There is an extraordinary challenge of making a second season for a well-received show. The second installment in some ways went too extra, losing out on some of the ordinary that made it extraordinary.
In its first season, Extraordinary felt like a well-balanced dish, with the star of the dish being why it works. On the contrary, season two feels like the chef is trying to change up the dish and make the ingredients surrounding the star pop more, resulting in that well-oiled machine losing the flavor that made it damn good.
The first season saw a world where everyone has a superpower they receive when they turn 18, ranging from incredibly cool powers to completely bonkers powers—the show used that premise to bring out the satire using the lead, Jen (Máiréad Tyers).
Jen was a 25-year-old who never received powers, and in an extraordinary world, she’s the extraordinary one because she’s so ordinary. Her central arc was dealing with being extraordinary while wanting to be more. She wanted those powers because she yearned for that normalcy.
Season one felt so fresh because, in a media landscape dominated by superhero content, it felt different. It was a satire, which is surprisingly quite rare in the world of superhero media in Hollywood. The humor was based heavily on how bizarre this world Jen is a part of. It feels like a mix of British humor ala The Inbetweeners, Lovesick, with sexual and situational humor crafted around superpowers ranging from characters who can talk to the dead to someone who can give out orgasms with a single touch.
The show wasn’t trying to be a humorous superhero epic like The Boys or Gen V. It was just trying to be funny, and funny it was. The ingredients all felt like they belonged together. Even in rare moments when the joke wasn’t landing, the show had enough heart to make up for it.
Season two picks back up with Jen still not receiving those powers. The season focuses more on the relationships between her and the supporting characters. Carrie (Sofia Oxenham), Jizzlord (Luke Rollason), and Kash (Bilal Hasna) were major parts of season one, but season two gives them even more of a focus, sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse.
Jizzlord’s power was the ability to transform into a cat, but along the way, in season one, we find out he has been a cat for years, and has no memory of his former life. Season two delves further into that past life by introducing his wife and son.
Jen and Jizzlord are in the early stages of dating, and this puts a wrench in that relationship. This is a major plotline for the show and the biggest issue the show faces. How does it change the humor to better suit this plotline?
Well, it doesn’t, and it falters because of it. The show wasn’t built to adapt to these various storylines. For some, there are some moments of comedic excellence, especially when it feels closer to season one. Season two’s storylines are trying to be focused more on the secondary characters, which means the best part of the humor coming from Jen’s lack of powers is far more scarce.
Season one put Jen’s central conflict at the forefront, while season two moved it to the back burner. The second installment lacks the power of the first because Jen’s power conundrum is moved too far down the pecking order.
There are still strands left from the DNA of season one, but the ingredients feel like they’ve been left out longer, creating a different flavor altogether. There are moments when the show feels fun and brimming with satirical life, but it is balanced by the blandness of some storylines that lack the oomph of the first season.
Despite all this, there are parts of season two that still work. It’s a level down from the first season, but it’s still a fun show with some very solid comedic highs that a lot of shows wish they could reach. The finale itself is the best episode of the season, and the end reveals a myriad of possibilities for a potential season 3 that are all intriguing.
Jen’s original arc also dealt with the loss of her father, who dies before the show begins. She uses her friend Carrie’s power, which allows her to talk to the dead, to speak with her father. This is less of a focus in season two, but towards the end of the season, they do more with it, which really works. That small level of heart was what was missing from the prior episodes in the season.
Season two feels like a sophomore slump. The show is still in the early stages trying to find itself. If there is a potential season 3, it should take what worked in the first installment while building on what didn’t in the latter.
The show is at its best when it focuses on Jen and her arc of being ordinary. Season two only shows remnants of this, and that is where it is at its best, but it tries to do too many storylines worlds away from this that lead the show astray.
Extraordinary is created by Emma Moran starring Máiréad Tyres, Sofia Oxenham, Bilal Hasna, and Luke Rollason. Two seasons of 8 episodes each are available on Hulu in the US, and Disney+ internationally.
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