Upload Season 2 is the opposite of a sophomore slump, delivering a surprisingly confident version of itself

The A.V. Club

"Thanks to a tighter seven-episode run, the Greg Daniels-created series delivers a sharper punch this time around, no longer toggling unevenly between various interesting but scattered ideas. Instead, it solidifies its cognizant approach to topical Big Tech issues while expanding on its earnest elements," says Saloni Gajjar of the Amazon sci-fi series, adding: "Season one struggled to keep things on an even keel, often swiveling between being a charming rom-com, futuristic odyssey, and a paltry murder mystery about who killed Nathan. It’s not flawless in season two, but Daniels and the writers now navigate Upload’s plotlines with a (mostly) unifying thread tying them together, and stringing them into a potential third season."

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• Upload comes into its own in Season 2: "The future of our virtual worlds will be shaped not by what's possible, but what's profitable, and Upload gets that," says Caitlin Welsh. "The series has been compared relentlessly to The Good Place, that other sprightly and sweet afterlife comedy by Daniels' Parks and Recreation co-creator Mike Schur (the two projects were conceived independently, but Schur's happened to get made first). But it's also regularly likened to the notoriously bleak British sci-fi series Black Mirror, and that's because both shows extrapolate the ethical and social dilemmas of technology in a way that feels plausible because their creators understand how we use technology now. We store parts of ourselves in the cloud, we trade crumb after crumb of control over our days for a little convenience, and life also continues to exist outside of tech in much the same way it always does." Welsh adds that Season 2 is "about as subtle as an auto-playing ad popup, but then again, this season was put together during a period where the gulf between the privileged and the less-so was starker than ever. While those of us with office jobs complained (validly!) about our Zoom fatigue and our sh*tty sourdough and loneliness, millions of others were forced to keep the world running at enormous personal risk, or left without income or support at all. Sci-fi stories don't tend."
• There is still no show like Upload: "Created by The Office producer Greg Daniels, Upload is a romantic comedy that also comments on late capitalism, widening wealth gaps, systemic inequities and technological dependence," says Richard Roeper. "It imagines a future in which megacorporations like 'Panera Facebook' and 'FedEx Little Caesars' control most of the world, the wealthy get to live forever while the poor labor to keep them virtually alive, and processed food takes on a whole new meaning. Upload is the rare series that can make a big-picture point about the way we live now (and might in the future), but doesn’t get bogged down by its messaging or world-building. In Season Two, it remains grounded in characters and relationships, with sight gags — terrifying virtual babies, giant Adirondack chairs and floating heads — and deep-cutting wit as a bonus to the emotional story."
• Upload returns with a welcome dose of humor, cynicism and heart: "Upload is the rare series that can make a big-picture point about the way we live now (and might in the future), but doesn't get bogged down by its messaging or world-building," says Kelly Lawler. "In Season 2, it remains grounded in characters and relationships, with sight gags – terrifying virtual babies, giant Adirondack chairs and floating heads – and deep-cutting wit as a bonus to the emotional story."
• Season 2 takes the story deeper, shining a harsher light on the threats of Big Tech and the evils of capitalism: "The opening of Season 2 sees Nora a part of an anti-technology anti-capitalism group living out in the woods, but despite the treachery of the regular world and its invasive tech, the extremist group known as the Ludds have their own flaws," says Therese Lacson. "However, meeting the Ludds finally gives us a firm opposition to Horizons of the world. With commentary on privacy, politics, and socioeconomic imbalance, Upload is still as witty as its first season. The disappointing part is that it means we spend more time with Nathan and Nora apart than we do seeing them together. As the beating heart of the series, Amell and Allo have so much palpable chemistry it made me long for the days of their coy flirtation when she was just his angel and he was just a dead guy."
• Upload stars discuss how the show changed their outlook on technology
• Robbie Amell and Andy Allo preview Nathan and Nora's separate journeys
• Creator Greg Daniels says Upload has evolved thanks to his actors: “The actors bring so (many) new aspects to the show that you didn’t anticipate,” he says. “Once you see them doing that, you start writing towards them. There’s an awful lot in it that I had no idea was coming.”