Lana Parrilla and Virginia Williams in Why Women Kill | Credit: Paramount

In the second season of Why Women Kill, we meet a new cast of characters in the 1940s. Alma Fillcot (Allison Tolman) is a normal housewife and mother who longs to be in her local Garden Club, a prestigious and exclusive group. How far will this mild-mannered woman go to get what she wants?

I have somewhat mixed feelings about the second season of Why Women Kill. It’s a very interesting story with colorful characters. It’s full of fun and style, and there are some good action and character moments all throughout. In the second half of the season, things start to get dicey for our characters, and that’s when I got really engaged.

But it took me a while to get into this season because it’s very different than the previous season. In the first season of Why Women Kill, we follow three very different women who all lived in the same house in different decades. I was so impressed by the writing and how the entire season was so intentionally constructed. I was hoping for that style of storytelling in season two. But we only have one timeline.

Because it bears little resemblance to the first season, it felt like I was watching a different show. I wish this had been a separate property rather than being folded into Why Women Kill.

But maybe that’s just me. Let’s get back to season two of this show.

The second season of When Women Kill boasts some really good performances by the main cast. Alma is not a simple character, despite her humble beginnings at the start of the season. We learn about her deep desire for more influence and her need to belong to this incredibly exclusive group.

Rita (Lana Parrilla) is Alma’s rival. She is the wealthy leader of the Garden Club, who has a cruel streak. Throughout the season, Rita goes out of her way to make Alma’s life more difficult. She intentionally seeks to inflict pain on others whenever she can. Honestly, she’s such a devious character, but we learn that there’s more to her than meets the eye.

Lana Parrilla is fantastic in this type of role, and she absolutely nails her performance of Rita!

There are solid performances by the rest of the cast, but these two women are the focal point of the show. Their portrayals of Alma and Rita make this show worth watching.

Like the previous season, all of the characters in the second season of Why Women Kill have secrets they are trying to keep hidden from those around them. And some of these secrets are doozies!

It was fun to see how each character had so much buried beneath the surface. It seems like each episode peels back another layer, exposing yet another piece of these characters we thought we knew well. You can tell that Marc Cherry and the entire spent a lot of time intentionally crafting each character.

While I was initially disappointed by the structure of this season, the depth of these characters really drew me in. About mid-way through the season, I was hooked and couldn’t wait to see what happened next.

In some ways, this season reminds me of one of my favorite shows that many people have never heard of, Pushing Daisies. Though they are set in different time periods and explore different subject matter, they have a similar vibe. There’s a playfulness and quirky humor about the second season of Why Women Kill that I didn’t expect to find but really grew to appreciate.

Next, I want to talk about one of the best parts of the show, which is the character development of Alma and Rita. But, to do so, I must spoil some things.

So, if you haven’t watched Why Women Kill season two, please don’t read on. I don’t want to ruin it for you.

Allison Tolman in Why Women Kill | Credit: Paramount

I’m always impressed when a show is able to successfully and convincingly get characters to end up in completely different places than where they began. Of course, this is often a main component of storytelling, but when a show or movie can pull off a significant change (i.e. Breaking Bad), it’s really worth celebrating.

Both Alma and Rita undergo immense changes in the second season.

Alma becomes the villain by the end of the season. All ten episodes are essentially her moral devolution. The sweet, innocent housewife who was once horrified by her husband Bertram’s (Nick Frost) murderous hobby is gone. By the end, it seems like that old Alma is just a distant memory.

Alma has taken over leadership of the Garden Club — the thing she wanted most in the world. And we learn that she’s willing to do anything, including murder, in order to get and keep that power.

She’s such a fascinating character, and it was a joy to watch her shapeshift right in front of us. The show takes Alma further down the murderous path than I expected. I love it when a show can still surprise me!

Rita goes on the opposite character journey. At the beginning of the film, she has everything and seems to be the envy of every other woman in town. But everything isn’t perfect in her world. We learn that she has reinvented herself into the Rita that we’ve come to know.

She didn’t always have money and worked her way up from nothing. In fact, she left an abusive husband and resorted to prostitution for a time before marrying a whale. Those details really helped explain so many of Rita’s actions throughout the show — she’s worked hard to get where she’s at and is willing to do whatever it takes for her to survive.

When Alma’s plot comes to fruition, she returns to nothing. She loses everything and is forced with the prospect of rebuilding her life again. We get to see a softer side of Rita that makes it easy to root for her.

I really loved Rita’s journey. While I don’t think there’s anything particularly groundbreaking here, I enjoyed watching it unfold. Her story becomes infinitely more interesting because it’s paired so perfectly with Alma.

At first, I was skeptical of the second season of Why Women Kill at first, but it ended up being quite enjoyable. I don’t think it’s as good as the first season, but it’s still an entertaining season of television. It’s very well-written and takes us on quite a journey with Alma, Rita, and everyone else in their orbits.

Colorful characters and interesting murders — what more could you ask for?

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