Netflix’s teen drama series Outer Banks is returning for its fourth season next month. And ahead of the new episodes, I think it’s worth pointing out that this show has a glaringly obvious Death Problem that must be addressed in season 4.
Oh, Outer Banks. From high school love triangles to a literal pirate-esque treasure hunt, this thing is unabashedly dopey. But if you can suspend your disbelief, even the most jaded TV viewers might have fun with it. Outer Banks is self-aware, surprisingly well-made, and has proven to be enough of a hit to garner multiple seasons—an increasing rarity in the hellscape that is the streaming world.
Now, Outer Banks season 4 is nearly upon us. Series regulars Chase Stokes (John B), Madelyn Cline (Sarah), Madison Bailey (Kiara), Jonathan Daviss (Pope), Rudy Pankow (JJ), and Carlacia Grant (Cleo) will reprise their roles as our favorite rag-tag team of “Pogues,” along with frat boy-y “Kooks” Rafe (Drew Starkey) and Topper (Austin North).
We know that the crew will be searching for Blackbeard’s gold in the upcoming season, promising a story that’s so action-packed it had to be divided into two parts. The first 5 episodes roll out on Netflix on October 10, with the latter half of the season arriving on November 7. And with such a big chapter in store, I can’t help but wonder: will Outer Banks retire its exhausted fake death trend for good?
Will Outer Banks finally kill off some key players in season 4?
The only thing less concerning than how little time the Pogues spend in school is the fact that somehow, none of our main characters have died—or, at the very least, sustained life-threatening injuries. It’s worth noting that the season 3 finale did see two key players meeting their demise: Big John (Charles Halford) and Ward Cameron (Charles Esten). But it took multiple fakeouts for Outer Banks to actually kill them off, and they’re hardly the only two characters to suffer a similar fate.
Most notably, Sarah flatlined in season 2 after being shot by her brother, and yet, the power of love brought her back to life. It’s a miracle!…or just really obvious plot armor. Big John was presumed dead throughout the series’ earlier seasons, and Ward’s “suicide” in the season 2 finale was all a ruse. It seems like their respective deaths will actually stick this time around, hopefully paving the way for new characters to take center stage in season 4. After all, Outer Banks is in desperate need of a new big bad.
Honestly, I’d be surprised if one of the Pogues didn’t make it out of season 4 alive. As much as it would up the stakes, we’ve simply spent too much time rooting for these characters (aside from latecomer Cleo, maybe) for Netflix to kill one of them off. However, I’m already predicting that the fifth episode will leave us on a massive cliffhanger between parts 1 and 2 that will make us think someone is in imminent danger. So who’s at risk here?
Well, in my opinion, Outer Banks could be setting up JJ’s death. He’s flirted with danger before, putting himself in harm’s way to protect his friends and/or his scumbag of a father. JJ is selfless and heroic, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him sacrifice himself considering he doesn’t have much to lose. Sarah’s already played the resurrection card once, John B is too much our audience surrogate, Cleo just got here, and Pope and Kiara’s arcs are too wrapped up in family drama for them to be killed off.
I could see Topper becoming a loose canon in season 4 and siding with Rafe, which would almost certainly end in disaster for him. Topper is enough of a side character for his death to not be overly crucial to the story, but he’s still received a decent amount of screen time over the years, and his loss would weigh heavily on the crew—especially his ex-girlfriend, Sarah.
But hey, as long as Big John and Ward Cameron actually stay six feet under, then maybe Outer Banks season 4 can actually fix its most glaring issue once and for all by making its deaths feel permanent.
Published: Sep 13, 2024 01:23 pm