The third season of Mythic Quest, that other workplace comedy on AppleTV+, premiers on Friday, November 11, and it’s in fine form. While the series has more bite than its streaming service partner Ted Lasso, the third season is decidedly more balanced and better structured than its more popular cohort – and really cements itself as The Office to Ted Lasso’s Parks and Recreation (Ian is pretty much Michael Scott, with a bit more of an edge, while Ted Lasso is 100% Leslie Knope all day).
When we last left our crew of programmers, testers, megalomaniac money folks, and clueless producers and writers, it appeared that our team would be scattered to the four winds, never to work together again. After all, Poppy and Ian had officially left Mythic Quest to work on a new game, Dana and Rachel were separated by different colleges, and Brad was headed to prison for insider trading. But fear not, everyone is back and in slightly augmented roles – save for F. Murray Abraham’s C.W., as Abraham (with a very full schedule of Moon Knight and White Lotus) didn’t return for the third season – and the show is as sharp as ever.
The great thing about switching things up is that we’re treated to several interesting combinations of character interactions that we haven’t seen before (there’s an episode where three very different characters go to brunch together that was one of my absolute favorites of the season). Yes, we do get to see Poppy and Ian and Jo and Brad bounce off one another at various points in the season (these duos are essential to the show’s continued structure, after all), but getting to see characters who rarely interacted in previous seasons have scenes – and even running jokes – throughout season three was a joy.
Now, we know that the characters are in good form, but how’s the story? Is there enough here to sustain a season arc and set things up for the already-ordered season four? Absolutely. One of the best elements of Mythic Quest is its ability to develop and deliver on season long arcs while continuing to do complex character development along the way. Three seasons in, you can feel the emotional connection between these characters – in particular, the relationship between Poppy and Ian continues to be the center of the series. Sure, these characters drive each other crazy all the time – and they rarely get along day in and day out – and some characters may be genuine psychopaths (Brad and Jo continue to be both hilariously unhinged and properly terrifying in some of the things they scheme and do throughout the season), but they are our psychopaths and unhinged geniuses.
At this stage of the game, it’s easy for a series to simply rest on its laurels and churn out comedy without taking time to really build meaningful arcs for their characters. But Rob McElhenney, Megan Ganz, David Hornsby, and the rest of the writing staff have taken the time to ensure that these characters are taken care of and get the chance to grow beyond who they are at the start of the season. And that growth is, across the board, fitting for each character – and not always easy, especially for Poppy and Ian.
I’ve written before that Mythic Quest is one of the best shows on television and it continues to hold that mantle during its third season. If you’re looking for a show to fill that Office-sized hole in your heart – or if you’re looking for an AppleTV+ comedy with a bit more bite than Ted Lasso, Mythic Quest is your best bet. You won’t be disappointed.
Mythic Quest’s third season premieres on Friday, November 11. It will air weekly on AppleTV+. All ten episodes of the third season were provided for review.
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