When Wednesday first premiered on Netflix, it was groundbreaking for both the franchise and the platform itself. Jenna Ortega and Tim Burton truly knocked it out of the park. But…it’s been three years. And I still bitterly blame Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss. Not just for making it socially acceptable for TV series to take ungodly amounts of time between seasons, but for setting an industry standard. It has now been three years since Wednesday’s first season, and while the wait was painful, it was ultimately worth it.

Fortunately for Netflix, Jenna Ortega can still convincingly pass as a high school student, so she’s returning to Nevermore Academy. This time, however, her mother Morticia receives much more screen time, taking on the role of advisor and planner for the school. Naturally, she and Wednesday butt heads constantly, a familiar dynamic in many mother–daughter relationships.

Pugsley also enrolls at Nevermore this season. In true Addams fashion, he brings along his pet zombie, “Slurp,” to school which he insists is a brilliant idea…even though, despite his best efforts, Slurp accidentally kills a few innocent people.

There’s also a new principal, Barry Dort, stepping in after the previous headmistress was murdered by her own renegade teacher. Steve Buscemi takes on the role, and while his character feels unusually cheerful and optimistic for such a grim institution, he somehow fits perfectly.

Wednesday gains a new “friend” in Agnes DeMille, a quirky redhead whose behavior borders less on friendly and more on obsessive stalking. Agnes can turn invisible and harbors a deep, envy-fueled hatred for Enid Sinclair.

Meanwhile, things aren’t looking too bright for Enid. She’s conflicted about where she stands romantically, and to make matters worse, Wednesday has a chilling vision in which Enid dies, and Wednesday herself is to blame.

One notable aspect of this season is the sheer number of villains. Tyler, the original co-antagonist from Season 1, returns but isn’t the primary threat this time. The character I expected to be the main villain wasn’t, and the actual culprit delivers a shocking twist.

When Part 1 of the season dropped, I was honestly convinced the series had lost its spark. But with the release of Part 2, the show regained its momentum and delivered almost everything fans could hope for in a second season, despite its lackluster start. Now, if Netflix and Amazon MGM Studios could avoid making us wait another three years for the next installment, that would be fantastic.