Special (TV series)

Special is an American comedy-drama television series created by Ryan O'Connell for Netflix. Starring Ryan O'Connell, the series is a semi-autobiographical account of his life as a gay man in Los Angeles with cerebral palsy pursuing new friendships, relationships, and self-sufficiency.

It is based on O'Connell's memoir I'm Special: And Other Lies We Tell Ourselves.

The series premiered on April 12, 2019, and concluded on May 20, 2021, after two seasons. It received positive reviews and earned four nominations at the 71st Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards, one for Outstanding Short Form Comedy or Drama Series and three for the performances of Ryan, Jessica Hecht, and Punam Patel.

Synopsis
Special is "a distinctive and uplifting new lgbtq series about a gay man, Ryan, with mild cerebral palsy who decides to rewrite his identity and finally go after the life he wants to live."

Main

 * Ryan O'Connell as Ryan Hayes, an unpaid intern at Eggwoke
 * Jessica Hecht as Karen Hayes, Ryan's mother
 * Punam Patel as Kim Laghari, Ryan's friend and co-worker at Eggwoke
 * Marla Mindelle as Olivia, Ryan and Kim's boss
 * Augustus Prew as Carey, one of Kim's best friends.
 * Patrick Fabian as Phil, Karen's new neighbor and love interest
 * Max Jenkins as Tanner (season 2), Ryan's love interest who is in an open relationship with a man named Richard

Recurring

 * Gina Marie Hughes as Samantha, Ryan and Kim's co-worker at Eggwoke
 * Buck Andrews as Henry (season 2), a neurodivergent love interest of Ryan

Guest stars

 * Kat Rogers as Caitie
 * Jason Michael Snow as Keaton
 * Brian Jordan Alvarez as Shay
 * Shalita Grant as Rae
 * Charlie Barnett as Harrison (season 2), Kim's love interest. He comes from a poor and difficult background. After the sale of his company he becomes quite wealthy but it comes with a struggle with his family, who wants part of his money.
 * Ana Ortiz as Susan (season 2), Phil's new girlfriend
 * Utkarsh Ambudkar as Ravi (season 2), a childhood friend and romantic interest of Kim
 * Lauren Weedman as Tonya (season 2), a longtime friend of Karen
 * Anjali Bhimani as Bina Laghari (season 2), Kim's mother
 * Ajay Mehta as Vijay Laghari (season 2), Kim's father
 * Karan Soni as Dev Laghari (season 2), Kim's brother
 * Leslie Jordan as Charles (season 2)
 * Jeremy Glazer as Marc Miller (season 2), second love interest of Ryan

Development
On February 5, 2019, Netflix announced that it had given the production a series order for an eight-episode first season. The series is created by Ryan O'Connell, who is credited as an executive producer, alongside Jim Parsons, Anna Dokoza, Eric Norsoph and Todd Spiewak. Production companies involved with the series were slated to consist of That's Wonderful Productions and Stage 13. On December 16, 2019, the series was renewed for a second and final season by Netflix.

Casting
Alongside the series order announcement, it was confirmed that Ryan O'Connell, Jessica Hecht, Punam Patel, Marla Mindelle, Augustus Prew, and Patrick Fabian would star in the series. In February 2020, Max Jenkins was cast in the recurring role for the second season. In March 2021, Charlie Barnett, Ana Ortiz, Utkarsh Ambudkar, Lauren Weedman, Buck Andrews, Anjali Bhimani, Ajay Mehta, and Karan Soni joined the cast in recurring roles while Leslie Jordan was cast to guest star.

Release
On March 25, 2019, Netflix released the first official trailer for the series. The first season, consisting of 8 episodes, was released on Netflix on April 12, 2019. The second season was released on May 20, 2021.

Critical response
The first season received positive reviews upon its release. On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the series holds an approval rating of 96% with an average rating of 7.30/10 based on 25 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "Honest and genuinely affecting, Special lives up to its name with a funny—if a bit too concise—first season brightened by Ryan O'Connell's infectious charms. On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 66 out of 100, based on 9 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Variety gave the show a positive review calling the main character "quick and snarky, deeply insecure and sometimes more selfish than he's willing to admit. He makes mistakes and pays for them, undergoing a hell of a lot of change in the short time Special gets to show it." TV Guide gave the show a mixed review saying that, "Hopefully Special gets a second season with a bigger budget, a writing staff, and more time to plan. The way Season 1 improves as it goes along shows Special still has a lot of potential."