The first three episodes of the second season of The Summer I Turned Pretty have dropped on Prime Video. Based on Jenny Han’s book series of the same name the coming-of-age teen romance continues the protagonist’s story of love triangles, lifelong friendships, and summers spent in picturesque locations. Most of the cast members from season one reprise their roles, while Rachel Blanchard’s character gets an off-screen demise.
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Where to watch The Summer I Turned Pretty Season 2 in the UAE?
The Summer I Turned Pretty Season 2 is now streaming on Prime Video in the Middle East. Amazon Prime Video is included in your Amazon Prime membership, costing AED 16 per month or AED 140 per year. Besides the streaming service, you will also get free deliveries and access to Prime Gaming- click here for a free 30-day trial.
The Summer I Turned Pretty Season 2 Review
- Lola Tung
- Great chemistry between the leads
- Vapid compared to season one
- Unlikable lead
- Tone-deaf
The first three episodes of the second season of The Summer I Turned Pretty have dropped on Prime Video. Based on Jenny Han’s book series of the same name, the coming-of-age teen romance continues the protagonist’s story of love triangles, lifelong friendships, and summers spent in picturesque locations. Most of the cast members from season one reprise their roles, while Rachel Blanchard’s character gets an off-screen demise.
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Season two kicks off with a literal dream sequence of Belly enjoying some quality time at the fictional Cousins Beach house with her boyfriend, Conrad. A smiling Jeremiah has fully gotten over last season’s love triangle mess, while a happy Susannah is encouraging the young couple, saying they’re “perfect together.” Then we snap back to reality – In the time passed since last summer, Susannah succumbed to her cancer, Conrad and Belly have broken up, and the two brothers aren’t on speaking terms with the Conklin siblings.
We start the story at the end of the school year, while a series of flashbacks fill in the gaps of what happened to Belly and Conrad since they kissed on the beach in the season one finale. To no one’s surprise, Jeremiah didn’t take Belly’s betrayal with his brother too well. And present-day Belly is struggling to cope with all the bad things that happened in the past year.
Belly’s mother, Laurel, wrote a memoir about her friendship with Susannah. She was so busy watching her best friend slowly die that she failed to notice her daughter’s grades slipping along with her chances of getting into a good college. The only member of the Conklin family thriving at the start of the season is Belly’s older brother, Steven, who just graduated high school and got accepted into an Ivy League school.
A tone-deaf approach to grief
Susannah’s cancer coming back and her deciding whether to pursue further treatment was a big part of the narrative last season. In season two, however, the character was removed unceremoniously, and the writers were too quick to jump straight back into the love triangle. A person our protagonist thought of as family tragically passed away mere weeks before episode one, and the girl seems to only care about the breakdown of her teen romance. It seems a bit tone-deaf.
Speaking of tone, Season 2 of The Summer I Turned Pretty is not as lighthearted (unsurprisingly) as the first instalment. While last year’s iteration was a sweet and romantic guilty pleasure, we now get these young people thrown in the middle of challenging moments like real estate problems and grief. This makes the insistence on keeping the love triangle plotline going even more confusing than the incessant flashbacks from just a few months before.
Lola Tung is a brilliant actress, and the chemistry with her co-stars is undeniable, but her character is particularly unlikeable and, in some scenes, acts devoid of compassion. It’s also nice seeing sidekicks played by Rain Spencer and Sean Kaufman getting a more prominent role and offering some much-needed comic relief. But despite the talent and effort put in by the cast, the story fails to come together in any meaningful way.
The Summer I Turned Pretty was a cheesy teen romance about growing up and spending warm months in an idyllic beach house. Season two tries to be too serious while keeping the silly teen drama themes going, and it’s just tedious to watch.
What are the other critics saying about The Summer I Turned Pretty Season 2?
LadyJenevia commented on the terrible communication skills between the main characters and wasn’t too impressed with the love triangle. She did find season 2 to be better and worse than the first one.
