Customer Reviews

Joan of Arcadia - The Second Season

5 star:		(67)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I couldn't believe that CBS cancelled this wonderful show after only 2 seasons! It received a lot of attention and even won awards during its first season, but for whatever reason, was dismissed in its second season. The season/series finale had the show poised for a terrific third season, had the show continued, with Joan now battling her foe, a young man possibly working for Satan, just as she was "working" for God. What a shame that this gem was instead cancelled. Joan was one of the most realistic portrayals of a teenager on television, aside from the fact that she often talked to God, and Amber Tamblyn, her portrayer, is a stand-out. I also loved the portrayal of Joan's older brother, played by Jason Ritter, as a former high school jock who seemed to have everything going for him until a car accident left him in a wheel chair and all the implications this tragedy had for Joan's entire family. The concept of this show was very clever and although Joan talked to God, it never felt too religious or preachy. It was also extremely well-written and acted. This is a show that people of all ages can enjoy and that families can actually watch together. How rare is that nowadays?

I stayed away from this show for several years, mainly because it was branded as a "religious show." Imagine my suprise when I rented the first disc of Season 1 and actually sat down and watched the show with an open mind. I was amazed by the sincerity, depth, and heart this show has, and how God is portrayed in this series. This is a show about humanity and spirituality, rather than any specific religion, and how we are all intertwined on this earth. Season two of Joan of Arcadia builds on the success of the amazing first season, where God appeared to average American teenager Joan Girardi in various forms and requested that she engage and influence the lives around her.

This is the kind of television that makes you think, touches your heart, and still honestly portrays family life and the reality of being a teenager. In this show, as in real life, life isnt perfect. When we mess up our actions have direct consequences on those around us, and even our successes can have consequences. Joan of Arcadia forced you to think and address deeper issues than most one hour dramas, and perhaps that contributed to CBS's monumentally stupid decision to cancel the show after just two seasons. The best and most intelligent series are always the ones to be cancelled.

Season 2 contains 22 full length episodes, including the final and mysterious series finale "Something Wicked This Way Comes." Season 2 explores more in depth the reasons why Joan was chosen as a vessel of God, and this shift allows for a deeper and darker exploration of the intricaties of good and evil and human existence, and subsequently makes for a much improved drama. The DVD box set is tentatively scheduled for a November 28 release. The first season set has some great extras, and its anticipated that Season 2's set will also. Joan of Arcadia is one of the few shows that is intelligent, thought provoking, and doesn't insult your intelligence, and doesn't attempt to pander to anyone. Releasing on November 28th, this is great TV and a must own for your DVD collection with Season One. Highly Recommended.

A.G. Corwin
St.Louis, MO

I started watching "Joan" near the beginning of season 2 and was completely astounded episode after episode. This show has strong characters with real-life problems, and it discusses God and religion in a neutral, down-to-earth way that didn't offend me at all (and I am easily offended both by extreme right-wing Christianity, and by extreme left-wing secularism).

Joan of Arcadia is one of my favorite TV shows (better than The Simpsons, Jeopardy, Joey (the Friends spin-off, remember?) and Law & Order).

Great even if you haven't seen Season 1.

The music of the "Joan of Arcadia" series was always an integral part of the show. Barbara Hall and James Hayman even stated in one of their commentaries on the season 1 DVD how the music was another character of "Joan of Arcadia." Unfortunately, many of the original songs have been replaced. I'm still making a list, but here are a few: "Try," by Nelly Furtado; "Take Me Away," by Avril; "Shaking The Tree," by Peter Gabriel; "Keep Me In Your Heart," by Warren Zevon, performed by Jorge Calderon; "Kite Song," by Patty Griffin; "Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own," by U2; "Wreck Of The Day," by Anna Nalick; and even "Sympathy For The Devil," by the Rolling Stones. I love this show, but I am very disappointed with the production of the season 2 DVD. It's like marketing "Grease" and substituting most of the music just to increase the profit margin. They purposely delay the release of this DVD, and when they do finally release it, it's totally bastardized. It is really a shame when illegal copies of a show have better quality than the production version. I feel cheated!

It was nearly criminal when CBS cancelled this fine show. I'm definitely not a fan of "preachy" religious shows, but this is a most wonderful Non-religious show about God, and an often confused teen trying to negotiate her special connection with the Deity. The cast of top-notch actors was unrivaled, and Friday nights have become a wasteland of drivel without it.

My g/f will be ecstatic about getting this for Xmas, and it was far too long a wait for this 2nd season release. Shame on the Network "geniuses" and the garbage they foist upon us.

I was very upset when they cancelled this show, just like some of the other commenters. I am not a religious person at all, actually a border line athiest, but I still loved this show. Probably because it didnt try to center on one religion, and didnt try to say one persons beliefs are better than others, it was more about people...

Shame on CBS... Shame on them...

THE GOOD
+ The Joan/God missions are far more interesting than last season. Aside from a few cheesy missteps like "Out of Sight," the standalone plots were fairly well done.
+ The romance between Luke and Grace takes center stage for a lot of the season, and managed to have the two characters bond without compromising Grace's outlook on public happiness or Luke's pride.
+ Kevin had an interesting plot, and was definitely a more interesting character this season. The stuff with Andy and a certain ex-nun was especially entertaining.

THE BAD
+ The writers totally lost the feel for a few of the characters. While there was an obvious attempt to give each of the characters a story arc, their efforts resulted in making Adam whiny, Will unreasonable, and Helen sort of became someone who jumps to random conclusions and behaves completely erratically. A lot of this was done in service of the plot, and if writers are making their characters act oddly in service of the weekly episode or theme, that is just weak writing. The show used to aim for character driven, but a lot of this season was more concerned with plot than the integrity of the characters.
+ Overall weak writing. The use of high school stereotypes, particularly in The Election, is overwhelmingly false. When the series started, it seemed as if the creative team had a somewhat solid understanding of the high school experience... but that was thrown away this season in favor of tired old Saved by the Bellesque high school tropes.

THE GREAT
+ There were a few moments of excellence sprinkled throughout this season. Creator Barbara Hall is a great writer, and all of her episodes (especially the premiere) are particularly strong. The episodes that feature the death of one of Joan's friends and how her group deals with it were fantastic as well. The last few episodes were also quite a bit stronger than the majority of the season.
+ The supporting cast totally surpassed expectations. Old favorites Friedman, Glynis, and Ms. Lischak are back, along with all the best versions of God that appeared in the first season. Also, a new and fascinating character--Judith--is thrown into the mix early on. She's played by Six Feet Under's Sprague Grayden, so you really can't go wrong there.

Overall, it was a pretty good series that I will definitely miss. Some of the characterization was wonky this season, but the relationships between the characters is what I'll remember most about this series.

6/10

This show is a wonderfully written, morally focused series with real life challenges and experiences portrayed beautifully by a wonderful cast. It is one of the best TV series I have viewed. I am very sorry it is off the air.

We have purchased and viewed both the first and second seasons. What a clever premise and generally well executed. The formula can get quite predictable (and perhaps we notice it more as we viewed show after show day after day) but it's still very engaging. Many of the shows present good life lessons.

Five stars for the program - it was one of the best. Two stars for Amazon's price! At this writing, They're charging $47.99 - probably because this is a weak seller. I found it elsewhere from an equally reliable web site for $34.91, so I'm ordering it from them.

As far as I can tell, none of the extras in this release will provide a clue as to how the second season cliffhanger might have concluded. When a program with such a huge and diverse audience (CBS admitted it spanned age demographics, which made it difficult to draw the advertising they were looking for) is canceled with an unfinished story line, you would expect the DVD release to bring it to some sort of conclusion - maybe by a storyboard or writer/producer interviews or something!

If you never saw JOA when it originally aired, you'll be pleasantly surprised by the quality, values and brilliant acting found in both seasons. the show inspired - you can watch this with your teens without concern.

It took a long time to get this out on DVD - at least a year and a half after the last episode. This has probably hurt the sales dramatically - people have moved on since then. Really good programming - the kind your kids can watch and that doesn't offend your sensibilities - is hard to find. This one should have been a long-running series. It seems to me that when you reach a large, broad demographic, you've got a hit, but CBS was looking to target a certain age group - short-term thinking in my book. Too bad for all of us.