ONCE AND AGAIN A single mother and her romance with a single father. 63 episodes of 60 minute duration. 1999-2002

One of the best domestic dramas to hit American television, Once And Again came from the minds of Marshall Herskovitz and Edward Zwick-the pair responsible for the groundbreaking thirtysomething, along with other dramas such as My So-Called Life and Relativity. Once And Again stood out for the frank honesty of its characters and situations, but that realism probably relegated this series to a relatively short life.

Set in an upper-middle-class Chicago suburb, “Once” focused on two people-soon-to-be divorced Lily Manning (Sela Ward, who had starred in the soapy 1990’s drama Sisters) and architect Rick Sammler (Billy Campbell) who met each other picking up their respective children in the car pool lane. From the start, there were obstacles. Lily, who worked for a dot.com company, began the process of divorcing her husband, restaurant owner Jake Manning (Jeffrey Nordling), while she cared for their two girls-teenage daughter Grace (Julia Whelan) and younger Zoe (Meridith Deane). Rick was divorced from attorney Karen Davies Sammler (Susanna Thompson) and the pair shared custody of their two children, teenager Eli (Shane West) and daughter Jessie (Evan Rachel Wood).

What began as a friendship between Lily and Rick turned into a romance that rocked each household apart. Rick’s children became alienated; Eli turned into a moody, rebellious teenager; while Jessie (along with Rick and Karen) had to deal with Jessie’s eating disorder. Lily’s girls had their own woes; Grace suffered self-esteem problems by trying to live up to her mother; Zoe simply wanted mom and dad to get back together. For support, Lily turned to her sister, bookstore manager Judy Brooks (Marin Hinkle), who had her own problems finding Mr. Right; while Rick got advice from his architectural partner, David Casilli (Todd Field).

Like some other US television series of the late 1990’s, Once And Again broke through the so-called "fourth wall" by having its characters talk directly to the audience. (It wasn’t a new gimmick; George Burns did the same thing on his comedy series with wife Gracie Allen in the 1950’s). But on “Once”, it was effective because the characters discussed their feelings and emotions in stark black-and-white asides following a major crisis or plot turn.

Critics loved Once And Again. Not ALL critics, however: King Kaufman wrote in Salon.com: "The men (on the show) are ineffectual and weenie-ish, the women ineffectual and solipsistic, and nobody, man woman or child, can spit out what they, well, you know, what they want..." In fact, its angst probably worked against it in the long run. Creators Herskowitz and Zwick based Once And Again on their own personal experiences with marriage, dating, divorce and remarriage. Still, no one could call a Herskowitz-Zwick television series “sunny” or filled with optimism. The reality simply cut too close to the bone for some potential viewers. Star Sela Ward once told Entertainment Weekly that "I hear everything from ‘it’s too painful to watch’ to people who say they love it and can really identify with it".

Once And Again first appeared on Tuesday nights in September 1999 (to fill the timeslot until new episodes of the veteran NYPD Blue could air in January). But while younger viewers liked the show, many older viewers switched to CBS’ legal drama Judging Amy or NBC’s newsmagazine Dateline. In January 2000, “Once” switched to Monday nights; its ratings didn’t improve much. Still the show was renewed for a second season, spending most of its time in an uphill fight against the venerable Law & Order on Wednesday nights.

Season two finally saw Lily divorce Jake (who started dating Tiffany Porter, played by Ever Carradine; she became pregnant with Jake’s baby.) Her mentally challenged brother Aaron proved to be another obstacle for Lilly, as was her mother, who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Rick had even more problems: His key architectural project was for developer Miles Drentell—played by actor David Clennon (he played the same character on thirtysomething as the owner of the ad agency series regulars Michael and Elliot-the "boss from hell"). Drentell’s attitude didn’t change with his Once And Again appearances: His Alantor project fell apart amid criminal investigations and lawsuits, putting Rick in danger of being convicted until ex-wife Karen managed to get him off the hook. (Karen paid her own price however; she was badly injured in a car accident.) Still, the second season ended with Lilly and Rick finally getting married,

For the third (and last) season, ABC moved Once And Again to Friday nights. It proved to be the final nail in the coffin, despite pleas from fans to save the series. But at least the network allowed the major storylines to be wrapped up. The producers did lighten up the show a bit for Season Three, after Rick and his kids moved into Lily’s house. Lily became a radio counselor; the show was successful enough to be picked up across the country. But Rick was also given a major architectural job in Australia; Lily—who learned she was pregnant—became angry with Rick for assuming she would give up her career for his. (Their ex’s did a bit better; Jake and Tiffany got married; Karen fell in love with Henry, her African-American physical therapist.)

The final episode came April 15th, 2002, where the characters addressed the audience and thanked them for their support. Once And Again later appeared on DVD, allowing its fans to savor the series—well, once and again.

Despite its departure from the airwaves, Once And Again has secured a place among the best dramas ever shown on American television. Its theme is a reminder that while you may stumble and fall into love, you may emerge bloodied and somewhat beaten, but with a chance for a happily-ever-after. And that message resonated with a small but loyal fan base.