Fans of the zany misadventures of Rebecca Bunch, rejoice! The CW has renewed the critically acclaimed Crazy Ex-Girlfriend for a second season. This should come as a pleasant surprise, given that, as the Hollywood Reporter points out, the musical comedy is “broadcast television’s lowest-rated show”—a title that typically dooms a great series like this to join the sad ranks of other swiftly canceled, but beloved TV shows (Arrested Development, Freaks and Geeks). While it would be easy to see a show as idiosyncratic and silly as Crazy Ex-Girlfriend thriving on a platform like Netflix or Amazon (where ratings are sometimes less relevant than buzz and acclaim), a network like the CW rarely shows the sort of patience they have here.
Critics’ praise for the show’s effortlessly diverse cast and its handling of many sensitive issues, including anxiety and depression, have kept it in the cultural conversation, but co-creator and star Rachel Bloom’s Golden Globe win in January might have been its biggest saving grace. Whatever the reason for keeping it on for a second season, it’s great to know that we’ll continue to peel back the many layers of the characters of West Covina, from the fraught dynamic between Rebecca and Josh, to Darryl’s self-discovery as a newly out bisexual man, to Paula’s reconnection with her husband. But the best part of this news is that we’ll have even more witty, tongue-in-cheek earworms to look forward to.
