‘The Sex Lives of College Girls’ (Season 2) Review: Welcome Back to Frisky Fun
HBO Max’s The Sex Lives of College Girls takes advantage of the setting and lets its characters explore it harmoniously. The show focuses on four college students as they try to discover their sexual preferences, friendship and relationships. The first season received critical acclaim with its fresh take on the college experience. The new season picks up exactly after season one’s conclusion, where the girls are trying to figure out how they can have fun while being banned from parties. In this sophomore season of The Sex Lives of College Girls, co-creators Mindy Kaling and Justin Noble introduce more mayhem and delicious new characters to navigate the trials and tribulations at Essex College.
In the season finale of season one, Kimberly (Pauline Chalamet) loses her scholarship after cheating on a test. She is the least privileged of the group, so she must figure out a way to pay for her tuition without letting her parents know about her scholarship. Leighton (Reneé Rapp) is finally embracing her sexuality but she still has problems with being openly queer in public. In the meantime, she decides to have fun but it leads to a rather complicated situation. Whitney (Alyah Chanelle Scott) tries to figure out what she is good at now that football season is over. Against her mother’s wishes, she tries to find her place in college and take on a challenging subject. After leaving The Cattaun when she was sexually assaulted by the editor, Bela (Amrit Kaur) tries to find her own path in college by launching her female-only magazine.
The Sex Lives of Colleges Girls are back with chaotic moments with new love interests and a Magic Mike- inspired strip show, (Doja Cat’s “Vegas” from Elvis plays in this scene. Warner Bros. Discovery has reached new heights!) and a case of chlamydia ravaging in Essex College. Each of the characters is introduced with their unique storyline this season, and life at the college is just as fun as ever. Bela deals with trying to find her footing in the male-dominated comedy world as a woman writer by setting up a magazine. However, things are a bit complicated because none of her writers are funny. While the previous season dealt with Bela’s sexual assault, this season deals with the sexism in the comedy world and the lengths she is willing to go through to launch her all-female comedy magazine. Since Bela is a woman of colour, it is extremely hard for her to find the right people who can support her. It is an experience that many viewers can relate to, and one of Kaling’s great strengths of reaching out to the audience.
While Leighton and Whitney’s storylines have surprisingly interesting journeys, Kimberly’s arc feels repetitive. In the previous season, her affair with Leighton’s brother and finding out that she is addicted to sex were profound to her character’s journey. However, in the second season, she finds herself crushing on a chiselled environmental activist, which seems repetitive. She does have a lot of challenges in this season but Kimberly’s storyline, especially her crush with the new transfer, is redundant.
The storylines of The Sex Lives of College Girls are not perfect. Regardless, it explores different problems and they are able to overcome the struggles. It’s messy and tackles important topics, such as climate change by throwing a stripping event and focusing on gender and racism with great humour. When Whitney experiences racist microaggressions from her Teacher’s Assistant, she tries to explain what he did was wrong, which leads to some uncomfortable scenes between them. The series shows all of the girls dealing with their individual problems — realistic, adolescent problems — with the perfect amount of chaos and wit.
The Sex Lives of College Girls celebrate the girls’ weirdness and friendship. While their storylines are unique and interesting in their own way, it is quite similar. It does, fortunately, show that the characters are growing, from Leighton being able to embrace her sexuality; Bela being one step closer to her dreams; Whitney moving away from her mother’s shadow and finding something that she’s passionate about; to Kimberly figuring out a way to pay for her tuition. The Sex Lives of College Girls is ridiculously funny and welcomes fresh new topics, even though it sometimes scratches the surface. Bela, Whitney, Leighton and Kimberly might not have figured out who they want to be yet, but they will have some fun along the way.
The Sex Lives of College Girls is streaming on HBO Max. Episodes 1–6 were available to review.
