Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists

Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists premiered in March 2019 on Freeform and lasted one season with 10 episodes. It was a spin-off of Pretty Little Liars set after the show had ended. This was also the second spin-off. Ravenswood was the first spin-off that premiered during Pretty Little Liars. It only lasted one season.

Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists starred Sasha Pieterse as Allison DeLaurentis, Janel Parrish as Mona Vanderwaal, Sofia Carson as Ava Jalali, Sydney Park as Caitlin Park-Lewis, Eli Brown as Dylan Walker, Hayley Erin as Taylor Hotchkiss, Graeme Thomas King as Jeremy Beckett, and Kelly Rutherford as Claire Hotchkiss.

SPOILER ALERT for Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists & Pretty Little Liars.

Sasha Pieterse and Janel Parrish starred on Pretty Little Liars. The Perfectionists was the first starring vehicle for both Allison and Mona whereas the OG show followed different characters. Mona was a recurring character in seasons 1 & 2 and got promoted to a series regular in season 3 of Pretty Little Liars. Even as a regular there were times when Mona was absent through stretches of the show. Season 6 and the first half of season 7 were the most noticeable. Allison was a regular from the start of the series, however up until later seasons most of her screentime was through flashbacks or dream sequences. Allison was presumed dead until it was revealed that she was actually alive in season 4. Season 5 is when Allison returned home.

I thought The Perfectionists would have lasted awhile. I think one thing that worked in its favor was the fact it had Allison and Mona on the show, but it also happened after Pretty Little Liars had ended. This was the second spin-off after Ravenswood. Ravenswood was a supernatural show that was set in the spooky town Ravenswood that the characters had visited on Pretty Little Liars. The show lasted one season. I think the reason the show didn’t do well was because it was on during Pretty Little Liars and it starred Tyler Blackburn as Caleb Rivers. Caleb was a main character on Pretty Little Liars and the boyfriend of Hanna Marrin (Ashley Benson). When Ravenswood happened, Caleb had to exit Pretty Little Liars and since Hanna was not going to join Ravenswood, it meant that they had to break up. Caleb left halfway through season 4 and after Ravenswood was cancelled, he came back in season 5 and stayed on the show for the rest of its run. Also, Caleb and Hanna were a beloved couple on the show and had a lot of fans. If The Perfectionists came out while Pretty Little Liars were still on, I think it would have made more sense if it did not do well. That was not the case. It was two years after Pretty Little Liars ended.

The Perfectionists was cancelled presumably due to low ratings. The ratings were a lot lower than Pretty Little Liars. The show also ended on a cliffhanger. I think The Perfectionists should have been given a chance. By the end of its short run, it only had 10 episodes. Ravenswood also only had 10 episodes. The Perfectionists should have been allowed to have a second season. I think it would have found its footing by then. Most shows take time to find their groove. Pretty Little Liars started out strong and got more bonkers as time went on. The Perfectionists had a murder mystery similar to Pretty Little Liars. Nolan Hotchkiss (Chris Mason) was murdered at the end of the Pilot. Nolan was connected to the main characters similar to how Allison was connected to the main characters on the OG show. Also, Nolan was Claire’s son and Taylor’s brother. He appeared in flashbacks afterward. I think it safe to presume he was going to stay dead on the series since we actually saw him die. That also doesn’t always mean anything either. Just watch Pretty Little Liars. The season finale revealed who killed Nolan. It was The Professor who was revealed to be the anonymous person tormenting the main characters. The Professor formerly introduced themselves to the group by voice. The identity of The Professor was not revealed. The season finale just introduced who the villain was. Pretty Little Liars’ antagonist was “A.” At the end of the pilot “A” sent the very first text message to the main characters that lasted throughout the series. After “A” was revealed, there was “Uber A” who took over. After “Uber A” was revealed, “A.D.” came into play. “A.D.” formerly revealed themselves in the season 6 finale. The second half of season 6 had anonymous texts without a signature. That was the first time for the show to have an unnamed villain. The Perfectionists seemed to follow a similar route with its first season. Up until the finale, the villain did not have an identity. Also, the Professor revealed it was only the beginning.

Since there was not a season 2, we will never know what it was the beginning of. The Professor could have become a compelling antagonist. It would have been interesting to see how long until The Professor were to get unmasked. Would it have been in season 2 or season 3 or the end of the series altogether? If the show kept going beyond the unmasking of the Professor, would there be a new Professor? Would a new “A” come into play? Questions that will never get answered.

In terms of the show itself, it was a good show. It had a lot of promise. I think it really would have hit its stride in a second season especially after introducing the Professor. The new characters were a good fit. I think there were some minor complaints that were related to Pretty Little Liars. Given Allison and Mona were on The Perfectionists, I think there were fans who wanted more connections to Pretty Little Liars and to have seen the other characters. When The Perfectionists launched, Allison was separated from Emily (Shay Mitchell) who was her wife and the mother of her children. Realistically I think that decision was made mostly because Shay Mitchel was not going to star on this show. Emily was referenced but never appeared. It is possible down the line she might have shown up. I am sure fans were disappointed about their relationship status given how long it took for Allison and Emily to get together in the first place. They didn’t officially become a couple until the end of the final season.

There was a bit of a cliffhanger with Mona. Pretty Little Liars ended with Mona holding Alex Drake (Troian Bellisario) and Mary Drake (Andrea Park) captive in her own “dollhouse.” Alex Drake was revealed to be Spencer Hasting’s (Troian Bellisario) twin sister and she was “A.D.” Mary Drake was Spencer’s birth mother and the twin sister to Allison’s mother Jessica. Pretty Little Liars was always a bit convoluted. That added to the fun of the show in my opinion. With Mona being on The Perfectionists, fans wondered what happened to Alex Drake and Mary Drake. Were they still in the dollhouse? Did they escape? Where are they now? That was not really answered. Mona was holding them in the basement of her Doll Shop in France. Her time in France was mentioned and Alex Drake and Mary Drew were mentioned but there were never concrete answers to what happened to them.

It was said that if the show kept going, there were hopes for some of the OG characters from Pretty Little Liars to stop by. Maybe at some point Alex Drake and Mary Drake would have come by to resolve that storyline.

Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists was only just getting started. For some reason it seems Pretty Liars is not able to have successful spin-offs. There is a new Pretty Little Liars show on HBO MAX. It’s called Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin, however it is not connected to the other shows and its set in a completely new setting with entirely new characters. The Perfectionists will probably never get resurrected, however there could always be a reunion movie for Pretty Little Liars. If that happens at some point down the line some of the lingering threads from The Perfectionists could get answered especially if Allison and Mona are involved.   

Time After Time

Time After Time premiered in the spring of 2017 on ABC. Due to low ratings, it was cancelled after 5 episodes. The season had 12 episodes total. The remaining episodes did not air on television. The show was about H.G. Wells who invented a time machine and leaves the 19^th century to pursue Jack the Ripper, a serial killer who has traveled to the present day. The show starred Freddie Stroma as H.G. Wells, Josh Bowman as John Stevenson aka Jack the Ripper, Genesis Rodriguez as assistant curator at the New York Metropolitan Museum Jane Walker, Nicole Ari Parker as wealthy philanthropist Vanessa Anders, Jennifer Ferrin as neuropathologist Brooke Monroe and Will Chase as politician as well as Brook’s brother and Vanessa’s boyfriend Griffin Monroe.

Time After Time only lasted 5 episodes. It had a two hour series premiere and then three more episodes aired before getting pulled. The whole series is available on the CW Seed to stream including the unaired episodes. I have not seen the full series. I have only seen the episodes that aired on ABC. At some point I may stream it or wait until it winds up on a streaming service I have. I enjoyed the show and was looking forward to seeing where it would go. I think a big part of that is the cast, specifically Freddie Stroma as H.G. Wells and Josh Bowman as Jack the Ripper. Prior to this I knew Josh Bowman from playing Daniel Grayson on Revenge. This was a different role for him. It is a shame he did not get more time to really develop the character. Freddie Stroma did a good job as H.G. Wells, and it was interesting seeing him adjust to the modern world. The plot didn’t really get going in the episodes that did air. I think it would have by the time the season had ended. It started setting things up that presumably would have been resolved by the end of the first season. I would think at least some of it would have been resolved while others would probably stretch into future seasons.

Given Time After Time didn’t last very long, not to mention no one really remembers it, this truly is a one and done. It has also been six years since it aired. There is no second life for the show unfortunately. If it were to happen, it would have happened years ago. I wish Time After Time was given more of a chance and I wish it at least was allowed to air its entire season. It could have burned off the rest of episodes on a Saturday night or in the summer.

Batwoman

Batwoman lasted 3 seasons and was cancelled by the CW. Batwoman was one of multiple shows that all received the ax by the network. The reason was due to Nextstar who had purchased the CW. They want to go in a different direction, mostly they want to focus on sports. Batwoman ended last year, spring 2022. By the end of its run, it had 51 episodes. This was a huge shock to fans of the world because Batwoman was part of the Arrowverse that consisted of Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl, and DC’s Legends of Tomorrow. Black Lightning was predominantly its own thing and DC’s Stargirl has loose tie ins. Superman & Lois was revealed to be its own show. Arrow ended after 8 seasons. Supergirl ended with 6 seasons. Both shows had final seasons and proper series finales. It was expected that Batwoman would get the same not to mention that Batwoman would be on for a while. The CW was known for keeping all their shows and giving them proper endings. Shows that were not the biggest hits would get renewed to get a proper final season. Batwoman is one of two Arrowverse shows to get the ax without closure. DC’s Legends of Tomorrow which was in its 7^th season also got cancelled. The Arrowverse is currently in its final stage with The Flash ending in May.

Batwoman had a crazy 3 season run with big casting changes. The show starred Javicia Leslie as Ryan Wilder aka Batwoman, Camrus Johnson as Luke Fox, Nicole Kang as Mary Hamilton, Meagan Tandy as Sophie Moore, Rachel Skarsten as Beth Kane aka Alice, Nick Creegan as Marquis Jet, Victoria Cartagena as Renee Montoya, and Robin Givens as Jada Jet. The show also starred Ruby Rose as Kate Kane aka Batwoman, Dougray Scott as Jacob Kane, and Elizabeth Anweis as Catherine Hamilton-Kane.

MASSIVE SPOILER ALERT

Ruby Rose was originally Batwoman. She debuted in the Arrowverse crossover Elseworlds. The year after that was when Batwoman premiered. She took part of the final crossover Crisis on Infinite Earths. After the show’s first season which was cut short due to the pandemic, Ruby Rose announced she was exiting the series. There have been a lot of different reports since her exit about why she left the show. She had said it was due to a back injury. Then it was said that she was fired from the show. This caused a problem. This was the first Arrowverse show where the lead left. There have been shows that have lost its stars. This was different because it was Batwoman. The other leads of the Arrowverse have all stayed. When Stephen Amell wanted to end Arrow, it ended. Supergirl did not continue without Melissa Benoist. Even DC’s Legends of Tomorrow which had numerous cast changes, had Caity Lotz as Sara Lance the entire run of its series. Kate Kane was a huge part of Batwoman. Her cousin is Bruce Wayne aka Batman (Warren Christie) who was referenced but not seen during the first season. His face was introduced in the season 1 finale. Tommy Elliott (Gabriele Mann) who became Hush got a new face which was Bruce’s. This storyline got wrapped up in the season 2 premiere. Bruce Wayne also appeared in a dream sequence in season 2. Also at the end of the pilot episode it was revealed that the villain Alice was really Kate’s presumed dead sister Beth Kane. Once Kate learned Alice was Beth, the rest of the season was spent as a back and forth between stopping Alice but also trying to get Beth back. Sophie Moore was also Kate’s girlfriend prior to the show. There was a lot of romantic tension between them when the show kicked off. Kate was away and had returned home to Gotham. Anyone who watches television in general knows they usually try to find a way back to each other. There were obvious moments throughout the first season of Kate and Sophie hinting at their feelings for each other. Mary Hamilton was Kate’s stepsister. Her mother Catherine Hamilton married Kate’s father Jacob Kane who was the leader of the Crows. The Crows was a private security organization that worked alongside the Gotham City PD. There was also one other issue though it was not that major. Ruby Rose’s Batwoman had met all the heroes from the other Arrowverse shows. Season 2 cast Javicia Leslie as Batwoman but she was not Kate Kane. She was a new character Ryan Wilder who dons the suit. The show made the choice to kill Kate Kane off in a plane crash. Later on that season it was revealed Kate was really alive and she was being played by Wallis Day who actually was in the running for the role initially. Kate had a new face because of Black Mask (Peter Outerbridge) who resurrected her from the dead and made her resemble his deceased daughter Circe Sionis and wiped had her memories wiped by Enigma (Laura Mennell). This isn’t that far fetched when remembering it’s a comic book show. There was a huge ripple effect after Ruby Rose exited the show. As for the other cast changes, with Kate Kane off the show, there was not really much else for Jacob Kane especially after learning that his daughter was really alive. He was written off the show the end of season 2. He disbanded the Crows and went to jail after helping Alice. The Crows went outside the lines to achieve their goals. Catherine Hamilton was killed off 8 episodes into the first season. Alice had poisoned Catherine and Mary but only had an anecdote that was enough for one. Catherine insisted Mary take it.

Batwoman may had some complications compared to the other Arrowverse shows but it started to thrive especially in its final season. Season 2 spent a lot of time dealing with losing Kate Kane but also having Ryan Wilder as the new Batwoman. They also brought on some iconic characters such as Black Mask. The first season of Batwoman predominantly focused on Alice as the villain. The season did not have many villains of the week episodes. Season 2 was starting to follow that structure and not only rely on Alice as the overarching villain. Season 3 is really when it seemed Batwoman was starting to find its groove. The whole season used iconic villains with their own spin on it. It was pretty much the next generation type scenario. We also got more of Ryan’s background. Ryan was adopted and we met her birth mother Jada Jett. Jada had a son Marquis who was Ryan’s brother. There were interesting dynamics there.

Batwoman season 3 made some big moves. Nora Fries (Jennifer Higgin) started aging after appearing in the Elseworlds crossover, she was also played by Stephen Amell’s wife Cassandra Jean Amell. A new Killer Croc emerged. The two biggest ones for the season were the OG Poison Ivy (Bridget Regan) and Marquis Jet became the new Joker. There were two Poison Ivys. Mary became Poison Mary. A huge part of the season was dealt with dealing with Poison Ivy and Poison Mary. Once that was resolved, the battle shifted to battling the Joker. The Joker is Batman’s greatest enemy. This Joker was Batwoman’s greatest enemy which made it more personal because the Joker is her brother. It was the best season yet and it was only just getting really good. The show ended on a cliffhanger. The show did believe they would be getting a season 4. The show ended without a lot of lingering questions.

Batwoman had a lot left in it. With the Arrowverse ending, there will not be any more opportunities to try to wrap up anything. Javicia Leslie recently did a few episodes of The Flash. The events of Batwoman were not mentioned at all. Unless there is a surprise from anyone from Batwoman in the remaining episodes of The Flash, this really is the end. There is not really a chance for this to be saved either. With the DCU launching and their plans to have one cohesive world with a few exceptions, Batwoman will most likely not be saved by another network or streaming service. Hopefully the future will be bright for the character in the DCU. There is a new Batman movie in the works called The Brave and the Bold. James Gunn said that the movie would have the batfamily. There is a chance that Kate Kane could be in the films since she is Bruce’s cousin.

Batwoman deserved better and should have been able to last a lot longer than 3 seasons. It is a good show that started to find its footing in the later seasons once the cast changes were put behind them. It may be awhile till getting another Batshow but Batwoman was a good addition to the Arrowverse and which finally brought Gotham City into world.

The Baker and the Beauty

The Baker and the Beauty was a romantic comedy that premiered in the spring of 2020 on ABC. It was cancelled after one season. The Baker and the Beauty was based off the Israeli romantic comedy series The Baker and the Beauty. The show followed Daniel Garcia; a baker whose world gets turned upside down when he meets international superstar Noa Hamilton. The Baker and the Beauty starred Victor Rasuk as Daniel Garcia, Nathalie Kelley as Noa Hamilton, Carlos Gomez as Daniel’s father Rafael Garcia, Lisa Vidal as Daniel’s mother Mari Garcia, David Del Rio as Daniel’s brother Mateo Garcia, Belissa Escobedo as Daniel’s sister Natalie Garcia, Dan Bucatinsky as Noa’s manager and friend Lewis, and Michelle Veintimilla as Daniel’s ex-girlfriend Vanessa.

The Baker and the Beauty lasted 9 episodes. This was another one I was not surprised that ABC cancelled. However, this aired during the pandemic. That could have thrown a wrench into a potential season 2. Due to low ratings this was cancelled. However, it found a new life when it hit Netflix. There were hopes from fans that Netflix would save the show. They have been known to do that a few times. Manifest is the most recent example. Unfortunately, that did not happen, and anything is possible, but I think the ship has sailed on this one.

The Baker and the Beauty was a fun romantic comedy series. To be honest I found it refreshing. It was nice and lighthearted. There was something magical about it and it is not the most original premise. I think a lot of it had to do with the cast. I instantly fell in love with the characters. There was drama but it was fun drama. The show seemed to really enjoy being a romantic comedy. It lived in it and I think that is the ingredient that made it feel magical. The huge bummer is that it only lasted 9 episodes. Even one and done seasons on network TV have 13 episodes if not a full season. This was a midseason show that premiered in mid April which would explain the shorter season.

It would have been nice to see how this show would have evolved over multiple seasons. It could have been a summer series if ABC did not want to have it during the fall season. If it had started out on Netflix, I wonder if it would still be continuing.

Spoiler Alert

This ended on a bit of a cliffhanger. From the beginning of the series, Daniel and Noa had a whirlwind rollercoaster romance. Daniel was dating Vanessa when he first met Noa. Vanessa proposed to Daniel, and he said no therefore ending the relationship. This was also in a public restaurant in front of tons of people. Vanessa spent much of the season trying to win Daniel back. Noa rescued Daniel by taking him out of the restaurant and Daniel was instantly attracted to her. Given their very different backgrounds there were multiple hurdles. By the end of the season, they announced they were engaged shocking the whole family. I would think season 2 would have been centered on their engagement and how that would affect everyone including the couple’s careers.

This one is definitely a bummer. Anyone who is interested in a fun romantic comedy series, I would highly recommend checking this out on Netflix. Also, since it is only 9 episodes it would be easy to complete the series over a weekend.

Grand Hotel

Grand Hotel was a soap that premiered in the summer of 2019 on ABC. Grand Hotel was based on the Spanish series Gran Hotel. Grand Hotel lasted one season and had 13 episodes. It was about Santiago Mendoza, who along with his wife his second wife Gigi Mendoza ran a hotel in Miami, Florida. It was a soap that followed the inner workings of a hotel. It was cancelled due to low ratings.

Grand Hotel was a fun soapy summer show. I had a feeling it was going to get cancelled. Sometimes when you watch a show, you just know that it won’t last. I would have been more surprised if Grand Hotel had gotten renewed. It may have had low ratings, but I think it could have lasted as a summer series. I am not sure how the streaming numbers factored in. ABC made the decision to cancel this a month after it aired its finale. I would also think if Grand Hotel had set the streaming world on fire, it would have gotten renewed. Grand Hotel ended on a cliffhanger. In this case it really should have continued to be able to resolve it. More on that later.

Grand Hotel had an ensemble cast. The show starred Demian Bichir as Santiago Mendoza, Roselyn Sanchez as Gigi Mendoza, Denyse Tonts as Santiago’s daughter Alicia Mendoza, Bryan Craig as Santiago’s son and Alicia’s sister Javi Mendoza, Wendy Raquel Robinson as staff manager Helen Parker, Chris Warren as Helen’s son and waiter Jason Parker, Lincoln Younes as the new hired waiter Danny Garibaldi, Shalim Ortiz as Santiago’s right hand man Mateo, Anne Winters as housekeeper Ingrid, Feliz Ramirez as Gigi’s daughter Carolina Renna, and Justina Adorno as Gigi’s daughter and Carolina’s twin sister Yoli Renna.

There are spoilers from this point on.

Grand Hotel had a mystery. During a hurricane line chef Sky Garibaldi disappeared. Sky was played by Arielle Kebbel. From the start of the series it was revealed that Danny Garibaldi took the job at the hotel so he could find out what really happened to his sister. The mystery was resolved by the end of the first season. As with any soap, things got complicated. Danny got involved with Santiago’s daughter, Alicia. Eva Longoria played Beatriz Mendoza in flashbacks. She was Santiago’s first wife and the mother of Alicia and Javi. At the start of the series Beatriz was dead. There was a lot of tension between Alicia and Javi and Gigi once Gigi married Santiago becoming their stepmother. Gigi was Beatriz’s best friend before marrying Santiago. For a soap about a family owned business there is bound to family drama. Look at Dallas.

The series had its fair share of twists and turns and romances. The series ended on a cliffhanger. Obviously, there were plans for additional seasons. This was not announced as a limited series. The series ended with Santiago getting shot by an unseen shooter. The mystery was who shot Santiago as well as if he was going to survive. I think it is safe to presume he probably would have lived if the show kept going. They could have decided to be daring and kill him off. I don’t know how much risk the show wanted to take when it came to big twists like that. Dallas never killed JR Ewing no matter how many times he was put in jeopardy. He was shot a lot also.

Grand Hotel was a fun show that I wish got to continue. It seems now a days there are not many primetime soaps anymore. If Grand Hotel had taken the world by storm it would probably be on now. If it were still running it would be in season 5 by now. It had a great cast, and it would have been interesting to see how the series could have evolved. Anything is possible but I don’t see a revival happening. It’s already been four years. If it were going to be saved by another network or streaming service it would have happened by now. On the plus side the cast has gone on to do other things. Rosalyn Sanchez currently stars on Fantasy Island. Demian Bichir has been doing movies including Chaos Walking and Godzilla vs. Kong. Brian Craig has done more television including Good Trouble. Wendy Raquel Robinson currently stars on The Game.

Grand Hotel had a lot of potential if given a chance. If it started out on streaming maybe it would have had better success. It still is a fun show and one that if anyone who likes fun soaps, I would recommend checking it out. It currently streams on Hulu.

Ugly Betty

Ugly Betty premiered on ABC in 2006 and ran for four seasons ending in 2010. It was an American version of the Colombian telenovela Yo Soy Betty. Ugly Betty premiered strong and became an instant hit (pulling 16.32 million viewers for the Pilot) as well as an awards darling. Ugly Betty won the Golden Globe for Best Television Series Comedy or Musical in 2007 along with a win for America Ferrera for Best Actress. America Ferrera also won the Emmy Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in 2007. It also had a huge ensemble cast of colorful characters. The show was about a woman named Betty Suarez who lands a job as a personal assistant to Daniel Meade, the playboy son of Bradford Meade who runs Meade Publications and owns Mode Magazine. Daniel is in charge of Mode Magazine and Wilhelmina Slater plots to take over Mode Magazine. Ugly Betty is a soap and enjoys every minute of relishing in the soapiness. It blends comedy and drama and being set in the fashion world, is very colorful. There are HEAVY SPOILERS throughout. If you have not seen the series and don’t want to know about specific plot points, please turn back now.

Ugly Betty lasted four seasons mostly because ABC decided to end the show due to low ratings. It was fizzling out after each season. In its final season it moved to Fridays in the fall which probably did not help improve its ratings. It did eventually move to Wednesdays after the New Year.  Ugly Betty aired its first three seasons on Thursday at 8pm. It kicked off the night which led into Grey’s Anatomy which was a powerhouse at that time. This was back in 2006. Grey’s Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, and Lost were ABC’s crown jewels. All three of those shows were in their third seasons.

I love Ugly Betty. It is one of my favorite shows. In fact, it is the reason I wanted to do a blog. There was an episode where Betty started a blog and every time I watched that episode it inspired me to have my own blog. Of course other things came up and I just ended up not doing it until now. Better late than never, right? As they get older it is common for shows to lose some of its magic for various reasons. Cast changes, showrunner changes, it becomes obvious they are running out of things to do, etc. Ugly Betty seemed to be the show that got better with age. Granted, it only lasted four seasons, but each season seemed to get better and better. It has been a few years since I last watched Ugly Betty. I will probably rewatch the show again at some point. I think one thing that added to Ugly Betty’s improvements was when they moved to New York to film the series. The show is set in New York City but the first two seasons were filmed in California. Right before season 3, filming moved to the city. It seemed to do the show wonders and gave it a fresh makeover. When watching season 3 and season 4, the pallet looks brighter than it was during the first two seasons.

Ugly Betty was able to craft a series finale. It was announced months before the finale that the show would be ending. However, the intention was for it to keep going. Given it ended with 85 episodes, I would have thought it would have made it to a fifth season where it would have celebrated 100 episodes. I don’t know how long the creatives were thinking Ugly Betty could last but it seemed like there was more to tell. I could have seen Ugly Betty at least lasting two additional seasons making it to a season 6, if not longer. To be honest, I could have seen Ugly Betty making it eight seasons. The show did get closure but things were cut short. One thing that the producers wanted to do was to have a musical episode. Presumably if Ugly Betty got a fifth season they could have done a musical episode, then.

Ugly Betty had great fashion, outlandish plots, and a great ensemble. It was a load of fun. The series starred America Ferrera as Betty Suarez, Eric Mabius as Daniel Meade, Vanessa Williams as Wilhelmina Slater, Michael Urie as Wilhelmina’s assistant Marc St. James, Beckie Newton as receptionist Amanda Tanen, Rebecca Romjin as Daniel’s sister Alexis Meade, Ana Ortiz as Betty’s sister Hilda Suarez, Mark Indelicato as Betty’s nephew and Hilda’s son, Justin Suarez, Ashley Jensen as Betty’s friend and seamstress Christina McKinney, Tony Plana as Betty’s father Ignacio Suarez, Alan Dale as Daniel & Alexis’ father, Bradford Meade, and Judith Light as Daniel and & Alexis’ mother, Claire Meade. Christopher Gorham was also on the show as Betty’s boyfriend Henry Grubstick for the first two seasons. He made guest appearances after leaving the show. Kevin Sussman was a series regular during the first season. He played Walter, Betty’s first boyfriend. Once he was added to the credits with the rest of the cast, a few episodes later he exited the show after falling under Guest Starring for the bulk of his run. That part always seemed weird why he got promoted if he left about two or three episodes later. Daniel Eric Gold was a recurring character and got promoted in the final season as a series regular. He played Betty’s boyfriend Matt Hartley. They broke up in the season 3 finale and he became her boss at the start of the final season. He exited the series halfway through the final season.

Ugly Betty was also able to maintain most of the cast for its entire run. Now a days it seems to be getting harder to achieve that. Henry started out as a recurring character and got promoted in season 2. He was a regular for the season. He and Betty had bumps in their relationship when his girlfriend Charlie played by a nasty Jayma Mays wound up being pregnant and there was a good chance Henry was the father. It was revealed that Charlie had cheated on Henry with Betty’s orthodontist Dr. Farkas played by Modern Family’s Jesse Tyler Ferguson. There was the chance he could have been the father. After taking a paternity test Henry was indeed the father and that threw more wrenches in his relationship with Betty. Other main characters who had left were Bradford Meade who in Alan Dale fashion died of a heart attack in season 2. It actually was his wedding day to villainous Wilhelmina who sunk her claws into him so she could gain control of Meade Publications and Mode Magazine. Alan Dale had a similar death on The O.C. where his character had died of a heart attack in season 2. Alexis Meade joined the show midway through season 1. The first set of episodes had a mystery masked woman who was in contact with Wilhelmina. Once she was unmasked it was revealed that it was Alex Meade who was Daniel’s deceased brother. Alex was transgendered and became Alexis Meade. Alexis left the show the beginning of season 3. She was arrested for pushing a pregnant Christina down the stairs. Christina was the surrogate for Wilhelmina whose unborn baby was fathered by the deceased Bradford Meade. I did mention this was based off a telenovela. Later in that same season Christina left the show as well. She was from England and she moved back to England with her ex-husband and the baby who turned out to be their child and not Wilhelmina’s.

The show gave shining moments to its entire ensemble and also attracted a lot of guest stars. Kristen Chenoweth guest starred as a technician at Betty’s orthodontist’s office. Kathy Najimy played an orthodontist who was the one to finally remove Betty’s adult braces in the final season. Bernadette Peters played a mentor to Betty while Betty and Marc were at a prestigious training program, Young Editors Training Initiative, called Yeti. Shakira, Victoria Beckham, Bow Wow, Gene Simmons, and Betty White showed up as themselves. Adele guest starred as herself before she became a bonafide star. Salma Hayeck who was an executive producer of the show, played Sofia Reyes who was an author. The Karate Kid himself Ralph Macchio played Hilda’s boyfriend who was a public official. Kevin Alejandro known for True Blood and Arrow played Hilda’s ex Santos and was Justin’s father. Hilda and Santos got back together and Santos was killed in the season 1 finale. Adam Rodriguez from CSI: Miami played Hilda’s boyfriend and eventual husband in the final season. Audiences got a pre Schmidt from New Girl when Max Greenfield had a recurring role as Alexis’ assistant. He was also a jerk. The list can go on but I think everyone has a good idea. This show accomplished a lot in four seasons.

There was a lot of character growth over the course of the series. The show gave so many great moments. When the show started Betty was the fish out of water. She enters the fashion magazine world and is not the most fashionable. In fact, the reason she was hired as Daniel’s assistant was because she was not attractive, and Bradford was hoping Daniel would focus on his job instead of getting distracted by a beautiful lady. In time Daniel and Betty became great friends. There were fans who were hoping they would eventually become a couple. They did not by the time the series ended. I also did not want them to be a couple. I liked the idea of them being good friends. It was refreshing that they were not together. Marc and Amanda were best friends and considered the bullies if Mode Magazine was high school. In time Marc and Amanda had nice moments with Betty and they ended up becoming friends/frenemies. Amanda and Betty even lived together at one point. Even Wilhelmina had nice moments with Betty and others once and awhile. She wasn’t always cold as ice.

At the time Ugly Betty was revolutionary. It was one of the first shows to have a transgender main character even though Rebecca Romjin was not transgendered. It also had two gay main characters. Marc was openly gay, and Justin didn’t officially come out until the final season. Back in 2006 it was still not as common for there to be a lot of LGBTQ+ representation especially amongst series regulars. Marc and Justin had a lot of great scenes together.

It’s funny to think that Ugly Betty might have been forward thinking and ahead of its time. If it were on now, it would fit right in. At the end of the day Ugly Betty is a feel good show. That is what I loved most about it and still do. This is one I wish kept going. It was not ready to end. It had more life in it. The cast would love to do a reunion. I know fans would like a reunion. Let’s make that happen.