“Outer Banks” Season 3: Original Hype Washed Away
Rapidly reaching the No. 1 spot on Netflix’s “Top 10” for television series, season three of the hit show Outer Banks was released on Feb. 27. Once labeled an automatic-hit upon its season one premiere in March 2020, fans and casual viewers have started to question if the show is worthy of its initial hype.
When the show was released in the first month of quarantine, teens with considerably more time became obsessed. The pandemic likely added a compelling aspect to the show as watching other teens have an exciting friendship and adventure-filled summer outside was something that many longed for during this time.
“With its Vineyard Vines versus boho-lite fashion, its oversimplified rich-versus-poor politics, its neon sunsets, and absurd beachside hijinks (including multiple sunken ships), the series yawned open the electric summer fantasy that COVID had smacked shut,” “Elle” magazine said in a review of the first season.
In the third season, the lighthearted friendships that many initially fell in love with are replaced by more dramatic action sequences. Throughout the show, it is evident that the action and violence increases as the main cast gets closer to the treasure. As the more personal showings of the characters fades away, viewers find it harder to connect with the new characters added to the cast.
“One of the things that disappointed me this season was the fact that [the characters] never worked together,” sophomore Soha Hussain said. “They were always separated, and I was really looking forward to seeing them come together.”
Not only did the relationships in the show cause confusion in viewers, but some tangled plotlines caused controversy as well. Particularly, the mythic “Big John” Routledge coming back from the dead was a cause for contention among fans. While it was a bittersweet moment for John B to reunite with his dad, Big John, his father turned out to be not as good of a dad as previously assumed, almost ruining the moment.
And, although the show originally drew people in with its intriguing romantic relationships, the once-entertaining elements became extremely dragged out in the most recent season as all the main characters coupled up with each other. The close relationships felt forced and had a lack of build up, leaving fans feeling much less emotionally involved than those in the show.
Despite uninspired writing and confusing plotlines, the finale “Secret of the Gnomon” was a largely fulfilling and stronger ending to an otherwise weaker addition in the series.
The creators announced the renewal of the fourth season prior to the release of the third. With this announcement, fans are back in a familiar place, questioning if the series will conclude more like the beginning or the end of its most recent season.
Emma Goodfriend is a senior, returning to the "Bulldog Tribune" for her third year. Goodfriend is a part of Cards For Cause and is a tutor at the writing...