The new season of Netflix’s Sweet Magnolias picks up a year after we last left off, and the three best friends at the center of the show are all at new and exciting points in their lives. Each of them is now in a stable relationship and pursuing new career opportunities, but thanks to a few unexpected surprises, there’s always some drama popping up in Serenity.
SWEET MAGNOLIAS (SEASON 4): STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?
Opening Shot: Helen (Heather Headley) pops a bottle of bubbly and pours three glasses, one for herself, one for Maddie (JoAnna Garcia Swisher) and one for Dana Sue (Brooke Elliott). Because if there’s one thing these ladies love, it’s a toast. It’s just what they do!
The Gist: A year has passed since the events of season 3 on Sweet Magnolias, and the ladies have a lot to toast to. Maddie has published a children’s book and is now engaged to Cal (Justin Bruening), while Dana Sue is now a silent partner at her restaurant, Sullivan’s, and is running the Magnolia Community Foundation and teaching a cooking class at the local high school. The women are all dolled up for a party to celebrate the changes at Sullivan’s now that Dana Sue has handed over the chef reins to Erik (Dion Johnstone)
Helen, who once dated Chef Erik, still seems like she has some feelings lingering despite the fact that he’s now with Genevieve (Nikki Estridge) and Helen’s got a new man, too. His name is Alex and he’s the sexy architect who helped redesign Sullivan’s (which is now called Sullivan’s and Friends). Helen and Erik never actually speak their feelings aloud, but throughout the first episode, there’s some real energy between them that it seems like their partners can also sense.
Helen is also struggling with the offer that Peggy (Brittany L. Smith), a.k.a. the new Mayor, has given her to become the town manager – she absolutely doesn’t want the job but the town desperately needs her after the town’s former Mayor Trent was sent to prison leaving the town’s finances are in shambles. Though she reluctantly takes on the role, she finds herself busier and more stressed than ever, especially when she realizes the town’s finances might mean that some cuts will need to be made around town that could impact everyone she knows.
While we see each of the women adapting to their new-ish situations, it almost seems like the first episode of the season is going to end without incident (unheard of in this town!) until Maddie and Cal host a Halloween party, gathering all of their closest friends and family in one place, and shocking everyone when it turns out this is no Halloween party, this is a WEDDING. That’s more like it!
Our Take: Sweet Magnolias walks a very fine line between a very safe, idealistic show about friendship and small-town life and a melodramatic soap opera where something is always going wrong for someone. This season – which takes place between Halloween and Christmas, giving it a festive edge – gives all of the main characters something new to do. Maggie is promoting her new book and being engaged to Cal, Dana Sue is struggling in her new role as a teacher, Helen is balancing a new relationship with working for the Mayor, and so far, like in Serenity seems, well, serene. But the show also does a good job planting small seeds that will undoubtedly grow into bigger problems down the line. (Maddie’s surprise wedding, while a joyous occasion, will eventually cause some friction with her friends who are disappointed that she kept it a secret, for one thing.)
A little more sexy (and a lot more sauced) than similar shows in the Hallmark universe, Sweet Magnolias is still pretty tame by every standard, which is what makes it a part of the comfort drama genre that has taken over the world. As dramatic as things get in Serenity, things generally end on a happy note, proving that there’s nothing margarita night can’t fix.
Sex and Skin: Some kissing but nothing hot and heavy.
Parting Shot: Maddie, who has changed out of her costume, descends a staircase now dressed in a gown, shocking all of the guests at her Halloween party which is now a wedding.
Memorable Dialogue: “Is this a wedding?!” a party-goer asks as the Wedding March begins to play at the Halloween party.
Our Call: The relatively low stakes of Sweet Magnolias are not for everyone, but for audiences looking for the TV version of yacht rock, easily mockable but surprisingly addictive, this is it. This season of Sweet Magnolias spends a bit of time establishing new relationships and professional roles for most of its characters, giving these established, well-loved characters a chance to branch out and explore things they haven’t done before, while still being the reliable, cozy comfort-fest we love. STREAM IT!
Liz Kocan is a pop culture writer living in Massachusetts. Her biggest claim to fame is the time she won on the game show Chain Reaction.
