The Great North Season 2 - What We Know So Far
Fox continues to show great faith in its adult animation. At the beginning of March 2021, the network renewed "The Simpsons" through its 34th season (via Deadline). The show was one of the last in the Animation Domination block to be renewed after "Family Guy" and "Bob's Burgers" were picked up for two-season renewals in September of 2020, per The Hollywood Reporter. But one show in the Fox lineup was renewed before it even began. "The Great North," from "Bob's Burgers" writers Wendy Molyneux and Lizzie Molyneux-Logelin, was picked up for a second season ahead of its series premiere back in July of 2020, according to Deadline.
"We are looking to take our legacy and build on it," Fox President of Entertainment Michael Thorn told Deadline. "Part of that is tied to our programming goals and our Fox Entertainment goals in terms of having an ownership stake in those animated series. When they work, they work extremely well financially as well."
Co-created by the Molyneux and "Regular Show"'s Minty Lewis, "The Great North" has been well-received by critics. Here's what we can expect of Season 2.
When will The Great North Season 2 premiere?
"The Great North" premiered in its Animation Domination time slot on Valentine's Day 2021 (via The Futon Critic). Before that, a sneak preview episode aired after an NFL game in January. Because it entered the schedule midseason, and because the second season was greenlit before the first even dropped, there's every reason to believe Season 2 will premiere in the fall of 2021.
Often in television, production seasons of shows do not perfectly correspond with airing seasons. "Futurama," for example, has wildly different production vs. broadcast vs. streaming orders, as discussed in the Talking Futurama podcast. It's likely that some episodes of "The Great North" that will air in Season 2 were written and animated during production Season 1. Animation has a notoriously long turnaround, so for a show to air in the fall of 2021, it would most likely have been written – at the latest – at the beginning of 2020. COVID-19 slowed production on many live-action shows, but some animated shows like "Duncanville" were able to set up some socially distanced home recording.
Who is in the cast of The Great North Season 2?
"The Great North" brings together many comedy luminaries from the extended "Bob's Burgers" and "Parks and Recreation"-verse. Nick Offerman stars as Beef Tobin, a single father in the Alaskan wilderness. Beef has 4 children: only daughter Judy played by Jenny Slate ("Drunk History"), oldest son Wolf played by Will Forte ("The Last Man on Earth"), openly gay middle son Ham played by Paul Rust ("Love"), and youngest son Moon played by Aparna Nancherla ("Corporate").
The cast is rounded out by more stars, one of whom is known more for her singing voice than her acting. Motherless Judy finds female role models in her boss Alyson Lefebvrere (played by Offerman's real-life wife Megan Mullally) and her imaginary friend Alanis Morrissette. Morrissette plays herself on the show. "The Daily Show with Trevor Noah"'s Dulcé Sloan plays Wolf's fiancee Honeybee. It's worth mentioning that one of Morrissette's other most notable acting roles was speechless. In "Dogma," the "Jagged Little Pill" singer played God, whose voice would kill humans if heard. She has the range.
"The Great North" Season 1 has guest voices by the likes of Rob Delaney, Julio Torres, Ron Funches, and John Early. It seems highly likely that Season 2 will draw on the same pool of alt-comedy stars. Is it too much to ask for Torres' "Los Espookys" co-star Ana Fabrega to voice a character?
Potential plotlines for The Great North Season 2
"The Great North" is an episodic sitcom, much like the rest of its Animation Domination cohort. Episodes are mostly self-contained, though characters can recur through seasons. That means plots can go in all sorts of wacky directions, provided that they return to center by show's end. In Season 1, "The Great North" had episodes about a "Shrek"-themed anniversary party, menstruation activism, and moose attacks. Truly everything is on the table.
One thing critics have hoped for future seasons of "The Great North" is more indigenous representation and story inclusion. The Hollywood Reporter's Daniel Fienberg noted that the show only made passing mention of the state's original residents. "One episode includes Judy acknowledging those original owners of the land and I think Lone Moose has a Native mayor. That's a side of the Alaskan reality that 'The Great North' probably needs to embrace," he wrote, adding that if the show failed to include more actual Alaskan Native representation, it was in danger of becoming "'Bob's Burgers' as reimagined by somebody who just watched 'Northern Exposure.'" The show has already won plaudits for its sensitivity toward the LGBT+ community (via Pride); now is the time to live up to its rep as a "progressive animated utopia," per Decider.