Once and Again

Every time I see a rerun of Once and Again, I am baffled by just how incredibly brilliant every aspect of this show was. The superb acting by arguably one of the best if not the best full ensemble of actors ever to team up on a TV series. From the main leads Sela Ward and Billy Campbell's incredible chemistry and great sensitivity toward their characters to the smallest performances by Marco Gould as Spencer Lweicki and Mischa Barton as Katie Singer, every bit of casting was magically on the money. The Great courageous and non-traditional writing is unforgettable. The Cinematography and editing served the story in every regard and gave every plot and subplot just what it needed without dragging it or chipping away at it. Special kudos must go to Julia Whelan, Meredith Deane, Marin Hinkle, Susanna Thompson, Jeffrey Nordling, Bonnie Bartlett, Evan Rachel Wood, Shane West and Ever Carradine for taking such complex characters and breathing enough life into each one of them for a series of his or her own. As an actor, I can write a thousand words about each one of these actors alone. The show also had the distinctive feel of not being a franchise show (i.e.: law, Hospital, cop, political or any specific workplace type show). O&A was about life and just how real life can be. It was a brief and yet bright spark that lit up television for three amazing years during which Herskovitz, Zwick and company gave TV audiences a show that went everywhere a good show should and lived with its characters through personal and professional matters with such lucid transition that would make an art film jealous. The fact that The TV academy ignored the show to that extent will forever remain one of the reasons why Emmys continue to be dismissed as a serious merit award and instead are thought of as just a well-marketed popularity contest. As for the ratings...My guess is that either this show was pitched to the wrong network from the start (Just think what NBC, CBS or HBO could have done with this GEM) or those Nielsen families have some serious explaining to do. In the end, all that matters to me is that somehow the show still managed to inspire me more with every viewing, but never once jeopardized its integrity by creating paper-thin and perfect characters that were free of flaws. This is just one of those shows that time will remember :)

If you liked Sisters, Thirtysomething, Relativity, or even My So-Called Life, you will absolutely love and adore ONCE AND AGAIN, a show so well-written and acted that you may recognize elements of it in your own life.

"Once and Again" is an absolute treasure of a show. I could not be more amazed at the incredible acting from every member of the talented cast, the stellar writing,and the perfect pacing. This show was criminally ignored at the Emmys and that is a shame because I believe that this is easily the best family drama of all time, if not the best drama series of all time. It is certainly my favorite show of all time. Every single actor gave consistently brilliant performances week after week, with the standouts being Susanna Thompson, a totally underrated actress, and the lovely Evan Rachel Wood, who has more talent in her left pinky finger than Hillary Duff has at all. I miss this show, but I will always treasure the three amazing seasons we had of it!

"Once and Again" is without question my very favorite show of all time. One of the show's greatest strengths is the writing. The writing is wonderfully crisp and natural and actually sounds like people talking for a change. It examines daily life in a very intricate, exquisite, and truthful way. The second greatest strength is its acting. I don't know if there has ever been a television ensemble this good. From Sela Ward's self absorbed and yet lovable Lily to Billy Campbell's conflicted Rick to Jeffrey Nordling's perpetual screwup Jake to Susanna Thompson's uptight but loving Karen to Marin Hinkle's resilient romantic Judy, all of the adults in the cast put in consistently stellar performances.

But perhaps the show's finest performances came from its younger actors. Julia Whelan was perfect as whiny teenager Grace,awkwardly trying to survive the hell of being an adolescent. Shane West touched our hearts as Eli, never quite sure of his place in the world, and Evan Rachel Wood lit up the screen as Jessie,blossoming in front of our eyes from a shy, insecure child to a beautiful, more confident young woman. All three of these young people have the potential to be stars someday soon.

"Once and Again" is a gem of a show that was never truly given the recognition it deserved. Nevertheless, it's a show that has touched my heart. I can't imagine television being any better than this.

Every time I see a cast member in another production, I think of this program.

At a minimum, someone should write a novel based on the show.

What happened to these people? The ending...wasn't. (But was very exciting, all the same.)

I can't see giving a synopsis, because that's been done very well already.

In the same time-frame were the shows, "Time and Again" and "Now and Again," also. Due to this, our family resorted to calling "Once and Again," "The Dead Insurance Guy Show."

The dissatisfying (non)conclusion of this program has resulted in my hesitation to become interested in many series since that time. Don't leave the viewer "hanging," like this. Please!