The Teen Wolf Movie Completely Failed The Show’s Friendships
Warning! SPOILERS for Teen Wolf: The Movie.
Teen Wolf: The Movie reunited most of Teen Wolf’s beloved heroes, yet in doing so, ignored the show’s most important friendships. Teen Wolf: The Movie saw Scott McCall (Tyler Posey) and his pack members join forces once more to take on the Nogitsune (Aaron Hendry), one of Teen Wolf’s creepiest villains. A fundamental pillar of Teen Wolf has always been the love the pack members have for one another, whether romantic or platonic. This was never more apparent than when they beat the Nogitsune for the first time in Teen Wolf season 3. They did everything they could to save Stiles (Dylan O’Brien), who had been possessed by the Nogitsune.
With Crystal Reed’s return as Allison Argent in Teen Wolf: The Movie, it was to be expected that the revival would focus on her romance with Scott. Allison and Scott’s relationship was one of the most important in the show, and her resurrection in Teen Wolf: The Movie was part of the Nogitsune’s ploy to weaken the pack and the couple’s bond. Though the pack prevailed and defeated the Nogitsune in the end, their victory came at the expense of one of the most significant aspects of the Teen Wolf show, namely its friendships. While Allison and Scott’s rekindled romance was heart-warming, it may have taken up too much screen time in Teen Wolf: The Movie.
Friendship Was Just As Important In Teen Wolf As Romance, But Not In The Movie
Teen Wolf’s friendships, like those between Scott and Stiles, Teen Wolf’s Lydia (Holland Roden) and Allison, and Liam (Dylan Sprayberry) and Mason (Khylin Rhambo), were an intrinsic part of what made Teen Wolf so compelling. The usual high school drama was present, and romances often took center stage, but never at the expense of exploring and deepening the most important friendships. In Teen Wolf: The Movie, however, these friendships were glossed over, even neglected. Liam and Mason barely interacted and certainly didn’t act like best friends. Lydia and Allison’s friendship was almost forgotten, except when it was convenient, as Lydia could use her powers to force Allison’s memories to return.
Even Scott and Stiles’ friendship, arguably the cornerstone of the entire Teen Wolf story, was glossed over. Scott barely mentioned Stiles, and it was left to Lydia to explain why Stiles was absent in Teen Wolf: The Movie. Though Dylan O’Brien’s absence was always going to be a tough hurdle for the Teen Wolf revival movie to overcome, it needed to acknowledge the importance of Scott and Stiles’ friendship. Without it, the entire Teen Wolf show wouldn’t have happened. Stiles was the reason Scott was bitten, and Stiles was the reason Scott became a great leader.
Were The Teen Wolf Movie’s Friendships Neglected Because of Stiles’ Absence?
Dylan O’Brien’s inability to return for Teen Wolf: The Movie affected the story in more ways than one. Putting aside the fact that the Nogitsune’s revenge plot would have been more compelling with Stiles’ presence in Teen Wolf: The Movie, it also became clear that Stiles was the heart of the franchise and the heart of the pack. He was often seen as the glue that held everyone together, with his humanity his best asset, and Teen Wolf: The Movie could have used more of that. Stiles’ presence would have assured that Teen Wolf’s friendships were focused on more, as it would have been impossible to ignore the relationship between Scott and Stiles if they were together.
Despite a nearly two-and-a-half-hour runtime, Teen Wolf: The Movie felt rushed, especially when informing the audience about how the characters were doing more than 15 years after the original show’s ending. Due to its format, the Teen Wolf revival was forced to focus too much on the Nogitsune’s Teen Wolf movie plot, as opposed to fleshing out that which made the show so successful in the first place – the Teen Wolf characters in Scott’s pack and their relationships with one another. Unfortunately, Teen Wolf: The Movie provided only a fleeting glimpse at their lives and friendships.
