Firefly Lane season 2 *[MNHQ warning: thread may contain spoilers!]

[KillingMeDeftly]

Season two dropped on Netflix today. It's silly and soapy but I'm unwell and can't be arsed with anything too serious right now so I'm binge-watching. Anyone else watching?

I’m watching! It is soooooo drawn out with so many filler scenes and episodes. I think if fields particularly pointless as we already know the outcome (pretty much) IE that Kate doesn’t marry Theo.

@Fantina yes it is very drawn out but I'm actually enjoying the flashbacks more this time, they seem to be more 'meaningful' somehow...and it all seems a bit more believable.
Anyway looking forward to discussing properly when you've all had a chance to watch a bit more

Just binge watched and I am in pieces 😢 Really loved it all though!

I'm watching it. Just one more episode to go. I'm enjoying it despite the ridiculousness of not aging at all and all the flashbacks. Getting ready to sob my heart out.

I finished it last night.

I didn't love the amount of flashbacks tbh, but I think they redeemed themselves from the ending last year.

I’ve been poorly all weekend and this has been an easy watch. It felt like it limped to the end a bit- no twists or turns, just more flashbacks, although we finally got to see when they bought the big house. Yeah, everyone tried really hard but it didn’t really work for me.

Just cried my eyes out - made all the shit worth it. Although with the 10 years flash forward scene, was it just that Tully was the registrar (or US equivalent)?

I sobbed. A lot.

I’ve just finished it this weekend. I think Tully was perhaps a bridesmaid or maybe God-mother-of-the-bride? Shame we didn’t get to see the wedding after all the teasing about it! I think they wanted you to think at first it was Tully marrying Johnny, then they wanted you to think it was Tully marrying Sports Guy and then finally the penny drops it’s Marah and they want you to think that the trial was successful and Kate was there. They like to lead you down the garden path a bit! But at least give us some closure at the end by seeing the wedding!

In the book the reason Tully and Kate fall out is much more believable. I don’t know why they didn’t just stick to that for the TV series. Kate does not come off as a very nice person in the TV series which is a shame. In fact there are so many pointless plots they add into the TV show that are totally unnecessary and just dragged it all out. Like the divorce. Didn’t happen in the book and makes you believe less in Johnny and Kate’s relationship.

Basically I wish they’d just stuck with the book and not dragged it out so much.

What was the reason they fell out in the book @TeamSleep?

That really did make me dislike Kate as she was so mean to Tully and whilst her anger would have been understandable for a while, cutting her off like she did and especially re Bud's funeral was just cruel and if I'd have been Tully, I'm not sure id have forgiven Kate.

@Gothambutnotahamster it was a few years ago I read it but it was something about Tully inviting Kate onto her show and then totally misrepresenting her in some way just to boost ratings. So Kate was quite rightly very upset that she’d been taken advantage of and publicly shamed and Tully had put her fame before her friendship.

That does make more sense @TeamSleep and could actually see Tully doing something like that. Wonder why they changed it for the TV show?

I wonder whether they simply thought the fall out over the show wouldn’t be as dramatic to put across on TV as a car crash. The plot needed them to fall out but the car crash just didn’t paint Tully as enough of a villain (as she wasn’t wholly to blame) so it was difficult to understand why Kate found her so toxic she had to go no contact. It didn’t make sense. In the book Tully is much more of a cutthroat character, the TV show kept alluding to the fact she was cutthroat but never actually showing it, Tully was always shown in a positive light in the series. The problem here is comparing it to the book which probably is a mistake.

Like the divorce. Didn’t happen in the book and makes you believe less in Johnny and Kate’s relationship.

That's really interesting. In the TV series I found the second wedding & constant references to their love a bit nauseating & disingenuous - given how much of season one showed them having a shit marriage.

I liked it in parts - I really liked Kate. Tully seemed too one dimensional at times - classic 'high achieving woman who can't trust love' trope & she made silly choices. Katherine Heigl who I loved as a younger actor looks so unlike herself with all the work she's had done, I hate that - whereas Sarah Chalke is much more herself & very attractive.

Ben Lawson is gorgeous (in the later years, not the long-haired version)

*SPOILER AHEAD (IN CASE ANYONE HASN'T WATCHED LATER EPISODES)

I have to say I found the death scene really unbelievable tbh. I know it wasn't going to be full on realism given the nature of the show but it was such a sanitised version of dying with secondary cancer (esp in the brain). It seemed completely unreal how they interacted in the run up bar some of the scenes with Johnny which felt true.

In contrast the earlier episodes where she first had cancer and was having chemo felt much more true to life

I've given up on the first episode of this final part. It's just all so samey - Tully overshadows Kate at school, the fright wig has made too many appearances yet Johnny is somehow god's gift, etc. Are there any of the episodes of this final part that are particularly worth watching, like can I watch say 3 and get the basic gist of it? I have already read the spoilers on this thread.

Watch the last two & you'll be fine.

I watched the last episodes over the last two weekends, I really didn't like adult Kate, she just simpered too much and was so wet. It didn't help that I'm not a huge fan of Sarah Chalke though! Also wasn't a fan of Jonny, don't why but he just have me the ick. The younger Kate and Tully were amazing though.

I also thought the build up to Kate's death was very sanitised, it was moving though.

I really enjoyed the whole series, despite being very confused in terms of how old they were supposed to be in some scenes!

Finished it off tonight. As much as it was dragged out and schmaltzy and not particularly well done, I’ve been awake for hours upset and dwelling on the future deaths of myself and my friends. I rather wish I hadn’t watched it!

I totally understand why Kate cut Tully off. If your mate was looking after your kid and they let them go out after strict instructions not to as they were grounded. Then nearly killed her in a car accident for which they were then prosecuted for drink driving then I would probably cut them off too.

I'm gonna go against the grain. I liked Kate but didn't like Tully although loved teenage Tully. She was so self centred, attention seeking and could be cruel at times like when she told everyone Kate was still a virgin when all the women were chatting before Sean's wedding. Then always gegging in in what should have been private moments between Johnny and Kate. Then the ultimate act of selfishness by not going to Katie's funeral again making all about herself instead of being there to support Johnny and Marah.

I've been watching as poorly in bed with covid but my access seems to have cut off and I haven't seen any cancer scenes. I need to check what season I've seen

''I have to say I found the death scene really unbelievable tbh. I know it wasn't going to be full on realism given the nature of the show but it was such a sanitised version of dying with secondary cancer (esp in the brain). It seemed completely unreal how they interacted in the run up bar some of the scenes with Johnny which felt true.

In contrast the earlier episodes where she first had cancer and was having chemo felt much more true to life''

I agree, I'm a nurse and have looked after many people who have died of cancer, they say d I've never seen dying done realistically on a Tv show. I suppose a very slow, painful decline needing lots of medication wouldn't make good Tv 🙁