TEAM BUILDING EXERCISES: With Jackson seemingly dead from a wound he caused himself, Mama McCall follows his body to the morgue, where she discovers the body is slowly encasing itself in its own gel-venom. Oh, it’s also twitching. Derek and Peter meet up with Isaac and Scott. Peter believes that if Jackson is dead, it’s only because Gerard wants it that way, so they all decide to investigate together to find out what’s really going on. They agree to steal Jackson’s body, because Peter and Derek have also discovered that the kanima may evolve into an even fiercer creature.
Meanwhile, Chris Argent decides his father has corrupted his daughter and is acting so far outside the code that he is uncomfortable. He finds Isaac and Scott struggling to move Jackson’s body and offers to help them. This leads to everyone congregating on the same warehouse for an epic showdown…
MVP: After disappearing at the end of the game, it turns out that Stiles was kidnapped by Gerard. The hunter brings Stiles to the Argent’s basement of torture where he has the Boyd and Erica attached to electric devices. Gerard proceeds to beat the crap out of Stiles, and then… inexplicably… lets him go? Indeed. Stiles goes home all busted up to his frantic father. He tells his dad that some guys from the other team beat him up. Stiles then proceeds to wallow in his own misery, but then Lydia shows up. She is extremely sad about Jackson and came to him for comfort. Lydia is still carrying a key to Jackon’s house that she never gave back to him after their breakup.
They talk for a while, and there seems to be a moment where she understands how much he cares about her, but it’s lost, and she leaves. Sheriff Stilinski comes in and gives Stiles a brief pep talk, reminding his son that even with all the bad that has happened, Stiles was still the MVP of the game, a hero.
THE FINAL SCENES: So, rollcall. Derek, Peter, Isaac, Chris, Scott, and Jackson in a body bag arrive a warehouse for the climax. Oh, and then Gerard arrives. And Allison. So, yeah. Fight scenes? Fight scenes. The kanima comes fully back to life and begins attacking everyone. Derek and Isaac both get taken out of the game pretty quickly, and Peter stays back the entire time, avoiding the fight. Eventually, Gerard and the kanima get the upper hand, and Gerard’s main beef is revealed: turns out, the old hunter has cancer, and wants to avoid death via the bite of an alpha, aka Derek. Why couldn’t he just ask nicely? Because Gerard also wants to become the alpha.
The scene looks pretty grim, with Gerard threatening Scott to force Derek to bite him, or else. Scott helps Derek up and the alpha is made to bite Gerard, and for a moment it seems he is victorious. However, his wound begins to leak black werewolf ink, a sure sign that something has gone wrong. It’s Scott’s moment to shine, because apparently this has been apart of his plan the entire time. He knew Gerard has been popping pills, and with the help of Deaton, switched the pills with placebos filled with mountain ash. Gerard’s body rejects the bite, and curls up all dead like.
That leaves only the kanima to be dealt with. Stiles and Lydia arrive just in time, and Lydia uses her house key to trigger memories inside of Jackson. It works, and the kanima calms down, turning back into Jackson. He weakly asks Lydia if she still loves him, and she promises that she does. Then, Jackson looks like like he might be morphing into something else. Peter and Derek attack, stabbing Jackson with their claws. He looks to be dead, but then surges back to life, this time in full werewolf mode, including glowing blue eyes.
Gerard’s body goes missing in the chaos, but… meh! I suspect that will never come back to bite anyone in the ass. The final moments of the show give everyone an epilogue sort of moment. Allison, coming down from her hunter high, breaks up with Scott, who isn’t worried at all, understanding that she needs time. He promises to wait for her. “There’s no such thing as fate,” she tells him. His reply is perfect: “There’s no such thing as werewolves.”
MORE TWISTS: Erica and Boyd, released by Chris Argent, proceed to escape Beacon Hills again, only to run into a pack of werewolves. Deaton and Ms. Morrell investigate the trail of werewolf ink left by Gerard’s body, and she makes a comment to him about being glad he’s come out of retirement. They remain mysterious. Peter, Derek, and Isaac go to the Hale house only to find a mysterious symbol carved into the door. Peter states that it’s a sign that a new pack has arrived in town… a pack made of entirely of alphas. The show wraps on Stiles and Scott practicing lacrosse, discussing how things have come full circle. Stiles is resolved to keep trying with Lydia, and Scott is at peace, having finally been raised to the heroic role he’s been growing into from the start. Neither seems to be aware of the trouble headed their way.
And that’s a wrap on season two. I’m genuinely surprised there wasn’t a more heartbreaking ending, as the last few episodes have suggested a grisly fate for all involved. It’s kind of refreshing and confusing at the same time. A few more viewings will be required for a full assessment of what it all means for season three, but all in all, it was a solid ending, with a lot of potential for growth. There are still so many questions they can explore. Just a few: What does a new pack mean for Beacon Hills? Will Chris Argent reevaluate how he deals with the supernatural? What’s up with Deaton and Morrell? What kind of werewolf will Jackson be after he’s fallen so far?
One thing remains to be absolutely unquestionable: Teen Wolf used season two to find itself, and came up with a strong sense of what it wants to be. I am endlessly hopeful for its future.