Content Warning: The following article contains spoilers for the Showtime series Yellowjackets, as well as discussions of drugs, suicide, abuse, and cannibalism.
It takes strategic thinking and survival skills to make it through the disastrous plane crash the characters on Showtime’s Yellowjackets experience. Out in the wilderness on their own, they have to rely on each other and the limited resources they have to stay alive.
Fans quickly realize that it’s not just the wolves they have to worry about, as the women themselves can be ruthless and dangerous, even long after they’ve grown into adults and rejoined society. The most intelligent characters on the series have shown that they have what it takes not just to survive in the forest but to navigate the increasingly dangerous tensions brewing within the group, which continue well into the future.
Travis Martinez
The angsty Travis isn’t the smartest among the bunch, which is obvious from the beginning. He copes with his father’s death in a terrible way, lashing out at his younger brother and being mean to the rest of the group.
This trend continues when he forms a romantic relationship with Nat, as she almost can’t contain her anger when he asks her how many people she’s slept with. Travis hopefully outgrew his angst and sexism, but aside from his suspicious suicide, little is known about his reclusive lifestyle after being rescued.
Jeff Sadecki
Jeff’s story arc is one of the most shocking in the series so far, even though he starts out as a seemingly boring, cheating husband. But just because his story is interesting doesn’t mean he’s smart, as he gets Shauna and her friends in a lot of trouble after thinking it’s a good idea to blackmail them to save his failing business.
To his credit, Jeff is able to think of a disturbing solution, as he suggests making the rest of the women believe that Adam was the blackmailer all along. That said, none of the disastrous events would have happened if he had just thought things through and been more honest with Shauna from the beginning.
Jackie Taylor
Jackie turns the whole series into an engrossing teen drama whenever she’s around, as she’s initially portrayed as the “it girl” whose popularity is unrivaled in the group. She’s totally out of her element out in the wilderness, though, which might have contributed to her senseless actions with Travis.
Jackie can be cunning when it comes to dealing with people, as she knows exactly how to hurt Shauna without her best friend knowing that’s what she’s trying to do. However, most of the awful things Jackie does are motivated by anger and hopelessness, and the fact that she doesn’t realize the women are starting to turn on her speaks volumes about how clueless she tends to be.
Lottie Matthews
Lottie is smart in a unique way in the series, as based on her chilling, horror movie-esque demonic possession in Yellowjackets and her creepy predictions afterward, fans know that she’s attuned to the supernatural forces in the forest.
The only thing that holds Lottie back from sharing her knowledge is her own doubts about their validity, which is disappointing considering how many things she could have prevented if she had just been more assertive. What’s more, Lottie hasn’t proven that she’s particularly intelligent when it comes to any aspect outside of the paranormal.
Adam Martin
Compared to any other group of average people, Adam would likely be considered a wise and well-read person. Shauna describes him as a “starving artist,” in large part thanks to his penchant for cliches like grand romantic actions or quoting Kurt Vonnegut during a first date.
He’s good at reading and charming people, which is why he can tell that Shauna is into him as well. However, he obviously lacks the real-world experience that Shauna and the rest of the women have, which could have clued him in on the fact that he was dating a dangerous person.
Laura Lee
Despite never growing into an adult, Laura is still one of the smartest people in the series, for the sole reason that she learns how to fly a plane by reading one book over a few weeks. She knows that the group is in trouble because winter is just around the corner — Van’s accident only accelerates her plan.
The most impressive part of the whole thing is that she successfully takes off and for a moment, it seems like she might make it. If she had just interpreted Lottie’s earlier vision in a non-religious way, she would’ve known the plane would explode, but she was blinded by her “purpose” that coach Ben had warned her about.
Shauna Sadecki
Yellowjackets is full of badass female characters and Shauna, although it doesn’t seem like it at first, is among the fiercest. As an adult, she remains surprisingly calm and collected throughout the whole blackmail fiasco, even when she learns that she has made a terrible mistake by killing Adam.
The teen version of Shauna is perceptive, which is evident when she pulls Jackie aside to let her know that the rest of the group is turning on her. Her more foolish acts are often a result of her own insecurities, like when she chooses to cheat on Jeff instead of confronting him or when she lashes out and kills Adam when she thinks he’s only dating her for her status as a Yellowjacket.
Taissa Turner
It’s not easy to navigate the complicated world of politics, but Taissa does it with a smile on her face. She can be just as strategic and cunning as her opponents, which is evident in the way she hires a private investigator to monitor the survivors’ present lives.
Fans may remember how in the wilderness, Tai believes in science and refuses to give up during her trek to the south. When the compass stops working, she quickly comes up with a solution and when Shauna disappears, she connects the dots almost immediately and comes to her rescue. That said, her refusal to believe that psychologists can help Sammy and the fact that she realizes a bit too late that she’s having sleepwalking episodes prove that she has unwise moments, too.
Natalie Scatorccio
Natalie is a strong female lead with a knack for using and manipulating others, which may be morally questionable but is undoubtedly a useful skill. Fans may recall how she blackmails her former sponsor into giving her Travis’s personal financial information and uses Kevyn to gain access to his autopsy.
As a teen, Nat is less manipulative but just as intelligent. She’s quick to shut down Travis’s sexist ideas and brilliantly helps coach Ben to become more open about his sexuality. She has her flaws, but that's what makes Nat a compelling character.
Misty Quigley
Even though she is the cruelest and most brutal among the group, Misty has shown that she is also the smartest character so far. She’s the first to spring into action after the plane crash, using her Red Cross training to apply bandages and chop off coach Ben’s leg. She also has a seemingly vast knowledge of the outdoors and soon becomes the go-to person whenever the group has questions about surviving in the wilderness.
As an adult, Misty is just as ruthless and callous but continues to be brilliant and devious. As a “citizen detective,” she has no trouble tracking down other survivors and looking for clues about Travis’s alleged murder. It’s also telling how she’s the person Nat turns to when they need help with disposing of a dead body. What she lacks in social skills, Misty more than makes up for with her intelligence.