UnReal season 2 is dark, twisted, and even more brutal than season 1. Let’s meet the contestants, shall we?

Money, dick, power. Can you think of a better way to kick off season 2 of Lifetime’s UnReal than with the dynamic duo Quinn and Rachel getting tatted and trashed in a Vegas hotel? Yeah, us either.

UnReal does not ease back into the drama of last summer, but instead it does the audience a favor and plunges them right back into Rachel’s state of mind, Quinn’s trouble transitioning power, and Chet’s… well, whatever testosterone-boosting evolution Chet is going through. We pick up in the wilds of two opposing, yet not so different worlds.

The first, Patagonia, where Chet traded in his excess fat to rise up as the supreme ruler of his kingdom that he is entitled to by the simple fact that he was born a man. For a show driven by women, the insertion of the “men’s rights” movement into the plot of season 2 should be cringe-inducing, but for UnReal, this is blood in the water and Quinn is a shark ready to strike at first sniff.

The second, the Everlasting mansion, where Rachel tries to take control of her kingdom despite her subjects’ attempts to discredit her authority at every turn. Jay cannot stand Rachel’s rise to power, Madison is struggling to find her backbone, and she is not quite ready to handle the mutiny in the camera department. But Rachel dons her battle armor, which incidentally looks a lot like Quinn’s signature black coat, and loses whatever was left of herself in the process.

But Rachel’s rise to power is only going to be successful if her bachelor and his bachelorettes behave. A PR nightmare for Darius Beck, a professional football player and the show’s first black suitor, lands him in Rachel’s grasp. Darius’ uncertainty mixed with Quinn’s description of her ideal female contestants (a list that practically insults every nationality, gender, occupation and religion in under one minute) pushes Rachel to work her magic from the second the network gives the go-ahead.

Rachel may be changing the world of reality television a bit by crafting her narrative around a black suitor, but she is still working against her better instincts of stripping down a group of women and producers to chess pieces she can move around a board. And though Quinn may have passed down the showrunner’s bike, she still has the training wheels on for Rachel — something that nearly everyone on set can sense and is willing to take full advantage of. Hit Rachel where it will hurt the most. Take away her power.

While Jay is not willing to give Rachel any respect, Madison is all too eager to please. Rachel plays God and starts to take control from afar and impart her ruthless wisdom to the next generation. After guiding Madison through the tactics of getting a contestant to spill her story about being in the car when her husband died, all that the poor PA can do is throw up and say, “That felt amazing.”

Then there are the contestants. Though we did not spend a great deal of time with the ladies thus far, we got a glimpse of what’s in store. There’s a Southern Belle in a Confederate Flag swimsuit, an activist who drops out of college to use the show’s 16 million viewers as her platform, a hotter version of Rachel, and one “wifey” who just happens to be the daughter of an NFL team owner.

Plenty of options exist, but three stories stand out. Quinn’s version of the show would see the “wifey” come out on top, Rachel’s version would have Ruby deliver her message to the world and change a few minds, while Chet’s version would see everyone naked in the pool having a massive orgy that will inflate more than one part of his manhood.

What else gets Chet’s motor running? Stealing Darius and Romeo away from the set and making Quinn and Rachel beg and barter for their return. So long as Chet has the network president in his back pocket, Quinn and Rachel are not going to have the freedom to do anything. No matter how resourceful and ruthless Rachel may be, Quinn is stepping back in control. The question is, how far are they willing to go to get it?

UnReal may not be killing contestants off this year, but if the premiere is any indication of the season’s trajectory, the show will not suffer without the “shock factor.” In fact, it may thrive and surpass season 1’s greatness.

Stray Observations

? With all of the Gilmore Girls revival news in the air, UnReal reminds us that there can be another type of sharp, fast precision to language that can cut like a razor.

? The moment right before Rachel calls action and Graham hits his mark shows the type of adrenaline that drives the show and keeps the producers coming back season after season. Even in that moment, Jay and Madison had a smile on their face, they all bonded, and they all wanted to same thing — a successful opening shot.

? “Even I can’t stop the sun from rising, Lord knows I’ve tried.”

UnReal season 2, episode 2, “Insurgent,” airs Monday, June 13 at 10:00 p.m. ET on Lifetime.