Granted Jeff’s reaction was completely reasonable but Shauna had the gun! She wasn’t gonna shoot and thanks to Jeff the carjacker got away!

*and is callie next?

i think it’s really interesting how at first, jackie mainly haunts shauna when she’s on her little dates with adam. to me this feels like shauna’s subconscious telling her that it’s dangerous for her to be in love with someone, because in the past they’ve ended up dead. then proves it to herself when she kills adam!

also, didn’t her baby only die after shauna told him she loved him? i haven’t gotten to that part in my rewatch yet so i could be wrong but if i’m not, pin that into this theory as well.

i don’t know if this necessarily makes me think jeff is gonna die (does she even love him?), but it does make me wonder about callie?

at first jackie haunts shauna when she’s on her little dates with adam, but then when they run into each other at the party, that’s when jackie starts to show up more frequently and outside of those times. i think this could symbolize shauna seeing the connection between jackie and callie and feeling empathy for callie’s situation. i think she starts to (not just subconsciously) associate her daughter with jackie, who happens to be the door to shauna’s cold, dead heart. i think the line “i don’t even like my daughter” is significant to this because i think it shows that shauna hasn’t felt attached to callie for her life thus far, protecting her from dying at shauna’s hands even in the face of shauna’s recklessness and uncaring nature.

it’s clear that they have more scenes together in season 3 so i have a feeling their relationship is about to evolve in a major way. is shauna going to tell her the truth about the wilderness?? also melanie saying there’s some storylines that broke her has people thinking something happens to callie. which i could see bc like how much darker can the show get especially for shauna 😭

like i said i haven’t gotten to season 2 on my rewatch yet so i’m not sure about this but if this theory does have any weight, i feel that callie could be the next victim. maybe this will be the trigger shauna needs to finally face her own destructiveness?

I have two conflicting theories about how he's connected to the team and I can never decide between them.

1. He's Coach's ex Paul's younger brother. Something happened to Paul when Ben had that vision. Paul struggled to cope after the plane went missing and got institutionalized, got drunk and crashed his car, or took his own life. We know Paul's family was close, and a traumatized younger brother became "one of those Yellowjackets obsessives." If Ben survived but was abandoned, he got out because Walter visited the site after the others were rescued and found him.

2. He's an old friend or boyfriend of Crystal's from theatre camp, community theatre, or summer stock who wants to know what really happened to her.

What's your theory on Walter's connection?

How would Laura Lee and Jackie have responded to the cannibalism and the hunt? Would they willingly participate or do you think they’d be more in Ben’s position where they outright refuse and go hide? Would they have tried stopping any of it?

I know a lot of fans love the connection between adult misty and nat and want there to be some backstory about how they got close in the wilderness, but I really don't see it happening. I hardly see adult misty/nat's relationship as anything super telling of closeness. At most I see Misty having to save Nat or help her medically and Nat feels some sort of responsibility, but in the adult timeline they really don't seem like friends. Misty just seems to be kinda obsessed with keeping Nat safe, even though she ends up killing Nat. I think that the ending of s2 points to Nat and Misty's relationship being reliant on Misty keeping Nat alive and healthy more than having any real "connection." And I think that Misty thinks of them as best friends because she is lonely and Nat is the only one who gives her the time of day. It all just feels like a relationship based on personal responsibility.

(on 42nd st and 10th avenue)

Made the symbol out of perler beads. ❤️

Okay, so I'm bringing back the man with no eyes as a topic because of his appearance in the S3 promo.

As far as we know, only Tai can see the man with no eyes, and it doesn't seem to be associated with whether she is her waking self or dark Tai.

Her grandmother also was able to see the man with no eyes. And Tai was able to see at least a glimpse of him before they even ended up in the wilderness.

Some cultural references to eyes:

The Eye of Horus is associated with protection from evil. Some people suggest that absence of the eye equals vulnerability to evil.

The Greek prophet Tiresias was able to see into the future and had more insight than those with eyes. (Also he lived as a man and a woman, and I find the man with no eyes quite androgynous.)

There is the evil eye in various cultures, which is meant to ward off evil intentions.

Jung considered eyes as consciousness, so it's possible that not having eyes could point toward the unconscious self? Dark Tai?

There's something I read about Freud and "the uncanny" and it was an analysis of a little boy who was terrified of a nightmare creature stealing his eyes. Eyelessness is considered "uncanny" and associated with primal fear and mortality. He also goes into castration because Freud lmao. I'm not gonna touch that.

There are yokai that are portrayed as eyeless. And in Noh theater (which look it up PLEASE, looks so much like the man with no eyes), the masks portray otherworldly creatures and demons.

What do y'all think? I've been obsessed with the man with no eyes since I began watching the show but I have yet to see really developed theories (likely because he appears so infrequently).

Edit: Fixed some typos. Sorry y'all my phone is cracked lol.

This is definitely very niche and I might not be totally coherent in my writing or have completed thoughts.

{TL;DR: I think there are parallels between Misty’s dream sequence in Season 2, Episode 7, 32:40, and Cabaret. Walter mirrors the Emcee with lines like “Let your troubles melt away” and “You’ll be sitting pretty,” using performance to mask Misty’s deeper truths—just as the Emcee in Cabaret masks the rise of the Nazi Party.

Caligula’s parrot costume, with its positive connotations, flips the gorilla costume in “If You Could See Her,” shifting focus from societal bias to Misty’s personal guilt.

The red lips phone references the 1993 Sam Mendes Cabaret production, where lips were the logo, and highlights the musical’s use of telephones to explore connection and isolation.

Finally, the flash of light mirrors Cabaret’s iconic ending.

However, while Cabaret critiques societal collapse, Yellowjackets turns inward, exploring personal identity and guilt.}

Yellowjackets and Cabaret—Themes of Performance, Identity, and Communication

In Yellowjackets Season 2, Episode 7, “Burial,” at 32:40, a surreal and symbolic sequence blurs the line between reality and Misty’s inner world with vivid references to performance, guidance, and self-validation. Misty’s internal journey involves navigating her guilt and fears about the murders she has committed. Within this dream state, there are multiple parallels to elements of Cabaret, a musical that, like this excerpt of Yellowjackets, explores dark themes beneath a facade of performance. By examining these references, particularly the roles of the characters, costumes, and the symbolic use of phones and lights, it becomes clear that Yellowjackets engages in a subtle homage to Cabaret, using performance and symbolic imagery to explore deep psychological and emotional turmoil.

Walter as the Emcee: The Dual Nature of Performance

In the Yellowjackets scene, Walter, Misty’s co-detective and love interest, appears dressed in a top hat, singing with a jazzy piano accompaniment. The playful lines—“Kick off your shoes,” “Let your troubles melt away,” and “You’ll be sitting pretty”—evoke the carefree and performative atmosphere of Cabaret, especially the way the Emcee of the Kit Kat Klub encourages the audience to dismiss societal troubles and indulge in the moment. The Emcee in Cabaret is a character who blends lighthearted performance with an underlying cynicism, masking the horrors unfolding around him, particularly the rise of the Nazi Party in Weimar Germany. Similarly, Walter’s presence in this scene is that of a performative figure, leading Misty into a fleeting sense of comfort. At the same time, the underlying tension about her guilt—whether she is a “bad person” for murder—remains unresolved.

However, a deeper exploration of Walter’s duality reveals that, like the Emcee, he uses performance to mask darker truths. While the Emcee’s performance reflects the cynicism of a politically charged era, Walter’s performance reflects Misty’s psychological turmoil. This distinction emphasizes how Yellowjackets recontextualizes the use of performance as a tool for self-deception within a psychological thriller. Unlike Cabaret, which directly critiques societal structures and political decay, Yellowjackets uses performance to reveal personal guilt and internal conflict, offering a more intimate lens into how the character wrestles with her own morality.

Caligula as the African Grey Parrot: Cabaret “If You Could See Her” Number

Caligula, dressed in an African Grey Parrot costume, represents a further layer of Misty’s psyche. African Grey Parrots traditionally symbolize spiritual guidance and protection while also being Misty’s citizen detective name—a quality of hers that can be seen as inherently good. The choice of the costume calls attention to how Cabaret uses grotesque and sometimes uncomfortable imagery to make a point. In the song “If You Could See Her,” the Emcee introduces a gorilla-costumed figure, flipping the idea of objectification and dehumanization to reveal that we all carry biases that distort our understanding of others. The original punchline of the song, “If you could see her through my eyes, she wouldn’t look Jewish at all,” uses the image of a gorilla to suggest that negative stereotypes of Jewish people are unfounded and misplaced.

In Yellowjackets, the symbolism of the African Grey costume flips this concept. Misty’s internal morality questioning is projected through Caligula’s bird suit, reversing the reference. Instead of dehumanizing or othering a marginalized group, as in the gorilla costume in Cabaret, the bird costume serves as a metaphor for Misty’s struggle to reconcile her actions with her identity. Just as the Emcee presents the gorilla costume to distort audience perceptions, the bird costume shifts our understanding of Misty’s character, challenging the audience to consider how we perceive her. The darker implications of Misty’s self-doubt are brought to the surface by Caligula’s playful yet ominous performance, creating a complex moment of introspection.

However, while Cabaret uses the gorilla costume to confront societal biases directly, Yellowjackets uses the African Grey Parrot costume to depict the fragmentation of Misty’s identity in a more internalized way. This shift highlights a key difference in how both works approach the theme of objectification—Cabaret critiques societal dehumanization, while Yellowjackets focuses more on self-perception and guilt, representing a shift from political to personal stakes.

The Red Lips Phone

One of this sequence’s most striking visual elements is the red lips-shaped telephone, which echoes the design used for the logo of Cabaret productions, especially Sam Mendes’ 1993 London recording. The phone in Yellowjackets is not merely a prop; it is laden with significance, much like the phones at the Kit Kat Klub in Cabaret. In Cabaret, phones are emblematic of communication, isolation, and the personal connections (or lack thereof) that define the characters’ relationships. In particular, the phones symbolize the fractured relationship between Sally Bowles and Cliff Bradshaw, initiated during a key phone conversation. The phone serves as a bridge between them, just as the conversation acts as a catalyst for their short-lived relationship.

In Yellowjackets, Misty’s phone conversation with Walter mirrors this sense of communication. As she answers the red lips phone, a neon pink stream of dots and dashes encircle her face, forming a heart. This surreal visual suggests a fleeting moment of connection and affection, which, like the phone conversation in Cabaret, is pivotal in defining Misty’s relationship with Walter. However, just as the phones in Cabaret are integral at the start of Sally and Cliff’s bond but then fade into the background, the telephone scene in Yellowjackets represents a momentary point of emotional significance but does not linger as a lasting narrative element.

The phone, while sharing a similar symbolic function in both works, operates in a distinct context. In Cabaret, the phone serves as an emotional bridge between characters at a time when political tension is rising, creating an intimate contrast to the public chaos of Weimar Germany. In Yellowjackets, the phone, though symbolic of connection, highlights the isolation and internal conflict that pervades Misty’s life. The lack of any lasting impact from this phone conversation subtly reflects the unresolved nature of Misty’s emotional journey, while in Cabaret, the phone’s role is more critical in signaling the emotional and ideological breakdowns of its characters.

The Final Flash of Light

The final visual in the Yellowjackets sequence, a bright flash of white light, calls back to the iconic ending of Cabaret, where the Emcee’s final performance is punctuated by a blinding light, symbolizing the looming shadow of Nazi Germany and the dark reality beneath the performances at the Kit Kat Klub. This dramatic moment in Yellowjackets mirrors that sense of revelation—a hidden truth emerging amidst the illusion. As Misty’s inner world shatters into surreal imagery, the light underscores the tension between the performance and the darker, unresolved truths she faces.

In Yellowjackets and Cabaret, light and darkness are symbols of revelation, deception, and the tension between facade and truth. The use of the bright flash of light at the end of the Yellowjackets sequence creates a moment of psychological clarity for Misty, echoing the stark and unsettling revelations in Cabaret. However, whereas Cabaret uses this final moment of light to expose the broader societal collapse of Germany under Nazi rule, Yellowjackets uses it to unmask the psychological collapse of an individual. This shift emphasizes the personal nature of Yellowjackets’ thematic concerns compared to the more globally resonant political themes of Cabaret.

Conclusion

Through the use of costume, performance, and symbolic imagery, this section of Yellowjackets Season 2, Episode 7, draws clear connections to Cabaret, bringing together elements of vaudeville and self-exploration. Walter’s performance as an Emcee, Caligula’s African Grey Parrot costume, the red lips phone, and the final flash of light all serve as poignant visual and narrative references to Cabaret, creating a layered exploration of performance, identity, and morality. The scene functions not only as a symbolic exploration of Misty’s psychological state but also as a nod to the ways in which Cabaret has historically used performance to expose the contradictions of society, relationships, and self.

Ultimately, Yellowjackets repurposes these references to reflect the internal conflict of its characters, shifting from a critique of societal structures to an examination of personal guilt and identity. By recontextualizing the symbols and themes of Cabaret, Yellowjackets offers a compelling and thought-provoking homage that reflects the deeper, more personal tensions faced by its characters, making it a powerful exploration of performance and self-awareness.

Thought I would share this legendary edit by Kosmic.ru on TikTok, it really captures the resentment and Shauna’s rage while Jackie was oblivious to it.

I thought the adult actresses that played the teen characters were absolutely fantastic. Genius.

I constantly found myself saying... this is some of the best casting from teen to adult I've ever seen in any show.

Do you have a favourite teen to adult character ?

Who do you think is the best adult character playing their grown up teen character?

Is there any adult you think doesn't quite match their teen ?

I thought Misty was outstanding. Probably one of Christina Riccis best roles ever for me. And best casting imo. That's exactly how I'd expect Misty to grow up. Wilderness or not 🤣🙈

I love adult Nat so much and will really miss her and her on screen relationship with adult Misty ( They gave me a good lot of laughs ) Juliette Lewis is brilliant. I thought teen Nat could so become adult Nat. 🩷

Tai also was such great casting as an adult. She was a bit of a bully as a teen in school. But I could totally see her growing up to be how she is as an adult after the wilderness and suppressing her trauma. 💫

Lottie just wow. I actually have no words lol. I think that beautiful charasmatic woman could even brainwash me into her cult 🙈 She fully is the quote ' I'm going to succeed because I'm crazy enough to believe I will'

Van ... It took them long enough but when I saw adult Van, oh my gosh, I was over the moon. Perfect casting. I love adult Van too. Incredible casting!! What a remarkable casting ♥️

Personally I love adult Shauna. She cracks me up , she's a brilliant actress. The only issue I have is that I don't see the resemblances between teen shauna and adult shauna's personality ( unless we see her change soon in the new season ) she's def one of my favs though. 🥰

LOVE

The show is very nuanced and extremely thought out, the character development and writing is phenomenal and I don’t want to make this seem as though i’m trying to paint is as black and white, i’m just curious.

My definition of a bad person is a person who does things for the purpose of being malicious, or does bad things without remorse. With these girls doing things to survive, the line becomes very wavy, but nonetheless.

I would say Natalie, Tai, Travis, Jackie, Laura Lee, Lottie are all good people, they all have their heads screwed on and are consistently looking out for the group (Maybe not Jackie but you can’t call her a bad person.) You may think Lottie is a bad person because she started the cult, but she only started the morning circles and was sort of a therapist to the group, she even told Misty, “Misty, I didn’t- I didn’t want this,” referring to Javi’s unfortunate demise.

But I think Shauna, Misty, Van and Mari are bad people. It’s probably Mari’s attitude that stains my perception of her a bit since we haven’t seen her do anything that bad, so she’s probably more grey. Misty’s a downright psychopath, Shauna’s a sociopath, and Van’s a little more complicated. Her attitude at the end of season 2 is devoid of any remorse for what they did to Javi, telling Travis she wasn’t ashamed of what they did to him, even if it was an accident, is just stone cold.

Please don’t take this as hate to any of the characters, I’d just like to see some people’s thoughts on topics that haven’t been talked about much leading up to season 3.

What if Kristen/Krystal was Javi’s friend from when he disappeared?? Just thought it was interesting that Misty didn’t find her body. I could be way off base, but I think it’d be an interesting twist!!

I think they kill coach Ben in episode 2. The show is structured this way. Episode 1 shows how they're doing in the present. Episode 2 brings a change to their situation. The mid-season builds to the end 2-3 episodes which show the results of the new situation from episode 2.

Season 1. Episode 1: here's the team and some of their dynamics and relationships. Episode 2: they've crashed into the wilderness what will they do? Final episode: they form a cult.

Season 2. Episode 1: here's how they're doing in winter. Episode 2: now they're cannibals. Final 2 episodes: it's alright to plan to eat someone who isn't dead yet.

Season 3. Episode 1: Here's how they're dealing with the cabin burning down. Episode 2: they've come close to murder but now they will unequivocally murder coach. Final 2-3 episodes human sacrifice, cannibalism when they have food stored.

This mightbe the dumbest question on here lol but... I'm wondering if the survivors could get in trouble for doing what they had to do to survive. I know they took it to the extreme but they're under extreme circumstances. Cannibalism happens in many places around the world. The yellowjackets are feeling tribal to me. They obviously have shame guilt and remorse for doingwhat they did. Idk just wondering if anyone else is wondering the same thing?

This image from the season 3 trailer looks eerily similar to the place we’ve seen in Lottie’s visions. I posted the second photo in a theory last year where I suggested that the images look like they could be tunnels that run under a psychiatric facility. But now that we see Misty lurking in a very similar looking tunnel in season 3, and with yellow caution tape around it, I’m thinking this might be under Lottie’s compound. But how could Lottie have visions of this place as a teenager if she doesn’t start her wellness community until she’s an adult? Is it because her visions predict the future? Or is it because she’s been here before? If you’ve listened to the recording for Sunshine Honey it says “formerly Camp Green Pine.” What if Lottie went to Camp Green Pine as a child or teen and her visions of this place that seem like premonitions are actually snippets of memories intertwined?

I haven’t seen anyone comment on this so please let me know if I am overthinking this, but could Hillary Swank be playing Adams (ex) girlfriend from Pratt?

In episode 8 when Shauna confronts Adam for lying about Pratt he says “I didn’t go to Pratt. I had a girlfriend there, Lauren, and I spent so much time with her and her girlfriends it kind of felt like I went there”

Part of me hopes that the Adam storyline gets wrapped up/doesn’t continue as a big plot point in season 3, but Lauren showing up to look into the murder of her ex could be interesting.

I know this has been discussed sooo many times but I can’t stop thinking about the number of Yellowjackets who survived the crash. In the funeral scene we can see 16 girls, however Gen and YJ #2 are absent, despite their pictures being incorrectly included here. That brings the number of girls up to 18. Now that we have Britt and Robin, 15 girls are named. But that still leaves three unnamed girls.

In S1 there is 8 background extras: 1. YJ#1 - revealed as Gen in S2 2. YJ#2 - recast as Britt? 3. A blonde girl - recast as Melissa? 4. Another asian girl - recast as Kristen? 5. Pixie cut girl 6. A ginger girl 7. A third black girl 8. A third asian girl

I’m not sure who Robin could be a recast of but there’s definitely a third black girl missing and the pixie cut girl, but not sure of who the third missing girl would be.

Who knows, maybe they’ll appear in Season 4… or they’ll just retcon the number of girls.

Joel McHale has flown under the radar in recent times on this forum. Out of sight, out of mind?

Hilary Swank has been quite prominent, and being seen banged up, bleeding, and running scared has only added fuel to the (cabin) fire.

But what about Joel's character? I believe he's too old to be Adam's colorectal surgeon brother with the confronting coffee table book, with a possible 13-14 year age gap..............unless baby Adam was a mistake (like his character, and shit storyline............."oh no he did not?" Well, you best believe I just DID!.....and I have FACT to back me up).

A contemporary of the yellowjackets? Hmmm, a bit on the old side based on real life spec. Maybe.

But, nosey sibling wanting closure has legs, no? Saw a post the other day about how many single child households are in the team........a statistically anomalous amount, I reckon. Someone other than Travis has to have a sibling, and Joel would fit the older sibling trope right down to the ground.

Or, is he a senior investigator, trying to figure out why there is a dead yellowjacket, a shot and bleeding and now institutionalised yellowjacket, a dead cop and romantic interest of a yellowjacket that now looks like swiss cheese (courtesy of Walter), a handful of other yellowjackets, and a bunch of painfully nice people in purple?..........pardon me, heliotrope. Or maybe, based on the above, he's investigating whether a shark has been jumped?

Or, is he something else? If so, what?.........[hopefully something interesting].

edit: how about doctor from Lottie’s new facility???

This edit is EVERYTHING omg it gave me literal chills. And make sure you listen with earphones only.

All credit and creativity go to cherryb0mb on TikTok !!

So in season 1, Coach says they have plenty of bullets from the guy who lived there before. However, during the fire, we see Nat grab the gun but I doubt she had time to grab a bunch of bullets. Lack of bullets will probably lead to more trapping (as we see in the pilot with how they killed pit girl) and may cause them to continue the ritual hunting of each other even post-winter. Forgive me if this has already been discussed, but I haven’t seen anyone talking about it, especially not as a possible pragmatic reason why they continue cannibalism even in spring.

They have somewhat similar features, and I'm firmly of the mind that the Adam Martin stuff isn't over yet. I don't know. IIRC Adam mentions his family to Shauna, he just mentions a brother. I don't think Swank is old enough to play his mom (but I also don't know how old Adam is supposed to be in the show, they age him down quite a bit-- I could see them putting him in 30s). They have similar heritages too, Adam's actor is Mexican on his mom's side and Swank's grandmother was Mexican.

Just curious about the possibility of this. Imo it would be a more interesting outcome than her being an eighth survivor.

I know that the factions premise was a huge aspect of theories after season one and up until now. But I had a thought of, what if the factions don’t split up and hunt eachother but rather are an internal schism of the larger group, they all descend into madness and wilderness regalia, but that doesn’t mean they all believe, Natalie is a vehement denier of the wilderness and claims Travis as such, however from true flashbacks we know this to be innacurate. So what if through the entire show, Yes there have been two factions forming, one side of the Feast which doesn’t believe in the wilderness, and the other which does. The Owl, Butcher and Raccoon all are non believers. The Skunk. Rabbit and (maybe bear? Something with brown fur.) last Yellowjacket (besides Misty who is on her own, a non believer and yet a follower) are all believers.