Once and Again – CliqueClack Flashback

When Once and Again aired between 1999 and 2002, I was freelancing for an editor at a regional magazine, and every morning after the show, we’d email each other to gossip and rag on it. “Did you see what Eli did? And what the heck’s going on with Jessie?” It was just that sort of chick-flicky show that begged to be talked about the next day.

It was sort of a hipper version of thirtysomething, with Sela Ward and Billy Campbell playing two divorcees who meet and become involved, thus entangling everyone else in their lives, including kids, ex-spouses and co-workers.

When I think about Once and Again, the first thing that comes to mind is the incredible actors involved with the show, and none of them were hard to look at either. I had the biggest crush on Billy Campbell — oh, sorry, he likes to be called “Bill” now — and Sela Ward became a household name because of her role as Lily.

Lots of other stars emerged from Once and Again, too: Shane West, who scored a nice gig as Dr. Ray Barnett on ER and has been working steadily in movies; Evan Rachel Wood, who now has an amazing movie career, including starring opposite Mickey Rourke in last year’s runaway hit The Wrestler; Ever Carradine, who’s had great roles in 24, Women’s Murder Club, and Eureka; Jeffrey Nordling, who played the role of Larry Moss on 24 this past season; Todd Field, who went on to direct and/or write many feature films, including the award-winning Little Children in 2006; and Marin Hinkle, who plays Judith Melnick on Two and a Half Men.

Once and Again ran for three seasons, and it was just a really good drama with some comedy thrown in. It was helmed by Marshall Herskovitz and Edward Zwick, the Bedford Falls team who brought us thirtysomething and My So-Called Life, so it went beyond the easy soap opera storylines and got into the nitty-gritty of trying to blend two families who didn’t always want to be blended.

Along with all of the interpersonal drama, the show tackled some touchy issues, like drug abuse, mental illness, eating disorders, and even sexual identity.

From the first few episodes, I knew Once and Again was a show I’d want to have in my collection, so I’ve still got the entire series taped on VHS. The first two seasons were released and discontinued on DVD, but you can still find used copies on Amazon. Season three is yet to be released, but hopefully, we’ll see that sometime in the future, too. If you like the Herskovitz/Zwick style of TV shows, I definitely recommend it.

Anyone else a fan of Once and Again?

Clacked by Jane Boursaw
on Jul 08, 2009 @ 15:05 EST5EDT