Summary

• Lucky Hank's cancelation after one season is disappointing, as it offered relatable characters and entertaining plotlines.
• The standout episode "The Clock," showcased Odenkirk's career-best performance, adding depth to Hank's character and the series.
• The potential for a second season explored Hank and Lily's evolving relationship and the chaos left at Railton College after Hank's departure.

Bob Odenkirk's end of Better Call Saul, Odenkirk played William Henry "Hank" Devereaux, a jaded English department chairperson and professor at Railton College, located in rural Pennsylvania.

Adapted from Richard Russo's novel Straight Man, the comedic series follows Hank experiencing his own existential crisis while balancing family issues, political drama at Railton College, and the unexpected return of the father who abandoned him. Hank's wife, Lily Devereaux (Mireille Enos), is a high school guidance counselor and is also explored with nuance as she confronts her professional and personal dissatisfaction, Hank's spiraling, and the actions of their immature daughter and son-in-law. Despite Lucky Hank's premature cancelation, it remains one of my favorite new shows from recent years.

I'm Still Disappointed Lucky Hank Was Canceled After Just 1 Season

Lucky Hank Is Relatable, Well-Written, And Entertaining

Lucky Hank's relatable comedy, emotional depth, and colorful cast of characters quickly won me over. After the extreme danger and high tension Odenkirk's Saul Goodman experiences in Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, it is a refreshing change of pace to see him portraying a character facing more low-stakes drama, with just as much sincerity and far more cynicism and self-awareness. Both Hank and Lily deal with everyday mundanities that make them accessible characters, from Hank's jealousy of a former colleague becoming more successful than him to Lily having to pay for basic supplies at her school without being reimbursed.

The eccentric cast of ing characters surrounding Hank and Lily, especially among the faculty of Railton College, also makes the series worth watching. It is amusing to see certain professors' petty grudges and laughable attempts to undermine each other, but it is also easy to get invested in their all-too-common struggle to hold onto their jobs as the institution faces budget cuts. The rivalry between English professors Paul Rourke (Cedric Yarbough) and Gracie DuBois (Suzanne Cryer) is a particular standout throughout the series and has its own arc.

By the end of the season, Hank's arc comes to a mostly satisfying conclusion as he confronts the unresolved trauma from his childhood, does right by his English department and by Railton College, and even leaves the rural town that tied him down so he can be in New York with Lily. Even with Hank's development culminating this way and the series fully adapting its source material, there was still plenty that I was eager for the show to explore. Hank and Lily's marriage and Lily's personal journey still need more focus and resolution.

Lucky Hank Has An Episode That Rivals Odenkirk's Best Work In Better Call Saul

"The Clock" Features One Of Odenkirk's Career-Best Performances

Odenkirk is widely recognized for his outstanding performances in Better Call Saul's best episodes, with "Winner," "Bagman," "Plan and Execution," and the series finale "Saul Gone" among my personal favorites. As strong as these episodes are, Lucky Hank has an installment that rivals it with episode 5, "The Clock." As Hank and Lily host their annual dinner for the English department at their home, a grandfather clock being brought inside and a career-changing decision for Lily lead to a devastating revelation that completely recontextualizes Hank and the entire series.

Despite numerous nominations for his performances in Better Call Saul, Bob Odenkirk has never won an Emmy Award for acting.

"The Clock" is when Lucky Hank reveals itself to be more than a lighthearted comedy, as the source of Hank's childhood trauma becomes clear through Odenkirk's palpable performance. The episode is cleverly structured, with the ongoing ticking of the grandfather clock established at the beginning of the episode, along with title cards sequencing the events through the various stages of a dinner party. As the dinner party becomes increasingly uncomfortable, this structure adds to a sense of dread, and that the series is building to something monumental.

"The Clock" is a narratively risky episode that could have been tonally jarring and destabilized the entire show. The risk instead pays off as it enhances the series by adding more depth to Hank's character and the issues he has with his father. "The Clock" has stuck with me just as much as my favorite Better Call Saul episodes, and I consider it among the best performances of Odenkirk's career, and one that deserves more recognition.

What Could Have Happened In Lucky Hank Season 2

Hank And Lily's Relationship Would Have Been Tested

With Hank unexpectedly reg from Railton College and ing Lily in New York, season 2 would have explored what this development means for their marriage. When Lily first opens her apartment door, she is overjoyed and embraces her husband, but shortly after that, her smile falters, and she begins to look uncertain. Season 2 would explore how their marriage and Lily's own journey, including her new career, would be impacted by this, along with whether Hank can actually be happy with the fresh start he never thought would be possible.

At Railton College, Dean Rose (Oscar Núñez) shreds Hank's resignation letter, which already means Hank's fresh start in New York is unfeasible. Meanwhile, the English department will be left in confused chaos as they are left leaderless and with each of them vying for the chairperson position as they did in parts of season 1. Lucky Hank may not have had the most dramatic of television cliffhangers, but it left me wanting to spend more time with these characters and their relatable struggles.