'Catastrophe' and the case for short television seasons

Even critics who write about nothing BUT television seem to feel overwhelmed by the Peak TV era, so as a critic who also writes about movies, books, music and the state of American culture at large, I know that I'm missing more than my share of good television shows.

And I was particularly embarrassed that I didn't find time to watch "Catastrophe," the sharp British comedy about a couple who get married after their fling results in a pregnancy, after Amazon imported it last year. (You probably know this by now, but Amazon Chief Executive Jeffrey P. Bezos owns The Washington Post.)

The beauty of "Catastrophe" - and not just because it helps me manage my deeply impossible TV-watching schedule - is that it's short. So when the screeners for the excellent second season, which arrived Friday on Amazon, arrived in my mailbox, I caught up over the course of a highly pleasant afternoon, giggling so loud that I disturbed my co-workers.

And while the fact that a season of "Catastrophe" is only six episodes long is professionally convenient, it's also an admirable show of creative restraint. At a moment when too many streaming shows feel like their seasons are artificially padded, "Catastrophe" is the rare series that actually left me wanting more.

Six half-hour episodes is not a terribly long time in which to convince an audience that it's a good idea for two strangers, Sharon (Sharon Horgan) and Rob (Rob Delaney), to not simply have the baby they conceived by accident, but also to get married. But one of the accomplishments of "Catastrophe" is the compelling chemistry and easy rapport between Sharon and Rob. You don't need to belabor the idea that two people are meant to be together when it's fun simply to watch them sit at a cafe table and talk.

Going with six episodes rather than 10 or 13 also allows "Catastrophe" to ration the swirl of eccentrics around Sharon and Rob. If "Catastrophe" spent a whole season harping on Rob's awful mother, Mia (Carrie Fisher), it might have curdled; in small doses, she's a great opportunity for a story about how couples bond over the trials of their in-laws.

If Mia is still frustrating in the second season, "Catastrophe" manages to give Rob and Sharon's friends more depth. Party animal Dave's (Daniel Lapaine) newfound sobriety has cured him of one set of vexing characteristics, but made him righteous and emotionally open in a way that's both tender and annoying. Homeopath Fran (Ashley Jensen) has separated from Chris (Mark Bonnar), and "Catastrophe" manages to make their forays into dating and sexual experimentation touching; they're far more appealing trying to confront their anxieties honestly than they were faking a perfect life.

And "Catastrophe" is at its best when it's leaning into the idea that for all that Sharon and Rob took a leap together, the hard work of building an actual relationship is still ahead of them. It's the rare series that manages to make you worry for the couple at the heart of it without taking you emotionally hostage with periodic threats that they might break up.

At a moment when streaming services still feel the need to prove that they can make so-called prestige dramas that revel in grim violence and prestige comedies that wave their glumness like a flag, "Catastrophe" is to Amazon what Aziz Ansari's charming romantic comedy "Master of None" is to Netflix. They might be digestible trifles. But sometimes a perfectly composed amuse-bouche is better than the tasting menu that drags on far too long, and ends with an overcooked steak.