Why Timeless Deserves a Second Season
|The series’ fate is currently on the bubble, according to series co-creator Eric Kripke, meaning that it’s completely up in the air whether the show will be renewed or cancelled. As most TV series go, that means it’s all about ratings.
The team behind The TV Junkies is all aboard the #RenewTimeless train, so to offer our support, we’re listing just a few reasons why we’d like to see Timeless stick around for Season 2.
Rufus, Wyatt and Lucy’s chemistry
While Timeless certainly isn’t your average procedural TV drama, it does rely on the key ingredient that can make or break one: a main cast to fall in love with. Thankfully the instant chemistry of Abigail Spencer, Malcolm Barrett and Matt Lanter elevated the show to a genuinely fun experience from the pilot, and hasn’t let us down since. The “unlikely trio” may have taken a long time to truly trust each other, but watching the group’s dynamic develop over the first season has been a real highlight of the series.
The sheer brilliance of the costume and set departments
Arguably the real star of the series is American history itself, and it’s a character that wouldn’t have a leg to stand on without the unbelievable work the show’s crew members put in every single episode. The seamless execution of each new destination, from the Old West to Nazi Germany, is done so flawlessly that we often forget the sheer magnitude it must take to put these sets together each episode. Great work like that deserves to be rewarded.

Its refusal to whitewash history
Something that makes Timeless stand out from all of the other time travel shows out there is its willingness to look at the ugly side of America’s history, in the form of its racism and sexism. There’s a tendency to avoid these scenarios by largely keeping time travellers male and white, but Rufus’ role in Timeless has opened the door to so many different avenues and storylines, and not all of the dark and depressing variety. Meeting Katherine Johnson and the legend behind the Lone Ranger, Bass Reeves, were two serious highlights of the season, and a chance to showcase historical figures that have been largely ignored by high school textbooks.
Flynn is a great villain
Garcia Flynn is a complicated man, and that’s a great attribute to give to a villain. He’s neither a moustache-twirling cartoon character or misunderstood good guy, though Goran Visnjic does an amazing job bringing both sides to the table. Flynn is a man with a purpose, and one that will do anything to reach his goal, even if that means killing innocent people and irrevocably altering America’s history. He’s scary, unpredictable, and someone we can’t help but love to hate.

Getting to meet history’s colorful characters
History has given us no shortage of iconic figures to meet in Timeless‘s first season, from Abraham Lincoln and Ian Fleming to Harry Houdini and Jesse James. Each guest character brings that sense of wonder when you see the person in your history book portrayed on screen, and seeing our heroes meet them adds a little extra joy. Watching Lucy nerd out over historical figures is an unquestionable highlight of the show.
The Rittenhouse mystery
Though Timeless tends to fall under the case (or, in this instance, time period) of the week, each episode takes us one step closer to unraveling the mystery of Rittenhouse, an organization as old as America itself. As an overarching narrative, Rittenhouse has helped the writers tie the entire season together, not to mention giving us all the Illuminati conspiracy theories we can handle.
Its time travel has real consequences
Time travel is tricky, especially when you get into the age old debate of fate versus free will. From Lucy’s sister disappearing in the pilot episode, Timeless raised the stakes by confirming that any small action can have serious consequences for the future. In doing that, every little thing that goes wrong could spell disaster for the timeline, adding a kind of tension that doesn’t always exist in every time travel film or television show. It’s what makes Timeless that more thrilling to tune in each week for.

The romantic tension between Lucy and Wyatt
Lucy and Wyatt’s relationship started off pretty cut and dry–they annoyed each other, butt heads over every little thing, but despite that they slowly warmed up to one another as time went on. It’s the will they/won’t they dynamic that romance lovers can’t get enough of. Then Timeless goes and makes it even more complicated by adding Wyatt’s tragic past. Needless to say, Wyatt and Lucy have epic love story potential that needs to be seen through.
It’s fun to watch
Bottom line? Timeless is a thrill-ride action/adventure series that’s a joy to watch. Even if you’re not a history buff or a philosophy major, each episode gives us a chance to sit back and escape into an impossible world of time travelling adventure, with enough twists and turns to always keep us guessing. That, in itself, is worth a second season.
Do you think Timeless should be renewed for Season 2? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
Timeless airs Mondays at 10 p.m. ET on NBC and Global.
I really tried with Timeless. However, the show’s time travel of the week procedural take was a bit annoying. I would have rather had a straight out serial drama. Having the team go to big history events every week kind of interferred with the momentum of the main story, kind of the way flashbacks made me stop watching How to Get Away with Murder, Arrow and Quantico. I want a straight out serial drama and in today’s world of peak TV with endless shows to pick from, a show like Timeless just doesn’t make the cut for me. Had it been 2007, it probably would have.
I love this show! Matt Lanter is great! Please renew for another year. The historical element is brings our past alive on the screen.
I love historical fiction and think Timeless does an excellent job of weaving a narrative story within historical events. The characters have such chemistry and I enjoy going to another era and not thinking about the disasters of today. I hope you keep Timeless on your slate of shows.
We (my husband and I ) LOVE timeless. It actually keeps one on their toes as far as the ‘real history’ is concerned and the character are endearing and challenging, all at the same time. We want more! Please give us Season 2!!
This is one of those shows that NEVER ceases to entertain. I also love that I can miss an episode but still follow what’s happening. It’s also something I can watch with my kids. (Granted, the Murder Hotel episode was one I had them skip). Please NBC, bring it back!!!!
My husband and I are history geeks and LOVE this show! It’s entertaining, suspenseful, and educational in a totally non-boring way! I’ve spent hours on Wikipedia reading up on people I’ve never heard of, because of this show! It’s even helped us correctly guess two Final Jeopardy answers! PLEASE RENEW!!! We’ve never watched such a smart, socially conscious, fun show!
This is a great family show! Our children ages 10-15 watch it with us and we discuss the historical and social issues it raises. It is smartly written, suspenseful, and a fresh take on time travel. It addresses social issues like race and women’s place in history without sounding “activist” or having an agenda. It has been cool to entertained and learning at the same time. We sincerely hope to see it for years to come!
A good show!
We love this show! It’s suspenseful, and the acting is amazing.
What a great article! Thanks.
I LOVE Timeless!! It does a great job of bringing history to life. I seriously hope that it is renewed!!