The third season of Yellowjackets, the teen survival drama that premiered on Showtime, has finally arrived. However, the show's ambitious five-season plan may be its biggest obstacle to success. The latest season, which premiered on February 14th, continues to stretch itself thin, struggling to balance its unique premise with the demands of a multi-season narrative.

The show's premise, which follows a teen girl softball team that survives a plane crash in the Canadian wilderness, is undeniably juicy. The series expertly weaves together the girls' struggles to survive in the wilderness with their adult lives, where they are forced back together after years without contact. However, as the show progresses, it becomes clear that the creators may have bitten off more than they can chew.

The first three episodes of the season are largely more of the same, with messy trauma-slinging and awkwardness from the adults, and unmitigated bile and angst from their younger selves. The show relies heavily on food metaphors and food-themed character arcs, which, while occasionally silly, fail to add depth to the narrative. It isn't until the fourth episode that the show begins to show promise, with a kangaroo court full of angry kids who aren't entirely sure what a trial involves.

This episode, titled "12 Angry Girls and 1 Drunk Travis," is a great close-up of the stilted teething period where the girls' fledgling rites are still marked by hesitation and peer pressure. The young cast does a stellar job of digging into the ugly soft power play for camp leadership, and the episode is a nice narrative foundation for the opening sequence in the very excellent series premiere.

Despite the show's promising moments, it's clear that the creators are struggling to balance their ambitious five-season plan with the demands of a contained premise. As critic Angelica Jade Bastién noted, the belief that TV is inherently deeper and more profound than film because it has more time is a flawed approach. Yellowjackets, even when firing on all cylinders, almost certainly does not need to be five seasons long.

The show's music supervision is also grating, with amateur cuts and edits and fades that feel way too forced. One particular appearance of a Limp Bizkit song felt like something you'd hear at a house party in the '90s, which, if intentional, did not land.

Despite its flaws, the cast of Yellowjackets is doing a phenomenal job of carrying the pacing and writing on their survivalist-trained shoulders. The show's premiere on February 14th is a must-watch for fans of the series, but it remains to be seen whether the creators can course-correct and deliver a satisfying narrative arc.

In conclusion, Yellowjackets Season 3 is a promising but overstretched premise that struggles to balance its unique narrative with the demands of a multi-season show. While the cast is doing a phenomenal job, the show's creators need to re-evaluate their approach and focus on delivering a satisfying narrative arc.