The father-son duo of Rob Lowe and John Owen Lowe are back with season 2 of their eccentric comedy “Unstable.” The Netflix series, created by the Lowes and Victor Fresco, tickles the funny bones with its sharp and precise quips and jabs. All the episodes leave you smiling, even if they do not exactly make you want to go, ‘Haha.’
The second season, in which Andrew Gurland replaces Fresco as the showrunner, falters a bit compared to the first one. However, the interplay between the real-life father-son duo, the strong supporting cast, and some quirky new additions to the characters list make the new season comfortably entertaining, especially if you already loved the first one, which I did.
Unstable (Season 2) Netflix Recap:
In last season’s finale, Ellis Dragon (Rob Lowe) burnt Jean’s car. This season starts with Ellis expecting to be in prison for that. He, with his in-house therapist Leslie (Fred Armisen), practices for life in prison. Jackson (John Owen Lowe), on the other hand, tries to make a name on his own, separated from his father Ellis. While in a pub with Luna (Rachel Marsh) and Ruby (Emma Ferreira), Jackson meets Peter (Lamorne Morris), another tech genius touted to be the next Ellis Dragon. Peter’s company is working on developing bio-battery, a project Jackson seems keen to join.
As Jackson joins Peter’s company, trying to spread his own wings in the biotech industry, Ellis buys Peter out. Ellis’ reluctance to let Jackson go ensures Jackson leaves his father’s house to stay with his friend, Malcolm (Aaron Branch). Eventually, the father and son bury their hatchet in a friendly but not-so-friendly game of tennis. Meanwhile, Anna (Sian Clifford), who had to reach out to her ex-husband to save Ellis from going to prison, has to bond with her step-daughter Georgia as a returning favor. Georgia starts to work as an intern under Anna at Dragon Inc.
Ellis and Jackson continue to work on their relationship through a variety of challenges as Ellis tries to groom Jackson to take over Dragon Inc. They try their hands on Motion Capture and an office retreat. Ellis tries to pit Jackson and Peter against each other so that Jackson becomes interested in taking Leadership roles at Dragon. But Peter starts to grow on most people, including Anna. Things escalate a bit when Peter gets a death threat, causing Ellis to feel insecure as he is not getting any death threats.
To satiate Ellis’ ego, Anna writes a death threat pretending to be ‘Dragon Slayer.’ To make it sound more believable, Anna enlists Georgia’s help, and death threats start to pile up as Jackson gets involved, too. Eventually, Anna has to confess to being the author of those threats, and Ellis takes severe offense. He just takes off in his car, and Jackson has to accompany him. He also throws their phones away, meaning Anna cannot contact them.
Unstable (Season 2) Netflix Review:
The first season of “Unstable,” featuring Rob Lowe’s zany millionaire tech-genius Ellis Dragon, was a breath of fresh air. With its tender approach to tackling grief and its exploration of the chaotic dynamic of a father-son relationship, the first season benefitted a lot from the chemistry of the Lowes. Inevitably, you would expect the novelty to wear off in the second season. New showrunner Andrew Gurland has his hands full in that regard. At one point, it appears that “Unstable” often dips into the already-established chemistry between the two Lowes. Especially during the middle episodes, the repetition of the power dynamic between Ellis and John Owen Lowe’s Jackson would become noticeable.
However, “Unstable” still finds a way to be funny most of the time. It has its dialogues and its ensemble cast to thank for that. The series had some whacky but sharply written dialogues in its first season. Thankfully, it continues to be equally witty and weird when it comes to that. In fact, the cast revels with that writing. Rob Lowe, once again, solidly leads the pack while John Owen Lowe plays a perfect second fiddle. But it is the supporting cast, the size of which is increased by two new members, that shines above all.
Firstly, Fred Armisen’s Leslie, Ellis’s in-house therapist, needs to be mentioned. Armisen’s downright unhinged Leslie doubles down on Lowe’s Ellis’ eccentricity. One would often wonder if Leslie is the more unstable one. Then we have the ever-dependable Sian Clifford with another superbly funny act as Ellis’ frustrated CFO, Anna. Iris Apatow debuts as the wild-card Georgia, and despite initial hiccups, one must say that addition worked well. The only complaint might be that Emma Ferreira’s Ruby and Rachel Marsh’s Luna, the banter between whom was one of the high points of the first season, take the backseat in this season. Here’s to hoping for more of them in upcoming seasons.
Unstable (Season 2) Netflix Ending Explained:
Why Did Anna Betray Ellis?
With the upcoming BioTexpo in mind, Anna is already under a lot of pressure. Since the death of Ellis’ wife, which is the starting point of this series, Ellis has been unstable. And it has been Anna all along who has had to steer Dragon Inc. in the right direction. With Peter’s capable hands, Anna starts to feel her workload decreasing. It is understandable why she would be burnt out by constantly taking care of Ellis’ problems and the company’s problems.
Ellis’ departure without any notice, combined with his unreachability, becomes the last straw. Anna recommends Peter become interim CEO and replace Ellis. With Ellis seemingly hanging Anna and Peter out to dry, it was the only sane choice she had, even if Ellis would eventually return and learn about this ‘betrayal.’
Will Jackson and Georgia be Together?
Ellis and Jackson, on Ellis’s insistence, mostly pretend to be realtors to attend a real estate convention. Ellis takes the persona ‘Ron Tabasco’ while Jackson also pretends to be another realtor in town. Subsequently, Ron Tabasco connects well with a trio of women realtors, giving his confidence a boost. The scheme works well for Jackson, and he reveals all that he hates about Ellis. He says these things in front of Ellis, but Ellis cannot do anything as he pretends to be Ron. This almost-altercation ends happily as they both bond by realizing what they realized before as well. They both miss the one significant woman in their life.
Ellis decides to be more supportive of Jackson. He even arranges a date with Georgia. Georgia tells Jackson that she is leaving Dragon Inc. With Jackson’s history of romantic entanglement not going anywhere, there is significant progress here. Jackson handles this relationship more maturely than he did with Luna or Ruby. It leaves the possibility that Jackson and Georgia might just work well together.
Will There be Season 3 of Unstable? What is Next for Ellis Dragon?
Ellis eventually shows great graciousness. His detour as Ron Tabasco helps him realize how much Anna has helped him. He apologizes to Anna and accepts Peter as interim CEO. However, because of how unstable he is and how unstable Leslie is, Ellis gets into a scheme with Leslie to start Ellis U (University): a college to mostly scam folks. For Ellis, this becomes another pet project to boost his own ego. He eventually damages the prototype of the bio-battery that Peter is supposed to present at BioTexpo.
However, with help from Malcolm and Jackson, Ellis finds the truth. He unmasks the person who has been threatening Peter. This guy, Sydney, actually pretended to be an applicant for Ellis U and stole the bio-battery prototype. He destroyed a fake prototype so that it would look like it was damaged. Ellis pays Sydney off and gets the bio-battery back—just in time for Peter’s presentation. And with that, Peter gives a great BioTexpo presentation—a big success as interim CEO.
As Jackson and Ellis seem to be content with Peter taking the helm for a while, the season comes to a fitting end. However, “Unstable” remains open for extension. Just before the credits roll, we see Ellis, with Leslie again, pitch to the audience to become the President. Now, whether it is another example of their wild schemes or there is some truth in it, it would need another season to explore that. So, it does appear likely that there could be a season 3 after all, which is something I would not mind at all.
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