Season synopsis
Contains spoilers for this season and earlier seasons.
Miley, Lilly and Oliver start high school, where the secret that once made Miley’s life exciting now has more ways to complicate her friendships. Lilly and Miley fall out over small choices and competing loyalties, then have to work together when one argument leaves them handcuffed before Hannah’s award appearance. Miley’s celebrity schedule can also intrude on schoolwork and plans with her friends. Oliver remains one of the few people who can help Miley as Hannah without making her explain every costume change.
Jake Ryan returns and rekindles his relationship with Miley, forcing her to decide whether she can trust him with the truth. She eventually reveals that she is Hannah Montana; Jake is impressed, but his expectation of special treatment makes dating him difficult. Miley wants him to see her as an ordinary girl as well as a star, and his disguise for their dates does not erase his celebrity habits. Their argument ends the romance, but Jake later sends flowers and promises that her secret is safe with him. He admits that he has not yet learned how to live an ordinary life.
At home, Robby Ray keeps managing Hannah while being the father Miley turns to when she has to admit a mistake or face a consequence. The season also gives Jackson and Oliver a short-lived business of their own: their Cheese Jerky stand draws customers away from Rico, but the costs eat into the profit and Jackson returns to the snack stand. Rico continues to provoke him, while the friends’ loyalty is tested by jealousy, school, dating and the odd demands of life beside a famous performer.