“Wednesday” Season 2 is here, and with the new season of one of Netflix’s most-watched shows comes a host of new mysteries. Chief among them is the shrouded identity of the “avian killer,” a person who can control birds and who appears to be stalking Jenna Ortega’s Wednesday as she investigates the death of Tyler Galpin’s father, who, in turn, appeared to be knee-deep in an investigation of his own until birds killed him.
But who is the person behind the birds? Let’s dig into it. Spoilers ahead, of course.
Who is the Avian Killer?
The avian menace is unmasked in Episode 4, and while Wednesday suspects Dr. Fairburn (Thandiwe Newton), the avian killer is actually Judi, Fairburn’s assistant, played by “The Princess Diaries” and “Saved!” actress Heather Matarazzo.
Judi, it turns out, is the daughter of Augustus Stonehurst, a former Nevermore professor who eventually became the director of Willow Hill psychiatric facility and is now one of its residents.
Why is Judi trying to kill Wednesday?
Because Wednesday was getting too close to uncovering the truth – that Stonehurst was imprisoning “normies” and conducting experiments on them. “He loved outcasts,” Judi says of her father. “He wanted to be one. Imagine being able to extract their abilities and share it with normies.”
Stonehurst conducted his experiments on his own daughter – a willing participant – and while she was born a “normie,” she’s now an outcast with avian abilities.
“There’s nothing mad about what I’m doing,” she says to Wednesday in their Episode 4 confrontation. “Fairburn works for me. I recruited her to be the public face of this institution and continue my father’s work.”
When Tyler Galpin was housed at Willow Hill, his father started looking into the facility and became concerned his son would be experimented on there. And he had good reason to suspect.
What’s Augustus’ connection to Slurp the zombie?
In Episode 4, when Slurp – the zombie with the mechanical heart that Pugsley reanimated under the Skull Tree – comes across an Augustus, there’s a look of shock on the evil scientist’s face as Slurp says, “Hello, old friend.”
We’ll likely learn more in Season 2 Part 2, but the implication seems to be that Stonehurst was a professor at Nevermore when Slurp was a student and possibly had a hand in giving him a mechanical heart. The same mechanical heart that, according to legend, turned Slurp into a cold, unfeeling and dangerous boy.
Is Judy dead?
It’s unclear. The last time we see her in Episode 4, she’s running away from all the outcasts that were being experimented on. But odds are we haven’t seen the last of her.
We’ll find out for sure when “Wednesday” Season 2 Part 2 premieres on Sept. 3.
