Yet another coming-of-age series centered on the supernatural adventures of teen girls has been canceled after one season, with Syfy's "Astrid & Lilly Save The World" joining the ranks of shows like "Paper Girls" and "First Kill." Unfortunately, the social media campaign to #RenewAstridAndLilly was not enough to convince the network to continue the show past its debut season, which is a legitimate shame for all involved and all who loved it.
Often described as "Booksmart" meets "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," the delightful "Astrid & Lilly Save the World" was a series about high school best friends Astrid (Jana Morrison) and Lilly (Samantha Aucoin) who are cursed with the devastating reality of being "unpopular." After finally hitting their limit of enduring bullying by their classmates, the two finally lash out and … open a portal to a monster dimension.
Unfortunately, as TV Line reported, the numbers for "Astrid & Lilly Save The World" just weren't there to justify a continuation. The show aired around the same time as the Syfy hit series "Resident Alien," but couldn't manage to pull a "Seinfeld"/"Friends," and maintain the audience. It was reported that the March finale only took in roughly 200,000 viewers. For comparison's sake, the second season premiere of the USA and Syfy series "Chucky" snagged 675,000.
As sad as I am about the cancellation of "Astrid & Lilly," I am unfortunately in no way surprised. This was an underdog series by design, and it's a tragedy that more people didn't tune in.
Why We Need Shows Like Astrid & Lilly Save The World
I discovered "Astrid & Lilly Save the World" when clips of the show began circulating on TikTok and immediately knew it was something special. Jana Morrison and Samantha Aucoin are two ridiculously talented actors, who also happen to play fat, teen girl protagonists.
Growing up, I could count on one hand the number of characters on TV who were my age and looked like me, and they were often accompanied by cruel jokes or a dreaded fart sound effect added in post (everyone who worked with Josh Peck as a child owes him an apology). Fat people are seldom given the chance to star in anything other than awful comedies or tragedy porn, but Astrid and Lilly got to be heroes. To add to it, Lilly is also a character coming to terms with her queerness throughout the first season and is presented in a way that feels authentic and as appropriately messy as high school experiences tend to be.
I can't help but think that if "Astrid & Lilly Save the World" had been a streaming exclusive series like "Love, Victor" or "Heartstopper," it would have found its audience and grown the fanbase it deserves, but there's no point in speculating over "What ifs?" It may have only lasted one season, but "Astrid & Lilly Save the World" was a magical series that deserved better.
Read this next: The 15 Best Final Girls In Horror Movies Ranked
The post Will We See Astrid & Lilly Save The World Season 2? appeared first on /Film.