Starz’ Counterpart has been canceled—which is bad, because the show is good

Enlarge / He may not constantly be the central focus of the narrative (as he was in S1), but Howard(s) is still tangled up in all the larger happenings within Counterpart. (credit: Starz) Warning: This story contains minor spoilers for Counterpart S2.


This week, genre TV fans received a bit of bad news. Counterpart, the JK Simmons-led Starz drama combining sci-fi realism with pseudo-Cold War spy thrills, would not be getting a third season.
Deadline reported Starz' decision to cancel came in early January. Presumably execs had already read scripts if not viewed the rest of the season, but the timing certainly wasn't ideal for Counterpart's chances. After a strong S1 that mixed intriguing world-building, a ticking-clock bit of action (via a mysterious assassin), stunning visuals, and an even more beautiful individual discovery arc executed in the capable hands of Simmons, the start of S2... well, it felt flat.
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