amazing Michael Hogan from Battlestar Galactica.
The casting of Hogan surprised me; somehow I managed to miss that casting spoiler entirely. Another familiar but welcome face is John Wesley Shipp of The Flash and Dawson’s Creek fame. Shipp plays the father of a new character named Isaac that we meet in the season premiere. Those who are used to Barry Allen or Mitch Leery might be a little shocked — Shipp plays such an unlikeable character that you have no choice but to hate. The performance was so strong that I could totally forget those roles that I knew and liked so much.
Daniel Sharman is the actor that has been chosen for Isaac and he is pretty much the “anti-Scott.” He’s going through some changes of his own that we will see fairly quickly, and having such a nasty father is not going to help matters. Fortunately, rather than feeling like one of those tacked-on-for-Season-2 characters that often happen with TV, it seems Isaac is a very good and interesting addition to the troupe.
Another new character we meet in the premiere is a photographer named Matt (played by Stephen Lunsford) who seems to have his camera set on Allison. We’ll probably learn more about him as time goes on.
Even with these new additions, old favorites come into play in the premiere episodes as well. So those who want to see Coach Finstock, Danny, Mrs. Argent, or Mr. Harris are all in luck. Fans looking for the slash might also find some moments you’ll have some fun with.
If there is any complaint that I have so far about Season 2 of Teen Wolf, it is that Season 2, like the first season, only has twelve episodes. A show like this can stand out against and even exceed some of its similar-demographic network counterparts, and I’m spoiled. I’d love to see a 22-episode season some year. Either way, be sure to tune in on Sunday night and beyond to check it out… Season 1 is available on DVD… and if you’d like to talk about it with other fans, there’s a forum for that. Also, keep your eyes open for a KSiteTV interview with showrunner Jeff Davis within the next two days. We’re almost there!
1 Comment
haha, I honestly that this would be terrible and then I watched it and quickly realized how wrong I was EVEN without using my slash goggles (which make the show even better lol)
Love the casting; I watched the old Flash show and I’m going to get a perverse pleasure out of seeing him do such a different role.