It has been weeks and I have not gotten Firefly Lane out of my mind. So hoping this little moment here will help and let me forget about this two-season series. Doubtful this will fill the void Firefly Lane has created fully but you’ll never know.
Firefly Lane was the first American television show I tuned in to in over a year. And yes, I watched it before I decided to torture myself with XO, Kitty. I did not expect much from Firefly Lane. I remembered vaguely hearing about it when its first season aired but that was about it. So I’m not entirely certain what prompt me that day to press play and binge the two emotional seasons in three days. At the end of the day, I guess it doesn’t matter. I watched it and here we are.
Best Friends Forever
The plot of Firefly Lane, a series based on a novel, is essentially about a friendship. We follow our main characters Tully (Katherine Heigl) and Kate (Sarah Chalke) throughout their lives. They meet as teenagers when Tully moves across Kate’s house. At first, it seems they won’t get along but that soon changes. A deep bond forms between them and we get to see their lives unfold. The entire series is presented in a non-linear manner so we jump in and out of the past, present and future.
Right from the start we realise that Tully and Kate are very different. Yet they both are incredibly loyal which I think is the reason they gravitate towards each other. There’s an episode where Kate helps Tully hide a body (no worries, he was still alive) with no hesitation. And Tully never falters to protect Kate. Those attitudes follow them to their young adult lives and eventually adult lives. Until their friendship is put to the test.
Tully has done something unforgivable and Kate decides to cut her out of her life. The consequences are hard on both. With so much history between them, it is hard for both of them to just stop being there for one another. As if life isn’t hard enough Kate is delt a bad hand. Queue the tears.
Emotional Damage
The reason I have been thinking about this series for many weeks is its emotional impact. Some things in my personal life made me more vulnerable to Firefly Lane’s heavier themes but I don’t mind. At the end of the day, this show would have affected me anyways.
Spoiler ahead (highlight to read): not one part of me was prepared for the cancer storyline that we were given in the second season. It was simply out of the blue for me and I think that’s why it hurt even more. Especially the way it was written into the show. We had so many real, raw moments with Kate after she found out. Then we got the hope and suddenly the utter devastation. I will mention him later on but Kate’s husband Johnny (Ben Lawson) was incredible in this storyline as well. The way he was not afraid to be vulnerable, I appreciated it even though I cried my eyes out because of him.
Return of Heigl
After receiving hate for her attitude and leaving Hollywood for Lifetime projects, Katherine Heigl is back in action. I never truly hated Heigl but I just wasn’t a fan of her opinions. It’s okay to voice different opinions but one does not need to be almighty about them. Anyway, Heigl is great here. Tully suits her as a role and the slight distrust you need to have towards her character works. She has never been a bad actress, an average one, but with a great role, she manages to stand out.
Firefly Lane also marks a return for her as I’ve seen a lot more of her in the media nowadays. She is having a small comeback moment and I am not mad about it. Until she stays humble and appreciates the projects she is in I’m ready to watch more of her shows and movies.
Sarah Chalke is a name I cannot remember but her face is unforgivable! While I have not been a fan of Scrubs I’ve watched numerous episodes. Which is why I know Chalke’s face so well. In Firefly Lane she gets to explore a more dramatic role but her best moments are when there’s humour! The episode where Kate burns her bum is hilarious, thanks to Chalke. There are also some fun moments between Kate and her love interest which cracked me up.
But on the other side of the spectrum is Chalke’s heavy scenes where she just nails it. I don’t think I have cried as much as I did during Firefly Lane in a long time. It doesn’t help that Ben Lawson as Johnny Ryan is amazing as well! That man had some of the heaviest scenes with Chalke and delivered every second. Had no idea who Lawson was before Firefly Lane but I do now and I hope he gets to shine more.
I also wanted to shoutout the teen Kate and Tully who are also great here! Roan Curtis and Ali Skovbye mesh well together and you truly believe they’ll become great friends. Sometimes with such shows I tend to wait for certain timelines but in Firefly Lane I enjoyed all of them equally. Didn’t want to skip any of them.
Final Thought
Only one thought. I’m glad I watched Firefly Lane but now it’s stuck with me and this did not help to fill the void.
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Honestly, I have no interest in this as I just don’t like Katherine Heigl at all. She’s one-note as an actress where she can try too hard and it comes off as over-the-top at times while who she is as a person is just downright horrible. Plus, she often feels like a total fake at times.
Indeed, she has had some not so great roles but this one suits her. She needs to be unpleasant at times and unlikable, which just makes sense.