Review: Central Park Season 2 on AppleTV+

With so many streaming services, each debuting original content at a high volume, it’s easy for a modest show like AppleTV’s “Central Park” to get a little lost in the shuffle. While the show has developed a fan base and a few awards nominations, I fear it’ll get relegated to a footnote in the “Bob’s Burgers” story rather than getting its own moment in the spotlight. Then again, “Burgers” has had eleven years for the Belcher family to ingratiate itself into pop culture. With “Park’s” second season, which begins streaming on June 25th, Bouchard and his team prove that the show has strong legs to stand on, continuing and eventually surpassing the series’ very solid but breezy first season.

Created by Loren Bouchard with Josh Gad and Nora Smith, the second season of “Central Park” continues the story of the Tillerman family, a fairly average clan who live in the middle of the New York City landmark. For the first three episodes (the only ones I’m allowed to talk about in detail, although I’ve seen all eight), “Park” focuses more on the day-to-day foibles of the Tillerman’s than the overarching political schemes that drove much of the first season. Although I love that “Park” builds throughout the series (there’s no between-episode amnesia like on “The Simpsons”), it was a smart way to reconnect us with our main characters.

The second episode perfectly showcases the loving relationship between anxious park manager Owen and his wife Paige, a committed and often frazzled journalist, as they go on a Mother’s Day scavenger hunt through the park. Their sweet, shy son Cole doesn’t have much of his own arc this season but does provide great comedic relief. On the other hand, the writing team has done a superb job developing creative, quirky preteen Molly into a more fleshed-out character, starting with episode three, “Fista Puffs Mets Out Justice,” which takes place largely inside the comic book Molly is writing in a clever piece of meta-storytelling. Between navigating her first relationship and a hilarious later episode involving the horrors of bra shopping, the season’s strongest through-line involves Molly dipping her toes into adulthood. Don’t worry, the scene-stealing villain Bitsy Bradenham and her long-suffering assistant Helen are back too, breaking up the Tillerman’s storylines at just the right time. Josh Gad’s fourth-wall-breaking narrator Birdie is still present, but with less screen time and awkward jokes, he’s a lot more palatable. He even gets a lovely and melancholy dialogue-less segment – think a less emotionally shattering version of the “Up” montage – that’s just a beautiful breather in an otherwise fast-paced comedy.

 While the first three half-hour episodes reminded me why I loved “Central Park” last year, the show picks up steam with the remaining five episodes, which outshine the first three both in humor and inventiveness. Although this season is two episodes shorter, it takes more risks and has more fun. There are some terrific vignettes in other animation styles and the writers’ chutzpah to lean away from the standard “A-story, b-story” format yields great results, including an episode centered around Bitsy’s childhood and a wonderful season finale where each character fantasizes about their future using those little toy bricks we’re not allowed to legally name.

The cast, as always, is impeccable. Leslie Odom Jr, Kathryn Hahn and Titus Burgess find the perfect balance between comedy and heart. At the same time, Stanley Tucci and Daveed Diggs have a ball spitting out hilariously over-the-top dialogue. This season, the voice of Molly has switched from Kristen Bell to (“Umbrella Academy” regular and “Hamilton” vet) Emmy Raver-Lampman amidst outcry over a white actress voicing a mixed-race character. The terrific Raver-Lampman doesn’t stray far from Bell’s original performance but is given some great moments to shine, especially in episode seven, where she finds herself at a ritzy party.

As always, the humor and heart are what keep you watching “Central Park.” It strikes a perfect balance. Family-friendly but not prudish. Heartfelt but not mawkish. Silly but grounded. It doesn’t go for the depths of “BoJack Horse” or the inspired outlandishness of “Big Mouth,” and, while I love both those shows, it doesn’t need to. It also feels inclusive (in terms of race and body type) in a very organic, lived-in way.

But the show’s special sauce is the fact that “Central Park” is unabashedly a musical comedy. There are three to four original songs in each episode written either by their in-house composers (including “Olaf’s Frozen Adventure’s” Elyssa Samsel and Kate Anderson) or a rotating team of guest musicians. The first season brought us some terrific tunes by Sara Bareilles, Cyndi Lauper, Alan Menken and Fiona Apple. This new season, we get numbers by “Hedwig’s” John Cameron Mitchell, They Might Be Giants and many other exciting songwriters I can’t talk about.

While many other shows have musical numbers — including this year’s terrific “GIrls5Eva” — “Park” differentiates itself by creating fully original songs that are both musically and lyrically sound. There’s none of the parodies, montage songs, or meme-fodder that other shows peddle in. These are songs that further the storyline and character and wouldn’t feel out of place on a Broadway stage. They generally live in the “Be More Chill”/“Dear Even Hansen” pop style with some ‘90s Disney and Lin Manuel Miranda-inspired rap thrown in. There’s even a delightful nod to the show’s “Hamilton” roots when Helen (voiced by Daveed Diggs) performs a very funny and clever ode to Weehawken, New Jersey, written by Supercommuter. Another rap about finding a missing key was a tongue twister-y standout.

Although, my favorite song this season doesn’t pop up until episode four. Written in the vein of an act-one finale, “Why Bother” is a perfect encapsulation of what makes “Central Park” special. It’s funny, optimistic and much smarter than it has any right to be; a show and a song brimming with the kind of gentle joy I don’t  see that often. It’s well worth seeking out. 

“Central Park” will debut globally on Friday, June 25 exclusively on Apple TV+, with a new episode premiering weekly, every Friday thereafter for a total of eight. The second half of season two will return later this year with additional episodes.