THE IRRATIONAL Season 2 Finale Post-Mortem: Arika Lisanne Mittman on Alec and Rose’s Big Step and a Potential Season 3

[Warning: This post contains spoilers for the Tuesday, March 25 season finale of THE IRRATIONAL.]

A week after THE IRRATIONAL’s Rose (Karen David) revealed she had a husband, she and Alec (Jesse L. Martin) teamed up with her estranged spouse, Logan (Nick Sager), in “The Exchange” to help with a Russian prisoner exchange. After saving the day—albeit with Logan getting shot—Rose gave Logan divorce papers…and he revealed that MI6 wanted her back.

Later, Alec and Rose went for a stroll, and he guessed that she was returning to MI6. Rose acknowledged that she missed saving the world, but she didn’t miss that life; she didn’t miss a world where the mission came first and there was no one to care about her.

Alec worried that he, and their relationship, was making Rose sacrifice something, but she promised she wasn’t giving anything up.

“I’m starting a new chapter. Here,” she said, revealing her new office for her own business. “I signed a three-year lease.” 

But, she noted, Alec was a factor in her decision. “I’m opening this place for me,” she told him. “But I’m doing it here in D.C. for us.”

The couple didn’t have long to enjoy the big step in their relationship: After Alec revealed he wouldn’t be getting scar surgery, he got a message filled with photos of the professor from afar—he had been watched for an extended amount of time.

“I think we just found your first case,” Alec grimly told Rose.

Here, THE IRRATIONAL showrunner Arika Lisanne Mittman talks with Give Me My Remote about Rose and Alec’s future, a potential season 3, and more.

I was actually surprised Rose and Alec got a happy ending in the finale, in part because Karen is recurring on the show. For you as a writer, what has the approach been in building this really beautiful relationship with someone who isn’t a series regular? 
Well, the hope would certainly be to have Karen back as a series regular next season. The character of Rose, she came into the show in season 1, episode 4, and we didn’t know that this was going to be so much of a continuing character. I’ve known Karen since I worked with her on TIMELESS and we thought she was a great fit for Rose. [At the time,] we were like, “Maybe this character will come back and, like, go on a date with Alec.” We had always had the idea of “Alec goes on a date and what does that look like for Alec?” So we did episode 7. And we just sort of fell in love with her after that. 

We wanted to just include her in the [season 1] finale [which ended with Rose being kidnapped]. And then the rest sort of was history as we got into season 2—people were in the writers’ room having more and more ideas for [her]: ”You know what could we do with [Rose]? We want to use Rose in this episode, we want to use Rose in this episode.” And so we kept having to bring her back as a recurring character.

I also really liked the idea of Alec, Marisa, and Rose having this really adult way of viewing these relationships. That Alec and Marisa are divorced, but they can continue to have a great, functional working relationship. Alec can date someone new, and Rose and Marisa don’t have to hate each other. It felt like that brought us a lot of story. It brought a story for Marisa and Rose, it’s brought story for Alec and Rose. It brought a story for Alec and Marisa.

There’s a really nice storyline that you just saw a couple weeks ago in episode 16, where Alec is trying to figure out what to do for Rose’s birthday, and he’s seeking advice from Marisa. And I love that these characters are all very adult about this. So I think having Rose [be] a part of that world really enriches it. 

And there’s also just an incredible, sweet quality to the Alec-Rose relationship that we definitely wanted to end [our season] on a joyful note, because it is a really joyful, enriching relationship for him. Which is nice to see, because he spent all of season 1 really working at getting over and getting past his divorce and finding a better relationship with Marisa.

There was the little ominous tease at the end of a cliffhanger of who is watching Alec. I know season 3 is still TBD, but in your mind, when you were planting that seed, A) do you know who it is? And B) If you do know who it is, does the audience know who the person is or might it be someone completely new?
[Laughs.] I will say, without speaking too much, because we have not, in reality, gotten a season 3 pickup yet, therefore we have not had a season 3 writers’ room yet: I have ideas about it, but it is not something that I would even commit to in my own head until we bounce it around the writers’ room.

Marisa had an unexpected year, with the revelation she gave up a son for adoption and their reunion/reconciliation. Why was this an important story for you to tell this season? And how do you hope this shapes her in a hypothetical season 3?
Early on in season 1, we talked about how Alec and Marisa had never had kids, and it was a decision they both made. And we always felt like that was just an interesting thing about these two adults in this relationship: They’d never had kids, and that they were okay with that. 

But it came out of we wanted to build this story for Rose and Marisa, actually, and for Marisa to share something really personal with Rose. So out of that came the fact that she had had a child, that she made the decision to give the child up for adoption, which was the best decision for her and her family and for the child. 

And you know, of course, when you’re writing a TV show, you’re like, “So what happened to that kid?” It was an inevitable opportunity, and it gave Marisa a really nice story in the back half of the season. Then we were lucky enough to cast Fritzy[-Klevans Destine, who plays Cam], who does such a great job playing Marisa’s son, and they had great chemistry together. And so we actually put him in more episodes than we had planned.

One of the fun things this season has been Kylie kind of figuring out what she wants to do professionally, and she’s still a little bit up in the air with that. What are your hopes for her?
We definitely, in season 1, really wanted to establish that dynamic between Alec and Kylie that sort of lived at the apartment, and the fact that they were this brother and sister living together. And those make for great scenes, and I love them. 

But what we learned season 1 was we really have to get Kylie out of that apartment, because there were people who theorized [at] the beginning of season 1—no joke, people theorized—that Kylie wasn’t real, or that she was dead, or that he was talking to a ghost, because she was so locked into that [space]. And it really did a disservice, in a way, to Travina [Springer, Kylie], because Travina is so great, and there’s such great storylines for Kylie to be had. And [at the start of season 1] we were only able to work her in when it was the end of the day and he’s back home. So that’s why we pulled her out and put her into the FBI.

But we definitely feel like there’s so much more we could do with Kylie. And, you know, again, these are decisions to be made if we get a season 3 of what she’ll be up to next season. But we love her relationship with the other characters. We love her relationship with Marisa. So I really like the idea of keeping her out of the apartment and in the world.

NBC is losing some of its scheduling space to sports next season. What have you heard about the show’s future and if there might be hope for it to even return elsewhere within the larger NBCU universe if NBC doesn’t have space for it? 
I know nothing. I can say nothing because I know nothing. I don’t know if we have a season 3 yet. Trust me, I ask all the time, too. I have the question you just asked. I call and I ask all the time, “Like, what do we know?” But it’s dependent on other factors, I’m sure. And we’re waiting to hear like everybody else.

The cast and crew have gotten very proactive in terms of promoting the show on social media. What led to that and what has it meant to you to see the reaction to the show?
Well, we just felt like [we] we’re coming out into the second half of season 2 [and] we really wanted to make a push and say, “Hey, this might be the best show you aren’t watching right now.” Because I think the people who are watching the show seem to really like it, and we just want to help as best we can to make sure that people are aware of it, that people know it’s on. 

It’s a really crowded landscape on TV. There’s so many good things to watch. There are so many things available all over the place, and people need to know that this show is on and how to find it. So we’ve all made concerted efforts to get more stuff up on social and find these new ways to get viewers.

Last year, we discussed a possible musical episode—and you made happen in season 2. In a potential season 3, what kind of out-of-the-box episodes are you hoping to do? 
Oh my God, I don’t know. I mean, how do you top the musical episode? How do you top Jesse Martin and Karen David singing in LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS? I don’t know. I don’t know how to top that—but I’m sure there are other super fun things we will come up with. We’ve never done a Halloween episode!

–

Plus, David and Martin react to their characters’ happy ending…

THE IRRATIONAL, Tuesdays, 10/9c, NBC

RELATED:

• THE IRRATIONAL Season 2 Finale: ‘The Exchange’ Photos
• THE IRRATIONAL: Arika Lisanne Mittman Previews the Arrival of Rose’s Husband in the Season 2 Finale
• THE IRRATIONAL Post-Mortem: Jesse L. Martin and Karen David on Their LITTLE SHOP Duet and the Rose Reveal
• THE IRRATIONAL: ‘Suddenly Alec’ Photos
• THE IRRATIONAL: Jesse L. Martin and Karen David Preview the Season 2 Musical Episode
• THE IRRATIONAL: ‘Conversation Games’ Photos
• THE IRRATIONAL Exclusive Clip: Kylie’s Friend Thinks a Tech Billionaire May Be a Serial Killer
• THE IRRATIONAL: ‘The Milgram Experiment’ Photos
• THE IRRATIONAL: ‘Murder She Rode’ Photos
• THE IRRATIONAL: ‘Ghost Ship’ Photos
• THE IRRATIONAL Exclusive Clip: Alec and Rose Learn the Secrets of a Trick from Charles Shaughnessy’s Magician
• THE IRRATIONAL: ‘Now You Don’t’ Photos
• THE IRRATIONAL: ‘Another Man’s Treasure’ Photos
• THE IRRATIONAL Post-Mortem: Arika Lisanne Mittman Breaks Down the Big Marisa Reveal in ‘Lost Souls’
• THE IRRATIONAL: ‘Lost Souls’ Photos
• THE IRRATIONAL: ‘Stan By Me’ Photos
• THE IRRATIONAL: ‘The Wrong Side of Maybe’ Photos
• THE IRRATIONAL Exclusive Clip: Alec Explains the Dangers of a ‘Faulty Learning Cycle’
• THE IRRATIONAL: Max Lloyd-Jones Previews How Simon is Handling Phoebe Re-Joining Alec’s RA Team
• THE IRRATIONAL: Molly Kunz on Phoebe’s New Season 2 Role and an Unlikely Partnership in ‘Formal Ties’
• THE IRRATIONAL: ‘Formal Ties’ Photos
• THE IRRATIONAL: ‘Bad Blood’ Photos
• THE IRRATIONAL: Maahra Hill Ponders Marisa’s Potential Promotion
• THE IRRATIONAL Post-Mortem: Arash DeMaxi on Rizwan Finding a New RA for the Team
• THE IRRATIONAL: ‘A Kick in the Teeth’ Photos
• THE IRRATIONAL: Maahra Hill Teases the Team’s Hunt for a Serial Killer
• THE IRRATIONAL: What You Need to Know About the Season Premiere
• THE IRRATIONAL: Maahra Hill Previews Marisa’s ‘Journey of Self-Reflection’
• THE IRRATIONAL Season 2 Premiere: ‘Collateral Damage’ Photos
• THE IRRATIONAL: NBC Delays Season 2 Premiere Due to VP Debate
• THE IRRATIONAL Post-Mortem: Arika Lisanne Mittman on the Bombing Mystery Resolution and Season 2
• THE IRRATIONAL: Arika Lisanne Mittman on How the Writers Incorporated an Extra Episode into Season 1
• THE IRRATIONAL Season 1 Finale: ‘Reciprocity’ Photos
• THE IRRATIONAL: ‘Bombshell’ Photos
• THE IRRATIONAL’s Maahra Hill and Travina Springer on the Season 1 Mystery and Marisa-Kylie’s Friendship
• THE IRRATIONAL: ‘Scorched Earth’ Photos
• NBC Renews THE IRRATIONAL and FOUND
• NBC Orders an Additional THE IRRATIONAL Season 1 Episode
• THE IRRATIONAL Post-Mortem: Kirk Moore Breaks Down an Important Scene from ‘Point & Shoot’
• THE IRRATIONAL Writer Kirk Moore Previews Alec as an Expert Witness—Including the Introduction of His ‘Nemesis’
• THE IRRATIONAL: ‘Point & Shoot’ Photos
• THE IRRATIONAL’s Arika Lisanne Mittman on the Season-Long Mystery: ‘I Don’t Like to Artificially Drag Things Out’
• THE IRRATIONAL Creator Arika Lisanne Mittman on Alec and Marisa’s Unconventional Will They/Won’t They Relationship
• THE IRRATIONAL: ‘Zero Sum’ Photos
• THE IRRATIONAL Boss Arika Lisanne Mittman Explains Why the NBC Series is ‘Not a Whodunnit, It’s a Whydunnit’
• THE IRRATIONAL: What You Need to Know About the Series Premiere
• THE IRRATIONAL: NBC Releases a Trailer for New Jesse L. Martin-Led Procedural Drama
• THE IRRATIONAL on NBC – First Look
• NBC Sets 2023-24 Schedule
• NBC Orders THE IRRATIONAL to Series

Follow @GiveMeMyRemote and @marisaroffman on Twitter for the latest TV news. Connect with other TV fans on GIVE ME MY REMOTE’s official Facebook page or our Instagram.

And be the first to see our exclusive videos by subscribing to our YouTube channel.

As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases made through links/ads placed on the site.