Though it may seem dramatic to call the High School Musical: The Musical: The Series Season 2 season finale life-changing, it’s no understatement. In the episode appropriately titled “Second Chances,” we find out how many possibilities there are for the characters and how everything is about to change.
The episode picks up where the last one left off, with the group gathering after the play finishes. It would have been nice to see Ricky’s (Joshua Bassett) actual Beast transformation scene for how much they talked about it, or at least see the cast give a final bow, but we are to assume everything went fine and they seem proud the play finished so well.
Now the crew is headed to Slices, Big Red’s (Larry Saperstein) family pizza shop, to celebrate. Except, it’s more complicated than it seems. Ashlyn (Julia Lester) is upset because she barely saw Big Red all night, but it turns out he was planning a sweet surprise for her: a sign with her name in lights like the star he thinks she is. That’s not the only touching moment, though, as Kourtney (Dara Renee) and Howie (Roman Banks) make up and talk about their feelings for one another. Howie likely didn’t have anything to do with the harness being stolen – by none other than North High’s Lily (Olivia Rose Keegan) in the last episode.
Aside from these happy couples, Gina (Sofia Wylie) and E.J. (Matt Cornett) had a plan to go get risotto after the show. But after Gina’s brother stirred things up between them, E.J. cancels on her. This leaves Gina heartbroken, but Nini (Olivia Rodrigo) is there to comfort her. The two discuss their friendship and it’s nice to see them getting along because a true, solid Nini-Gina friendship could be exactly what this show needs. Gina also offers to connect Nini to someone who can help her take her songwriting to the next level, who happens to be Gina’s brother.
Ricky and Nini’s relationship also seems very up in the air. The pair exchange letters and they each wrote almost the exact same thing, which might scream of “soulmates,” but it’s clear that they both need a break from each other. And truthfully, the scene feels like a goodbye of sorts.
These two couples perform a song together about the worth of second chances, literally titled “Second Chances,” and though it’s incredibly random, the song does address all of their individual concerns and is a good way to include the central characters in one dramatic scene before the season ends. They’re also all wearing their season 1 outfits, looking like they did at the very start of this show, and it brings back a lot of nostalgia.
The teachers also have a whole lot to think about in this episode. Miss Jenn (Kate Reinders) is stressed about the show, scaring Carlos (Frankie A. Rodriguez) and Seb (Joe Serafini) with the amount of pressure she’s putting on. She wants to win against her ex Zack Roy so badly, but she’s also recognizing that she might have gone too far (especially with her comment about how Ricky should jump from something really high last episode).
Miss Jenn feels apologetic towards Ricky, but Ricky surprises her instead when he says that it’s okay for her to date his dad because Miss Jenn makes his dad happy. This was the reason Miss Jenn and Ricky’s dad broke up in the first place, but will their romance really rekindle? That’s a tough call when you consider Mr. Mazzarra (Mark St. Cyr), who really cares for Miss Jenn, and how she might care about him just as much.
Mr. Mazzarra has a tough choice of his own, as E.J. made a few calls and got his father to recommend the teacher for a position at Caltech, which was once Mr. Mazzarra’s dream. Of course, it’s an amazing offer and shows how E.J. has grown, but Mr. Mazzarra is conflicted since he suddenly feels like there’s something to keep him in Salt Lake City…Miss Jenn. He confesses this to her, and we’re left to wait for an answer about the future of their relationship.
The rest of the crew is celebrating in Slices when the North High kids come to crash their party. They don’t do much other than give them really weird compliments, but Lily tells Ricky she’s into him. The whole thing still feels fake and over-the-top, but Ricky seems to actually contemplate her offer when she says everyone deserves – wait for it – a second chance.
After the North High kids leave, the Wildcats decide that they don’t really care about the Menkies anymore. They’re scared to tell Miss Jenn that they feel like they have already won and want to drop out, however when they do she seems relieved and they don’t even check what categories they’re nominated for, as all of them seem ready to ditch the award show altogether. It feels kind of odd since the whole season was building up to this competition, but it feels like something HSMTMTS would definitely do, so it’s unsurprising.
This moment is cute and all, but immediately after follows tons of action that they packed into two minutes. Ashlyn talks to Gina about E.J., and Gina finds out that her brother said she thinks of E.J. as a big brother, even though it isn’t true. It’s a relief that Ashlyn told Gina this because the misunderstanding between the pair was way too frustrating.
Meanwhile, Nini calls Gina’s producer brother, Ricky calls Lily (which, really???), and Gina runs up to E.J. to get her first kiss. It cuts off right before that can happen, though, as Season 2 ends with a reminder that summer is only going to heat things up. Before the ending, there’s also a montage of behind-the-scenes cast moments set to High School Musical 2’s classic “You Are the Music in Me.” It’s refreshing and reminds the audience of the heart at the core of the show.
Well, there you have it! Season 2 is over, and although so much is left undecided and unfinished, it feels like a lot of hopeful beginnings for many of the characters as they make decisions that will certainly change their lives. Here’s to hoping that the couples get to enjoy happiness and that Ricky eventually discovers the truth about Lily sabotaging their play. Maybe we’ll even see just how successful Nini has become when the show returns! Based on the end of the episode, it seems like we’ll finally get to witness what happens when the curtains close and the Wildcats enjoy their “fun in the sun” over the summer. Until then!
