The first season of the Disney+ series High School Musical: The Musial: The Series ended last week. We have come to love this series, and we’re sad to see it leave us for a little while. We thought we would discuss some of the things we want to see in Season 2 to help us get through hiatus.
More Original Music
Fans of the original High School Musical franchise and newcomers to the world of East High were blown away by the young cast’s talent in every aspect of the word. The ensemble showed up and showed out on every episode.
One of the first standout moments featuring an original song is in 1×02 “The Read-Through.” Ashlyn and Nini sang a song titled “Wondering” the former girl wrote for her character Ms. Darbus. It’s a pivotal moment for both of the girls as viewers start to see that Nini doesn’t have everything figured out and Ashlyn obviously wrote the song from a place of similar feelings.
“All I Want” is an original song written by Olivia Rodrigo who plays Nini. This only exemplifies the talent that is bursting at the seams of this special show. Olivia’s incredible talents are displayed yet again during this moving song, which also helps viewers understand Nini’s conflict regarding her relationships with both EJ and Ricky.
“Just For a Moment” is another incredible original song co-written by Rodrigo and Joshua Bassett who plays Ricky. It has been on repeat since it was featured in the season finale. We want more songs like these in Season 2!
Ashlyn & Big Red
Ashlyn and Big Red were a surprise couple that came from the first season of HSMTMS. Though, just because we weren’t expecting them doesn’t mean we love them any less. We are all in with these two. They are nothing but kind and gracious to each other, constantly paying each other compliments. Their dynamic is so much fun to watch because they really do embrace and value each other for all they are. We can always use more positive representation of young love on TV targeted at that audience and otherwise.
While it is likely that Big Red’s presumed involvement with the Robotics club will conflict with the upcoming musical, we hope that doesn’t drive too big of a wedge between him and Ashlyn. They’re too adorable to split up.
HSM 2 and HSM 3
Since a lot of us are fans of the original franchise, we can’t help but wonder how the sequels will present themselves as the rest of the series unfolds. We aren’t expecting each season to revolve around a sequel, because it is understandable for HSMTMTS to expand outside of the franchise. Selfishly, we want to see this talented cast take on classic songs like “I Don’t Dance” and “A Night to Remember.”
More Kourtney
Dara Renee plays Kourtney with so much heart, which is reflected in Kourtney’s selfless actions to support her friends. We want to see more of Kourtney in the second season. She has been a great friend to Nini. She brought the performing arts scout to see Nini perform in the show and also boosted Nini’s spirits with a musical number. She’s the best.
On 1×08 “Tech Rehearsal” we picked up on Kourtney saying she only sang at church, and we couldn’t help but draw a parallel between Gabriella Montez’s extremely similar explanation for not performing often. Does this mean Kourtney could be the lead of the next show? We are here for it if so.
#Gini
When the series premiered, Nini and Gina looked like they would be enemies for the sake of a role in the production. That developed into a weird love square with those two, Ricky, and EJ. Luckily, it seems like the show has abandoned that for now in favor of a friendship between Gina and Nini. We hope it stays that way in the new season. We’d much rather see Gina and Nina support each other than steal each other’s belongings again. They’d be stronger together, and that was shown a bit towards the end of the season.
Cameos
There were only two cameos from the original franchise, but they were absolutely perfect. KayCee Stroh who played the epic dancer Martha Cox and Lucas Grabeel who played the iconic Ryan Evans guest starred in two different episodes in the first season. Neither of their appearances unnecessary or as a way to pull in viewers. They were both organic and heartwarming.
As we’re not sure how the series will include the rest of the franchise, we can’t be sure that anymore original cast members will appear in future episodes. That doesn’t mean that we can’t hope they will happen. It’s so fun to watch the OGs interact with the new generation.
It could be interesting to see an original cast member return without a direct nod to their previous role and play someone entirely new in the series. For example, Corbin Bleu could guest star as a teacher who challenges Mr. Mazzara’s resistance to the theater alongside Miss Jenn.
Ricky Finding Himself
Much of the first season focused on Nini’s journey of self-discovery divorced of her relationships with boys. While this will likely continue over the course of the series because that journey is not a quick and easy one, we also want to see Ricky have a similar journey of his own. It’s hard not to notice Ricky’s desire to hold on to his relationship with Nini because she’s the only constant thing left from his past that is unraveling before him. This is not to discount Ricky’s love for Nini, because what he feels for her is valid. Ricky’s swoon-worthy declaration in the season finale suggests that he’s never known a life outside of his love for her. It may be beneficial to him and his romantic partners for Ricky to learn to accept change. Ricky could love Nini better by loving himself more. We want Ricky to realize that even if some couples are not meant to be and things change, he is still worthy of love and he is enough. We just want the best for our dear Ricky.
#Seblos
Joe Serafini who plays Seb has been upped to a series regular for next season, leading us to believe there will be more Seblos in our future. Carlos and Seb are a fan-favorite couple, and it’s easy to see why. The way those two smile at each other makes our hearts melt! It’s also moving to see them exist in an environment that doesn’t bully them for who they love. It is refreshing to see their relationship be so normalized because their relationship is just that. Hopefully this means we could see a duet next season since Seblos will probably be featured more. What can we say? We ship it.
What do you want to see on Season 2 of HSMTMTS? Let us know in the comments below!