Why the Josh and Sam reunion in Daybreak was not what fans expected

Although many fans had been pining alongside Josh for a romantic reunion with his girlfriend Sam, this is not exactly how things played out.

Daybreak follows Josh and a bunch of other teams as they fight to stay alive in the post-apocalyptic town of Glendale.

Most fans expected Josh’s reunion with his girlfriend Sam to be a welcome romantic moment, but in reality, Josh and Sam ended up losing their spark in their time apart.

All about Daybreak

Netflix has certainly never been shy about dishing out content about a bunch of mismatched teens trying to find ways to survive in a post-apocalyptic world, while splitting off into different feuding factions.

Daybreak, which premiered on the streaming service in October of 2019, continues this beloved tradition.

Daybreak follows Josh Wheeler, a social outcast and young romantic, and his rag-tag group of misfits, which includes Angelica Green (the pyromaniac) and Wesley Fists (a bully-turned-pacifist).

They try to navigate the post- Armageddon Glendale whilst also trying to avoid the zombie-like creatures which the group has dubbed “Ghoulies.”

Why the Josh and Sam reunion in Daybreak was not what fans expected

In most post-apocalyptic teen dramas, the show’s protagonist is fighting to overthrow the powers at large, or trying to find a stable source of food or shelter.

But Josh trudges through the first few episodes of Daybreak with one clear goal in mind: to track down his girlfriend, Samaira “Sam” Dean.

And although most Daybreak fans expected to see Josh and Sam running into each other’s arms after all of his spray-paint messages eventually paid off and he realized that his girlfriend had not died (as he had been led to believe), the reality of their reunion actually proved to be quite anticlimactic.

By the time Josh and Sam finally met up again, they had both shed the expectations that their previous relationship had placed on them.

Not only had Josh slept with K.J. since they last saw each other, but Sam had started working her way up in the jocks’ camp.

Moreover, even after this almost-couple managed to prevent a nuclear explosion from destroying Glendale together, they still did not end up reuniting in the loving “happily ever after” way that fans had imagined at the beginning of the show, because they no longer shared the same priorities that they did before the apocalypse.

Instead, in quite an unexpected turn, Sam rejects Josh’s advances, and decides to go on a political power-grab all her own, leaving Josh to ponder what his future looks like without her.

Is Sam actually evil?

Since Josh Barr (Baron) lamented that “Sam Dean was the worst” in the middle of his fight with Josh and after seeing how quickly she jumped at the chance to take over Turbo’s throne in the season one finale episode, many fans have wondered whether she may actually be evil.

Unfortunately, the answer to this question is even more complicated than it may seems initially.

The reality is that most of what viewers see of Sam during the first season is distorted by Josh’s own perception of the events.

And while it may seem strange that she stepped into the leader-of-the-apocalypse role so quickly, she is no less qualified than any of the previous leaders and enjoying power does not necessarily mean that she plans to abuse her new position as queen.

The Daybreak season one ending explained

Fair spoiler alert for the information to follow, but Sam can be seen in the very last scene of Daybreak season one smirking proudly beneath her cardboard homecoming crown.

She smirked the same way when she had been voted queen during the actual homecoming.

And although we may never know what could have happened in the second season, this ending does make it clear that the second season would have seen two separate factions emerging: Sam’s group, and Josh’s group.

Though it remains to be seen which of these groups would get the upper hand.

Will Daybreak be renewed for a second season?

With everything that happened in the final moments of Daybreak’s first season, you may be wondering how long you will have to wait to see Josh and Sam square off as opposing leaders in season two.

But unfortunately, it seems like Daybreak’s cliffhanger ending will remain as is for the foreseeable future.

The show’s co-creator, Aron Coleite, revealed in a December 2019 Tweet that Daybreak would not be returning for a second season.

And since it has now been almost four years without an update, it is safe to assume that no other network or streaming service was willing to take the gamble and pick up the show.