I speak for nearly everyone when I say that Teen Wolf’s fourth season was a bit of a hot mess. We all knew that the second half of season three was going to be hard to top—even the botched job they gave Allison’s death couldn’t bring it down. Unfortunately, season four brought us underdeveloped new characters, a lack of focus in plot, and too many villains for anyone to be actually scary. After last week’s season five premiere, I felt a collective sigh of relief go through the Teen Wolf fandom; the balance has been restored, and it looks like we might be back on track. For now, let’s take a look back at the best and worst of season four—it can only increase our appreciation of season five!
WORST: The Ball Is Dropped on Kira
As soon as Kira’s status as a kitsune was revealed, the writers stopped developing her character. She and Malia now serve the same purpose—socially awkward paranormal being/love interest—which makes it all the more noticeable that Kira’s characterization halted somewhere back in season three. Come on, I want better for Kira than occasionally flipping a sword around and being some dude’s lady!
BEST: Malia Tate Shines
Introduced in season three as the human Scott changes back from a werecoye, Malia became a full-fledged series regular in season four. While her animal instincts and attempts at integrating herself in society provide great comic relief, Shelley Hennig proved she could hold her own during serious moments as well, specifically when Malia discovers that Stiles was hiding the fact that Peter was her biological father.
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WORST: Lydia Is Pushed to the Side
Poor Lydia. Last season she lost her best friend, this season she lost connections of the rest of the characters. Lydia spent season four working mostly by herself, working out the cypher to unlock the Dead Pool lists. I appreciate the knowledge that we learned about Lydia’s family and her relationships with fellow banshee Meredith and Deputy Parrish, but it felt far too separate from the rest of the story for comfort.
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BEST: Argent Returns
Y’all, I was suffering from some serious abandonment issues after season three. If the deaths of Erica, Boyd, Aiden, and Allison weren’t bad enough, Daniel Sharman left to pursue other projects, meaning we lost Isaac as well. I was happy to see Chris Argent’s return—we’ve lost far too many original characters for my liking.
WORST: Liam’s Introduction
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I felt like we were expected to love Scott’s first Beta, Liam, at first sight, which I wasn’t here for. He received a whole lot of screentime for being a freshman werewolf we knew very little about. A little character development goes a long way, but his came a bit too late for my taste. Thankfully, they brought him more depth by the end of the season, and he no longer annoys me just by being on screen. Also, bonus points for having great taste in a best friend.
BEST: Malia/Stiles
One day the good ship Stiles/Lydia will actually sail. I’m still wearing the captain’s hat, but I have to say, Stiles and Malia are a great couple. Malia’s loyalty to Stiles and his devotion to helping her deal with her werecoyote-to-human issues won me over to the idea of them, and I’m not sure how I’m going to feel if/when they break up. I have a feeling I’m about to be very conflicted. But also, Stydia 4-EVER, and all that.
WORST: Too Many Villains in the Kitchen
Kate! Berserkers! Peter! The MYSTERIOUS BENEFACTOR! Lord, Teen Wolf. The villains are sorted and connected by the end, but for the majority of the season, there were so many random, dastardly happenings that I felt like nothing was actually happening. Yikes.
BEST: The Parents
As always, Teen Wolf did a great job including the parents in storylines rather than making them disappear. Important moments include: Melissa pulling off the performance of her life acting like Scott was dead, Stilinski handcuffing Stiles to a drawer as punishment for going to Mexico, and Argent helping out Scott and company, despite his own daughter’s untimely death. Even Lydia’s mother is becoming a player with her work at the school. A+ work, Teen Wolf.
WORST: Scott As Berserker
Having a friend/love interest turn evil is one of my favorite tropes of all time (please see: Angel as Angelus in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, that one episode of Power Rangers where Billy and Kimberly turn into leather-clad, bubblegum-blowing punks, etc.)—I love the conflict of not being able to cause harm to that person while still having to protect yourself from them. This is exactly what happens when Kate turns Scott into a Berserker in the final episode of the season. Unfortunately, this conflict is completely undercut by his transformation back into werewolf—all it takes to remove the Berserker from Scott is Liam telling him who he is. Far too easy, and I don’t think it means as much coming from Liam, regardless of his Beta status. Womp womp.
BEST: “Weaponized”
“Weaponized” takes the top spot of the season—when an assassin unleashes a virus on the school to single out Dead Pool targets, all of the students are quarantined. The episode is tense and claustrophobic, making viewers really feel the danger of the situation. Dylan O’Brien gets another chance to shine when Stiles, terrified, stares down the barrel of a gun. Related: can everyone PLEASE stop pointing guns at Stiles? THANKS.
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