Ugly Betty: The Complete Second Season

Ugly Betty was one of the many ABC hits of the 2006/2007 season and charmed audiences with its wit, its new take on the fashion industry, its great design and the simply enjoyable storylines that are admittedly over the top, but TV should entertain and that's exactly what this show does. It doesn't ask you to think a whole lot or focuses on heavy drama, so if you want a serious drama Ugly Betty might not be your cup of tea. Ugly Betty is fun and hilarious, but is not mentally challenging, but this is also part of its charm as it sucks you into its world and you can simply lean back and enjoy.
In the second season the cliffhangers from the phenomenal Season 1 finale were resolved and new storylines introduced that are all truly enjoyable and a pleasure to watch. Everybody goes through changes and especially Betty's love life becomes more and more interesting with a new potential love interest and the "Henry is the father of Charlie's baby" storyline.
New characters are introduced and Wilhelmina and Mark are temporarily not working at MODE, but they do eventually come back with a blast that shocks the Meade family.
Hilda also moves on as does Justin and even Amanda gets mores serious moments although she still is one of the biggest comedy factors.
Character development made this season worth watching.
The main reason however why this show got so good this season however is the stellar writing which is some of the best that is currently on network TV. The dialogues are witty, full of creative ideas and fast. Especially Mark is given some of the best one-liners and references as are Justin and Wilhelmina who is the villain you cannot help but love to hate.
It is a shame that the ratings dropped considerably although the show got consistently better and that due to the writer's strike the season was shortened.
If you already liked the first season, you will definitely love the second and you will enjoy the episodes of one TV's most underrated shows again and again.

Warning! Some spoilers contained in the following review!

All in all, Season Two of UGLY BETTY was, like Season One, an utter delight. It certainly was not timid in its story telling, trying to keep true to its roots in telemundo by pushing storylines that beggared credibility, sometimes perhaps crossing the lines of believability, but all in all having a lot of fun.

There were too many plotlines to attempt any summarization, but suffice it to say that if you didn't care for one - and there were some that I definitely didn't care for (primarily Wilhelmina's theft of Bradford Meade's sperm upon his death and then having Christina carry Bradford and Wilhelmina's baby, though secondarily the storyline of having Gene Simmons temporarily feature as Amanda's supposed biological father [like most people I've talked to, I just find anything having to do with Gene Simmons to be more than a little distasteful]) - just wait a week or two and you'd find others you might like instead. That said, the one arc that extended the length of the season was the two men in Betty's life: Henry, who she loves and with whom she continues a romance that is fated to end as soon as his ex-girlfriend Charlie gives birth to their child, and Gio, who is deeply attracted to Betty and tries to engage her interest even while she remains with Henry. Both Christopher Gorham who plays Henry (who I previously loved in JAKE 2.0) and Freddy Rodriguez (who I loved in SIX FEET UNDER) do a great job of making both of their characters really interesting. I found myself wanting Betty to be happy with both of them, though obviously she could only end up with one.

But to be honest, the real appeal of the show lies less in the story arcs, which while good are not particularly outstanding, than in the fine ensemble cast and the great collection of characters. I perpetually found myself less than riveted by what was happening than in whom it was happening to. Ultimately, I think that might be the show's weakness. With its roots in telemundo, the show has an indelible and inescapable frivolity. By its very nature, it lacks any potential to become much more than a nice way to pass time. That being said, it is time that I do enjoy passing.

I am extremely anxious, however, about the show's future. Season Three is going to feature some absolutely massive changes to the show. Shortly after filming concluded on Season Two it was announced that the production was going to relocate to New York City. At the same time it was leaked that Rebecca Romjin, who has been delightful as Daniel's sister/former brother Alexis/Alex, was going to have a greatly lessened involvement in the series in Season Three. To make matters worse, there were rumors that some actors were unwilling to move to New York full time and might have their character's become less central to the story. The most worrying of these is Eric Mabius, who has young children and a home in L.A. After Betty his Daniel Meade is easily one of the most important characters on the show. Having him on less than a full time basis could significantly change the entire texture of the show, and I suspect not for the better. Also, while I believe having the show filmed in the actual city where the action is supposed to take place (though I suspect that the neighborhood in which Betty's house is supposed to be located will continue to be CGI) will be a great boon for the show, I fear that the changes could give it a very different feel from the first two seasons. This could very easily cease to be the show that we've all known and loved.

Fearful or not, I will try to be optimistic. Hopefully the cast will remain more or less intact with the move to New York. I will also hope that the producers reconsider the lessened role for Rebecca Romjin and that Eric Mabius stays with the show fulltime. And I hope that having the possibility of on location shots in New York outweighs any disruption leaving L.A. creates. Season Two ended, as with Season One, with some major cliffhangers, but this year not all of the anticipation was created by the story. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the show remains as much fun as it has been in the past.

The end of Ugly Betty - The Complete First Season left everything hanging in the air as Henry left for Tucson, Daniel and Alexis got into a possibly-fatal car crash after Alexi paid a hitman to take out Bradford, Wilhelmina and Bradford got engaged, Santos was shot, Claire escaped from jail, Ignacio got sent back to Mexico, and Amanda found out who her mother really was.

The first part of season two wrapped up the loose ends of season one, but introduced new plot elements, some of them just as good as those in season two's preceding season. Betty, Hilda, Daniel and Mark all found themselves with new love interests. Wilhelmina maintained her status as comedic villain extraordinaire as she continued her plan(s) to take over Meade Publications. It's a little over-the-top, but it's all in good fun, and one of the great things about this show is that all the actors seem to have such great chemistry with one another. The only story arc that I had problems with was the Amanda paternity thing--it was very "out there," perhaps not in a good way. But I liked it in that it was handled in the way that Amanda would handle such things--completely clueless, as usual. And as usual, the dialogue is wonderfully witty, and Wilhelmina, Mark, and Amanda remain my favorite characters. The wonderful thing about this season was that it didn't seem to be affected much by the writers' strike.

This five-disc set includes all eighteen episodes of season two, plus the following bonus features: "On Set with the Besties" (Michael Urie and Becki Newton take the viewer on a tour of Mode, with "popup" fun facts about the show's production), "The Suarez Tour" (Mark Indelicato and Tony Plana take the viewer on a tour of the Suarez home), "Wilhelmina Slater: Love to Hate Her" (a tribute to the character), three telenovellas (Las Passiones de Telenovelas, Los Pecados del Corazon, and Assesinato por Muerte), "I Heart Betty" (a tribute to the character), Betty Bloops, and Deleted Scenes. The booklet insert includes an NYC subway map with the locations of the Mode office, the Suarez home, and other important Ugly Betty locations pinpointed on it.