Episode Guide
Episode 1 -| Review Score – 3.5/5 Episode 2 -| Review Score – 3/5 Episode 3 -| Review Score – 3/5 Episode 4 -| Review Score – 3/5 Episode 5 -| Review Score – 2.5/5 Episode 6 -| Review Score – 3/5 Episode 7 -| Review Score – 3/5 Episode 8 -| Review Score – 2.5/5 When it dropped earlier this year, Who Killed Sara was an intriguing guilty pleasure. This Mexican production felt like a condensed telenovela but managed to maintain an air of intrigue throughout its run-time until the dramatic conclusion, baiting for a second season. Now back and badder than ever, Who Killed Sara feels like a supercharged version of the first season, taking all the twists and amplifying them to ridiculous levels. In doing so, the show loses some of its initial intrigue, devolving into an incredulous, unbelievable series of increasing stakes that lose sight of what actually made this show interesting to begin with. The biggest problem here comes from Sara herself. The first season presented her as a victim, an unfortunate young woman caught in the middle of a toxic family who all had their own reasons for potentially killing her. The reveal at the end of the first season however, is a game changer. For those in need of a recap, Sara’s journal is uncovered which hints at a much darker and crazier journey than we first thought. As it turns out, Sara has some serious mental health issues. Some of that stems from her estranged Father, but it also links back to her childhood, which points to her being a sociopath. This forms the crux of this second season, with Sara’s actual death sidelined but much of the 8 episode run in favour of finding out what happened to the dead body out in the yard. This in itself would be fine… if we weren’t told within the first episode what happened. From here, the series strings the mystery along in much the same way as the first but without the intrigue to go with it – and it doesn’t work. Seemingly the writers are self-aware of this too and throw in a number of other soapy sub-plots too. Moncho is back and haunting Chema and co again, demanding they pay up through blackmail. Mariana is still lurking about in the wings too, taking interest in Sofia’s baby. Marifer meanwhile, flits in and out of the plot as Diana the Huntress and Sara’s best friend. However, there’s more to her than first meets the eye too. The problems with season 2 though are only exacerbated when the show throws in another set piece or shocking twist. In doing so, it throws the show out the realm of realism and into fantastical silliness. Early on, Alex blows up a fairground but yet nothing ever comes from it. Another time a character fakes their own death and then miraculously pops back up again, having seemingly paid off a whole host of people to keep their identity a secret all this time. These moments are then undermined by the sex scenes which add absolutely nothing to this show other than pad the run-time out. I do appreciate the first season had these moments too (hello Cesar assassinating a protestor from the roof) but the 10 episodes managed to walk a fine line between trashy telenovela and guilty pleasure drama. It didn’t always strike the right balance but kept the focus on Sara and drip-feeding information relating to her death. The second however, is far less restrained. Like a rabid dog, season 2 of Who Killed Sara is wildly erratic and in doing so, undermines its own foundations set early on. And worse, the show baits for a third season too. Having said that, we do get solid answers at the end here but it feels rushed and anticlimactic in the grand scheme of things. Who Killed Sara maintains many of the same stylistic cues as the first, complete with musical montages and lots of splicing of the timeline. Sometimes this works quite well, like late on where characters watch a video clip and it jumps back in time. Others see a big time jump and then an episode playing catch-up to fill in the blanks. It really is a surprisingly inconsistent ride. And inconsistent is probably the best word to describe Who Killed Sara season 2. This is a wildly turbulent ride, with its few good points mired and muddied by ridiculous twists and illogical plot points. It’s not the worst show of the year but this second season essentially changes the question from “who killed sara?” to “who really needed 8 more episodes of this?”
