Somewhere Wonderful

Since I’m trying (emphasis on trying) to have a more positive outlook heading into 2025, I thought I’d mention one more thing I’m thankful for in 2024. “Somebody Somewhere,” which ended its third and final season earlier this month, is easily one of my favorite shows of the year. In fact it’s easily one of my favorite shows of the past several years. Possibly, and this is a big statement, of all time. But, definitively, it’s the best, most lovely TV show I watched this past year. Period.

This small, unassuming series about a middle-aged woman and her gay best friend living in their small Kansas hometown feels like the warmest, tenderest of hugs. But it’s not just an exercise in sugary feel-good weepiness. All of its tears – and believe me I cried buckets during the finale – are earned through real connection with these imperfect but still trying characters. You will recognize the elemental bonds between Sam and Joel. You will feel the complicated prickliness surrounding Sam and her sister, Tricia. You will welcome the embrace of this group of oddball outsiders who form a family. Bridget Everett & Co. poured so much love into these people’s lives and allows them to take up space in a world that so often ignores (or even worse) the so-called weirdos. And lest you think it is all just schmaltzy rainbows shit, this show is funny. So. Fucking. Funny.

I’ve always called “Somebody Somewhere” a little show with a big heart. This transplanted Midwestern gal feels seen, and anyone with a found family will feel at home. That we got three whole seasons is a gift in itself. And it’s one I will cherish, and rewatch, forever. Happy end of 2024, kittens.