Marvin Way

The Showtime series Yellowjackets has taken the world by storm. I first watched it just before season 2 was released, and I’ve been obsessed.

I’ve been watching the season 3 episodes as they’ve been released, and I have some thoughts. Theories about different facets of this epic show float around on Reddit. We’re hoping to get some answers this season!

Let’s get down to my theories.

WARNING: MASSIVE SPOILERS AHEAD FOR THE SHOW. YOU’VE BEEN WARNED.

Note: All images, quotes, and references belong to the creators of the show.

Crystal/Kristin’s Body

About midway through season 2, we saw the death of Crystal/Kristin. It followed after Misty revealed to her the destruction of the black box. We can blame Misty for the death, as she essentially backed Crystal into a “corner.”

The other team members believe Crystal simply got lost. Due to the snow and general season, finding the body was futile.

But what about now that the snow has melted? I believe that the team will eventually find Crystal’s body, even if it’s been eaten. They can still come across the bones and piece together the location.

I believe that it’s going to come out that Misty was the reason behind the death of her “best friend.”

The Symbol

The biggest aspect of the show that has the most theories is what the symbol means. Some say it’s a secret map to an underground cave system. This theory makes more and more sense now that we see more of the caves in season 3 episode 3.

My thoughts? I believe it means absolutely nothing. We can infer that Cabin Guy was the one who drew the symbol in the cabin and surrounding trees. I have a feeling that he was simply going insane. He created this symbol as a way to pass the time.

Hopefully, we’ll find out more this season. I predict we’ll most likely only discover the true meaning in a potential 4th or even 5th season.

The Antler Queen

We were introduced to the Antler Queen in the pilot of the series. For seasons 1 and 2 our predominant theories were that the Queen was Lottie. The ending of season 2 suggests otherwise as Natalie is crowned as leader.

I was fully behind Natalie being the Antler Queen, as dialogue and actions of her adult self hint towards this. However, from what we’ve seen of season 3, I have some doubts.

My first thought is that it’s Shauna. She is furious that Natalie was chosen over her. We see in the trial scene that she has the power to manipulate the others. It’s possible that she overthrows Natalie and becomes the leader herself.

Other than Shauna, a possible choice is Akilah. Why? She’s showing signs of being “connected” with the Wilderness, and Lottie notices this. Lottie may encourage the others to crown Akilah as their new queen. This choice may then suggest that Akilah survives, as why would they kill and eat their queen?

Pit Girl

The Pit Girl theories are up there with the Antler Queen and the symbol. I’ve seen some theories that it’s Callie. The opening scene of the pilot could be a misdirection that the scene is in the present timeline. The adults may be reenacting their past rituals.

I believe that Pit Girl is Mari. The skin tone, body shape, and hair style/colour best match Mari, Gen or Robin at a stretch. I have a feeling that since Mari is a prominent character, it makes sense for it to be her.

Another factor to consider is the opening scene of episode 1 of season 3. We see clear parallels to the pilot’s opening scene, and the girl being chased is Mari. It’s still possible that this is a misdirect from the writers, but we’ll have to wait and see!

Who Set the Fire?

Two major events happened at the end of season 2: adult Natalie died, and the cabin burned down. Let’s dissect who the possible culprits for setting the fire are.

Coach

Everyone’s initial thoughts were that Coach started the fire. We see him horrified at the girls killing and eating Javi. He believes they’re crazy. Later in the episode, he holds a box of matches while standing outside of the cabin.

Since season 3 episode 4, we’ve all been unsure as to whether or not he actually set it. In his monologue, he gives several good reasons for his being innocent. Surely he would’ve come after them if he knew they survived?

Van

I’ve seen quite a few theories that Van was the one to start the fire. This theory is “ignited” by the scene in season 3 episode 3. Van had a vision of the cabin setting on fire.

I personally can’t find any motive for this.

Other Tai

The most probable cause for the fire was Other Tai. We know she’s unpredictable. It’s possible she decided to shake things up a bit by burning down their shelter. Maybe it was her trying to push the girls to survive in other ways.

We theorise that Other Tai was the one to take care of Javi when he disappeared. Perhaps she knows more than we can tell and felt that a fresh start was needed.

…Misty?

I actually haven’t seen this theory anywhere else, that Misty started the fire. However, hear me out.

We know from the very start that Misty is kinda unpredictable. Even adult Nat greets her with “Hello Misty you crazy f*cking b*tch.” She destroys the black box, drugs Coach, and essentially kills Crystal, to name a few.

Why did she destroy the black box? Because she felt needed. Maybe she also disagreed with Natalie’s rise to power and wanted to feel needed again. Setting the cabin on fire forces the others to rely on her more.

Also. She’s just crazy.

Reason 2: In season 3 episode 3 Misty burns the photo of her and the other Yellowjackets. This shot is all over the promo images for the episode. What if it’s a subtle hint that she actually tried to burn them in real life?

The final reason is a bit of a stretch. In season 3 episode 1 Misty goes to a bar and gets drunk. While intoxicated, she says “I’ve burned dicks!” While this at first seems a jab at the men, it could mean more.

We know Misty was bullied and her teammates never cared for her much. Maybe she considers them to be bad people towards her, even “dicks.” This sentence could be her admitting to setting fire to the cabin, without us even realising.

Lottie’s Death

Season 3 episode 4 left us heartbroken by the death of Simone Kessell’s Lottie. Now we have the question: What happened? The actress has said in interviews that we’ll only find out the truth at the end of the season.

Whether or not she deserved to die is up for debate. Let’s get into the theories so long.

Su*cide

My initial thought, warranted or not, was that Lottie k*lled herself. We know she’s depressed and suffers from mental illness. The last scene we see her in is her practicing an apology, to who we may never know.

Maybe the apology is to her younger self. Maybe she realised that she’ll never escape what she did “out there” and her only solution is to sacrifice herself. Maybe she came across a “sign” that she was chosen to die next and took matters into her own hands.

Other Tai

My theory is that Other Tai is responsible for Lottie’s death. There is a time gap between Tai leaving Van at the apartment building and Lottie’s crime scene.

Maybe Other Tai decided that they can’t leave sacrifices to chance and that she needs to take action. Tai is desperate for Van to survive. She has latched onto the idea that a death can lengthen Van’s life.

Tai can’t think straight (lol) and may have decided that Lottie is next to die. Lottie was the one who suggested sacrifice in the first place. It’s possible Tai took this as Lottie offering herself up.

Accident

Another, boring, possibility is that Lottie’s death was simply an accident. The death of the waiter was an accident, maybe the Wilderness chose Lottie next.

Who Survives?

We know for certain that 6 Yellowjackets (and 1 Travis) survive. We have Shauna, Misty, Natalie, Tai, Lottie, and Van. But it’s possible that more survived.

Akilah

Akilah is a hit or miss for me. We see her character being more developed in season 3, which could mean multiple aspects. Maybe we’re growing attached to her to be sad when she dies. Or to have more love for an adult version.

She is also in charge of the animals, which may make her “immune” to being chosen. That being said, Natalie was chosen to die even though she’s the hunter.

Melissa

Until season 3 episode 2, I fully thought Melissa would die. I didn’t even know her name. But after the ending scene switching between her and teen Shauna kissing and adult Shauna on the phone… I’m not so sure.

We’ve seen that Hilary Swank has joined the cast, but we’re yet to meet her character. The similarities in the two actresses gives us probable cause that Melissa survived.

There is one aspect that makes me question this. When the adult characters arrived at Lottie’s camp, Lottie said several times they are “all” back together again. This could be another misdirect, but I believe we’ll find out soon what went down when the girls were rescued.

Mari

Since I believe that Mari is Pit Girl, I also theorise that she doesn’t survive. We see her character more in detail in season 3. This is possibly to lead us to favour her, making her death more dramatic.

Gen, Britney, and Robin

Gen, Britney, and Robin are the most underdeveloped characters in the past timeline. It’s highly likely that they don’t survive. The teammates have to eat during the winter they still have coming, and 3 bodies are more than enough.

Coach

Coach is one character I truly don’t know if he survived or not. I want to believe that the girls killed and ate him after finding him guilty. Maybe that is yet to be revealed in future episodes, so we’ll have to wait and see.

Due to the feelings the girls have for him, I doubt they would’ve let him live.

Future Seasons

While Yellowjackets is still in its early phases of just 3 seasons, I believe it can go for much longer. My primary reasoning is the seasons and the amount of time they spent out in the wilderness.

We know the girls were rescued after 19 months. A season lasts for roughly 3 months, so that’s a total of just over 6 seasons.

Season (pun intended) 1 most likely spring, as they were stranded in May of 1996. From visual hints – namely Shauna’s baby bump – season 1 spans 6 months, ending at the beginning of winter. That means they have 4 seasons (weather!) left.

The entirety of season 2 takes place in winter. It’s been 2 months since the end of season 1. We can assume that there is around 1 month left of winter. With these calculations we assume that by the end of season 2, the team has been stranded for over 9 months. This leaves 3 seasons (weather again) left.

Season 3 starts in spring, as confirmed by Van’s recap speech. So far with the pacing of the episodes, we can predict that this span of 10 episodes will be spring. Maybe summer as well. We can infer that there will be less time jumps between episodes as the plot is picking up pace.

So let’s say season 3 is 3-4 months, maybe even less. That leaves us with the rest of summer, autumn, and winter left. We know they’re trapped for another winter because of the Pit Girl scene in the pilot.

With the current pacing, we can expect season 4 (if confirmed) to take place in summer and autumn. Season 5 (if confirmed) would then be in winter, ending with them being rescued. This timeline could be extended or shortened though.

The writers may want a warm/cold switch between seasons. Season 1 was warm, 2 was cold, and 3 is warm again. They may decide to make 4 cold again, leaving a season 5 unnecessary.

That was a lot of maths and numbers, sorry! I’m probably reading into it too much…

With that being said, there is still so much content to be made. What happened to the girls after they were rescued? How did they assimilate back into society?

As for the adult timeline, I’m not sure how they can drag it on for another 2 or more seasons. Although, we’ve had an adult death every season so far. It’s possible the writers will continue that pattern and have up to 7 or even 8 seasons.

Either way the future of the show goes, I will be SEATED for the entire performance.

Final Thoughts

Naturally, I am but a humble TV Show lover and fan of the show, I’m no expert. With my background in screenwriting, I can maybe theorise easier, but I’m not clairvoyant.

What do you think? Do you think Other Tai killed Lottie, or that Misty started the fire?