With unbelievable casting and writing, “Looking” ’s first season has captivated its small but vocal audience. Thankfully, HBO just announced that they are picking “Looking” up for a second season and fans couldn’t be happier. In the season one finale, “Looking” truly hit its stride, promising more surprising, poignant, devastating and sweet moments in the future.
Looking
A
HBO
Sundays at 10:30
“Looking” creators answered my prayers by confirming that Russell Tovey (Kevin), Lauren Weedman (Doris) and Raul Castillo (Richie) will all be regulars next season. At the beginning of the first season, the three characters seemed only to exist as minor support for the main cast, but the actors’ gravitas quickly changed that. By the finale, viewers were emotionally attached to all three characters. Both Kevin and Richie provide interesting foils to Patrick. Doris, aside from being hilarious, has the potential to provide important context and support for Dom.
The finale left a lot of potential for all of the “Looking” characters. Patrick (Jonathan Groff, “Frozen”) is at a crossroads. On one hand, he has an intense relationship with Richie, who is super caring, but pushes Patrick emotionally. The wedding in the penultimate episode showcased how uncomfortable Patrick’s attraction to Richie, someone who goes against everything Patrick is accustomed to, makes him. Kevin, on the other hand, intrigues Pat. Kevin is tricky for Pat because while he is attracted to him (how could you not be?), he is still his boss and in a relationship. Kevin provides the strong intellect and drive that Richie doesn’t, but has unresolved issues of his own.
The Dom storyline took a pleasant twist in the finale. While Dom (Murray Bartlett, “Girl Most Likely”) easily could have fizzled, he found himself. Lynn (Scott Bakula, “Desperate Housewives”) pushes Dom to be more mature. Dom has moments of complete self-involvedness that make him an overwhelmingly agitating character. For example, his bossiness and impatience while setting up the pop-up invokes loathing towards his character. Lynn’s patience and kindness towards Dom is everything. Dom tries to be more self-aware in his presence and the result is precious. Hopefully, the next season will more fully explore the dynamic between these two.
Agustín (Frankie J. Alvarez, “Smash”) could disappear next season, and I wouldn’t care at all. Compared to the other characters, Agustín sucks. He has no redeeming qualities. Even though he hit rock bottom at the end of the season, it was not that sad. He brought on all of his own downfalls and it is hard to sympathize. He provides no insight into the other characters. Basically, he’s the worst. If Agustín disappears, he would not be missed.
“Looking” ’s first season created strong emotional ties to the characters and progressed in a refreshing, natural way. The next season will hopefully continue this pattern and cannot come soon enough. I’m looking forward to what another season of “Looking” brings.