Maxton Hall has returned to Prime Video with the first three episodes of its highly anticipated second season this Friday, November 7. The German-language romance series follows the lives of Ruby Bell (Harriet Herbig-Matten) and James Beaufort (Damian Hardung) as they attend a prestigious English school, Maxton Hall. The series is based on a trilogy of books that goes by the same name written by Mona Kasten.
With the first three episodes of the new season now available on streaming, fans of the show can now have the romance between Ruby and James back on their screens, but of course it is not all smooth sailing for the couple and here are my thoughts on what is revealed of the season so far.
Maxton Hall left fans questioning the fate of James as he and his sister Lydia receive devastating news regarding the death of their mother, Cordelia Beaufort. The last scene of James peering into Ruby's happy family as he drifts into the darkness, unknowing what will happen next for the viewers who have not read the books.
The latest season's narrative commences only 24 hours after the events of the last episode. Ruby is still in the dark about the tragedy that will shift the Beaufort twins' lives forever. Already for this season, the drama has been ramped up, and Ruby and James' relationship must face some big obstacles that rupture their relationship. This of course refers to James' actions after the death of his mother.
James, while in a drug and alcohol induced state, is seen by Ruby at a party, being drawn into the pool with two girls and then kisses Elaine in front of everyone, after telling Ruby that she does not belong here. Of course, Ruby's heart shatters as she runs from the scene sobbing.
While I am aware this scene was important for the rest of the season's plot to unravel, I didn't quite believe it due to how the scene was orchestrated. It didn't appear realistic that James', who usually stopped in his place whenever he laid his eyes on Ruby, would carry on kissing Elaine knowing she watched. I also couldn't believe that his friends, who stood with Ruby, would allow it to unfold without anyone intercepting the act. The whole scene came across a little forced and was in place just to cause the couple to break up at the start of the season.
Before the couple properly break up, we do get a beautifully emotional scene between them when for a brief moment Ruby forgets the heartbreak caused and is there to comfort James after finding out about his mother. The visual of Ruby holding James' head on her lap while he sleeps after him crying and confessing to her how he feels, mirrors how James was seen comforting Ruby in the season prior after she was pushed into the pool. It showed that they can be there for each other if they just allowed themselves to open up to each other.
But of course it does not last, and reality seeps back in when she remembers what James’ done with a text from Elaine popping up on his phone. She sees the state of James and the drugs and drinks scattered across the room come into vision. Just like that, the fissure between the couple is back, and the momentary truce has ended.
The first episode ends dramatically with James stealing a car at his mother's funeral and crashing badly, causing the car to flip. So far the opening episode of the second season is definitely full of excitement, and I went onto the next episode with hope that this excitement continues throughout the season with life-threatening stakes and family drama bubbling up.
With the break between Ruby and James being together, a new relationship for Ruby arises within these three episodes with James' twin Lydia. The friendship between the two characters is unexpected but makes sense due to the fact Ruby being the only person knowing about Lydia's pregnancy. A soft bond builds between the two characters and I think the arc is extremely well done. To know that the series began with Lydia crying to her twin about Ruby walking in on her kissing her teacher, to now Lydia turning to Ruby as someone who she trusts to help her through the pregnancy. I am enthusiastic to see how this friendship develops further on in the season.
The other underlying storyline of these three episode is the charity Gala that Ruby must once again organize. The show needed to give Ruby another ambition and task outside of James now that her Oxford interviews were complete. Although I think the obstacle of the budget did not make that much sense to me, due to Ruby obviously being a scholarship student, why would the principal put her forward for this task without paying for the event? Also, why didn't the foundation pay for the gala, with it being the most important event of the year for them? These plot holes are not completely damaging, but it did take me out of the show while watching it at times.
The Gala takes place on the third episode, which surprised me. I had assumed that it would not take place until closer to the finale of the season. However, with James speech at the end of the episode, it is understandable why it is occurs at the middle of the season.
The ridiculous dramatics of the venue going on fire the night before was very typical of the nature of the season so far. Nonetheless, the montage with Viva La Vida playing as Ruby recruits everyone on campus, including James and his lacrosse team, was extremely wholesome, and I could not but help to grin at my screen. The show is very good at building this fondness for the characters as you watch and hope that they succeed at the tasks that are thrown at them.
The romance was definitely on the back pedal for these three episodes, but that does not mean there wasn't angst and yearning between the couple. With scenes in the photo booth, and in the car, the tension was building with the pair throughout these episodes. Hopefully, with the speech, James made at the end of the third episode, Ruby's heart is beginning to mend, and we will get more than just James' longing stares across the room in the next few episodes of the season.
Overall, these three episodes were full of tension and excitement and I look forward to the rest of the season, and to find out what happens between Ruby and James. Tune in to Prime Video on November 13 for the next episode of Maxton Hall season 2.