Two Season TV Shows

Want a little more than a one-season wonder? Here are some two season series that also are good breather in between longer binges. Again, you might be a bit disappointed when they end, knowing that they probably could have gone further.

1. FLEABAG (HBO)

Creator: Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Killing Eve)

Stars: Waller-Bridge (Broadchurch, Solo)

Olivia Coleman (The Crown, The Favourite)

Episodes: 12 Years: 2016-2019

Available on: Amazon Prime   

Premise: A woman, who often breaks the fourth wall, deals with life and love following a recent tragedy in this dark comedy.

Why It’s Worth Your Time: The writing and performance of Waller-Bridge is impeccable. It is quick-witted and awesome.  
Best Episode: Episode #2.1 (S02E01)

An extremely uncomfortable family dinner that has a hot priest, an unwanted pregnancy and a bloody nose.

2. SPORTS NIGHT (ABC)

Creators: Aaron Sorkin (West Wing)

Stars: Josh Charles (Dead Poets Society),

Peter Krause (Parenthood, 9-1-1)

Episodes: 45 Years: 1998-2000 
Available on: DVD  

Premise: A dramedy sitcom about the team behind a third-ranked nightly cable sports program.

Why It’s Worth Your Time: This is Sorkin’s first show and if you ignore the forced laugh track of the first few episodes, you will love it.

Best Episode: The Apology (S01E02)

Dan’s comment about drugs in a magazine article gets him into trouble and Casey needs to teach Jeremy on how to cut a segment.

3. FLIGHT OF THE CONCHORDS (HBO)

Creator: James Bobin (Muppets)

Jermaine Clement and Bret McKenzie

Stars: Jermaine Clement (Legion) & Bret McKenzie

Episodes: 22 Years: 2007-2009
Available on: Crave

Premise: A quirky struggling folk-rock band from New Zealand tries to make it in New York.

Why It’s Worth Your Time: Their songs (and music videos) are hilarious and the banter between the musicians and their ineffective manager will make you smile for days.   

Best Episode: Mugged (S01E03)

Jermaine abandons Bret when they are mugged by a gang of two. The hilarious Hiphoppotamus vs Rhymenoceros needs to be seen.

4. PUSHING DAISIES (ABC)

Creator: Bryan Fuller (Dead Like Me)

Stars: Lee Pace (Halt and Catch Fire),

Anna Friel (A Midsummer Night’s Dream)

Episodes: 22 Years: 2007-2009 
Available on: DVD

Premise: A pie-maker has the ability to bring people back to life for a limited time, so he helps solve crimes with a PI.

Why It’s Worth Your Time: It is so imaginative with amazing narration and quirky, colourful characters and fun mysteries.

Best Episode: Pie-lette (S01E01)

It’s a great series but I just love the way it is introduced to audiences with its high production values. So fun and creative.

5. MASTER OF NONE (NETFLIX)

Creator: Alan Yang & Aziz Ansari

Stars: Aziz Ansari (Parks & Rec.),

Lena Waithe (Ready Player One)

Episodes: 20 Years: 2015-2017 
Available on: Netflix

Premise: The personal and professional life of Dev, a 30-year-old actor in New York. Hijinks ensue.  

Why It’s Worth Your Time: Each episode is filled with creativity and Ansari excels with an equal mix of comedy and drama.   

Best Episode: First Date (S02E04)

Dev uses a dating app and winds up on a string of awkward, fun and disorienting dates with different women.

Extras: (13 eps) Ricky Gervais is a movie extra with a useless agent trying to make it big. Full of fun cameos making fun of themselves.

Dead Like Me: (29 eps) A sarcastic twentysomething becomes a grim reaper. Mandy Patinkin plays a great grim reaper father-figure.

Boss: (18 eps) Kelsey Grammer will impress as a Chicago mayor with dementia trying to keep ruling the city with an iron fist. Dark.

Party Down: (20 eps) A group of pathetic caterers serve a variety of parties. A cavalcade of comedy performers led by Adam Scott.

Carnivale: (24 eps) A Depression-era dustbowl travelling circus with an incredibly dark and supernatural fight between good and evil.  

What are your favourite two season wonders?

Single Season TV Shows

This list is for those who don’t want to commit to a long series. These one season wonders can also be seen as a palette cleanser between the pandemic binge watching. I wish they all could have continued but they were denied the time to shine and gain an audience. Even The Night Of could have explored other season-long cases. Oh well, here are some of my favourites.

1. THE NIGHT OF (HBO)

Creators: Richard Price (The Outsider), Steve Zaillian (The Irishman)

Stars: Riz Ahmed (Rogue One),
John Turturro (Quiz Show)

Episodes: 9 Years: 2016
Available on: Crave   

Premise: After a night of partying, a Pakistani-American picks up a woman then wakes up to find her stabbed and he’s arrested for murder.

Why It’s Worth Your Time: The acting in this drama is incredible and it’s fascinating to watch this seemingly innocent student adjust to the prison system as his quirky lawyer tries to save his life.

Best Episode: Part 1: The Beach (Ep.1)

I almost guarantee that as you watch this opening episode you’ll be yelling at the television when you watch Naz make a number of foolish mistakes.

2. THE GRINDER (FOX)

Creators: Andrew Mogel &
Jarrad Paul (Yes Man)

Stars: Rob Lowe (West Wing),
Fred Savage (Wonder Years)

Episodes: 22 Years: 2015-2016
Available on: Netflix   

Premise: A television lawyer moves back to his small town and thinks his time on TV qualifies him to join his family’s law firm

Why It’s Worth Your Time: The humor in this sitcom is top-notch. The premise works surprisingly well. Lowe is so full of himself it’s hysterical and Savage is the pitch-perfect straight-man with amazing eye-rolls.

Best Episode: Dedicating This One to The Crew (Ep.6)

Being a theatre guy, watching the dad trying to convince his son to do backstage crew instead of a flashy lead role is so much fun.

3. FIREFLY (FOX)

Creator: Joss Whedon (Buffy, Angel,
The Avengers)

Stars: Nathan Fillion (Castle), 
Adam Baldwin (Chuck)

Episodes: 14 Years: 2002-2003
Available on: DVD

Premise: A space-western where a rag-tag group of outlaws take on sketchy clients and avoid the authority agents.

Why It’s Worth Your Time: Whedon is a master at mixing humor and adventure. The cast is perfect and the stories are engaging, even if you hate westerns like I do.

Best Episode: Our Mrs. Reynolds (Ep.3)

A woman claims to be Mal’s wife and everyone is suspicious of her true intentions. A great episode full of classic facial expressions.

4. STUDIO 60 ON THE SUNSET STRIP (NBC)

Creator: Aaron Sorkin (West Wing,
Sports Night, Social Network)

Stars: Matthew Perry (Friends),
Bradley Whitford (West Wing)

Episodes: 22 Years: 2006-2007
Available on: DVD

Premise: A behind-the-scenes drama about a fictional sketch-comedy television show that is full of walk-and-talks.

Why It’s Worth Your Time: It’s not as good as West Wing but watching Perry and Whitford have fun with the crackling Sorkin dialogue is wonderful. You’ll also love Steven Weber.

Best Episode: The Cold Open (Ep.2)

It’s a tie between this one and the pilot. They both have great confrontational dialogue and monologues and deal with the struggles of creativity.

5. WATCHMEN (HBO)

Creator: Damon Lindelof (Lost)

Stars: Regina King (Ray),
Jeremy Irons (The Borgias)

Episodes: 9 Years: 2019
Available on: Crave

Premise: An alternate history as masked vigilantes are treated as outlaws.

Why It’s Worth Your Time: It is beautifully shot and crafted. I would highly recommend reading the graphic novel and/or watching Zack Snyder’s film first though. 

Best Episode: This Extraordinary Being (Ep.6)

Through some nostalgia inducing drugs, the origins of Hooded Justice is revealed and it is mind-blowingly awesome.

Wonderfalls: (14 eps) Imaginative drama about a sarcastic souvenir shop worker who is told to do things by knick-knack in her store.

Freaks and Geeks: (18 eps) A smart girl hangs with burnouts while her younger brother struggles with freshman year. Perfectly cast.

Andy Richter Controls the Universe: (19 eps) A manual writer with a fertile imagination and his quirky coworkers have fun.

The Nine: (13 eps) Nine surviving hostages of a bank heist relive their haunting memories in twisty-turny flashblacks. Kept me guessing.

Limitless: (22 eps) A man with the ability to use his full brain’s capabilities is hired to help the FBI. Jake McDorman is awesome.

What are your favourite one season wonders?

Influential Albums - Part 8

Welcome to part eight. These last five albums represent my teaching years and concludes with one of the last physical CDs purchased. Let’s bring it on home.

TITLE: Transatlanticism

ARTIST: Death Cab for Cutie
YEAR: 2003

GENRE: Indie Rock

ALBUM TRACKS: The New Year; Lightness; Title and Registration; Expo ’86; The Sound of Settling; Tiny Vessels; Transatlanticism; Passenger Seat; Death of an Interior Decorator; We Looked Like Giants; A Lack of Color

FAVOURITE TRACK: Title and Registration

LISTEN TO THE TRACK: Click here

WHY THIS TRACK: I love that the song dissects the inaccurately named glove compartment and how it relates to his sorrow of a broken relationship. Such clever lyrics and beautifully sung.  

ALBUM INFLUENCE: I started listening to this album because of The OC, one my guilty pleasures. I was a fan of Adam Brody’s Seth Cohen who in turn was a big fan of Death Cab. There was something about the indie nature of the music and clever lyrics that drew me in. I felt cool owning an indie album like this.

TITLE: Franz Ferdinand

ARTIST: Franz Ferdinand
YEAR: 2004

GENRE: Indie Rock / Dance Punk

ALBUM TRACKS: Jacqueline; Tell Her Tonight; Take Me Out; The Dark of the Matinee; Auf Achse; Cheating on You; This Fire; Darts of Pleasure; Michael; Come on Home; 40’

FAVOURITE TRACK: 40’

LISTEN TO THE TRACK: Click here

WHY THIS TRACK: I’m obsessed with the opening thirty seconds of this song. Such a great intro. I think it has to do with suicide by throwing yourself into the sea but it is off-set with a bunch of la-la-la’s. It’s a bit confusing and quirky but that only adds to my interest in it.

ALBUM INFLUENCE: Almost every song on this album has a fantastic intro that sucks you in. I used a number of these intros for DVD menu music because it was so bouncy and fun. Great album to drive to and sing along with. They also rocked The Commodore.

TITLE: Hot Fuss

ARTIST: The Killers
YEAR: 2004

GENRE: Indie Rock / New Wave Synth Pop

ALBUM TRACKS: Jenny Was a Friend of Mine; Mr. Brightside; Smile Like You Mean It; Somebody Told Me; All These Things That I’ve Done; Andy, You’re a Star; On Top; Change Your Mind; Believe Me Natalie; Midnight Show; Everything Will Be Alright

FAVOURITE TRACK: Mr. Brightside

LISTEN TO THE TRACK: Click here

WHY THIS TRACK: Great music and lyrics. Love the music dropping out and the synthesized “it was only a kiss”. It’s about a girlfriend who cheated on him which I couldn’t relate to but it was fun to sing along with anyway.

ALBUM INFLUENCE: The mixture of indie and eighties throwback got me hooked on this album. Again, being a school teacher who taught media, I felt cool listening to some of the music my students listened to. Saw these guys rock out the Orpheum which was fun.

TITLE: We Were Here

ARTIST: Joshua Radin
YEAR: 2006

GENRE: Acoustic Folk

ALBUM TRACKS: Sundrenched World; Star Mile; Everything’ll Be Alright; These Photographs; Closer; Today; Winter; Someone Else’s Life; Amy’s Song; What If You; Only You

FAVOURITE TRACK: Winter

LISTEN TO THE TRACK: Click here

WHY THIS TRACK: I’m always emotionally moved by this song. The opening lyrics, “I should know who I am by now” and the lines, “But I don’t have to make this mistake, And I don’t have to stay this way” wreck me. I was introduced to this song and artist through the show Scrubs. Apparently, this is the first song Joshua Radin’s ever wrote. He was sleeping on Zach Braff’s couch. Braff brought the song to the producer who used it in a perfectly done episode. Radin got a lot of calls from it and had to make the rest of this album pretty quickly. Love that story and it makes me love the song even more.

ALBUM INFLUENCE: The quiet lyrics and acoustic sound made this an ideal album when wooing my wife. She enjoyed it and we ended up using one of his songs on our wedding day. Radin is perfect when I just need to quiet down my life. I wanted others to experience his music so I used his songs exclusively when I directed All My Sons. I was happy a few people asked about him after the performance. Joshua Radin one of the few people I’m waiting for to see in concert. He hasn’t been here in a long while.

TITLE: Sigh No More

ARTIST: Mumford & Sons
YEAR: 2009

GENRE: Folk Rock

ALBUM TRACKS: Sigh No More; The Cave; Winter Winds; Roll Away Your Stone; White Blank Page; I Gave You All; Little Lion Man; Timshel; Thistle & Weeds; Awake My Soul; Dust Bowl Dance; After the Storm

FAVOURITE TRACK: The Cave

LISTEN TO THE TRACK: Click here

WHY THIS TRACK:  I love the way this song progresses. A simple sounding opener that builds and builds. Love it when the banjo kicks in and then the bass drum, then back to a single guitar. I loved this song so much, I used it as my first parody song for Hunger Games: The Musical. I rewrote the lyrics and never turned back. I often go back and forth with the real lyrics and my own version. “It’s depressing in the heart of District Twelve.”      

ALBUM INFLUENCE: I didn’t think I’d be into folk rock but here we are. The lyrics are poignant and the music is toe-tappingly awesome. They were also fantastic in concert. This is one of the last physical albums I purchased before going exclusively digital.

Influential Albums - Part 7

Welcome to part seven. These five albums are part of a transition from Green Bay Bible Camp to my career as a high school teacher. Enjoy.

TITLE: Bleed American

ARTIST: Jimmy Eat World
YEAR: 2001

GENRE: Alternative Rock

ALBUM TRACKS: Bleed American; A Praise Chorus; The Middle; Your House; Sweetness; Hear You Me; If You Don’t, Don’t; Get It Faster; Cautioners; The Authority Song; My Sundown

FAVOURITE TRACK: If You Don’t, Don’t

LISTEN TO THE TRACK: Click here

WHY THIS TRACK: I really like the lyrics to this song about confusing relationships. Should they be together? Is it too messy? Is there just some miscommunication? Pretty relevant at the time with some of my short crushes over the summers and beyond.

ALBUM INFLUENCE: I was introduced to this band by a friend at Green Bay and was listening to them just before they hit it big with this album. I felt cool being in the know. Love the emo lyrics mixed with some infective guitar. I was visiting a Tower Records in Seattle on a whim and happened to catch these guys playing a small gig in the store to promote the album. I was on the side and very close and they played my favourite track. It was awesome. I also managed to see them a couple more times in bigger venues.  

TITLE: Sticks and Stones

ARTIST: New Found Glory
YEAR: 2002

GENRE: Pop Punk

ALBUM TRACKS: Understatement; My Friends Over You; Sonny; Something I Call Personality; Head On Collision; It’s Been a Summer; Forget My Name; Never Give Up; The Great Houdini; Singled Out; Belated; The Story So Far

FAVOURITE TRACK: Understatement

LISTEN TO THE TRACK: Click here

WHY THIS TRACK: This song is reminiscent of Everclear’s “Everything to Everyone” about being sick of putting on a front for everyone. I like the accusatory nature of the song for some reason. I also love the part after the bridge where the music is reduced to a single guitar and then kicks in after. Love it when they do that.    

ALBUM INFLUENCE: Also introduced to me at Green Bay, this group had slightly more maturity than your Blink 182 and Sum 41. It was just a fun album to blast in the car and reminisce on failed relationships.

TITLE: Get Born

ARTIST: Jet
YEAR: 2003

GENRE: Garage Rock

ALBUM TRACKS: Last Chance; Are You Gonna Be My Girl; Rollover DJ; Look What You’ve Done; Get What You Need; Move On; Radio Song; Get Me Outta Here; Cold Hard Bitch; Come Around Again; Take It or Leave It; Lazy Gun; Timothy

FAVOURITE TRACK: Get What You Need

LISTEN TO THE TRACK: Click here

WHY THIS TRACK: Just some rockin’ music and simple lyrics. Imagine driving down the freeway blasting this song. Doesn’t get any better.  

ALBUM INFLUENCE: I was now working at Surrey Christian School (formerly Fraser Valley Christian School) and wanted to be considered the cool teacher. It didn’t happen. But I tried anyway by playing the popular garage rock at the time. I was not into The Strokes, but I did get into Jet. Loved the guitar riffs and old-school-ness of their attitude and lyrics.  

TITLE: Meteora

ARTIST: Linkin Park
YEAR: 2003

GENRE: Rap Metal

ALBUM TRACKS: Foreword; Don’t Stay; Somewhere I Belong; Lying from You; Hit the Floor; Easier to Run; Faint; Figure.09; Breaking the Habit; From the Inside; Nobody’s Listening; Session; Numb

FAVOURITE TRACK: Nobody’s Listening

LISTEN TO THE TRACK: Click here

WHY THIS TRACK: Great song about stress. A different sound than the rest of their album with a little less yelling. I enjoy the flute being used. Favourite lyrics: “I got a heart full of pain, head full of stress, handful of anger held in my chest. And everything left’s a waste of time, I hate my rhymes, but hate everyone else’s more.”

ALBUM INFLUENCE: Being lonely at the time and frustrated, I needed to vent at times. Yelling along with Chester Bennington usually did the trick. I lost my voice a number of times on long drives with the album playing in the car. Couldn’t play it loud in my apartment so as not to anger my neighbours. These guys were also awesome in concert.  

TITLE: Final Straw

ARTIST: Snow Patrol
YEAR: 2003

GENRE: Indie Rock

ALBUM TRACKS: How to Be Dead; Wow; Gleaming Auction; Whatever’s Left; Spitting Games; Chocolate; Run; Grazed Knees; Ways & Means; Tiny Little Fractures; Somewhere a Clock is Ticking; Same

FAVOURITE TRACK: Chocolate

LISTEN TO THE TRACK: Click here

WHY THIS TRACK:  I can’t relate to the lyrics of an apology for cheating, but I love the tone of the song and the way the lead singer uses his voice. The driving drum beat is also addictive.    

ALBUM INFLUENCE: Being lonely also meant sitting in my apartment and listening to sad songs. Snow Patrol helped out here. Zach Braff used a couple of their songs in a movie he helped create the soundtrack for. This got me more hooked on the band. This album works great when I need something a little more mellow.