“Maybe there aren’t any good kids.”
13 Reasons Why has an incredibly strong hook, one that promises to pay devastating dramatic dividends. Thirteen tapes, each a piece of a mosaic that makes up the death of a young woman. The show teases us with the possibility of getting to know these seemingly nice men and women, and learn how they failed as friends and romantic partners. Each of them, the show insists, is important enough to play a part in Hannah Baker’s suicide.
But what if one of them wasn’t?
Episodes like “Tape 3, Side B” really undermine the show’s central conceit. It doesn’t allow us to become invested in the story, like we did with the tapes about Justin or Jessica, because the show itself isn’t that invested in the story. Marcus’s tape seems almost incidental to the story, which isn’t a huge misstep because the present-day story continues to be engrossing. This is the same problem I had with “Tape 3, Side A” – Courtney and Marcus got a whole tape but not a whole episode.
Don’t get me wrong, what Marcus did was really shitty – which we’ll get to – and if Hannah decides it’s enough to help push her over the edge, that’s her decision to make. I’m not here to minimize anyone’s feelings, even someone fictional. But at the end of the day, “Tape 3, Side B” doesn’t show us much that we didn’t see when Bryce grabbed Hannah’s ass.
Speaking of Bryce, that was not Bryce who almost hit Alex with his Jeep, but rather a heretofore unseen student named Montgomery De La Cruz (who is white?). I’m forgiving the show for introducing a new character who both looks and acts like Bryce – and even hangs out with Justin to boot – because it affords some interesting scenes to Alex, and Miles Heizer really runs away with them.
Alex is having a bit of a meltdown, first forcing Montgomery to fight him, then protesting the decision to suspend Montgomery but do nothing to Alex. He’s looking for consequences anywhere he can get them, which helps explain his acceleration stunt in the last episode. It’s surprisingly meaty material, and helps to show that it’s not just Clay who gives a damn that Hannah is dead, partly because of him. It’s a nice bit of characterization, exceedingly well-performed.
But let’s talk about Marcus, the ostensible subject of “Tape 3, Side B.” He and Hannah get matched to each other during Dollar Valentine’s, which is cute, but also a somewhat convoluted story point- any time you involve an algorithm outside of The Social Network, it’s going to be convoluted. But whatever; Hannah agrees to go on a date with Marcus, which is actually a nice scene, because we get to see another, more charming side of Marcus.
My main problem with this is that there’s no inclination that this is going to go well. With Justin, Jessica, and Alex, you got the sense that Hannah had made a genuine connection. This is a consequence of so much of 13 Reasons Why taking place in the present day – we only know Marcus as an asshole, the kind of guy who says that Hannah killed herself for attention, so why would we expect any different in the flashback?
When Marcus stands her up, then shows up an hour later with his football entourage in tow, we know something extremely shady is up. True to the audience’s expectations, Marcus only asked her out because he thought he could get her into bed.
There are some nice moments, though. After Marcus leaves Hannah at the diner, the episode ends with Zach sitting down opposite her. It’s a nice gesture, but one that certainly presages his presence on a tape. But it’s a nice, quietly human moment.
Clay makes a connection with Sheri, and although he thinks she’s just faking it so she can get the tapes, I think there’s something there. Maybe it’s naïve of me, but I hope I’m right. If 13 Reasons Why teaches us anything, though, it’s that when it comes to people, we’re often wrong.
A Few Thoughts
- Clay and Sheri must be in a pretty advanced class if they’re reading All the Pretty Horses. But Sheri summarizes Cormac McCarthy well: “The sentences are so long, and some of it’s in Spanish.”
- Something I don’t think I mention enough: Katherine Langford is terrific at face acting.
- Clay seriously can’t walk ten feet without being accosted by Justin.
- Between this show and Riverdale, I think modern TV thinks that school papers have much more power than they really do.
- We get confirmation that Tony is gay, which I think is a nice trait for him. Another pleasure of this show is learning more about Tony.
- Best shot of the episode: Olivia Baker staring into the distance, focused on nothing, while a vase overflows in the sink.
Final Score:
3/5
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