Special (TV series) explained

Genre:Comedy, LGBTQ
Creator:Ryan O'Connell
Composer:Joshua Moshier
Country:United States
Language:English
Num Seasons:2
Num Episodes:16
Camera:Single-camera
Runtime:12–34 minutes
Network:Netflix

Special is an American comedy-drama television series created by Ryan O'Connell for Netflix.[1] Starring Ryan O'Connell, the series is a semi-autobiographical account of his life as a gay man in Los Angeles with cerebral palsy pursuing new friendships, relationships, and self-sufficiency.

It is based on O'Connell's memoir I'm Special: And Other Lies We Tell Ourselves.[2]

The series premiered on April 12, 2019, and concluded on May 20, 2021, after two seasons. It received positive reviews and earned four nominations at the 71st Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards, one for Outstanding Short Form Comedy or Drama Series and three for the performances of Ryan, Jessica Hecht, and Punam Patel.

Synopsis

Special is "a distinctive and uplifting new lgbtq series about a gay man, Ryan, with mild cerebral palsy who decides to rewrite his identity and finally go after the life he wants to live."[3] [4] [5]

Cast and characters

Main

Recurring

Guest stars

Episodes

Season 2 (2021)

Production

Development

On February 5, 2019, Netflix announced that it had given the production a series order for an eight-episode first season.[8] The series is created by Ryan O'Connell, who is credited as an executive producer, alongside Jim Parsons, Anna Dokoza, Eric Norsoph and Todd Spiewak.[8] Production companies involved with the series were slated to consist of That's Wonderful Productions and Stage 13.[8] On December 16, 2019, the series was renewed for a second and final season by Netflix.[9] [10]

Casting

Alongside the series order announcement, it was confirmed that Ryan O'Connell, Jessica Hecht, Punam Patel, Marla Mindelle, Augustus Prew, and Patrick Fabian would star in the series.[8] In February 2020, Max Jenkins was cast in the recurring role for the second season.[11] In March 2021, Charlie Barnett, Ana Ortiz, Utkarsh Ambudkar, Lauren Weedman, Buck Andrews, Anjali Bhimani, Ajay Mehta, and Karan Soni joined the cast in recurring roles while Leslie Jordan was cast to guest star.[12]

Release

On March 25, 2019, Netflix released the first official trailer for the series.[13] [14] The first season, consisting of 8 episodes, was released on Netflix on April 12, 2019.[15] The second season was released on May 20, 2021.[10]

Reception

Critical response

The first season received positive reviews upon its release. On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the series holds an approval rating of 96% with an average rating of 7.30/10 based on 25 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "Honest and genuinely affecting, Special lives up to its name with a funny—if a bit too concise—first season brightened by Ryan O'Connell's infectious charms.[16] On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 66 out of 100, based on 9 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[17] Variety gave the show a positive review calling the main character "quick and snarky, deeply insecure and sometimes more selfish than he's willing to admit. He makes mistakes and pays for them, undergoing a hell of a lot of change in the short time Special gets to show it."[18] TV Guide gave the show a mixed review saying that, "Hopefully Special gets a second season with a bigger budget, a writing staff, and more time to plan. The way Season 1 improves as it goes along shows Special still has a lot of potential."[19]

Accolades

YearAwardCategoryNominee(s)Result
2019Primetime Emmy AwardsOutstanding Short Form Comedy or Drama SeriesJim Parsons, Todd Spiewak, Eric Norsoph, Ryan O'Connell and Anna Dokoza[20]
Outstanding Actor in a Short Form Comedy or Drama SeriesRyan O'Connell
Outstanding Actress in a Short Form Comedy or Drama SeriesJessica Hecht
Punam Patel
2020Writers Guild of America AwardsShort Form New Media – OriginalRyan O'Connell[21]
2022GLAAD Media AwardsOutstanding Comedy SeriesSpecial[22]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Netflix Orders Ryan O'Connell Comedy Series 'Special' Produced By Jim Parsons. Petski. Denise. February 5, 2019. Deadline. en. February 20, 2019. February 7, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190207015926/https://deadline.com/2019/02/netflix-orders-ryan-oconnell-comedy-series-special-jim-parsons-1202550184/. live.
  2. Web site: I'm Special: And Other Lies We Tell Ourselves to Get Through Our Twenties. www.publishersweekly.com. February 20, 2019. May 5, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190505195603/https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-1-4767-0040-3. live.
  3. Web site: Netflix's upcoming series, 'Special' explores the life of a disabled gay man. The Rustin Times. April 9, 2019. April 11, 2019. April 11, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190411163015/https://therustintimes.com/2019/04/09/netflixs-upcoming-series-special-explores-the-life-of-a-disabled-gay-man/. live.
  4. Web site: Netflix Orders Cerebral Palsy Comedy Series 'Special' From Ryan O'Connell, Jim Parsons. Nakamura. Reid. February 5, 2019. The Wrap. February 20, 2019. December 18, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191218145900/https://www.thewrap.com/netflix-jim-parsons-ryan-oconnell-cerebral-palsy-comedy-special/. live.
  5. Web site: A Comedy About a Gay Man with Cerebral Palsy Is Coming to Netflix. Rodriguez. Matthew. February 6, 2019. www.out.com. en. February 20, 2019. May 24, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190524013644/https://www.out.com/entertainment/2019/2/06/comedy-about-gay-man-cerebral-palsy-coming-netflix. live.
  6. Web site: Porter . Rick . Netflix Orders Jim Parsons-Produced Comedy Series . . March 21, 2019 . February 5, 2019 . May 19, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190519194139/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/netflix-orders-jim-parsons-produced-comedy-series-1183057 . live .
  7. Web site: Baroi . Tuhin . 2023-05-05 . Gina Marie Hughes as Samantha in Special Netflix series - . https://web.archive.org/web/20230505134902/https://bivuk.com/ . 2023-05-05 . 2023-05-05 . Bivuk . en-US . bot: unknown .
  8. Web site: Ryan O'Connell and Jim Parsons' Special is Coming to Netflix. February 5, 2019. Netflix Media Center. April 11, 2019. April 22, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200422153943/https://media.netflix.com/en/press-releases/ryan-oconnell-and-jim-parsons-special-is-coming-to-netflix. live.
  9. Web site: 'Special' Renewed For Season 2 By Netflix. Petski. Denise. Deadline Hollywood. December 16, 2019. December 24, 2019. December 24, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191224105729/https://deadline.com/2019/12/special-renewed-season-2-netflix-1202809309/. live.
  10. Web site: 'Special' to End With Expanded Second Season at Netflix (Exclusive). Goldberg. Lesley. The Hollywood Reporter. March 10, 2021. March 10, 2021. March 10, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210310171656/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/special-to-end-with-expanded-second-season-at-netflix-exclusive. live.
  11. Web site: 'Buffy' Alum Juliet Landau To Recur On 'Claws'; 'Dead To Me's Max Jenkins Joins Season 2 Of 'Special'. Ramos. Dino-Ray. Deadline Hollywood. February 27, 2020. March 10, 2021. March 11, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210311213638/https://deadline.com/2020/02/juliet-landau-claws-tnt-xmax-jenkins-special-netflix-1202869819/. live.
  12. Web site: 'Special': Charlie Barnett, Max Jenkins, Ana Ortiz Among Nine Set To Recur In Season 2 Of Netflix Series. Deadline Hollywood. Denise. Petski. March 29, 2021. March 29, 2021. March 29, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210329164958/https://deadline.com/2021/03/special-charlie-barnett-max-jenkins-ana-ortiz-recur-season-2-netflix-series-1234722268/. live.
  13. Web site: Special trailer: New Netflix series' lead character is gay and has cerebral palsy. Shepherd. Jack. Independent. March 26, 2019. April 11, 2019. April 11, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190411165516/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/special-netflix-series-gay-cerebral-palsy-ryan-oconnell-a8840026.html. live.
  14. Web site: 'Special' Trailer: Netflix Series Shows the Highs and Lows of Being Gay and Disabled. Nordine. Michael. March 25, 2019. IndieWire. March 29, 2019. March 29, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190329025154/https://www.indiewire.com/2019/03/special-trailer-netflix-ryan-oconnell-1202053527/. live.
  15. Web site: Midseason Premiere Dates For New & Returning Series: 2019 Edition. Pedersen. Erik. December 26, 2018. Deadline Hollywood. en. February 20, 2019. November 20, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191120175018/https://deadline.com/2018/12/midseason-tv-premiere-dates-2019-list-streaming-cable-broadcast-1202472294/. live.
  16. Web site: Special: Season 1 (2019). Fandango Media. Rotten Tomatoes. August 19, 2019.
  17. Web site: Special: Season 1 . . . August 19, 2019.
  18. Web site: TV Review: 'Special' on Netflix. Variety. 8 April 2019 . April 19, 2019. September 30, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190930232148/https://variety.com/2019/tv/reviews/special-netflix-ryan-oconnell-review-1203181674/. live.
  19. Web site: Special Review: Netflix Let This Promising Comedy Down. TV Guide. April 19, 2019. August 12, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190812200748/https://www.tvguide.com/news/netflix-special-review/. live.
  20. Web site: 71st Emmy Awards Nominees and Winners. emmys.com. July 27, 2019. January 28, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200128012431/https://www.emmys.com/awards/nominees-winners. live.
  21. Web site: WGA TV Nominations: 'The Crown', 'Mindhunter', 'Watchmen' Among Contenders – Complete List . Evans . Greg . December 5, 2019 . . Adelaide . live . https://archive.today/20191205185646/https://deadline.com/2019/12/wga-tv-nominations-the-crown-mindhunter-watchmen-complete-list-1202801588/ . December 5, 2019 . December 5, 2019 .
  22. Web site: The Nominees for the 33rd Annual GLAAD Media Awards . . 2022-01-21 . 2022-01-22 .

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Special (TV series)".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.