Space Force is back in season two of the Netflix comedy series and here is my Space Force Season 2 Review. The first season wasn’t met with a ton of positivity. So does the second season launch successfully, or does it burn up on the pad?
Space Force Season 2 Review | Netflix Series
Space Force is a Netflix comedy series developed by Greg Daniels and Steve Carell about working in a cubicle.
General Naird and his underdog team must now prove their worth to a new administration while dealing with interpersonal challenges. Will the group come together or crumble under the pressure?
It’s been a little while since we had the first season of Space Force, the comedy that reteamed Steve Carell with Greg Daniels of The Office, and we get another collection of goofy and eclectic characters who must work together through a couple of space-oriented situations.
This season started out pretty rough for me. The comedy was unfunny and it felt very forced. Unfortunately, it also made some of the characters even more grating than they usually are.
While Ben Schwartz can sometimes be annoying, I typically find him to be funny because he’s just a big caricature of a real person and really, I mean, that’s true for all of the characters. They’re over-exaggerated and sometimes it can really work.
The first episode wasn’t a strong start, though, but story wise it works to set the trajectory of the season, and Space Force is under extreme scrutiny by the government, so they will be met with all kinds of challenges with the hopes of remaining an active part of the military.
As the season went along, the story did become a little more engaging, and there were portions that put a smile on my face and even made me laugh. I mean, this isn’t a gut-busting series with a laugh a minute, but there were portions that caused a burst of chuckles.
The cast is really talented and when they’re on point, they really click with the storytelling. And I’m not just talking about from a comedy standpoint. There are times that require more heartfelt or quieter moments, and if the cast can’t hit those story beats, the whole thing falls apart.
Patton Oswalt in a small role, he accomplishes this really well. He’s goofy, but he’s also very endearing. John Malkovich despite being overly grumpy through the show, he has moments of softness also where his wisdom gets to shine through his sarcasm. And his grumpiness, though, can be very funny at times too.
Tawny Newsome and Jimmy O. Yang get to share some moments that I found touching, but typically their story had them in awkward odds, which then wasn’t funny or endearing.
I liked the personal struggle that Newsome’s Captain Angela Ali was facing, making them very relatable as she fought to figure out her identity.
Carell’s fun at times, especially when he gets exasperated because his huffs and his growls can be funny. There are other times, though, were his mannerisms were more forced, and I know that he’s crafting his character to be a puffed-up version of Machismo, but it was sometimes more of a turn off than anything, making him not a character that I just wanted to see succeed.
After the initial episode, Ben Schwartz gets some really great scenes where he elicits a lot of sympathy, but also laughs. He is a cheerleader of the cast despite having his own personal struggles and his hurts. His ability to rise above that and then care for his team is inspiring and it translates very well into the story.
We get to see him come alongside and then Champion, Captain Ali, Doctor Chan, General Naird, Erin, even Brad, and in each of these moments there’s a charming sincerity and warmth that emanates from him, making him one of the most likable characters in the show.
I think when it comes to the comedy, Don Lake gets to steal the show. Sure, he plays sort of a bumbling assistant to Carell’s Naird, but the way he approaches his line delivery shows some masterful comedic timing.
He can be goofy, but he gets to impart small moments of wisdom also, and he’s present through many scenes, mostly lurking in the sidelines, just waiting to deliver something funny.
This season is much shorter than the first, with only seven episodes and they’re each under 30 minutes, so it is a quick bench. But because the story isn’t always engaging, the runtime can feel longer than it actually is.
When the team is doing antics. I think that’s when the show and story begin to feel the strongest, the overarching storyline where the program could be in jeopardy from losing its standing within the government is not too compelling.
The only risk I feel with that story is that the characters will be broken up to go their separate ways, and because I’m not always endeared to them or their cause, that does make it hard to care sometimes.
I do think the show is beginning to find its footing, but I’m afraid it could be the case of Too Little Too Late. While the latter portion of the show is much better than the first, is that really great growth when you start out so rough? If you start out at Poo, then any improvement away from that can seem huge.
I really think that the show can flourish when it stays with more of that subtle comedy, putting this into more of a light-hearted dramedy space than trying to be a full-blown comedy. But I don’t think it would work as a straight drama either.
When the story humanizes the characters and allows them to show just some real emotions and struggles and then infuses some humor into it, that’s when everything connects and becomes a show that can have longevity.
I like that they’re trimming down some of the story offshoots to give the series a more focused narrative. I mean while small interjections can help to build up a portion of the story. Like with Lisa Kudrow’s character, this works well when used sparingly.
If though, the show relies on it to be the backbone for the main character arcs, it just doesn’t connect. And the show only visits the joint Chiefs once this season and at first I was missing some of it, but then when their scene came on, I was actually thankful that the appearance was brief.
Their banter didn’t add anything to the story and I think, more importantly, their jokes that were then put into there Just came across as cringey. They were trying to make fetch happen and just was falling apart at every moment. That’s unfortunate Because the talent made up in that scene really did deserve better.
So overall, I’m glad we’re beginning to see Some character growth within this show. It’s maturing, Albeit very slowly, and it’s starting to find its groove.
When the show focuses more on building the characters Rather than making them punchlines. The story works and the cast becomes sympathetic and engaging, but when the jokes are forced and the narrative attempts to shoehorn in ridiculousness when it doesn’t fit, It harms the flow and then everything that’s been building.
I loved Ben Schwartz as the show progressed and looked forward to whatever Dawn Lake was going to do in a scene. I also enjoyed the struggle that Tawny Newsome’s character was experiencing, Making her a powerful and sympathetic character.
The season does begin to recover after what I consider to be a very poor starting episode, but everything we get is kind of a mixed bag of effectiveness. Sometimes the humor works, other times it’s cringing and mostly the drama works, Even though there are times that feel like it’s trying too hard to infuse seriousness.
I think if a third season can capitalize on the humanity the characters and play to their strengths Rather than attempting to just get a laugh at every turn, this might become a really good show.
There’s no sex or nudity, but there is profanity and not really any violence.
I am giving season two of Space Force 3/5.
So what do you think of this season? Are you a fan of the show? Let me know in the comments below.
Guys thank you so much for reading the review of season two of the Space Force Netflix Series. See you next time.
Space Force (2022) Trailer
Here is the trailer of the Space Force 2 Netflix Series, check it out.
