Silver Soul

Wednesday also relates that she had another vision while she was at her old school, and her parents are delighted. Wednesday ponders if she’ll end up like Cousin Cass, whose visions drove them so mad they[1] tore out their eyes, set themselves on fire, and threw themselves off a cliff. Morticia says that it’s possible, but gently asks her to temper her expectations. We can’t all be as fortunate as Cousin Cass, and being tormented by visions from beyond is a wonderful thing all on its own.  

Notable in this interaction is the fact that the Addams family is loving and supportive. They are involved in Wednesday’s life, care about her interests, and encourage her to pursue the things that make her happy. Wednesday reciprocates their affection in her own understated way and clearly trusts and looks up to her parents. Rather than being grossed out by Gomez and Morticia’s constant PDA, the rest of the family is affectionately bored by it. Everyone approves, it just happens so often it’s become routine. Having to pause a conversation while her parents have an impromptu makeout session is a fact of life for Wednesday and something she’s long-since learned to work around. 

Wednesday’s arrival at Nevermore goes about the same as in the show, but with considerably less hostility on her part. Gomez and Morticia make several remarks that the campus seems to have declined since their day. Security cameras are everywhere, most of their old haunts are now off-limits, and even the famous fountain in Ophilia Hall has been drained and the statue of Ophilia removed. Principal Weems sadly states that the fountain required too much maintenance, and a statue of a drowning woman was considered too morbid for a children’s dorm.

Enid gives Wednesday the grand tour, and it becomes immediately obvious that Wednesday doesn’t fit in. The Outcasts are far more visibly inhuman than in the show. Rather than normal kids in sunglasses, the vampires look like Count Orlok wearing welding goggles. The werewolves are visibly fanged and hairy (even Enid, she just hides it beneath knitted sweaters, scarves, and mittens). The Sirens have obvious gills they regularly spray with mist to keep moist. The Gorgons are covered head to toe with what are essentially burqas, leaving no indicator at all of what they look like underneath. We will eventually learn that there are students who look fully human but for this introductory scene none of them are visible, making it painfully obvious that Wednesday does not fit in here. 

Something carried through from the show is Enid’s warning about Wednesday’s aloof demeanor not working in Nevermore. Indeed, as things progress we continually see that her death glares have very little effect and no one takes her threats particularly seriously. 

Wednesday’s goodbye to her family is heartfelt rather than confrontational. Unlike in the show her custom school uniform isn’t ready yet and won’t be for a few more days, but she’s been given permission to wear her normal clothes in the meanwhile.[2] The Addams family still secretly drops Thing as they leave, but this time he is supposed to be a pleasant surprise for Wednesday rather than a spy. 

Wednesday is excited to jump into classes but is very disappointed by the curriculum. Rather than the fun and outlandish classes her parents talked about like Pagan Studies, Intro to Curses, and Blood Magic 101, almost everything is mundane. Grammar, Geometry, Computer Science, etc. She wants to take Ancient Sumerian, not “Beginner Spanish”. Enid, overhearing her ranting, notes that this is a school. People are here to learn, and algebra has a lot more real life applications than curses. “Only if you lead a boring life,” notes Wednesday. 

Classes are indeed a letdown. The vast majority of Wednesday’s schedule is locked into mandatory mundane courses that are exactly the same as in a normal school. The few courses she’s allowed to pick for herself are also disappointments. 

Potioncraft ends up being about making salves and soaps, not lethal poisons and fleshwarping tonics. Wednesday’s complaints are immediately rejected: teaching teens how to brew dangerous and lethal substances would be irresponsible and illegal. Botany is only slightly better. The class itself focuses on mundane herbs and common flowers, but Thornhill notices Wednesday’s disdain and takes her aside after class to show off her far more exotic private garden. Wednesday asks if any plants like these will be in future lessons, and Thornhill shakes her head. Nevermore’s curriculum focuses on preparing students for mundane life in the outside world, so learning to grow daisies and cucumbers is far more useful than sundews and hemlock. 

Throughout the day it is clear that Nevermore’s students are not happy with her enrollment. Whispers and dirty looks follow her wherever she goes. Her desk is vandalized with “Go home, normie”, she gets shoved in the halls, her bag is dumped into the compost heap. 

Wednesday attempts to take out her frustrations on the fencing team by challenging Bianca, only for things to go wrong yet again. Her razor-sharp sword (a gift from her father) is immediately confiscated: they only fence with regulation foils (which we can see are tiny, flimsy things by comparison). Wednesday reluctantly agrees to use a school foil despite her distaste, and the match begins. 

While many members of the Addams family are master sword  fighters, Gomez in particular, they disdain rules. An Addams is a swashbuckler, a duelist! Thrusting back and forth in a line would be boring! Where’s the style, the flare? As a result, while Wednesday is an expert with a sword, she turns out to be a terrible fencer.

Bianca lunges, and Wednesday effortlessly spins out of the way…and immediately loses a point because she went out of bounds. She loses the next point when she exploits an opening to kick Bianca’s legs out from under her, another illegal move. She attempts to remove her mask, and is told protective gear must be worn at all times. Gritting her teeth, she fights Bianca while following all the rules. She makes a good showing, but it’s obvious the limits on what she is allowed to do are crippling her and Bianca soon scores another point. 

Frustrated, Wednesday throws down her mask and coldly issues a challenge: live steel, no tips, first blood. An amused Bianca almost seems ready to accept when the instructor shuts it down hard. Wednesday’s challenge amounts to an actual, real duel. It’s not only dangerous, irresponsible, and against every possible rule, it’s literally illegal. Wednesday is banned from the fencing team and leaves in disgust. As she arrives in the locker room to change from her fencing tunic, she glumly notes that her locker has been stuffed with crumpled notes like “go back where you came from”, “you don’t belong here”, “get lost, rich girl”, etc. 

Even in the foulest mood, Wednesday isn’t so off her game that she doesn’t notice someone preparing to drop a gargoyle on her head. Ambushes and lethal traps are commonplace in her family, and this one is quite crude compared to what she’s used to. She calmly prepares to step out of the way at the last moment…and is tackled onto the pavement by Xavier.

She regains consciousness in the infirmary, and Xavier tells her their shared backstory and that they’re finally even. Wednesday disputes this, since she could have harmlessly avoided it if he hadn’t tackled her from behind. Besides, there was no way anyone would expect such a clumsy attempt to actually work. People have been throwing things at her all day, this was just more hazing. 

Xavier doesn’t take this well, but Wednesday states that if he really wants to pay off his debt, he can explain why everyone seems to hate her so much. Xavier explains that most of the students at Nevermore are people who can’t go to school anywhere else. Sure, the kids at her old schools might have picked on her for being a weirdo goth, but how do you think they’d react to someone with fangs or gills? Schools for Outcasts are extremely rare, so every time a slot opens up at a place like Nevermore people fight tooth and nail to get in. Wednesday might be proud of having been kicked out of a dozen schools, but for the kids at Nevermore this is their only chance, and they desperately need it. The mundane subjects she disdains are their only hope of actually having a life after they graduate. 

Not everyone has a family that’s insanely rich and connected.   

Wednesday glumly returns to her room and begins typing out her dark musings in a journal entry, and is told to knock it off by Enid. She’s trying to study, and the typewriter clacking away is making it impossible to focus. Wednesday states that’s hardly her problem. Enid angrily snaps that she’s already in danger of flunking out because of how bad her grades are, she can’t let things slip any further. Wednesday again states that isn’t her problem, and an enraged Enid says she has ADHD so studying and paying attention in class is very hard for her.[3] The distraction of her damn typewriter isn’t helping at all. Wednesday dispassionately inquires if Enid’s received any treatment, but Enid just rolls her eyes and cryptically says “Fat chance.” Utterly fed up, Wednesday rips up her journal page and goes to bed. 

With Nevermore a disappointment at every level, Wednesday resolves to abandon it. It’s easier said than done, however. 

Wednesday isn’t under maximum scrutiny like in the show, but this version of Nevermore is locked down much tighter. The school is ringed by a high, spiked fence (very atmospheric, but also very intimidating) along with cameras and motion detectors. Even if you could somehow climb over or slip through, it would be detected. The only way in or out is through the main gate, which can only be opened from the security office of Nevermore.[4] 

Students are only allowed to leave the campus if they’ve proven they have sufficient care and self control not to cause problems outside its walls. They’re issued special badges that they must wear at all times when in Jericho along with their uniforms, and they have to scan the badge when leaving and returning so there is a log of exactly how long they were gone. Normally these badges are only issued after months of demonstrated good conduct, but Wednesday has an exception because of her court-mandated therapy. 

Wednesday packs up her essentials and departs for “therapy”, planning to use it as an excuse to disappear once in town. Weems doesn’t drive Wednesday this time, since Wednesday is no longer expected to want to leave. On the way to town she passes a number of tire tracks on the side of the road and has a vision: police cars parked, the sheriff looking over the shredded remains of a hiker in the woods, and a massive monster screaming in the night. 

Thing literally snaps her out of it, and while Wednesday is curious she ultimately decides it’s not worth the hassle of sticking around. She wouldn’t be able to investigate while stuck in Nevermore anyway, so escape is still the plan. Aware that showing up to a therapy session with a backpack and suitcase would be suspicious, Wednesday ducks into the coffeeshop and hides them in a corner before heading to her appointment. 

Dr. Kinbott is just as easy to escape as she was in the show. Climbing back to the street, Wednesday casually throws her Nevermore badge in the trash and heads for the coffee shop to collect her things and depart. Thing wants her to call her family to take her home, but Xavier’s comments about her privilege struck a nerve. Wednesday wants to try going it on her own, to find out if she can make it without her family’s money and protection. These plans are derailed when she finds her possessions missing. 

Tyler notes Wednesday’s fury from across the room and tells her to relax: he just moved her stuff behind the counter so it wouldn’t get stolen. Wednesday notes that he’s rather perceptive to have seen her earlier, and he shrugs it off. She kinda stands out, and anyway he has a dull job in a dull town. Not much to do but stand around and watch. 

Wednesday reclaims her things and prepares to depart, only to notice a commotion happening outside. Another Nevermore student (Rowan) has drawn the notice of Lucas Walker and his bullies. They drag him behind the job, steal his wallet, and begin beating him while mocking him for not fighting back. 

Thing appears atop a nearby dumpster, snaps twice to get their attention, and then waves cheerfully. The boys recoil in horror and start looking around for a brick to smash Thing with, which is all the distraction Wednesday needs to get close and start pummeling them. The fight is over in seconds and Wednesday regards their unconscious bodies with quiet pride. 

Tyler opens the back door of the shop and swears at all the carnage. Wednesday locks onto him, prepared to eliminate the final witness, but Tyler meekly puts his hands up. He’s no narc, no matter what she might have heard, and those guys clearly had it coming. He asks Wednesday to help her friend slip into the back of the shop: there’s a first aid kit in the back they can use to patch him up. Wednesday points out that Rowan isn’t her friend, but silently helps Rowan limp inside. 

Tyler mentions they’ll need to be careful: Nevermore students aren’t allowed in the shop. Wednesday asks why, and Tyler explains that most businesses in Jericho are off limits to Nevermore kids. Apparently they kept causing disruptions so people started banning them. 

Rowan weakly laughs and says the “disruptions” were unusually Nevermore kids getting harassed by the locals. There’s a zero-tolerance policy for violence: they can’t fight back, no matter what, or they’ll be expelled. The people of Jericho know it, and since they have to always wear their badges and uniforms any Nevermore kid is an instant target whenever they go to town. The stores that don’t ban them hike up their prices as an unofficial “Nevermore tax”.[5]  

Wednesday asks why they even bother going to town then, and Rowan says that a lot of kids don’t. The rest are willing to risk it just so they don’t go stir crazy being stuck inside that stupid fence for months on end. Any freedom is better than nothing, and it’s not so bad if you’re with a group. Wednesday immediately asks why he’s alone then, and Rowan just shrugs. She isn’t the only one who doesn’t fit in at Nevermore. 

Wednesday is getting a dark look in her eyes as she observes the cheery and painfully normal streets of Jericho, but she changes the subject rather than respond. She asks if Rowan can make it back to school on his own. He says yes, then almost collapses as his leg buckles when he attempts to walk. Wednesday sighs and reluctantly states that she’ll help carry him back. 

Rowan and Wednesday limp back to Nevermore, only to find police cars and an FBI van parked outside. Weems is waiting for them and carefully informs Sheriff Donovan that the last of the missing students have arrived, as she promised. Donovan demands to know why Wednesday isn’t in a uniform, and Weems states that it had to be special ordered due to an allergy and hasn’t arrived yet. He then asks what’s wrong with Rowan, and Rowan replies that he slipped down some stairs. He points out Wednesday’s luggage, and she coldly informs him she was shopping. 

Donovan doesn’t seem to buy it but gruffly orders them to their rooms. Wednesday asks why, and Donovan tells her that there’s been an incident. The school is on lockdown while they search it. Wednesday asks to see his warrant, and Weems politely states that Nevermore can provide blanket permission for law enforcement to search students’ rooms and belongings at any time. It’s part of the agreement they signed with the federal and state government to remain in operation after a…certain incident, along with all the cameras and additional security.[6]  

Wednesday stalks back to her room, and finds several investigators in the process of trashing Enid’s half of the room while Enid fumes. She demands to know why this is needed: she can’t even turn! The investigators either don’t believe her or don’t care and continue to rip apart her colorful decor, dumping her books, drawers, and bags onto the floor. To emphasize the violation we get a shot of an agent skimming through the texts on her phone while another reads out her browser history and a third rummages through her underwear.[7] 

A tearful Enid points at a previously hidden set of chains on the wall and states that they’ve already pulled the data: they know she was chained up like she was supposed to be during the last full moon. Wednesday dispassionately observes from her own end of the room, and Enid demands to know why they didn’t search any of her things. An investigator coldly informs her that her roommate is listed as human, so there’s no point searching her stuff. There’s no way a little goth girl could literally rip a man to bits...to which Wednesday responds: “You’d be surprised.” 

The investigators eventually leave, and Enid tearfully begins attempting to put her side of the room back together. She points out that the least Wednesday could do is help, and Wednesday puts on large gloves to begin assisting. Enid is insulted (“You think I’m that gross?”), but Wednesday reminds her of the color allergy.[8] As they clean, Wednesday remarks that it’s interesting. Enid is in no mood, but Wednesday presses onward anyway. They were clearly looking for something, not just someone, or there’d be no point to such a violent search. The body in the woods wasn’t just shredded: the killer took something. That’s not a mindless beast, that’s a serial killer. Very interesting…

In the next scene, we finally return Wednesday playing “Paint It Black” on her balcony while we check in on the rest of the cast hearing her play. Some are the same as in the show, but a few are different. 

Enid is trying and failing to study when she hears the music. After a flash of annoyance, she glances outside and pulls up her laptop to begin typing. It appears to be a story about Detective Wolfe, who is now explaining why the body they found isn’t the victim of a mindless beast…[9]

We’ve seen Xavier’s art before, mostly soulless still lifes of mediocre quality. He’s working on one now, but when he hears Wednesday’s music he tears it up. He angrily grabs tubes of black and red paint and rips the cloth off another canvas, revealing an intimidating impressionistic painting of the monster in Wednesday’s visions. 

Bianca is practicing alone on the fencing mat. Her form is flawless, but when she hears the music she stops. She considers for a moment, bending her foil entirely in half (showcasing how much of a sad toy it is compared to a real sword), then snaps it in annoyance. She hears a knock and turns to see Thing waving at her from the doorway. 

Tyler is closing up shop for the night. He begins locking up but stops and turns in the direction of Nevermore. He’s much too far away to hear the music that’s playing, but his head turns wistfully, almost as if he can hear it anyway. 

Weems smiles as the music drifts into her office. “It’s about time.” We see that she is standing by the lit fireplace, reading a police bulletin featuring the battered faces of the boys Wednesday beat up and a wanted notice for a teenaged hispanic female in black clothes. Weems rips it up and calmly throws it into the fire. 

Sheriff Donovan is sifting through the results of the Nevermore search, which came up empty. His eyes casually fall on the report for “Sinclair/Addams”, and he immediately grabs it, throwing all the papers off the desk as he frantically begins pulling up Nevermore student records until he finds “Wednesday Addams.”

As the song ends, Thing appears. Wednesday asks if he “delivered it”, and Thing wiggles a finger in a nod. “Did she accept?” Thing opens up in a shrug, and Wednesday supposes it will have to do. She walks to one side of the balcony, puts on a black half mask, and then jumps, landing on a nearby roof and sliding before jumping away again. 

We catch up to Wednesday landing neatly on the cluttered but open expanse of another roof. Bianca is waiting there, her face concealed by a half mask and an elegant sword in her hand. This is no wobbling fencing foil: it’s live steel that looks like it came from the belt of an English sea captain. Wednesday smiles very slightly beneath her mask and draws her sword. 

“Same rules as before? Live steel, no tips, first blood?”

“Of course.”

They fight, and it quickly becomes clear that Bianca is as out of her element in a freestyle fight as Wednesday was on the fencing mat. Wednesday easily takes advantage and has her blade to Bianca’s throat in just a few seconds. She doesn’t draw blood, however, and with her point made Wednesday removes her sword and they clash again. 

Bianca is now moving and rolling, allowing her to do much better, but she rarely attacks and when she does her attempts are extremely limited. Wednesday quickly deduces that she’s holding back to avoid accidentally causing serious harm, and Bianca replies that of course she is! Only a crazy person would just flail around with real swords! Wednesday supposes that means she’s crazy, but…

“...maybe crazy is just what this place needs.”

Did she really risk her entire academic career by sneaking out onto the rooftops for an illegal duel with real swords…only to waste it by holding back? Come on. Stop worrying about the consequences and just take the leap. Bianca says it's not so simple, and Wednesday replies that it is. 

“One way or another, you’ll finally have done something worth remembering.” 

Bianca finally stops holding back, and the resulting fight is epic. They’re spinning, leaping off obstacles, and rolling under each other’s swings as their blades flash in the moonlight. It’s every bit the cinematic fight their first confrontation on the fencing mat wasn’t, a full Hollywood swashbuckler duel, and it’s clear both of them are having the time of their lives. 

The fight finally ends when Bianca gets in a lucky swing and cuts Wednesday’s face. Far from being shocked or disappointed, Wednesday looks pleased. The air is still thick with excitement and tension, and it appears they’re about to start fighting again when voices and lights appear below them. Wednesday nods briefly and they both take off in opposite directions, parkouring away even as faculty with flashlights appear on the roof they just vacated. 

Wednesday, sans mask, slides back into her room. Enid idly asks where she went, and Wednesday calmly states that if she doesn’t tell her then Enid won’t be forced to testify in court. Enid shrugs and goes back to her laptop as Wednesday pulls out her typewriter. 

Wednesday begins writing a letter to her family, explaining how disappointed she is with Nevermore. It used to be a unique place where ancient traditions were preserved, risks were encouraged, and differences were celebrated. Now it’s just a conformatorium, smashing Outsiders into boring molds so they’ll fit in a society that refuses to make a place for who they really are. Even that isn’t enough, since the school is obviously being strangled by xenophobic locals and jackbooted pigs. She doubts it will last another decade. There’s still a little fight left in the students (Wednesday pauses to wipe blood from her cut), but most of it seems to be directed at getting her to leave. The students, the faculty, the townspeople, the police: everyone’s against her… 

“...and you know how I love a challenge.” 

Post-Credits Stinger:

Wednesday is still typing at her desk. 

“PS: There appears to be a vicious killer in the woods ripping people to bits. Will get souvenirs for Pugsley if I can.” 

-

[1]: Immediate confirmation of a they/them Addams to show that despite having the structural make up of a traditional nuclear family the Addamses are queer in every sense of the word.  

[2]: Wednesday not getting a uniform right away serves to emphasize her status as an outsider. When she finally gets a uniform and puts it on, it is a visual indicator that she has accepted and been accepted by her fellow students. 

[3]: It needs to be very clear that Wednesday’s habits aren’t just annoying: she’s causing Enid actual, measurable harm. Giving Enid untreated ADHD makes it obvious that Wednesday is punching down in this scene, and the fact that Wednesday stops shows she recognizes this.   

[4]: Nevermore’s extensive security systems are a physical representation of the social and legal oppression the students face, and this oppression is the true antagonist of our revised show. The school is basically a prison, so we’re establishing details early to set up for the inevitable prison break. 

[5]: We’re being very explicit that this isn’t social exclusion or bullying: this is a mass campaign of exclusion and exploitation that deliberately echoes real-world discrimination. 

[6]: This is set up for a very big payoff later on. The reveal of “The Incident” is what will prove to Wednesday that while she might be virtually invincible, the people around her are not. Morticia and Gomez escaped the fallout of the Gates murder without scratch, but Nevermore didn’t. Its current status as a neutered pseudo-prison is a direct consequence of their actions, and if Wednesday acts up then the school will be shut down completely. 

[7]: Showing Enid’s underwear onscreen might seem needlessly pervy, but this scene needs to be as unsubtle as possible. The police are metaphorically and literally exposing the most intimate parts of Enid’s life on the flimsiest of justifications.

[8]: Here we have the reverse of Enid’s ADHD revelation, as Enid and the audience are reminded that Wednesday has her own disability to accomodate. Her color allergy is a real condition and isn’t just an excuse or funny joke. From this point forward Enid and Wednesday start gradually accommodating each other, which allows them to remain roommates and eventually become friends.