As a big fan of the “Winx” cartoon, it’s obvious that I freaked out when I found out that Netflix was going to make a series based on my favorite fairies. The first season had a more introductory feel, both in terms of characters and the plot of the show – which, at first, was not very similar to the plot of the original cartoon. For me, it worked really well and captivated me from the very beginning (I saw it all in one go). Of course, some things had a lot of potential and others needed improvement, but nothing that a sequel couldn’t easily solve…
After almost 2 years of waiting, the second season of “Fate: The Winx Saga” has arrived on Netflix and I’ve already binge-watched it all! Is it better or worse than the first one? Read to the end to know what I think…
Warning: this review contains many spoilers! Go check out the new episodes and then come back here!
A New Season…
We start the second season with some doubts: is Dowling (Eve Best) really dead? How will Rosalind (Lesley Sharp/Miranda Richardson) run the school? How did Sky’s (Danny Griffin) father manage to survive? – and is he Beatrix’s (Sadie Soverall) father? (OMG!) – Are the Burned Ones really dead? And the Blood Witches? Before I start getting into the details, I can assure you that most of these questions are answered over the course of the series.
First of all, I need to emphasize the qualitative leap from the first to the second season. I feel like most of the criticisms leveled at the first one are re-evaluated for the sequel.
Starting with character development. It is clear that, in these new episodes, we know a little more about our Winxs, their fears, their desires, their ambitions… And here I need to highlight the development of Stella (Hannah van der Westhuysen) and Sky – who were a bit of a nuisance in the previous season and have now found their personality. Also, the evolution of the friendships was admirable – there were several cute moments between the protagonists.
Another aspect that needs to be highlighted is the discovery of the serie’s direction. As I mentioned before, I had the impression that the first part introduced us to this fairy universe and the possible plots that would be explored. It was neither a completely new series nor a live-action of the original one. It was something in between – something very good, but in the middle.
With season two, I felt the show found the perfect balance between these two options. There is a new freshness at the same time as a nostalgic air full of original elements – like the Dragon’s Flame carried by Bloom (Abigail Cowen), something from the original cartoon that is very important for the course of the show.
Talking about changes…
One of the biggest criticisms of the series’ first season was in relation to the looks of our favorite fairies – which, in the original, were wonderful. Particularly, it wasn’t something that bothered me – it could be because I don’t know anything about fashion –, but I felt an improvement for the second one. I think each character was more connected to their power and identity.
We finally got the Winxs transformation into full fairies – *cough* of almost all of them *cough*! Something I missed a little bit in the first season.
And, of course, I couldn’t not talk about her… Flora! Our dear earth fairy has finally appeared! I can’t deny that I was a little disappointed when they “replaced” her character with Terra (Eliot Salt) in season one – even though I love Terra too. But it was worth the wait. Paulina Chavez plays a charismatic and passionate Flora, a real addition to the cast.
Love is in the air…?
One of the most positive points of this sequel was the construction and development of the relationships of some characters. The beloved couple Bloom and Sky are even more in love and with a slightly more mature relationship.
Now, what really pleased me was the unexpected intimacy between Beatrix and Stella. First, the actresses have a lot of chemistry – which even made me wish the two were more than friends… Secondly, bringing these two different women together through their strong personalities was a genius move. In a short time, the two created a very nice and interesting bond, they were confidants – I felt that they cared about each other. It was one of my favorite parts of the season.
And I definitely need to mention the beginning of #Rivusa (Riven + Musa), a darling couple for the fans of the original cartoon. The approach of the two was well built. Riven (Freddie Thorp) was the only one who understood Musa (Elisha Applebaum) and her power dilemmas. It’s a couple I’m looking forward to seeing in season three.
Something that I wasn’t expecting…
We have an interesting twist of villains in these new episodes. The truth is, you spend every episode wondering who the real villain in this story is. If even Bloom doesn’t know for sure who to trust, how will I know? That, for me, is one of the great successes of this season. This bad guy/good guy game worked just fine for the plot. And I’ll be honest, I would never guess that Sebastian was going to be a Blood Witch and that surprised me positively – since it was something really unexpected.
Season Two: Hit or Flop?
The second season managed to answer my questions while causing several other ones to arise in my brain – like, for example, will we have the Trix in the future?
The season finale was perfect, with an excellent hook for the next one – although it left me heartbroken with the death of my favorite character (#RIP Beatrix). I was already a big fan of the series since the first part, but this new one has reached and exceeded my expectations… I believe it is one of the biggest hits of Netflix in recent times.
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The article above was edited by Milena Casaca.
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