''Lodge 49'' is an American

comedy-drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

television series created by Jim Gavin. It aired on the cable television network

AMC AMC may refer to: Film and television * AMC Theatres, an American movie theater chain * AMC Networks, an American entertainment company ** AMC (TV channel) ** AMC+, streaming service ** AMC Networks International, an entertainment company *** AM ...

in the United States from August 6, 2018, to October 14, 2019, spanning two seasons and 20 episodes. The title alludes to the novella ''

The Crying of Lot 49 ''The Crying of Lot 49'' is a 1966 novel by American author Thomas Pynchon. The shortest of Pynchon's novels, the plot follows Oedipa Maas, a young Californian woman who begins to embrace a conspiracy theory as she possibly unearths a centuries-ol ...

'' by

Thomas Pynchon Thomas Ruggles Pynchon Jr. ( , ; born May 8, 1937) is an American novelist noted for his dense and complex novels. His fiction and non-fiction writings encompass a vast array of subject matter, genres and themes, including history, music, scie ...

, which Gavin references as an inspiration. Although the series was met with positive reviews, AMC canceled the series after its second season due to low ratings.

Plot

AMC describes the series as a "modern

fable Fable is a literary genre: a succinct fictional story, in prose or verse, that features animals, legendary creatures, plants, inanimate objects, or forces of nature that are anthropomorphized, and that illustrates or leads to a particular mo ...

set in

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...

about a disarmingly optimistic local ex-surfer, Dud (

Wyatt Russell Wyatt Hawn Russell (born July 10, 1986) Retrieved December 31, 2016Archivedfrom the original on November 10, 2013. is an American actor and former ice hockey player. Russell portrayed Corporal Lewis Ford in Julius Avery's 2018 horror film ''Overl ...

), who's drifting after the death of his father and collapse of the family business." In the first season, Dud joins a

fraternal order A fraternal order is a fraternity organised as an order, with traits alluding to religious, chivalric or pseudo-chivalric orders, guilds, or secret societies. Contemporary fraternal orders typically have secular purposes, including social, cult ...

known as the Order of the Lynx, hoping the Lodge can put him "on the path to recover the idyllic life he's lost."

Cast

Main

as Sean "Dud" Dudley, an ex-surfer who discovers Lodge 49 and is looking to lead a happy life. *

Brent Jennings Brent Jennings (born January 1, 1951) is an American actor. He was born in Little Rock, Arkansas and is a 1969 graduate of Little Rock Central High School. He played Oakland Athletics coach Ron Washington (later manager Management (or manag ...

as Ernie Fontaine, a plumbing salesman and member of Lodge 49. *

Sonya Cassidy Sonya Cassidy is a British actress. Career Cassidy is known for her roles as Clara in the BBC period drama '' The Paradise'', as Celine Ashworth in the police detective series '' Vera'', as the Oracle in Syfy fantasy series '' Olympus'', and as ...

as Liz Dudley, Dud's twin sister who works as a waitress. *

Linda Emond Linda may refer to: As a name * Linda (given name), a female given name (including a list of people and fictional characters so named) * Linda (singer) (born 1977), stage name of Svetlana Geiman, a Russian singer * Anita Linda (born Alice Lake ...

as Connie Clark, a journalist married to Scott and a member of Lodge 49. *

David Pasquesi David Pasquesi (born December 22, 1960) is an American actor and comedian. His screen credits include ''Groundhog Day'', ''Strangers with Candy'', ''Curb Your Enthusiasm'', ''Return to Me'', '' The Ice Harvest'', ''Veep'', ''At Home with Amy Sed ...

as Blaise St. John, a member of Lodge 49 who operates an

apothecary ''Apothecary'' () is a mostly archaic term for a medical professional who formulates and dispenses '' materia medica'' (medicine) to physicians, surgeons, and patients. The modern chemist (British English) or pharmacist (British and North Ameri ...

and is a

philosopher A philosopher is a person who practices or investigates philosophy. The term ''philosopher'' comes from the grc, φιλόσοφος, , translit=philosophos, meaning 'lover of wisdom'. The coining of the term has been attributed to the Greek th ...

alchemy Alchemy (from Arabic: ''al-kīmiyā''; from Ancient Greek: χυμεία, ''khumeía'') is an ancient branch of natural philosophy, a philosophical and protoscientific tradition that was historically practiced in China, India, the Muslim world, ...

. *

Eric Allan Kramer Eric Allan Kramer (born March 26, 1962) is an American actor and fight choreographer. Kramer has appeared in numerous feature films and television programs including ''True Romance'' and '' Robin Hood: Men in Tights'' and is also known for his ...

as Scott Miller, a member of Lodge 49 who is married to Connie and serves as a Long Beach Port Harbor patrol officer.

Recurring

Kenneth Welsh Kenneth Welsh, (March 30, 1942 – May 5, 2022) was a Canadian film and television actor. He was best known as the multi-faceted villain Windom Earle in ''Twin Peaks'', for his roles in the films ''The Day After Tomorrow'', '' Adoration'', ''Su ...

as Larry Loomis, the Sovereign Protector of Lodge 49. * Avis-Marie Barnes as Anita Jones, a member of Lodge 49. * Njema Williams as Big Ben Peters, constable of Lodge 49. * Jimmy Gonzales as Gil Sandoval, astronomer of Lodge 49. *

Brian Doyle-Murray Brian Murray (born October 31, 1945), known professionally by his stage name as Brian Doyle-Murray, is an American actor, voice-actor and screenwriter. He has appeared with his younger brother, actor/comedian Bill Murray, in several movies, i ...

as Bob Kruger, Ernie's boss at work. * Daniel Stewart Sherman as Jeremy, Liz's boss at Shamroxx. *

David Ury David Brian Ury (born September 30, 1973) is an American actor, stand-up comedian, YouTuber, and Japanese translation specialist. Early life and education Ury was born and raised in Sonoma, California. He graduated from Sonoma Valley High Sch ...

as Champ, an employee at Shamroxx. * Atkins Estimond as Gerson, an employee at Shamroxx. *

Hayden Szeto Hayden Chun Hay Szeto (born September 11, 1985; ) is a Canadian actor of Hong Kong descent, known for his role as Erwin Kim in the comedy-drama film ''The Edge of Seventeen'' (2016). In 2017, he portrayed Ken Luang in the NBC comedy series ''Th ...

as Corporate, an executive at Omni who dates Liz. *

Joe Grifasi Joseph G. Grifasi (born June 14, 1944) is an American character actor of film, stage and television. Grifasi was born in Buffalo, New York, the son of Patricia (née Gaglione) and Joseph J. Grifasi, a skilled laborer. Grifasi graduated from Bi ...

as Burt, a

pawnbroker A pawnbroker is an individual or business (pawnshop or pawn shop) that offers secured loans to people, with items of personal property used as collateral. The items having been ''pawned'' to the broker are themselves called ''pledges'' or ...

. *

Olivia Sandoval Olivia Sandoval is an American actress, best known for her role as Winnie Lopez, a St. Cloud police officer in '' Fargo''. She is the daughter of character actor Miguel Sandoval and played his daughter in the television series ''Medium''. Selecte ...

as Janet Price,

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

of Omni. *

Vik Sahay Vikram Sahay is a Canadian actor best known for playing Kevin Calvin on '' Radio Active'', Lester Patel on the NBC television series ''Chuck'', and Rama in the ''Roxy Hunter'' saga. Life and career Vik Sahay was born in Ottawa, Ontario, to India ...

as Tarquin, an executive at Omni. * Tom Nowicki as Bill Dudley, Dud and Liz's deceased father. *

Adam Godley Adam Godley (born 22 July 1964) is a British-American actor. He has been nominated for two Tony Awards and four Laurence Olivier Awards for his performances on the New York and London stages which include, ''Private Lives'' in 2001, ''The Pillo ...

as Jocelyn Pugh, a member of Lodge 1 in London who comes to Lodge 49. *

Bruce Campbell Bruce Lorne Campbell (born June 22, 1958) is an American actor and director. He is known for portraying Ash Williams in Sam Raimi's ''Evil Dead'' franchise, beginning with the 1978 short film ''Within the Woods''. He has starred in many low ...

as Gary "The Captain" Green, a

general contractor A general contractor, main contractor or prime contractor is responsible for the day-to-day oversight of a construction site, management of vendors and trades, and the communication of information to all involved parties throughout the course of ...

. *

Tyson Ritter Tyson Jay Ritter (born April 24, 1984) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, actor, and model. He is best known as the lead vocalist, bassist, pianist, and songwriter of the multi-RIAA certification, platinum selling American alternative ...

as Avery, a

fraud In law, fraud is intentional deception to secure unfair or unlawful gain, or to deprive a victim of a legal right. Fraud can violate civil law (e.g., a fraud victim may sue the fraud perpetrator to avoid the fraud or recover monetary compens ...

who infiltrates Lodge 49. *

Jocelyn Towne Jocelyn Towne is an American actress, producer and director. Early life Towne was born in Santa Monica, California, to an American father and French mother, the latter through whom she became a French citizen in 2013. Career Towne has appeared ...

as Gloria Keller, an HR manager at Dud's temp job and brief lover. *

Celia Au Celia Au is a Hong Kong American actress and filmmaker based in Manhattan. She has appeared in the television series ''Lodge 49'' (2018–2019) and ''Wu Assassins'' (2019). Filmography Film Television series See also * Chinese people in ...

as Alice Ba, Dud's surfer friend who works at her dad's donut shop. * Long Nguyen as Paul Ba, Alice's father who owns the local donut shop. * Sam Puefua as Herman Pola, an associate of pawnbroker Burt. *

Paul Giamatti Paul Edward Valentine Giamatti (; born June 6, 1967) is an American actor and film producer. He first garnered attention for his breakout role in '' Private Parts'' as Kenny "Pig Vomit" Rushton, leading to supporting roles in ''Saving Private R ...

as L. Marvin Metz, a writer who also narrates audiobooks; Giamatti appears in an uncredited voice-only role in the first season. *

Cheech Marin :''The surname'' Marin ''is of Spanish language origin. In Spanish, it is spelled'' Marín'', with an acute accent on the'' í. Richard Anthony "Cheech" Marin (born July 13, 1946) is an American actor, musician, comedian, and activist who gained ...

as El Confidente, a member of Lodge 55 in Mexico. *

Pollyanna McIntosh Pollyanna McIntosh (born 15 March 1979) is a Scottish-American actress and director known for her roles in films ''Exam'' (2009), '' The Woman'' (2011), ''Let Us Prey'' (2014), the first season of Joe R. Lansdale's ''Hap and Leonard'' (2016), ...

as Clara, a member of Lodge 1 in London who befriends Connie. (season 2) *

Mary Elizabeth Ellis Mary Elizabeth Ellis (born May 11, 1979) is an American actress, best known for her recurring roles as The Waitress on the FX comedy ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'' (2005–present), Nick's ex-girlfriend Caroline in the Fox sitcom ''New ...

as Daphne Larson, Dud's ''pro bono'' lawyer. (season 2) *

Bronson Pinchot Bronson Alcott Pinchot (; born May 20, 1959) is an American actor. He is best known for playing Balki Bartokomous on the ABC sitcom '' Perfect Strangers'' (1986–93). He also performed in films, such as ''Risky Business'' (1983), ''Beverly Hill ...

as Dr. Kimbrough, Liz's new shady boss. (season 2) *

Bertila Damas Bertila Damas is a Cuban-born American actress. Career Damas began her career in Miami, where she worked in Spanish-language theater while in college. She was later accepted at the Circle in the Square Theater School in New York City. There, sh ...

as Lenore, a friend of Liz and Dud's father with whom she had an affair. (season 2) *

Susy Kane Susy Kane (born 27 August 1978, in Dorking, Surrey, England) is an English actress, comedy writer and musician. Personal life She is the daughter of opera singer Alison Warner and actor and writer John Kane, and the younger sister of comedy w ...

as Genevieve, L. Marvin Metz's pyromaniac French muse. (season 2)

Episodes

Season 1 (2018)

Season 2 (2019)

Production and broadcast

set a straight-to-series order of 10 episodes on October 5, 2016. The first season premiered on August 6, 2018. AMC released the entire first season on its AMC Premiere service on August 6, 2018, in the United States. On October 4, 2018, the series was renewed for a second season, which premiered on August 12, 2019. The season concluded on October 14, 2019, and the series was canceled two weeks later. The producers tried to shop the series to other outlets, but were unsuccessful, as announced by series creator Jim Gavin in December.

Reception

Critical response

On the review aggregation website

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

, the first season holds an 86% approval rating with an average rating of 7.12 out of 10, based on 35 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "''Lodge 49'' takes a surreal journey into the television dreamscape that can prove quite rewarding for viewers who stick with it."

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...

, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 70 out of 100 based on 19 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". On Rotten Tomatoes, the second season holds a 100% approval rating with an average rating of 8.69 out of 10, based on 15 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "''Lodge 49'' continues its strange journey with a superb second season that leans further into the show's idiosyncrasies." On Metacritic, the season has a score of 80 out of 100 based on 5 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". The second season received critical acclaim, especially the season finale. Darren Franich of ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...

'' gave it an "A" grade, calling it "perfect". Franich praised

' performance, referring to a moment in "Conjunctio" as his favorite moment on television in 2019. Danette Chavez of ''

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...

'' also graded the finale an "A" as well as the season as a whole. Chavez wrote that the finale is "such an incredibly beautiful and uplifting hour of television" and praised

's performance as "one of the best, most under-the-radar performances of the year." Concluding, she wrote, "'The Door' is a great bridge to a season three, and also an immensely respectful and generous ending to the stories of these Long Beach residents." In 2021, Jannelle Okwodu of ''

Vogue Vogue may refer to: Business * ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine ** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Australia'', an Australian fashion magazine ** ''Vogue China'', ...

'' gave the series a glowing review after discovering episodes on the streaming platform

Hulu Hulu () is an American subscription streaming service majority-owned by The Walt Disney Company, with Comcast's NBCUniversal holding a minority stake. It was launched on October 29, 2007 and it offers a library of films and television serie ...

and described it as "a fantastic puzzle of a series".

Ratings

Season 1

Season 2

Accolades

References

External links

* {{Satellite Award Best Musical or Comedy Television Series 2010s American comedy-drama television series 2018 American television series debuts 2019 American television series endings AMC (TV channel) original programming English-language television shows Television shows filmed in Atlanta Television shows set in Los Angeles County, California