Family and Fame are the Creepshow on ‘The Vince Staples Show: Season 2’

No matter what medium they use to express themselves, how an artist sees the world is what defines them. What makes them successful is the ability to communicate that point of view, immersing us in their take, even when our experiences differ. Vince Staples has a singular perspective like that. It’s evident in his music, his interviews, and his series.

Season 2 of The Vince Staples Show has a similar tone to Season 1—it’s an absurd slice of satirical life, starring an alternate universe version of Vince whose life and family are intertwined with legendary moments in LA history. But there’s a difference. Where S1 was episodic in many ways, S2 has a more cohesive narrative that follows Vince, his mother Anita (the phenomenal Vanessa Bell Calloway), and his estranged sister, Bri (Naté Jones), after the death of his formerly famous football-playing uncle, James (Beau Billingslea).

The second season is just as weird, funny, and challenges our expectations just as hard. Here’s what you won’t expect: every episode plays with horror tropes but swerves left when we think we’ve figured it out. Episode one has the sense of being trapped in a public place right before the slasher arrives, but Anita might be scarier, and the mother-son relationship is on the hook. Episode two chases road trip horror, along the lines of the classic Creepshow tale “The Hitch-hiker,” but when it goes sideways, it’s into the resentment between mother and daughter. In episode three, we’re pulled into a haunted house story, but the true ghosts are from following in an elder’s footsteps and the hate that comes with fame. And the final three episodes are a mix of Peele’s Get Out, Riley’s Sorry to Bother You, and Johnson’s Knives Out franchise, with a splatter of The Shining, but not in any way you’ll see coming.

Note: Look out for the cameos, especially one from a fellow recurring character on Abbott Elementary (okay, it’s Zack Fox, dang).

Each incident in this six-episode season is utterly insane but totally true, leaving you shook, giggling, engrossed, and questioning what it all means. Here’s my take: The Vince Staples Show: Season 2 is a surrealist family saga and exploration of intergenerational wounds brought to comedically absurd life. Vince and his creative team are also digging into how Black Excellence can become a victim of its own fame. Then again, with a show this wildly imaginative, pop-culturally accurate, and bitingly satirical, maybe I got it wrong. Perhaps we’ve been sucked into a recurring dream Vince Staples hasn’t woken up from. And honestly, I’m all for riding along to see where his dreamy nightmares take us in Season 3. Just remember, “This is a Work of Fiction”—probably.

The Vince Staples Show: Season 2 premieres globally on Netflix right now