The Wachowski’s SENS8 Gets A Second Season

Good news for people who, unlike me, could stand Sens8 on Netflix: the show is back for a second season. The collaboration between the Wachowskis and J. Michael Straczynski developed a firm following thanks to its commitment to serious diversity in both casting and characters, but it never quite got the critical mass of buzz required to guarantee a Netflix series another go-round. See, the way it works with Netflix is less about actual viewer numbers - although those matter too - and very much about buzz. Are the shows getting so much attention that people who don't already subscribe feel they need to subscribe to see what the fuss is all about? They want to drive new subscribers. 

Since Sens8, about eight people across the globe who discover they are in psychic contact and sharing identities, was envisioned as a five season storyline that second season renewal was a real cliffhanger for fans. The show is apparently just getting started at the end of season one, with lots of hints as to where it could go. 

I say apparently because I made it four episodes into the series and quit. As a Wachowski fan and completist I know I must someday return and give it another shot but it became clear four hours in that Sens8 is not for me. I don't find its diversity exciting enough to overlook the bad acting, terrible dialogue and comically poor pacing. After four hours it became clear the series was going nowhere and not particularly fast and I bailed. I actually meant to write a whole essay about this revolutionary concept of not giving a TV show fourteen hours of the benefit of the doubt, but much like my feelings on watching Sens8 I decided I had better things to do with my time. 

I'm curious if season two picks up the pace. Even people who really liked the first season have told me that it's a touch slow. I'm not sure what sort of positive notices it'll take to bring me back, though.