I really enjoyed the first season, and the idea of imperfect characters dealing with a modern-day mystery...but something is seriously missing in the second season. It's as if the writers haven't bothered to imagine how a normal person would ACTUALLY deal with a traumatic event at their own hand. They have spun the characters off into their own ridiculous plot lines which are not a) entertaining or b) clever or c) realistic enough for us to empathize with the characters' actions and emotions. The characters have become caricatures in a slapstick comedy, killing the tension that was so powerful in the first season - the idea that they are normal, everyday kids caught in an outrageous situation. They have become MORE outrageous than the story, IMO, and it just seems to be trying too hard.Also, the dubious timelines are really annoying - how much time has passed? How could Elliott have spiraled into insanity so quickly? It all feels lazy and amateurish...as do ideas like Elliott suddenly cr*pping his pants, and the Canadian man having sex with a tree. Maybe it worked better on paper, I don't know.If there's a third season, I just hope they put away the bag of tricks and bring the characters back down to earth (except for Drew, who's yet to develop a personality).

I think that some of the negative reviews of this show were a little harsh, of course these characters are ordinary, there's nothing special about any of them, that's the point. They're stuck in the millennial haze of social-media-obsessed society, and nothing they do seems genuine, to the point where Elliott's charity event seems superficial and disingenuous. So when the mystery of Chantal's disappearance gets dumped in Dory's lap, of course she's going to make more of it than it really is, and the results are ultimately hilarious. Dory's overactive imagination is the result of desperately looking for meaning in her life. How rare to find a show that makes you think, for once.Update for season 2: I upgraded my rating for this show because season two is even better than season 1. This show proves what can happen when you focus on the writing, create compelling characters, and balance the unexpected or the absurd with the mundane. Every scene from season 2 is a gem; that whole cupcake scenario was brilliantly written and performed. At first glance the characters in this show appear to lack any depth, but all of them are working some angle for their own benefit. When Julian catches Dory coming out of her apartment and asks for her help, her reaction is priceless...she's dealing with some heavy issues but once she learns that Julian's boss is harassing him, she boldly asks if there's any way to get money out of it.I finally found a new favorite show, and I can't wait for season three.

7 episodes in and I'm hooked! This show is absolutely HILARIOUS!!! The style of humour is somewhere between Broad City and Louis; it's quite dark and weird at times but also fun and irreverent. The cast is awesome, doing a really good job portraying characters who are deeply flawed and making them entertaining to watch. A lot of the comedy stems from making fun of them and the often ridiculous things they do but it's not mean spirited; the show has a real charm to it that makes it ideal for binge watching. Every episode adds another layer to the mystery and we watch the characters unravel and get into ever-increasingly bizarre situations that all had me laughing out loud and often cringing too. One of my new favourites!

Search Party isn't a non-stop laughfest, nor is it a dreary ID crime investigation, and it certainly isn't a perfect blend of the two. What it is, however, is a realistic journey of self-trust. This isn't a show where the main character is a genius and can link clues at a rapid pace or where a team of expert analysts know exactly where to find the next missing piece. This is a show where an everyday woman with nothing to lose puts herself in charge of her own life and throws everything she has into this mystery.Each episode doesn't give leaps and bounds of clues for the mystery, like investigations in the real-world. Dory is an everyday woman, and Search Party follows her personal conspiracy and investigation in a real-to-life pace.The characters are flawed, just like real people, and if you find them distasteful it's because they were written to be that way. The whole opening theme is that Dory finds herself stuck in life. Stuck with a dead-end job, stuck with lackluster friends, and stuck with a unsatisfactory boyfriend, but the one thing she does have, (as another character notes), is this conspiracy of a girl from her past who goes missing.If you want an action show watch Hawaii Five-0, if you want a comedy watch Angie Tribeca, but if you want a realistic underdog story this is the show for you. You're not supposed to be recovering minute-to-minute from drama or laughter, real people don't have that every waking moment of every single day, you're slugging it out with Alia Shawkat (who SHINES) and witnessing Dory make something out of herself.