The first season of My Life with the Walter Boys was certainly enjoyable, but some major and glaring flaws and missteps were made throughout. The central love triangle between Jackie (Nikki Rodriguez), Alex (Ashby Gentry), and Cole (Noah LaLonde) took precedence at an unexpectedly high cost, resulting in lackluster storytelling and the absence of much-needed character and relationship development and exploration. Of course, the initial run is expected to have some hiccups, especially with an entire world to build and a vast roster of players to introduce, from the many Walter family members to the various characters sharing the school hallways. Thankfully, the now-released second season begins to improve on many of these mistakes from the jump. First and foremost is a relatively well-kept promise to prioritize and actually show (on-screen) the desperately needed and sorely lacking dynamic between protagonist Jackie and her guardian/late mother’s best friend/new mother figure Katherine (Sarah Rafferty), which truly makes an enormous difference in the quality of the story. That said, not every element has been improved upon, and several of the story choices and noticeable shifts in the writing are an incredible letdown, so overall the 10-episode season is a relatively mixed bag.
Summer has come and nearly gone when the second season of My Life with the Walter Boys begins, but the memories from the day Will (Johnny Link) and Haley (Zoë Soul) were married continue to linger without resolution. Jackie is guilt-stricken and confused after Alex’s drunken confession of love and, later that same day, sharing an undeniable moment and some steamy, ill-timed kissing with Cole. Other than Cole’s twin Danny (Connor Stanhope), who briefly stayed with her in New York during his summer program at Juilliard, Jackie’s been alone in the city — rather ironically, considering this was one of the major reasons Jackie went to live with the Walters in the first place, her uncle Richard (Alex Quijano) has been away and constantly traveling for work. Preferring not to face the music, Jackie has decided it’s best she doesn’t return to Silver Falls, but has chosen instead to attend boarding school in Vermont and focus on her college hopes. However, in true Walter family fashion, Katherine arrives to convince Jackie to change her mind—which, obviously, she does—delivering one of the most meaningful and truthful conversations between the two ladies in a scene set at a diner Katherine and Jackie’s mother used to frequent. Katherine listens to Jackie’s surprisingly realistic and emotional woes about being back “home” in the city without her family, and Katherine acknowledges—and, by extension, the show acknowledges—how this relationship faltered so extremely throughout the previous school year.
Credit: Netflix
It isn’t until Jackie returns to Colorado that she realizes the extent of the pain she caused with her abrupt exit, stunned to realize not everyone is thrilled she’s back. Alex spent his summer in Montana practicing his rodeo arts and having a major glow-up, though the newfound attention quickly goes to his head. He’s blowing off his best friend Kyle (Mya Lowe), increasing her ongoing frustration with him due to his oblivious ignorance of her romantic feelings. His desperation for Jackie has been extremely toned down, which was incredibly off-putting and may be the best improvement of the entire season, but the question of what’s between them remains, as he also treats her terribly despite not knowing what went down between Jackie and Cole at the wedding. Truthfully, Alex’s story is a season-long spiral showcasing many of the character’s worst traits and counterproductively depicting how and why he and Jackie are so, so wrong as a romantic pair.
As for the other leading man… well, boy… Cole attended summer school and is working hard to get his life back on track and find a plan for his future without football. He’s seemingly experienced a great deal of growth over the summer and is even willing to try to put his feelings aside when Jackie returns home, agreeing to just be friends as she attempts to settle back into the life she ran away from. But Cole is shocked to discover that, while playing football may not be an option moving forward, his time with the sport may not be entirely over. He spent the summer training Isaac (Isaac Arellanes) for the upcoming season as the backup quarterback, leading to an interesting opportunity to be an assistant coach for his former team, bringing out another side of the character that is far more enjoyable and providing substantial conflicts—both internal and external—for Cole to deal with. Truthfully, though I was not a fan of either relationship within the love triangle in the first season, Cole’s new direction, his increasing maturity, and his growing connection with Jackie have started to win me over, at least leaving me with an option that I wouldn’t find absolutely terrible as the series heads into a third season, which is already in production.
Credit: Netflix
On the other hand, there are a slew of changes for the others in Silver Falls, too. Danny is secretly dating Cole’s ex-girlfriend Erin (Alisha Newton), whilst trying to find the right time to tell his twin brother. Erin continues to demonstrate her growth from the insecure, mean girl we first met, and a beautiful, slow-burning friendship between Erin and Jackie is simmering on the back burner. Will, Richard, and Walter patriarch George (Marc Blucas) are deep in the throes of their new venture to save the ranch and help the family out of their precarious financial situation, working to establish a guest area, activities, and various amenities on the land. This causes quite a bit of strife between the group, frequently leaving the father and son at odds because Will isn’t quite as concerned about the family legacy as George. Like the first season, although the Walters’ financial troubles are probably the most obvious and pragmatic story, given the exorbitant amount of money they’d need to take care of that many children, it’s also (arguably) the least entertaining aspect of My Life with the Walter Boys. It constantly reminds the audience—well, it does for me, forcing me back into the real world where I cannot suspend my disbelief—of how utterly irresponsible it is to have that many children, regardless of how well-off you may be. At the very least, it gives Blucas some time in the spotlight after being on the bench for much of the first season, but hopefully there’s more (and better) to come after the season’s heart-stopping cliffhanger.
Another of the season’s worst stories is everything going on with Nathan (Corey Fogelmanis). The love story between Nathan and Skylar (Jaylan Evans) was weird but sweet in the first season, and it was a relief to escape another coming-out and have everyone in this gigantic family completely fine with it. To throw this entire romance into chaos was certainly a decision, but definitely not the right one. A new boy offers Nathan some attention, creating a rift between Nathan and Skylar that ultimately ends in jealousy and a breakup, but not before making Nathan extremely unlikable. Revealing the boy did it as some sort of revenge plot because Skylar hurt him felt a little too soapy, even for me. Nonetheless, my biggest issue with the season is the sidelining of Katherine. Outside of her dynamic with Jackie, there’s far too little of the family matriarch.
Credit: Netflix
Similarly, it’s baffling that My Life with the Walter Boys distances itself entirely from the young adult element that was so prevalent in the first season. Aside from a few scenes in the premiere and finale, Haley exits entirely to attend a three-month-long research trip for school. In her absence, Will becomes rather two-dimensional and essentially feels like a different character in a very bad way. Additionally, Haley’s bestie Tara (Ashley Holliday Tavares), who also played a major role, is all but relegated to the background entirely. She’s basically only seen when at work and assisting the teens, despite the development of Nik (Moheb Jindran) turning down the job in London to stay with her and the instant connection she felt with Richard at the wedding, the latter of which is dropped entirely. Considering a good portion of the audience is in the age range to relate to these characters the most as they try to figure out adulthood, it’s a bizarre and confounding change of pace. Hopefully, it won’t last.
To leave off on a lighter note, the ultimate upgrade between seasons is Jackie. On shows like this, specifically involving a love triangle, an overused note of criticism is that the so-called nice girl has no personality. My Life with the Walter Boys is the one circumstance where that has actually been true. Jackie was like a blank canvas that the writers had forgotten to paint throughout the first season. Maybe, and I’m reaching here, it was a failed attempt to portray the unthinkable trauma she’d experienced and subsequent grief, as Jackie just desperately attempted to fit in and be indistinguishable from the crowd, blending in and changing her personality depending on who she was around. It didn’t do her any favors, but the second season does quite a bit to turn things around. The writing smartly interconnects, finally featuring who Jackie is amidst her attempts to move on from being the girl with the dead family. She experiences a range of emotions, rather than just perpetual sadness, and she repeatedly expresses how tired she is of being treated like she’s made of glass. It doesn’t mean she’s suddenly over her grief by any means, but there’s a well-done balance between feeling the loss as she also advocates for herself and faces up to her many mistakes. This alone is enough to make me excited for the next season.