Why ‘Take My Wife’ Fans Almost Didn’t See Season 2 Of This Inclusive & Hilarious Web Series

Season 2 of Take My Wife will have spent a great deal of time in limbo before premiering on Starz On Demand on May 1. After Seeso, the online network that aired the comedy's first season, closed its doors, the fate of Take My Wife and other series were left up in the air. With the series now being a part of the Starz library, the top question on the minds of fans has gone from "Will I ever get to see Season 2?" to "Will there be a Season 3 of Take My Wife?"

It was announced in August of 2017 that Seeso, NBCUniversal's all-comedy streaming platform, would be shutting down, per The Verge. In the wake of this announcement, the future of the many original programs that were commissioned by the network looked uncertain. While some shows, including the travel program Hidden America With Jonah Ray and the exuberant advice show My Brother, My Brother, And Me found new homes on streaming site VRV, Take My Wife and many other Seeso programs were without a home. However, the dreams of all those who fell in love with Take My Wife Season 1 came true when it was announced by Deadline that Starz had acquired a number of Seeso properties – including The UCB Show, Night Train with Wyatt Cenac, and The Pistol Shrimps, and would be streaming them on Starz On Demand and the Starz app. While it's already a wonder that Take My Wife Season 2 is finally being made available for streaming, the truly exciting prospect of the Starz acquisition of the show is the premium network is putting investment into a show that puts a strong focus on inclusivity.

In Take My Wife, real-life couple and stand-up comedians Cameron Esposito and Rhea Butcher play fictionalized versions of themselves as they balance their marriage with various professional comedy gigs, from working open mic nights to guest-hosting podcasts. While Take My Wife is far from the first show to be set in the stand-up realm, it made a big impact by using the lives of the show's creators to give platforms to voices not usually heard on television.

In a tweet from co-creator and star Cameron Esposito following the announcement that Seeso was shutting down, Esposito pointed out that both seasons of Take My Wife featured all-female writers rooms, and that the writing room for the second season was 43% comprised of women of color. Her statement continue, "In [Season 2], 22 of our 47 roles were played by out LGBTQ+ actors. We cannot think of a single season of tv that has employed more out queer actors."

Take My Wife did not just move the needle by being about a relationship that's still not commonly the center of the action of TV, but also marked a push forward for behind-the-scenes inclusivity as well. While many comedy nerds were sorely disappointed to learn that Seeso was not going to continue into 2018, the biggest blow was that it seemed as though there was one less home for shows like Take My Wife — which makes Starz purchasing the series all the more exciting.

Variety reports that C. Brett Marottoli, head of program acquisitions for Starz said, "We are excited to address the uncertain fate of several Seeso series, including the beloved Take My Wife series, by providing a new home for these programs and their fans at Starz." It's worth noting that Take My Wife is the series that a Starz executive choose to draw attention to.

So while there has been no announcement yet regarding the series' future, the network's executive's excitement about making Take My Wife part of the Starz slate hints that Season 2 may not be the end of one of television's hidden gems.