Yellowjackets fans, rejoice! The long-awaited Yellowjackets season 3 is finally streaming on Paramount+ with Showtime, and judging by the premiere, it was well worth the wait. The first episode, titled "It Girl," finds the 1996 survivors in a rare moment of stability after enduring a brutal winter that left them without shelter. Meanwhile, in the present day, their adult counterparts grapple with the fallout of Natalie's death. Below, we break down everything that unfolds in Yellowjackets season 3, episode 1.
Major spoilers ahead from Yellowjackets season 3 episode 1!
The first episode kicks off in the 1996 timeline, where the girls are seen chasing Mari through the woods, making it seem like she’s the next sacrifice. Shauna tackles her to the ground, struggling to pry something from her grasp—even resorting to biting. As the others catch up, they pull the two apart. Nat then tells Mari that since she’s been caught, she has to hand over whatever she’s holding. But when Mari opens her hands, they’re empty. It quickly becomes clear that this isn’t a sacrificial ritual. It’s just a game.
Misty can be seen in the distance, watching the whole thing play out. The girls look over at her and realize she's the one with the item. Mari was just a decoy. They then chase after Misty. But before Shauna can catch her, the item (a necklace) makes it into the hands of someone else on Misty's team, and their team wins the game.
After wrapping up their game, the girls return to their small settlement, a cluster of makeshift teepees they've built for shelter. Nearby, burial sites mark the resting places of those they’ve lost. With winter behind them, summer has arrived, and for the first time in a while, most of the group seems to be in good spirits. Bad weather isn't really an issue anymore, and neither is food with animals coming out of hibernation.
As the girls gather together in their settlement to discuss their first Summer Solstice Festival, Shauna decides to stay in her teepee and write in her journal. While everyone is happy, she's not in the mood to celebrate. After everything they went through, she feels like the others are acting like nothing happened and are moving on with their lives. She doesn't think that's right. Travis doesn't seem to be okay with everything either, as he watches everything from a distance.
Van steps up in front of the group and gives a brief summary of everything that’s happened since winter ended, highlighting all they’ve accomplished in that time. She also mentions Coach Ben and how he betrayed them by burning down their cabin. He's nowhere to be found, though. The episode then cuts to the present time with Callie running late for school. Shauna walks into her room and mentions that it's Natalie's funeral, but Callie isn't really listening because she's getting ready.
Meanwhile, Misty meditates while sitting in her bed. She doesn't seem to be doing well after pretty much being the cause of Natalie's death. Walter enters her room and asks her what time she wants to leave for the funeral, but Misty doesn't give him an answer. As he exits through the door, he leaves a key to Natalie's storage and tells Misty what it's for. Misty tells him she'll take care of it. At the local church, there's a short scene of Natalie's funeral before the episode cuts to Shauna, Taissa, and Van at a bar.
During their conversation, Misty is brought up and her whereabouts. It's obvious that they haven't kept in contact with her since Natalie's death. Lottie is also mentioned, and she's still in a mental facility. Shauna looks around the bar after feeling someone watching her, but she doesn't see anyone. She's then snapped back into conversation with Taissa and Van. Elsewhere, Misty visits Natalie's storage and goes through her things. She finds her old leather jacket and takes it with her.
Back in the 1996 timeline, the losers of the game have to be servants to the winners for the day. While preparing the food, Shauna seems to be bonding with Melissa and their hatred for Mari. Akilah walks up to Shauna and presents her with a crown she made. She tells Shauna that the crown is for her to wear later at the ceremony. When Shauna asks why she has to wear it, Akilah responds by saying that she's his mother. It's obvious she's talking about the baby that Shauna lost. This angers Shauna, and she knocks the crown out of Akilah's hands before Melissa walks over and steps on it.
Inside one of the teepees, Nat, Van, Tai, and another girl discuss Coach Ben's whereabouts. They're still furious over him burning down their cabin and are set on capturing him. While Nat believes he's dead, that's far from the truth. The next scene reveals a disheveled Ben making his way through the forest. He finds a secret spot underground and a bin filled with medical supplies and food. He immediately starts eating the food. Back in the teepee, Tai tells Nat that she needs to make Shauna and Mari squash their beef before things get out of control and someone ends up dead. Remember, Nat is the new leader of the group.
In the present timeline, Callie overhears some girls at school gossiping about her mom and her friends. She then orders a mysterious food order to her school. Meanwhile, Taissa faces difficulties reaching her son, as her estranged wife, Simone, is blocking contact. Taissa then enters Van's room, hoping to convince her to move into hers while she’s sick, but Van refuses. Taissa still wants to reconcile with Van, but the pain from their breakup years ago remains. However, she does manage to persuade Van to join her for dinner.
Meanwhile, Shauna receives a call from Callie's school saying that Callie has done something bad. We find out later that Callie threw animal guts on the mean girls at her school. She did this because they were talking about her mom. She shows her mom a video of the incident later on. In the 1996 timeline, Travis gets high off of hallucinogens and chats with Lottie. Suddenly, Travis tells Lottie he hears a screaming sound coming from the trees. Lottie tells him she doesn't hear the sound, and Travis responds by saying that she will eventually.
After taking the bin of supplies, Ben leaves a piece of protein bar where he found the secret spot underground. He's hoping to capture something/someone. Back in the present timeline, Shauna and Jeff talk about Callie and what she did. Jeff thinks Callie is struggling with everything that has happened with Shauna and her friends, but Shauna thinks she's just being a teenager. Elsewhere, Taissa and Van have dinner at a high-end restaurant but leave shortly after arriving to go to a different spot.
They leave the restaurant without paying, and their waiter chases after them down the street until he is forced to stop because he starts choking. Taissa and Van make it to an alleyway and start making out. While they're kissing, Taissa opens her eyes and sees a tall man staring at them from afar. It appears she's beginning to hallucinate again. She ignores what she saw and continues kissing Van.
Back in the 1996 timeline, the girls have dinner. However, Shauna and Mari get into a heated argument after Shauna spits in Mari's food. The other girls break up the fight, and Nat tells Shauna and Mari they're on punishment. They have to stay in their teepees for a week. Mari doesn't agree with the punishment and storms off. In the present timeline, Misty orders drink after drink at the bar and becomes intoxicated. She gets into it with a couple of guys and is then kicked out of the bar. As she walks down the street, Walter pulls up in his car and picks her up. At this moment, Misty finally breaks down over Natalie's death.
Back at Shauna and Jeff's house, Callie hears a noise coming from the front door. She opens the door to find an envelope with Shauna's name on it. She opens the envelope and finds a cassette tape. She then puts the cassette tape in her hoodie's pocket. As she looks over the envelope, her dad interrupts and tells her to go to bed.
The final scene of the episode takes us back to 1996, where the girls and Travis hold a ceremony to honor those they’ve lost—Jackie, Javi, and Shauna’s baby. During the ceremony, they hear strange noises from the forest. Lottie asks Travis if it’s the same sound he heard earlier. The episode then cuts to Ben finding an injured Mari trapped in the secret underground spot.
Yellowjackets season 3 is streaming now on Paramount+ with Showtime.