After four whole years off the air (and six since its first episode premiered), Atlanta has returned for its third and penultimate season, with the fourth and final season premiering in the fall. The show, created by and starring Donald Glover, tells the story of Earn, who becomes the music manager for his rapper cousin, Paper Boi, played by Brian Tyree Henry. Rounding out the cast are Zazie Beetz as Van, Earn's ex-girlfriend and mother of his child, and LaKeith Stanfield as Darius, Paper Boi's chaotic one-man posse.

The slightly surreal dark comedy has been a hit with critics and audiences alike. The show hasn't been afraid to experiment either, with episodes like season one, episode seven's news satire, "B.A.N." and the terrifying ‘Teddy Perkins’ episode from season two. The blending of its dreamy tone, social commentary, beautiful cinematography, and belated coming-of-age story has resulted in one of the most compelling television shows on the air.

If the first two episodes of season three are any indication, Atlanta has not lost any of its trenchant insight or entertainment value. However, due to its long hiatus, the show is in a unique position. During its absence, television has changed quite a bit. Atlanta is coming back to a landscape that it both influenced and is slightly out of step with. Four years is an abnormally long time for a show to be away, but still not enough time to consider the third season to be a quasi-revival/reboot like the ones done by Twin Peaks, The X-Files, and Arrested Development. This unique situation provides us with a jumping-off point to discuss the show and the medium it's a part of. Let's take advantage of the opportunity and dive into Atlanta and what it can tell us about the wider landscape of television in 2022.

Extracurricular Activities

Atlanta Hulu FX Donald Glover Lakeith Stanfield Brian Tyree Henry Zazie Beetz
Donald Glover/Instagram

To start, let's address why the show has been off the air for so long. COVID definitely played a factor in the third season's delayed debut, but mostly, the cast and creators behind Atlanta have just been incredibly busy with other work. Donald Glover has been preoccupied with other projects, such as his successful music career and tons of other acting, writing, and development gigs. The man is only 38, yet he has already won Emmys, Golden Globes, and a Grammy. Glover's frequent collaborator on Atlanta and other endeavors, Hiro Murai, has kept busy directing episodes of shows for FX and HBO in addition to the feature he made starring Glover, Guava Island. The rest of the cast has constantly been working as well. Brian Tyree Henry can be seen in movies such as Eternals and If Beale Street Could Talk. Zazie Beetz played Domino in Deadpool 2 in addition to appearing in other projects like Joker and the recent Nine Days. Lastly, but definitely not least, LaKeith Stanfield got nominated for an Oscar with his spellbinding performance in Judas and the Black Messiah, along with starring in the critically-acclaimed films Knives Out and Uncut Gems, among others, over the past few years. Considering all of this, it's almost a miracle that the third season of Atlanta got made at all, let alone two. ​​​​​​

The State of Television

Brian Tyree Henry, LaKeith Stanfield and Donald Glover sitting on a couch on a field in Atlanta.
FX

Let's travel back to 2016 for a moment, the year that Atlanta first aired on FX. It was only six years ago, but things on television were quite different then. 2016 was only the beginning of the streaming revolution. The overwhelming amount of services that now exist like Apple TV+, Disney+, Peacock, and Paramount+ was not yet vying for our attention. Channels like IFC and Comedy Central were putting out original content like Portlandia, Broad City, Maron, and Review that rivaled FX's comedy output. The under-appreciated comedy streaming service Seeso started in 2016 before shutting down the following year. Tons of other dramedies premiered that year, such as Better Things (also on FX), Netflix's Love, and Phoebe Waller-Bridge's Fleabag.

Related: These Are Some of the Best Original TV Shows From FX

Now, in 2022, things are completely different. Streaming dominates the television market. In between the first and second seasons of Atlanta, FX launched its own subscription service called FX+, yet only two years later, FX moved on to Hulu as its streaming hub. Many people probably have no idea that Atlanta started on FX and have exclusively watched it on Hulu. Most scripted television shows go straight to streaming services now, leaving basic cable in the lurch. Thankfully, Atlanta survived the transition while also providing a way to observe the changes in how audiences watch content.

The Impact of Atlanta

Atlanta Donald Glover  LaKeith Stanfield
FX

When it first premiered, there was plenty written about how it was expanding and changing what television could be. To be fair, there are plenty of fantastic boundary-pushing shows to watch right now, some of which were likely influenced by it. However, from the present, it doesn't seem like the show has made a huge impact in the broader medium and still stands out from the herd. In terms of diversity and more Black stories being told, things have gotten better in front of the camera, but not many other creators of color have gotten to create shows like Donald Glover.

Related: Atlanta Season 3's Opening Episodes Take Inspiration from Real-World Tales of White Privilege

More broadly, no other show has managed to be as dynamic or creative with genre, style, and substance as Atlanta. There are plenty of other shows doing similar things, but Atlanta has a certain quality that can't be replicated. Creating more opportunities for a wide range of people to tell their stories is essential, but maybe there can only be one Atlanta. Rather than seeing its lack of impact as a failure, it can also be viewed as a testament to the singular and wonderful nature of the show.