misty quigley apologist

Yellowjackets - Pilot (S01E01)

My goal was to keep this as an archive just for visuals but this scene is one of my favorites ever from a screenwriting perspective so I have to dissect it.

Adult Shauna's first scene, her introduction in the show, being her masturbating on her daughter's bed, while staring at pictures of said daughter's boyfriend & using that same daughter's vibrator is GENIUS.

Having 2 timelines at the same time is tricky and can easily bore people if one is more exciting than the other, which, could be the case here, since the 1996 one has the plane crash; but introducing a 2021 character in such a shocking, even horrifying way, lets the audience know that this timeline is just as interesting, immediately hooking them.

At the same time, it tells you everything you need to know about Shauna, in a scene that lasts less than 30 secs, and without a single line of dialogue.

Shauna's need for control is evident throughout the season. She settled for a monotonous life, where nothing wrong or exciting can happen, but her impulses keep winning. This aspect of her is usually explored through sex. She's very sexual but, for her, it isn't about pleasure; it's just another aspect where she can gain control of her life, when she's feeling powerless.

Her relationship with her daughter is terrible, both because she reminds her of Jackie, & because she has everything Shauna never had, so she resents her. So, what does she do? masturbate on her bed. It's a big "fuck you" (not just to Callie, but to everything & everyone), another moment where her impulses took control, only to be repressed again as soon as she finishes & goes back to her boring life, like nothing happened.

Aside from her need for power over her own life & mind, Shauna also has huge issues when it comes to boundaries. We see her constantly crossing them & being inappropriate throughout the season, & this is one of the clearest examples.

Also, like I mentioned before, she's masturbating while staring at the boyfriend's pictures, but it's pretty clear that she's not attracted to him. Again, it's her trying to gain power by messing with people she shouldn't be messing with, a big "fuck you, I can get away with this & no one will ever know" to the world.

And while, what impressed me here was the script, other aspects are also interesting & complement the scene really well. The cinematography & production design are beautiful. In the first shot, the soft light over the face, along with the pristine (but natural) make up & her hair looking so soft & delicate create a huge contrast with what's being done in the scene, as well as with the sound she makes while orgasming, which reflects her mental estate & what this really means to her.

The second shot uses diagonal lines, as Yellowjackets tends to use, to show that things aren't right, which is when the vibrator is revealed.

In both shots, the color palette of the room is innocent, fun, cute and very "teen girl", which contrasts with the shades of blue in Shauna's clothes. This serves 3 purposes: First, it gives instant context to the scene, letting you know it's a teen girl's bedroom. Second, it shows how different & out of contact Shauna & her daughter are. Third, it's a way of letting the audience know Shauna is trapped in her teen self. On the outside, she grew up & is now in her 40s but on the inside, she's still stuck in that same mindset she had as a teen, she's emotionally immature & can't seem to move on, no matter how hard she tries; perfectly reflected here by all those shades of pink, surrounding her completely.

s2 script