"Just like what happened when the first season of Outer Banks was released, it seemed like everyone stopped what they were doing and settled in for an adventure with a marathon of season two (myself included). We were transported back not only to the Outer Banks but also to the Bahamas and a few places in between.
Season two did not disappoint—it was full of the familiar twists and turns, major cliffhangers, and Pogue chemistry we all know and love. And not to toot my own horn, but I do want to mention that I was right about some of my predictions (good and bad) for season two. 😉
So, after binge-watching the entire season in less than 48 hours, I am now left with so many thoughts, so many questions, an overwhelming desire to watch every single OBX TikTok and cast interview that I can find, and miscellaneous tropical button-ups in carts across the internet. And while I wish I could discuss these thoughts with John B. himself (Chase Stokes, hit me up if you’re reading this), unfortunately, I can not do that. So instead, I will share them with all of you.
Warning: there are MAJOR season two spoilers ahead, so if you haven’t watched yet, come back when you finish the season. It’s available now on Netflix.
Here are 42 (yes, 42) moments from OBX2 that I simply need to talk about:
1. When JJ, Pope, and Kiara get a text from John B. and Sarah. Tell me why there were literally tears in my eyes as the crew ran out into the courtyard to celebrate their friends still being alive.
2. When John B. breaks into Paradise Island and gets *this close* to getting the gold back. Seems like he should’ve been able to guess Sarah’s birthday, right? And then he gets that close again when they come back with Terrence, Cleo, and their crew. I’m just wondering why they didn’t put a few gold bars in their pockets before being intercepted by the cops, ya know?
3. When Ward commits murder… again. The scene where Ward meets up with (and eventually kills) Gavin—the pilot who flew the gold to the Bahamas and also the only outside witness to Sheriff Peterkin’s murder—really set the mood for how horrible of a character Ward was going to be this season.
4. When Pope gets the entire murder on video, but then breaks the camera and makes the video unusable. Obviously, things can never be easy for the Pogues, but this one hurt.
5. When Kie screams “MURDERER” as they are trying to hide during the Ward-Gavin stakeout and Ward hears her. All I have to say is, why did she do that?
6. When Kie almost dies looking for the gun in the sewer drains. The STRESS during this scene! My anxiety was through the roof watching her gasp for air through the grate, but thankfully Pope and JJ saved the day.
7. When Sarah revealed she was hit by Rafe’s gun in the shootout. While Kie is almost dying in the Outer Banks, Sarah reveals that her life is in danger too, because she was shot by her own brother while they tried to steal back the gold.
8. When Pope gets a mystery letter with the wheat symbol summoning him to Charleston. I thought that Pope was getting another shot as his scholarship, but when he flipped over the letter to reveal the wheat symbol in the wax seal, I was shook. Also, we find out JJ can’t read cursive, which made me giggle.
9. When Sarah literally DIED after the “doctor” performed surgery on her bullet wound. I was watching this scene with my mouth wide open, because there was just no way that Sarah Cameron died in the beginning of the season. Yet, her heart stopped. By the graces of John B.’s love for her (at least that’s what I think did it), she made a comeback, though. Phew.
10. When Rafe straight-up asks for help from his dad because he’s having such bad thoughts, but Ward just tells him to “man up.” Although Rafe is a terrible person, this scene really broke my heart. Rafe is clearly at a breaking point and will only continue to get worse, but his dad would rather look the other way to keep the image of their family intact than get him the help he needs.
11. The conversation Kie had with her parents asking to go to Charleston. First of all, JJ was being really funny in this scene as they waited from the truck, but also Kie’s mom is kind of a badass? I know she is being pretty mean to Kie here, but it’s clear she just cares about her daughter. I just want to give major props to this actress, who really came out of the woodwork and stole this scene.
12. When John B. and Sarah get “married” on the boat after they decide to head home. Although this makeshift marriage was far from legal, it was a cute little moment for John B. and Sarah shippers everywhere. And now we know: no ring? A piece of a bandana will do just fine.
13. When Carla Limbrey reveals that she does in fact have evidence that could exonerate John B.—and then turns out to be crazy and tries to kidnap Pope. Hearing the recording of Gavin admitting that he knew it was Rafe that killed Sheriff Peterkin filled me with hope, but that went away quickly when I realized Carla would probably not be handing that over easily.
Source: Netflix
14. When the Pogues are finally reunited. The slow-motion scene of John B. and Sarah running into the rest of the Pogues in Charleston was arguably one of my favorite moments of the season.
15. The party back at the chateau, and Pope and Kie’s hookup. One of the best parts of Outer Banks is watching the crew just hang out and be besties, and this celebration of them reuniting didn’t disappoint. Plus, Pope and Kie get their romantic moment in the form of a moonlit hookup.
16. When John B. surrenders and is arrested for murder. I know this needed to happen, but I was still shocked to see John B. in an orange jumpsuit. And frustrated that his name was not yet cleared.
17. When Pope finds the Tanney key in his great grandmother’s apartment. Carla Limbrey has been searching for this key for years, but Pope finds it during a quick search of his very own great-grandmother’s apartment. Very OBX of him.
Source: Netflix
18. JJ on a dirt bike, JJ with a toothpick, JJ at the county jail, JJ in general… What can I say? JJ carried this season.
19. When Ward pays a cop to try and have John B. killed in jail. I am still mad at this cop. Where did she even come from? Also, this was a new low for Ward. Fake your daughter’s boyfriend’s suicide so that she will come running back into your arms? I don’t think so.
20. When Sarah almost dies AGAIN, at the hands of Rafe—but Topper saves her life. This was shocking not because of Rafe trying to kill Sarah (been there, done that), but because Topper, of all people, saved her. I told you I was expecting some redemption from him!
21. When the charges are dropped and John B. is released from jail. ABOUT. TIME. I was so excited to see John B. able to just live his life with his friends again.
22. When Sarah refuses to tell Topper the truth about her relationship with John B. My heart broke on behalf of John B. during this conversation between the two of them and Topper. I get that Sarah didn’t want to hurt Topper’s feelings by telling him she was “married,” but WHAT ABOUT JOHN B.’S FEELINGS?
23. When Pope’s great-grandmother reveals the truth about their relation to Denmark Tanney. Pope is a descendant of the legendary sole survivor of the Royal Merchant. We love that for him!
24. When Barry sets up Rafe and turns him over to the police. I really didn’t expect Barry to be working with the cops, but I guess this just showed that literally, everyone in Rafe’s life could see how dangerous he was becoming.
25. When Ward admits what he’s done to the police, takes the blame for Rafe, and blows up the “My Druthers” boat while presumably being inside it. This is something that I definitely did not expect. Although Ward is undoubtedly a horrible person, watching Sarah see her dad die proved that in the end, he was still her dad and she still loved him.
26. When Sarah breaks up with John B. Literally the one thing that I said I did not want to happen, happened. Ouch, Sarah Cameron.
27. When Pope gets Denmark Tanney’s diary and starts to figure out the mystery of the Cross of Santo Domingo. I just loved that the Pogues’ history teacher cared enough to pass on this diary to them. That was cute. Plus, this really allowed them to put all of the pieces together and find their next treasure.
28. The Kooks vs. Pogues brawl at the bonfire. Not gonna lie, this one hurt. Seeing John B. and Sarah on opposing sides of a fight really made me long for the days when Ward was alive (shocking, I know).
29. When it’s revealed that Carla Limbrey really wants the cross for what’s inside—a “holy garment” she wants to use as a last-ditch effort to save her failing health. In a truly weird turn of events, we learn that Carla believes that there is a miracle cloth inside the cross that is said to be able to cure any illness.
30. When we find out Denmark Tanney’s true treasure was his wife. It was a real “aw” moment when we realize that when Denmark said that he “buried the true treasure at the foot of an angel,” he was talking about his wife. This realization also leads the Pogues to find the next clue hidden inside the tree, not buried underneath it.
31. When JJ’s father, Luke, shows up to ruin things once again. I mean, truly, could this guy have worse timing? At least JJ gained some closure when his father apologized, told him he had a good heart, and seemed to leave his life for good. Plus, I loved how Kie had JJ’s back in this scene.
32. When John B. gets attacked by a gator (!!). As if his life couldn’t get any worse. He was just trying to save his beloved “Twinkie”!
33. When Pope finally finds the cross hidden in the beams of the church, and Rafe and his crew steal it. The number one most frustrating thing about this show is how freaking close the Pogues constantly get to actually having their treasure, only for it to slip away. OF COURSE, Pope is allergic to his wasp stings and they have to leave the cross behind, because what else would happen.
34. When Sarah accepts the makeshift wedding “ring” back from John B. PHEW. These two really had me worried for a second.
35. When Ward isn’t actually dead. Not only did Sarah just get drugged and kidnapped by her own step-mother (again, bad luck for our girl this season), she now finds out that her dad faked his own death just so that they could escape with the gold and the cross. He even lies and tells her that John B. traded her for the cross, which was seriously uncalled for.
36. When Cleo turns out to be on the cargo ship. Cleo was a break-out star of season two, and I’m so happy they brought her back for the finale. Here’s hoping we get to see more of her in season three. Cleo and Pope, anyone?
37. When Ward realizes Sarah will never be on his side and tries to kill her. Sarah Cameron is really having a tough time this season. First her brother (twice), and now even her father tries to end her life. This is also when I realized that Ward was truly a lost cause.
38. When Ward almost dies the same way he killed John B.’s father. It was really a full-circle moment when Ward fell and hit his head on the side of the boat during his fight with John B. Sarah seemingly gave John B. consent to push Ward over the edge, but I think his decision not to do so really showed how much he cares for Sarah and how much he’s grown.
39. When JJ is thrown overboard, and Kie jumps in after him. I was not doing too well when we weren’t sure if JJ was going to survive or not, but my true takeaway here is that I NEED JJ and Kie together in season three.
40. When Pope makes the decision to drop the cross into the ocean. Pope said, “If we can’t have it, no one can” and proceeded to try and release a half-a-billion dollar cross into the depths of the ocean. Bold move, Pope, bold move.
41. When the crew escapes in a lifeboat and makes it to a deserted island. After what felt like an entire season of chasing, the Pogues finally make it to a place where no one is after them and declare it Poguelandia. This really left it open for season three, and I am already dreaming about where their island adventure goes.
42. When John B.’s dad is revealed to STILL BE ALIVE?! In true OBX fashion, they dropped a bomb on us in the last few minutes of the finale. Big John is alive, and he’s hiding out in Barbados. 1) Why has he not tried to contact John B.? and 2) What the heck is going to happen next?! I can’t wait to find out.