The O.C. Season 2

If you want a drama that takes its characters as seriously as its plot, The O.C. Season 2 is available on and right now. A compact run that never overstays its welcome. With 943 viewer ratings on TMDB, this is not a title flying under the radar. Peter Gallagher anchors it with a performance that rewards close attention. Start it whenever you need something guaranteed to land.

The O.C. Season 2 arrived without much fanfare and built its audience the hard way — through word of mouth. The writing in The O.C. Season 2 treats its characters as people first, plot devices second. At the end of last season, Ryan returned to Chino to protect his pregnant ex-girlfriend from her abusive ex-boyfriend and, with the departure of his only friend in Newport Beach, Seth decided to do what he always had planned: sail off on his yacht, the Summer Breeze, and run away from Newport Beach. With Seth and Ryan gone, Kirsten and Sandy try to stay busy with a remodeling project at home, while Julie and Caleb settle into their gorgeous Newport Beach mansion. But now the summer is over, school's about to begin and Ryan and Seth are nowhere to be found. Peter Gallagher and Kelly Rowan lead a cast that brings real weight to the material. It was aired in 2004. The writing trusts the audience to sit with ambiguity rather than wrapping everything up in a tidy conclusion — it is the approach that separates good drama from great. It rarely drops the ball, and when it does, it recovers fast.

Viewers drawn to character-driven storytelling will find plenty to sit with in The O.C. Season 2. It does not lean on comparisons to make its case. The complete run is available and best experienced without too much prior knowledge of where it goes. Peter Gallagher carries the material with a performance that rewards close attention. Worth starting sooner rather than later.