Editor's Note: The below contains major spoilers for Netflix's Wednesday.
Welcome to Nevermore Academy, the school for outcasts and definitely not normies. The Netflix series Wednesday, from the mind of Tim Burton and created for television by Miles Millar and Alfred Gough, follows the woeful Wednesday Addams (Jenna Ortega), a gothic teenager whose track record of tortuous behavior has landed her at Nevermore Academy, much to her dismay. She definitely does not want to follow in the footsteps of her parents Gomez (Luis Guzmán) and Morticia (Catherine Zeta-Jones) who also attended Nevermore Academy, and isn't looking forward to attending mandatory therapy sessions with Dr. Valerie Kinbott (Riki Lindhome). The fact that Wednesday has a colorful, upbeat, social media-obsessed roommate Enid Sinclair (Emma Myers) is the icing on the grim cake. At least she has her cello, typewriter, and her five fingered friend, Thing.
Wednesday is of course based on The Addams Family, the iconic characters created by cartoonist Charles Addams in 1938, though Wednesday, as the title suggests, focuses on our titular teenager. Not too long after moving into Nevermore, Wednesday realizes she has psychic powers and begins to have startling visions of murders and attacks nearby. The more the season progresses, the more determined Wednesday is to unfurl the mystery, identify the monster, and — as if she doesn't have enough to deal with — clear her family's name for the murder of Garrett Gates (Lewis Hayes), a normie who was obsessed with Morticia and once attempted to poison Nevermore's student body while a younger Gomez and Morticia were students at the time. The Gates family were descendants of Jericho's outcast-hating founder, Joseph Crackstone (William Houston). The entire Gates family is believed to be long dead, with the Gates family line ending after Laurel, Garrett's younger sister, supposedly drowned overseas years ago (or did she?) Before we go down that sinister road, let's first break down the season's most pressing mystery: just what (and who) exactly is the Hyde?
What Exactly Is a Hyde?
The arrival of Uncle Fester (perfectly played by Fred Armisen) in the penultimate episode of the family crime series really kicks the story into gear. He quickly identifies the monster in question to be a Hyde, and leads Wednesday to Nathaniel Faulkner’s (Nevermore's founder) diary hidden in a vault in the Nightshades Library at her school. Faulkner’s research reveals that Wednesday not only has to track down the killer monster but its master. This only increases her suspicions of psychic classmate Xavier Thorpe (Percy Hynes White), whom she has been skeptical of since day one. Sure, he's been on Wednesday's side from the start, but he's also conveniently been right around the corner whenever the monster strikes. And what's going on with him and Dr. Kinbott?
And let’s not forget about Principal Weems (Gwendoline Christie), one of the many people suspicious of Wednesday. She went to school with Wednesday's parents and knows quite a bit about the Addams family's reputation. But Weems isn't exactly innocent herself, and this becomes crystal clear by the end of the season. Wednesday confronts her about withholding information, and Weems admits that she did know that the monster was a Hyde all along. She couldn’t say anything because, if people knew that a Hyde was lurking, Nevermore would be shut down. Heck, Hydes are so dangerous that they were even banned from Nevermore three decades ago. Faulkner studied them in order to determine if they were "just mindless killers or conscious of their actions." Weems explains to Wednesday that he died before he was able to answer that question.
Who Is the Hyde in 'Wednesday'?
Wednesday believes that she has unraveled the mystery when she discovers the roses that Kinbott left by Eugene's bedside are the same variety that were in Laurel Gates' childhood bedroom. She confronts Kinbott in her office, accusing her of being the vengeful Laurel Gates and unlocking Xavier as the Hyde. Shortly after Wednesday leaves, Kinbott is attacked and murdered by the Hyde.
Wednesday then confronts Xavier in his woodsy art studio and accuses him of being the monster that killed Kinbott. She believes Laurel didn't die in a drowning, but rather came back to Jericho, Vermont with the false identity of Dr. Valerie Kinbott, to manipulate students of Nevermore into wreaking havoc on the town that wronged her family. Given Xavier's sketchy painting of a slashed Kinbott, Wednesday is almost certain he's the Hyde. It doesn't help that Rowan's (Calum Ross) inhaler, Eugene's (Moosa Mostafa) glasses, and Kinbott's necklace are all in his mysterious cabin. Within seconds, he is arrested by Sheriff Galpin (Jamie McShane), though he swears he is being framed. Later that evening, after kissing the Sheriff's son Tyler (Hunter Doohan), Wednesday has her most shocking vision of all as she witnesses the murder of Kinbott, and the identity of the bloodthirsty Hyde is revealed to be Tyler. As Wednesday so sharply puts it, "Of course the first boy I kiss would turn out to be a psychotic, serial killing, monster. I guess I have a type."
At the start of Episode 8, Wednesday promptly gets Tyler into the woods, where she and her friends tie him up inside Xavier's art studio. Thing stole Tyler's mother's medical records which revealed that she was a Hyde. This explains Sheriff Galpin's overprotectiveness of his son and weariness around the subject of his (late) wife. Only time would tell if the monstrous condition was passed on to Tyler. Wednesday inflicts some torture on Tyler so he could confirm her theory, though this was a bridge too far for her friends, who ultimately back away from the situation and let our stoic, braided mischief-maker do her thing. Wednesday's friends rat her out to Weems, who calls the Sheriff. He, however, is listening to tapes Kinbott recorded after her therapy sessions with Tyler, which include some troubling insights. Any mention of Tyler's mother would cause Tyler to turn cold and snap, leading her to think the loss of his mother did more damage to him psychologically than they once thought.
But what was Kinbott (whom, again, Wednesday believes is Laurel Gates) using Tyler for? Or was he using her? Turns out that our innocent Weathervane barista was not at all the innocent quad-shot espresso maker that he led Wednesday to believe he was. After pleading with his father to let him speak alone with the fresh-out-of-custody Wednesday, he chillingly explains that he is the monster that has been not-so-secretly hiding in plain sight. "You know," he says, "At first, I'd wake up naked, covered in blood, no idea what happened. But over time, I started to remember everything. The sound of their screams, the panic in their eyes, and a fear so primal I could taste it. And it was delicious."
Who Is the Real Laurel Gates in 'Wednesday'?
The "quid-pro-woe" for Sheriff Galpin not pressing kidnapping charges on Wednesday was that she was to be expelled from Nevermore. Before departing, Wednesday is stopped by the upbeat Professor Thornhill (played by Christina Ricci, who played Wednesday in the film series) who gives her a white oleander plant as a parting gift and as a sign of renewal. Wednesday might be mysterious, but as Thornhill explains, she's very talented and has a bright future. But would the rest of the town see Wednesday's potential? Ah, well, this was a mere attempt by the real Laurel Gates to further throw Wednesday off the scent. That’s right! Thornhill was the real Laurel, not Kinbott, and she used a plant-based serum to get Tyler, whom she took a liking to, on her side and groom him.
Wednesday finally cracks the case when Eugene wakes up after his attack and mentions to Wednesday that he remembers the person who burnt down the Hyde's cave had red boots, which, of course, Wednesday recognizes as Thornhill's signature shoes. Wednesday and Weems team up, with Weems shapeshifting into Tyler. The reveal that it was Weems and not Tyler in the room as Thornhill confidently spilled her future plans to Wednesday immediately zapped all the energy out of the air (much like Uncle Fester’s fingertips). Thornhill kills Weems by injecting her with a lethal poison and knocks out Wednesday, leading to her to wake up in chains in the crypt.
What Is Thornhill's (a.k.a. Laurel Gates) Plan?
Okay, so, Thornhill is not the warm and fuzzy teacher we met in the first episode of Wednesday. She explains how her roots go back to the murderous Joseph Crackstone, whom Thornhill defends as a "visionary dedicated to protecting normies from outcasts" until Goody Addams (Wednesday's ancestor, also played by Jenna Ortega) "cut his life short." Then, to make matters even worse, his land was used to build Nevermore Academy. Thornhill has dedicated her life to the Crackstone cause through supernatural means. This explains why the Hyde (Tyler) was keeping different body parts from his victims: they were going to resurrect Crackstone and eliminate the outcasts once and for all. Thornhill even had Goody’s original Book of Shadows from Pilgrim World. Dun dun dun!
But could Wednesday be the real reason why things have descended into deadly chaos? According to Thornhill, Wednesday's arrival at Nevermore set the "chubby wheels" of her plan in motion. Goody sealed Crackstone's sarcophagus with a blood lock that only a direct descendant of hers could open on the night of the blood moon. After swiping some blood from Wednesday's palm and putting her bloody handprint on the sarcophagus (and speaking some spooky Latin), Thornhill successfully resurrects Crackstone, who is still quite angry with Goody. He twists a knife into Wednesday and the two leave her to bleed alone in the crypt. Goody appears to Wednesday and removes the knife. Using Wednesday's necklace and her powers, Goody becomes one with Wednesday. Wednesday, now alive and back to her ever-so-sprightly self, confronts Tyler, who transforms into the Hyde, in the woods.
Enid finally wolfs out in time to save Wednesday from Tyler's transformation, and Thing rescues Xavier from the back of Sheriff Galpin's cop car. Crackstone, as the picture foreshadowed, puts Nevermore up in flames. Bianca (Joy Sunday) proves to be a surprising ally for Wednesday when she stabs Crackstone in the back, disorienting him during an epic sword fight between him and Wednesday, and allowing Wednesday to stab him in his black heart as Goody instructed. Eugene, now out of the hospital, directs his beloved bees to swarm and sting Thornhill, which enables Wednesday to knock her out with a swift kick to the face. Enid emerges from the woods, but did she kill Tyler? Unfortunately not.
The season ends on an eerily satisfying note with many questions still in need of answers. Xavier gives Wednesday a phone as a "thank you" for saving his life and helping him prove his innocence, and Tyler is put in a straight jacket and driven far away in an armed vehicle. But right before the credits roll, Wednesday's phone lights up with mysterious messages from an unknown contact who sends pictures of her and threatens her safety. In the passing truck, Tyler begins his transformation into the Hyde once again. "Were Laurel Gates and Tyler just pawns in a bigger game? Will today's stalker become tomorrow’s nemesis?" our macabre protagonist inquires. Wednesday's novel might be finished, but her deadly adventures are just beginning.
Wednesday Season 1 is now available to stream on Netflix.