Warning: There are spoilers ahead for Yellowjackets season 3, episode 8, "A Normal, Boring Life."

The reveal of Hilary Swank's Yellowjackets' present-day timeline.

Melissa's survival is not only a surprise to the audience, but it is a surprise to Shauna (Melanie Lynskey) as well. She and the other survivors were under the impression that Melissa had died, with Shauna mentioning that she even attended a funeral for her. Melissa explains that she faked her death because “After we made it back, I was no longer one of you,” and this line has significant implications for Yellowjackets season 4 and beyond.

Melissa's Post-Rescue Death Fake-Out Reveal Sets Up Yellowjackets To Finally Bring Back The Third Timeline

The Post-Rescue Timeline Hasn't Been Shown Since The Season 2 Premiere

While speaking with Collider, Yellowjackets executive producer Drew Comins was asked whether Melissa's line was a reference to something that happened in the wilderness or after being rescued. In his response, he discusses how the show is setting up "a third timeline, which is the in-between." He discusses how the show has primarily alternated between the past timeline in the wilderness and the present-day timeline 25 years later, but that the story will begin focusing more on what happened in between, and how the survivors' relationships changed after being rescued. Check out Comins' full comments below:

Listen, without revealing anything, I'm going to say that I think that the show has, up until now, existed in primarily two timelines, right? The timeline of the wilderness and the timeline of the present. What has always excited us, and I certainly think it comes out of Ashley, Bart, and Jonathan's minds, is there's also a third timeline, which is the in-between. There's something very exciting about seeing, like, how did these relationships evolve in the time between their rescue and where we pick up with them in the present day? How does one really readjust to polite society when you've gone to, as Bart once said, the factory default settings of what human beings are capable of?

The post-rescue timeline was briefly shown in the Yellowjackets season 2 premiere as the teenage survivors dodged reporters after being rescued in 1998 and got on a plane to go home. This included teenage Lottie (Courtney Eaton) screaming and being sent to a facility where she was given electroshock therapy. Melissa's line to Shauna and Comins' comments now have the show poised to return to this third, in-between timeline for the first time since the season 2 premiere.

The Post-Rescue Timeline Is Exactly What Yellowjackets Season 4 Needs

It Will Provide What Is Missing Between The Two Main Timelines

Exploring the post-rescue period can help to bridge the gap between Yellowjackets' past and present timelines. It sometimes feels as though the differences between the characters and their relationships in the past and present are too significant. This is particularly evident with the adult Shauna and her teenage self (Sophie Nélisse). Showing what happened after being rescued can help explain why Shauna and some of the other characters feel so different in the two main timelines and can make the overall story feel more seamless.

Seeing how the survivors struggled to adjust to society in the immediate aftermath of their return is a compelling story and different from anything the show has done so far. It will be fascinating to learn why Melissa no longer felt like she was one of them, along with how the others were able to make peace with each other after everything that happened in the wilderness. The post-rescue timeline can ensure that Yellowjackets does not become repetitive in season 4 and can fill in missing gaps as the show heads toward its endgame.

Source: Collider