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The Daily Star, Oneonta, N.Y., Friday, March 19, 2021 4 By Kyla Brewer TV Media I n the early days of television, TV dads always seemed to know just what to do. They would calmly dole out wit and wisdom on shows such as "Leave It to Beaver," "Father Knows Best" and "The Dick Van Dyke Show." However, to- day's TV fathers may not al- ways know best, and one show is following a dad who's ad- mittedly far from perfect. Emmy winner Martin Free- man ("Fargo") reprises his role as Paul Worsley, a father of two who struggles to keep it to- gether as his kids endlessly push his buttons, in Season 2 of the dark comedy "Breed- ers," premiering Monday, March 22, on FX. A co-produc- tion of FX Productions, Avalon Television and Sky Original Productions, the series also stars Daisy Haggard ("Back to Life") as Paul's wife, Ally. Martin is not only one of the stars of the series, he is also one of the show's creators. The actor claims he had been in- spired to create the show after having a dream about yelling at his children. He explained the premise in an interview with Variety when the first sea- son of "Breeders" premiered in March 2020. "It doesn't tip over into be- ing actually traumatic, but it should ring bells as far as the things that don't make you proud as a parent — the things that you don't even necessarily bring up at dinner parties," Freeman said. "We decided to bring it up on TV instead." Chris Addison ("Mock of the Week") and Simon Blackwell ("Veep") are also credited as co-creators of the series, and Blackwell serves as the show- runner. The series has officially been in the works since March 2018, though it was originally attached to FX and BBC. By Oc- tober of that year, Sky had re- placed BBC, and "Breeders" received a 10-episode order. According to the official FX website, the show is about "the parental paradox that you'd happily die for your chil- dren but quite often also want to kill them." In the first sea- son, Paul and Ally dealt with the very real pressures of mod- ern-day parenting while trying to stay connected romantically, work full time and maintain their sanity, which, as just about any parent can attest, is no small feat. At the time, their son, Luke (George Wakeman, "The Secret Life of Brothers and Sisters"), was just 7 years old and their daughter, Ava (Jayda Eyles, "A Confession"), was 4. Although Paul and Ally were past the constant sleep- less nights and endless diaper- ing phase of parenting, there were still plenty of challenges in raising their youngsters. However, as they will likely learn in Season 2 of "Breed- ers," parenting older children doesn't necessarily mean things get any easier. The show, which was renewed for a sec- ond season in May 2020, fea- tures a time jump as the family fast-forwards a few years. Luke, now played by Alex East- wood ("Creeped Out"), is 13 and has been suffering from anxiety. Ava, now played by Eve Prenelle ("To Olivia," 2021), is 10 and is becoming more independent by the day. All the while, both children continue to test their parents' patience. To make matters worse, the new season presents Paul and Ally with a whole slew of chal- lenges that have nothing to do with their kids. As their own parents age, they realize they will have to get used to the idea of looking after them as well. Joanna Bacon ("Love Ac- tually," 2003) portrays Paul's mother, Jackie, while Alun Arm- strong ("Penny Dreadful") plays his father, Jim. Stella Gonet ("Holby City") appears as Ally's mother, Leah, and American actor Michael McK- ean ("Better Caul Saul") stars as Ally's estranged father, Mi- chael. Season 2 was filmed in Lon- don over the course of several weeks between late summer and fall of last year, but it was not immune to the impact of the global COVID-19 pandem- ic. Like many other productions the world over, work on the show was delayed by the virus and even halted for a couple of weeks following a positive CO- VID-19 test result. Fortunately, the cast and crew persevered and the 10-episode season is now ready to go. It maybe also be important to note that this isn't the first time Freeman has found suc- cess on FX. He starred in the in- augural season of FX's "Far- go," a TV adaptation of the 1996 Coen brothers film of the same name, earning him wide- spread acclaim and numerous industry accolades for his por- trayal of anti-hero Lester Nygaard. It was one of the rare times Freeman had not been cast as the "good guy," having risen to fame for more clean- cut roles such as Tim in the Brit- ish version of "The Office," Hobbit Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit film trilogy and, more recently, in "Black Panther" (2018) as CIA agent Everett K. Ross. His role as Paul in "Breed- ers" is once again a departure from his previous milquetoast, Everyman image. As weary parents around the world face mounting pres- sures of caring for their parents and/or their children during a pandemic, Freeman's "Breed- ers" could find an even bigger audience this season. The show returns with back-to-back new episodes, the first of which finds Paul and Ally wondering whether their parenting style will still work as their kids get older. In the second new epi- sode, tensions are high as Luke's anxiety becomes an is- sue and Ally's mother, Leah, is robbed. Don't miss the Season 2 premiere of "Breeders," air- ing Monday, March 22, on FX. coverstory Martin Freeman stars in "Breeders" Father doesn't know best: Martin Freeman's 'Breeders' returns to FX By Adam Thomlison TV Media Q: Did any of the characters from "Frasier" appear on "Cheers" first? Other than Frasier, of course. A: That's an interesting question. There were, of course, loads of cameos by "Cheers" characters on "Frasier," but did any of "Frasier's" main characters first appear in smaller roles on "Cheers"? The short answer is no, though I'm putting an asterisk beside Lilith (played by Bebe Neuwirth, "Jumanji," 1995). In fact, two of the main characters couldn't possibly have appeared on the original show because "Cheers" claimed they didn't exist. Let's get Lilith out of the way first. Is she a "Cheers" character who did cameos on "Frasier," or a "Frasier" character who was launched, like the title character him- self, on "Cheers"? She did a mere 12 episodes of "Frasier" versus 80 episodes of "Cheers," but she very much existed in relation to her ex-husband Dr. Frasier Crane, who was introduced a season earlier than her on "Cheers." Meanwhile, two of "Frasier's" central characters, his fa- ther, Martin (John Mahoney, "Barton Fink," 1991), and his brother, Niles (David Hyde Pierce, "A Bug's Life," 1998), couldn't possibly have appeared on "Cheers" because they only exist through a rewriting of the character's histo- ry. It was stated on "Cheers" that Frasier Crane is an only child. "Frasier's" producers said they decided to add Niles' character to the show only after having seen Hyde Pierce's tape and wanting to get him involved. It was also stated on "Cheers" that Frasier's dad was a research scientist. Instead, the "Frasier" team opted to re- write him as a retired cop to provide a better contrast with his more "uppity" sons. There are a couple of other interesting "Cheers"-to- "Frasier" cases, but these are more regarding the actors, not the characters. Q: What's Deedle-Dee Productions? It seems like their name is at the end of all my favorite shows. A: The title cards at the end of TV shows can suggest the existence of a company somewhere with a headquarters, an HR department and all the rest, but they're often just people. This is the case with Deedle-Dee Productions, which is comedy writer Greg Daniels ("The Office") operating un- der a company name. That's not to say he doesn't have staff, but the shows that feature the garishly colored Dee- dle-Dee Productions card at the end are the various sit- coms produced and written by Daniels. The company might seem to be everywhere because they weren't just any sitcoms — Daniels held the pen on a few of the most important sitcoms of the past 20 years. Daniels started as a writer on "Saturday Night Live," but Deedle-Dee began with "King of the Hill," which Daniels co-created in 1997 with fellow sitcom great Mike Judge. From there, Daniels went on to create "The Office" and "Parks and Recreation." Together, those three shows helped to define the post-laugh track era of TV comedy. Have a question? Email us at questions@tvtabloid.com. Please include your name and town. Personal replies will not be provided. hollywoodQ&A

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