In a much-anticipated return, Reservation Dogs delivers a more heartfelt and witty story than ever for its second season. The series follows the misadventures of a group of homeless dogs who are forced to live on the streets after their owner is evicted. Despite their challenges, the dogs remain loyal and supportive of one another, and their interactions with the people around them are some of the funniest and most touching in television.
As the Rez Dogs, Elora and her friends were a cohesive unit. However, after Elora left for California with Jackie, the group fractured. Some members went off to pursue their dreams while others stayed behind to help support each other. Now that Elora is gone and the group is scattered, it’s up to the remaining Rez Dogs to figure out who they are and what they want from life.
In season 2, we get to know The Rez Dogs not only as a group, but as individuals, with rich episodes that dive into compelling themes surrounding each teenager’s identity. Elora’s major episode (“Mabel”; co-written by Jacobs herself) is especially heart-wrenching, exploring the intersection for Elora of grief and alienation and longing. Bear wrestles with feelings of inadequacy and the concept of manhood. Cheese (who absolutely deserved more screen time) still gets his moment to shine in an installment about finding a place of belonging when blood family fails you. And Willie Jack steps up as an instigator of unity.
The creators of Reservation Dogs had to make a difficult adjustment for this format, but it works well to explore weighty themes for each character–and for the community too. A couple of episodes actually ignore The Rez Dogs completely, focusing rather on the aunties of the reservation and then Officer Big. These episodes are surprisingly heartfelt, not only fleshing out additional characters, but also treating the reservation as a living and breathing character of its own.
The show is set to tell the story of a community, and it will do so by reflecting on what makes that community unique. This approach is in line with the vision of the show’s creator, Harjo. ..
In season 2 of Reservation Dogs, Harjo and Waititi connect generations within the reservation. As more is revealed about the adults on the reservation, we see that these stories are circular. They have struggled against the same injustices; have been guided by the same spirits; have held on by the strength of the same community; have wondered the same questions about identity, purpose, and home. Through this subtly building drama, Reservation Dogs contains a gentle urging to both rely on and support those who have come before you.
Ultimately, Reservation Dogs Season 2 is more heavy-handed in its themes than season 1- but it’s also more affecting and amusing too. You won’t find anything quite like it on TV right now. ..
