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The Sex Lives of College Girls Haven’t Finished Yet! (Season 2 Finale)

S2E9, “Sex & Basketball” & S2E10, “The Rooming Lottery”

Four girls huddle around a phone
Photograph by Katrina Marcinowski/HBO Max

The following contains spoilers for the Season 2 finale of The Sex Lives of College Girls, S2E9,Sex & Basketball(written by Rupinder Gill & Caroline Goldfarb and directed by Rupinder Gill) and S2E10, “The Rooming Lottery(written by Beth Appel and directed by Justin Noble)


With The Sex Lives of College Girls officially renewed for a third season, it’s time to take a deep dive into the highly anticipated double-episode finale of Season 2!

I can’t help it; this show makes me smile. Sometimes I cringe at the awkward comedy but mostly I’m just smiling, pleased, and chuffed at the bits with this show UNTIL I WANTED TO CRY! What have they done? This solid group of girls, complicated and messy but lovable, has absolutely fallen apart.

The Sex Lives of College Girls’ Season 2 finale episodes blow up almost everything they laid the groundwork for while sneak attack showing us what they intended.

Oh my god, they brought Alicia (Midori Francis) back! I loved Midori in the first season; I loved her in Dash and Lilly; I was a little bummed when she joined Grey’s Anatomy because I thought it meant a forever goodbye to her character on The Sex Lives of College Girls, but I’m happy they brought her back. And it looks like the bonding over bullying that Leighton (Renee Rapp) and Tatum (Gracie Dzienny) had was in poor taste, as I thought. Leighton has grown as a character; she’s more empathetic and lighthearted now. Her connection with Alicia is still solid.

Leighton (Renee Rapp) and Tatum (Gracie Dzienny) at pilates class
Photograph by Katrina Marcinowski/HBO Max

I’m glad that Leighton could finally see past the regression she’d made and look toward a community she actually connected with at the women’s centre. The writers rounded out her character arc very well by bringing in her mother to give her blessing, love and support for Leighton quitting the sorority. Leighton’s storyline definitely had the happiest endings this season.

As for the others, not so much.

Andrew (Charlie Hall) and Whitney (Alyah Chanelle Scott) on the basketball court playing one on one
Photograph by Katrina Marcinowski/HBO Max

Andrew (Charlie Hall) is awful; I stand by everything I’ve said about him. He is sooo annoying. Whitney (Alyah Chanelle Scott) deserves so much better; I wish she and Canaan (Christopher Meyer) would just get back together. It gets annoying when every character ends up with a slightly nerdy hunk white guy. Although, it looks like those men are losing to a man called Canaan.

The Sex Lives of College Girls season 2 finale - Kimberly (Pauline Chalamet) and Canaan (Christopher Meyer) walking back from the awards banquet
Photograph by Katrina Marcinowski/HBO Max

AND I AM VERY UPSET WITH Kimberly (Pauline Chalamet)—breaking up with Jackson (Mitchell Slaggert) for her friend’s ex? That does not pass the girl code, especially when Whitney is clearly still into Canaan. I AM VERY UPSET ABOUT THIS STORYLINE! Mindy Kaling and Justin Noble, you should be ashamed of yourselves. Making Whitney watch? That’s messed up! She had just found her footing! She wants to pursue science and feels more confident in herself, and then you throw her man at a Chalamet?!?!?!?

I’m losing it over here. I have certainly not retained my cool.

So, with their freshman year out of the way, what will they do next year? Where will they live?

Not with Bela (Amrit Kaur), who has decided to run away from all her problems! And not with Whitney, who is moving into a sorority that sides with white Boomer moms. The unlikely duo, Kimberly and Leighton, will be pushed together again in Season 3 while Bela and Whitney descend into new worlds of chaos.

The Sex Lives of College Girls season 2 finale - Bela (Amrit Kaur) walking down the dormitory hall with a stack of magazines
Photograph by Katrina Marcinowski/HBO Max

Let’s talk about Bela for a second. She has epically fallen from grace this season. She found her man, lost her man. Started a magazine, was fired from that magazine. She’s hurt people left, right and centre, yet I was still rooting for her to get up and bring us all on side. I never thought she’d transfer; I never thought she’d try to run away from her problems. For all she’s done, Bela has always come to her senses and changed something, made up for something to make things right.

I was genuinely shocked when they showed Bela sitting in that administrator’s office. I really had not seen that coming.

I’m shook. The Sex Lives of College Girls Season 2 finale has shook me to my core. I don’t know what to think. I don’t know what to believe. I’m pretty much upset with every character except Leighton at this point. The sickening thing about The Sex Lives of College Girls Season 2 finale is that when I look back and think about these characters and everything that has happened, this all adds up.

It makes perfect sense that Kimberly and Canaan would like one another. Though they come from different worlds, their worlds are more similar than Whitney and Canaan’s. Whitney’s mother brings her a whole bucket of economic privilege that levels the playing field with the girls at Kappa. I think Whitney will fit in with the other sorority girls despite the racial aspect, which will most likely become a problem.

The Sex Lives of College Girls season 2 finale - Whitney (Alyah Chanelle Scott) in the girls dorm room after it was stormed with loud cheering from Kappa
Photograph by Katrina Marcinowski/HBO Max

I think that Bela’s behaviour in Seasons 1 and 2 have shown just how unsure of herself she is. There have always been elements of her behaviour and sense of humour that appeared lacking sensibility. I think Bela was seeking too much approval from mainstream society to be confident in her own right. She must be very, very, deeply insecure about herself and her place in society. Without firm confidence, I don’t see how she could hold her head high and apologise for her actions this time.

Despite being disappointed for my favourite girls and shocked by the twists, this was an incredibly well-thought-out season finale. It took many risks and will ruffle many fans’ feathers, but in the long run, this is excellent storytelling. And I love Lila (Ilia Isorelýs Paulino). Let’s see more of her.

Lila (Ilia Isorelýs Paulino) smiling on the couch in the dormitory common room
Photograph by Katrina Marcinowski/HBO Max

Let’s just hope that HBO and Warner Bros. don’t cancel The Sex Lives of College Girls Season 3 renewal two days after they wrap production on it.

Written by Isobel Grieve

One Comment

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  1. Fantastic writing Isobel!! I loved reading your thoughts about the finale and agree so much with everything you’re saying! I’m looking forward to your next review about the season 3 premiere!

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