Wednesday Needs a More Supportive Mother-Daughter Relationship

Editor’s Note: The following contains spoilers for the Netflix series, Wednesday.

On Netflix’s Wednesday, being an outcast isn’t something unusual in a world full of magic and mythical beings roaming beside the normies. However, Wednesday Addams (Jenna Ortega) and her family — Morticia (Catherine Zeta-Jones), Gomez (Luis Guzmán), and Pugsley (Isaac Ordonez) — are outcasts amongst outcasts, existing in their own world where down is up, kidnapping is fun, and funeral attire is always fashionable. This makes Wednesday’s arrival at Nevermore Academy, a school for outcasts, even more difficult. She is the odd person out amidst a sea of people that don’t fit into the standard definition of society. When she is dragged into the ongoing murder mystery that is plaguing the school and the nearby town, this gives Wednesday nobody she can fully trust.

‘Wednesday’ Destroys the Mother/Daughter Bond

At the very least, Wednesday has her family to fall back on for comfort — oh, wait, that’s not quite true. As soon as we meet this incarnation of the Addams family, the rocky dynamics could not be more clear. Wednesday is thoroughly repulsed with her parents’ overly-affectionate relationship, as Wednesday could not be more averse to human connection and intimacy. This puts a strain on their bond, while Wednesday doesn’t respect her brother enough (seeing him as weak and malleable) to look to him as an equal or someone worthy of her time. However, the most tense relationship is that of Wednesday and Morticia, who are thrust into the tired teen drama politics of what it means to be a mother and daughter in the modern age.

RELATED: It’s Time for a Young Morticia and Gomez Addams Spinoff Show

Wednesday wants nothing less than to be anything like her mother, actively trying to separate them in her own mind and in the minds of those around them. She makes snide comments toward her mother, highlighting her weaknesses at every occasion. She paints attributes that many might see as strengths, like Morticia’s positive outlook and relentlessness, as unflattering and cruelly puts down her mother. Meanwhile, Morticia tries to close the rift between them without fundamentally changing who she is, giving Wednesday space to sort through her own issues and come to terms with who her family is. Overall, the entire schtick makes Wednesday come across as a petulant child. However, there’s quite a bit of potential for the relationship between Morticia and Wednesday to blossom into something never before seen in television. Both ladies are cut from the same black cloth, perfectly countering and balancing one another out with their respective views of the world. Morticia sees the joy and happiness, while Wednesday sees the despair and hopelessness, something that is further emphasized by their respective psychic abilities. They have a unique connection, which can offer so much to the series if they weren’t pushed into these antiquated teen drama roles that we’ve seen done again and again on television.

A near perfect example of this is Wednesday finally confronting her mother about the murder of Garrett Gates during her parents’ time at Nevermore and confessing that she has been having visions. Morticia opens up to her daughter about Garrett, revealing the truth that she had stabbed him and Gomez had taken the blame. They begin to understand one another and their willingness to do anything for those they love, which we see from Wednesday’s perspective in the premiere episode when she releases piranhas into the school pool to get back at the boys who had been bullying her brother. Then, Wednesday reveals her visions, something which Morticia has a lot of experience with as she’s been having visions since her time at Nevermore. They discuss ancestor Goody Addams and her witchly ways, offering Wednesday new insight on her abilities and how to proceed with her investigation. With these interactions alone, Wednesday’s mind is expanded and forever changed from simple, truthful, and wholesome conversations with her mother.

This Isn’t the Addams Family We Know and Love

Morticia has a lot to offer her daughter, and it’s a testament to who she is that she doesn’t force herself or her thoughts upon Wednesday. Sure, Morticia makes the occasional comment about how she wishes Wednesday would outgrow this mother-hating phase, but that’s the extent. She respects her daughter’s boundaries — well, those that don’t interrupt her public displays of affection with Gomez — and harbors no harsh feelings when her daughter lashes out. Morticia also is well-versed in the ways of the witch, knowing that Wednesday is on a dark path as her abilities deem her a “raven” that could potentially lose her mind if she doesn’t manage to get control of them.

One thing the Addams family is known for is their loyalty to one another. They love each other through it all, even with the most heinous aspects of their characters. They do anything for one another, maintaining familial bonds that cannot be broken. As such, there is simply no need for this war between Wednesday and Morticia to continue. It’s a lackluster and lazy way to prevent Wednesday from leaning on those she knows best, but that’s exactly what we need to see. She’s made lasting relationships at Nevermore now, so it’s the perfect time to bring everyone together and get rid of the petty, tired squabble between mother and daughter.

This is a time in Wednesday’s life when she needs her mother’s guidance, and it wouldn’t be right for Morticia to tune out (as she did for the remainder of the first season) and leave her daughter to fend for herself when the psychic world is waging a war against Wednesday’s mind. She’s in danger of losing herself to the darkness in her visions, something that is exactly suited for Morticia to assist in stopping. Keeping mother and daughter apart and at odds during the first season felt like a disappointingly uninspired way to keep the mystery going when Morticia helps with ease upon her visit for parents’ weekend. Let’s see them work together, truly. It offers so much more for future stories, playing upon the Addams family connection that everyone loves without teen angst, and it is the relationship these two women deserve.

Every episode of Wednesday is now streaming on Netflix.