Ginny & Georgia returns for Season 2 on Netflix, which means more teen drama, more dubious parenting moments, and, of course, more spine-chilling secrets to uncover. When we last saw Ginny (Antonia Gentry) and her young brother Austin (Diesel La Torraca), they were speeding out of Wellsbury on a motorcycle, hoping to get as far away from mother dearest Georgia (Brianne Howey) and her glitter-coated web of lies and secrets as possible (the murder kind). Georgia has always done what it takes to live — to the expense of her children — from lying about sending Austin’s letters to his father in jail to taking out credit cards in her children’s names.
Season 2 begins shortly after the events of Season 1. Our titular mother-daughter combination is not doing well. Ginny is still reeling from the knowledge that her mother is a killer, but she is also dealing with the regular teen drama on top of it all. “MANG,” her first genuine pal, had entirely cut her off after discovering her and Marcus’s (Felix Mallard) hidden affair. Meanwhile, Georgia, despite being freshly engaged and the soon-to-be First Lady of Wellsbury, isn’t feeling very festive without her children. Ginny and Georgia have always been tense — their complex connection is probably the most interesting component of the series — but the mother/daughter combo is more estranged than ever in Season 2.
More of Georgia’s terrible tale as a young adolescent mom with a criminal record works as a concept, but, as has previously happened, Season 2 of Ginny & Georgia leans too heavily on it, losing sight of the show’s true heart: Ginny and Georgia’s friendship.
However, the first half of Season 2 begins strongly in this regard, delving into Ginny and Georgia’s tumultuous relationships, from Georgia’s frantic urge to behave as if everything is all sunshine and flowers to Ginny’s aching longing for just a bite of honesty from her mother. Gentry and Howey both provide gut-punching performances, and the season allows Ginny and Georgia to gradually peel away their armor and reveal their weaknesses to not just one other but also to themselves. When Ginny & Georgia concentrates on its basic connections rather than trying to convince us that Georgia is a criminal mastermind disguised as a Georgia peach, it excels.
The speed quickens in the second half of the season but to the disadvantage of the story. Ginny and Georgia clearly aim to increase the suspense, but instead, we discover individuals making somewhat irrational actions that don’t make sense merely for shock value or to hurry up a plot. Again, part of what makes Ginny & Georgia enjoyable is that it has a Bonnie and Clyde vibe to it, but pulling time away from an already packed cast to dedicate more time to turns that are often just too unbelievable to accept causes the program to lose sight of what makes it interesting.
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Still, Ginny & Georgia Season 2 has a lot going for it when it focuses on its characters and all their quirks (some, of course, more charming than others). Not predictably, Sara Waisglass steals the show as Max, no matter how irritating she is, but we also get the delightful surprise of seeing an unexpected relationship blossom between Ginny and Abby (Katie Douglas), who was pushed out of MANG after Season 1 due to the Marcus/Hunter/Ginny mess. Abby wasn’t always Ginny’s greatest fan, so seeing them unite through their ouster was a refreshing break from the constant Max-centric MANG hangouts.
Cynthia (Sabrina Grdevich), whose Karen-Esque proclamation about organic school meals in the premiere episode appeared to cement her reputation as the Wellsbury villain, also appears in Season 2.
Ginny & Georgia doesn’t always take the time to develop its supporting characters — Raymond Ablack’s Joe, in particular, suffers from a lack of growth in Season 2 – but when it does, it succeeds. Gurevich does the difficult work of demonstrating Cynthia’s warmth, and as you peel back those (however obnoxious) layers, there is a gentle, tragic vulnerability that is difficult not to identify with. The same can be said for Marcus, whose tale this season will strike a chord with everyone who is fighting silently just to get by.
Season 2 of Ginny & Georgia has a lot to appreciate, including multifaceted performances from Gentry and Howey, a far deeper, more nuanced dig into Ginny’s mental health following her and Austin’s escape from Georgia, and a more personal look at a few important supporting characters and interactions. Unfortunately, it fails when it abandons deep relationships in favor of a cheap thrill.
Ginny and Georgia Season 2 is currently available on Netflix.
