In its first season, Lifetime’s UnREAL was a bit of a miracle. It gave us a duo of female anti-heroes unlike any we’d seen in a long time, if ever, and managed to walk the fine line between lurid and brilliant. Critics took notice, despite the Lifetime stamp, and the show racked up tons of accolades, including a Peabody Award. Fans had high hopes for season two, and at the start, the show seemed to be following the path to greatness that season one had forged. Oh, how wrong we were.
It became clear a few episodes into season two that the creative minds behind the show had no idea how to handle the issues they wanted to take on. The show introduced a black Suitor, Darius (B.J. Britt) and this creative choice could have led to some interesting engagement with the current issues concerning race in America. Similarly, UnREAL could have explored the conflict between the police and the black community in a nuanced way. However, both storylines came to an ugly head when an unarmed black man gets shot by a police officer and the whole ordeal becomes a teachable moment for our white female protagonist. The choice was misguided at best, downright ugly at worst. The black suitor and “wifeys” only served to advance the story of the show’s white protagonists, never becoming self-motivated characters.
The show also mishandled abuse in multiple forms. Between Jeremy (Josh Kelly) punching Rachel (Shiri Appleby) in the face because he just loved her so damn much but she dared question his masculinity and the revelation that Rachel had been raped by one of her mother’s psych patients as a child, the writers apparently decided that the impetus for Rachel’s growth this season was to physically pummel her. The rape reveal proved to be a particularly cheap moment, used for shock value and as an explanation for Rachel’s “damage” in a way that was a real disservice to the character and to rape victims in general. This lazy trope as a shortcut for edgy character development has got to stop. It’s just bad writing.
However, easily the biggest issue of the season came from the way the show set Rachel and Quinn (Constance Zimmer) at odds. These two bring out the best in each other, yet for most of the season they barely interacted except to trade a few barbs. Viewers tune in to watch them ruthlessly guide the great ship Everlasting, and God help anyone who gets in their way. Instead, UnREAL devoted a majority of the season to both women finding love with men who want to save them. Michael Rady and Ioan Gruffudd delivered workmanlike performances throughout the season as the bland love interests, and neither can spark up anything close to the chemistry that Appleby and Zimmer have together.
Quinn’s sudden desire for children also came out of nowhere. While the conflict between career and family does plague many working women, this reveal felt out of character and unearned. It could definitely be a worthwhile theme to explore, just not with Quinn and not with UnREAL. The series has made it clear that the job is everything for these women, and the sudden need for a baby felt a bit regressive.
After a rocky season, last night’s finale did a little bit to get things back on course. Rachel and Quinn are a team once again, their bland suitors are gone for different reasons, and the focus is once again back on Everlasting. Darius getting his happy ending with Ruby (Denée Benton) after being manipulated for the entire season was a nice touch, even if we had to suffer casual racism and poop jokes to get there. If you had hoped that UnREAL was finally rid of Jeremy and his toxic masculinity, think again, because it decided to double down on his awfulness.
After finding out about Rachel’s rape, he’s softened towards her, as he now sees her as someone he can save. Additionally, in his misguided attempt to protect her (and less so Everlasting), he tampers with Coleman (Rady) and Yael’s (Monica Barbaro) getaway car before they can expose last season’s murder cover up, sending them off a cliff. While this seems like an obvious way to up the ante from last season (What’s more thrilling than one murder? Two murders.), at least it gets the core team of Quinn, Rachel, and even Chet (Craig Bierko) back together to solve their problems in the most conniving way possible. This is it. This is the show that people fell in slightly guilty love with.
Lifetime commissioned a third season of UnREAL before the premiere of season two, and that’s probably for the best. It seems doubtful this would have happened after this season’s critical panning and low ratings. However, even with a disastrous sophomore slump, fans wonder if there is still potential for greatness. If the creative team realizes that UnREAL is better when these women are given the chance to save themselves instead of looking to weak men to do that for them, it can get back on track. There’s a reason everyone loved this show’s first season. Hopefully it finds its way back.
