Jenna Ortega in “Wednesday” Season 2.
Netflix
Tim Burton and Jenna Ortega’s Wednesday Season 2 is back on Netflix after nearly three years with Part 1. How are Rotten Tomatoes critics reacting to the first four episodes of the series?
Wednesday Season 1, which premiered on Netflix in November of 2022, went on to become the most-watched series globally of all time on Netflix with 252.1 million views, equating to 1.718 billion hours viewed.
Wednesday Season 1 earned a 73% “fresh” rating based on 105 reviews, from Rotten Tomatoes critics, while audiences gave the series an 85% “fresh” Popcornmeter score based on 5,000-plus verified user ratings.
After the review embargo was lifted for Wednesday Season 2 on Wednesday at 12 a.m. PT/3 a.m., reviews started rolling in from RT critics and as of the publication of this article, the second season is getting a better reception than the first.
So far, Wednesday Season 2 has earned an 85% “fresh” rating on RT based on 41 reviews, while audiences have given it a 73% “fresh” score on the site’s Popcornmeter based on 50-plus verified user ratings.
The RT Critics Consensus and Popcornmeter score for Wednesday Season 2 are still pending.
What Are Individual Critics Saying About ‘Wednesday’ Season 2?
Lorraine Ali of the Los Angeles Times is among the top critics on RT who gives Wednesday Season 2 a “fresh” rating, writing in her review summary, “It’s really the performances, casting and artistic flourishes that make Wednesday a ghoulish delight.”
Aramide Tinubu of Variety also loves Wednesday Season 2, writing on RT, “Full of zing and depth, the season remains just as thrilling as the first.”
Vicky Jessop of the London Evening Standard is also enthusiastic about Wednesday Season 2, writing in her “fresh” RT review summary, “Tim Burton’s latest work is still deliciously twisted, and goes down like a spoonful of poisoned sugar. Something this addictive certainly isn’t good for us, but we’ll keep coming back for more.”
Ed Power of the UK’s Daily Telegraph also lauds Wednesday Season 2, writing on RT, “A near three-year delay would have killed off a lesser show, but Wednesday’s murderously enjoyable second season proves worth the wait.”
Nick Schager of The Daily Beast is among the top critics on RT who gives Wednesday Season 2 a “rotten” rating, writing in his review summary, “Oozing with plot and attitude but dreadfully short on inspiration, it continues to feel like a training-wheels Burton rehash that’s only fit for viewers under the age of 13.”
IndieWire critic Ben Travers isn’t impressed by Wednesday Season 2, either, writing in his RT review summary, “The absent attention to detail beyond what’s stylish, combined with the neat-and-tidy aesthetic mandated for broadly appealing teen dramas, puts the focus back on what Season 2 is trying to say, which isn’t much.”
Susie Goldsborough of UK’s The Times also isn’t a fan of Wednesday Season 2. She notes the creator of the characters her RT review summary, writing, “Had Charles Addams not been cremated and scattered in his own pet cemetery in upstate New York (a decision weirder and more appealing than anything that happens in Wednesday) he would likely be turning in his grave.”
Daniel Fienberg of The Hollywood Reporter also gives Wednesday Season 2 a “rotten” review on RT, writing, “Re-contextualizing all of the Addams relatives into an exceptional world, in which what once made them creepy, kooky and altogether ooky is commonplace, drains them of any distinction at all.”
Created by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, Wednesday Season 2, Part 1, which consists of four episodes, is new on Netflix. Season 2, Part 2, which concludes with Episodes 5-8, arrives on Netflix on Wednesday, Sept. 3.