The second season of Burning Love is in the books, and while it’s not quite as hilarious as the original, it’s still a lot of fun. Spearheaded by the same husband-wife team as season one (Ken Marino directing, Erica Oyama writing), this sequence stars one of season one’s hopeful bachelorettes, Julie Gristlewhite (the brilliant June Diane Raphael). This time the men are lining up for her hand in marriage, and there is some great comic talent in the lineup. For me the standouts were Adam Scott, Rob Huebel, Jerry O’Connell, Michael Cera, Martin Starr, and Ryan Hansen. And Michael Ian Black reprises his role as ridiculously generic host Bill.
Season two isn’t quite as strong as season one, perhaps because the idea just isn’t as fresh, but I think mostly because the female contestants in season one were more strongly conceived and funnier. Nonetheless the new sequence is still worth watching if you like this kind of humor: merciless reality TV satire, which crosses the line now and then, but is genuinely funny for the most part. Raphael, who delivers a spectacularly manic performance, is worth the price of admission alone. Funny stuff!
