Binge TV Review: "Santa Clarita Diet, Season 2" (Netflix Original, 2018)
Is it hyperbolic to say that I've been looking forward to this season premiere as much as the next season of Game of Thrones? Maybe, but it's a damn close thing.
Still, I had my doubts. The first season was one of those shows that I hadn't heard a single thing about before watching it. You know how that one goes, right? You're searching around and the combination of cast & premise cause you to stop and say to yourself "Self, you should take one episode out for a metaphorical drink and cop a quick metaphorical feel just to see if the goods are legit." You ALSO know how that story ends- it's 8 hours later, the sun is coming up, and the only time you got up was to stuff your face or take a quick piss before scurrying back to the TV. GOD BLESS AMERICA!!
The point I was trying to make was simply that it's tricky to follow up a first act that strong without the proverbial "sophomore slump". Many have tried and failed or (even worse) rested on their laurels and played it safe. Not so for Santa Clarita Diet's second season....
I thought I couldn't love Drew Barrymore any more. I was wrong. She's equal parts ridiculously silly, crazy sexy, & parentally responsible. I challenge anyone reading this (male or female) to not be at least moderately aroused by her delivery of the line about having an orgasm while eating a man's liver. Seriously.
Does that make me a little disturbed for saying that? Ah, fuck it.
Timothy Olyphant pairs with her like Chardonnay with Shrimp Scampi. He's a damn goofball and doesn't back off of that in the slightest. He is the result of the 80's yuppie movement done to perfection.
The teen relationship between Liv Hewson and Skyler Gisondo (as daughter, Abby, and the nerdy neighbor kid, Eric) is way cooler in it's awkward development than it has any right to be. Their bond was one of the big wins this season for me- the comedic timing and believability, in particular. They don't shy away from how fumbling those years are. It doesn't hurt that they both have razor sharp wit.
In fact, the whole cast has upped their comedy game this season. There's a killer dynamic on display in this show. Great comedy can breed great drama and really make you give a shit about the characters (a'la Weeds), but you've got to commit 1000% to whatever the style of comedy is. Sure, this is a show with over-the-top characters and a crazy premise. That could've easily been the death of it, but they put the right people in the right roles. Casting really is key.
I mean, how can you complain about excessive gore, Nazi buffets, Serbian vomit collection, minor roles for the likes of Joel McHale and Thomas Lennon, abundant clam jokes, explosions, lesbian baptism, & a kill room in a storage unit??!!
Also, Nathan Fillion (of Firefly fame) reprises his minor role as Sheila's first victim and turns it into a major role where he steals literally every scene he's in......as a TALKING ZOMBIE HEAD!! I ask you again: does it get any better than that?!
No. The answer is no.
