Plot Synopsis

Based on "I'm Special: And Other Lies We Tell Ourselves," the 2015 memoir from series star, writer and executive producer Ryan O'Connell, SPECIAL is quarter-hour comedy series about a gay man, Ryan, with mild cerebral palsy who decides to rewrite his identity and finally go after the life he wants. After years of dead-end internships, working in his pajamas as a blogger and communicating mostly via text, Ryan eventually figured out how to take his life from bleak to chic and began limping towards adulthood. The story opens with Ryan beginning a coveted internship and findding an opportunity to redefine himself in the wake of being hit be a car. SPECIAL, executive produced by Jim Parson, premiered on Friday, April 12, 2019 at 3:01am ET/12:01am PT, as Neflix released all eight episodes.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The entire eight-episode second season of SPECIAL dropped on Thursday, May 20, 2021 on Netflix. Ryan really needs to get his stuff together. It's been two months and he still hasn't spoken to Karen since their fight and he has a gnarly case of writer's block that's getting him in hot water with Olivia. Enter Tanner, a fun, flirty dance instructor who charms Ryan despite not being totally available. When his writer's block eventually lifts, he's inspired to write a longform piece about disability. From there, he begins a journey of self-discovery that creates unexpected complications in his relationship with Tanner. Meanwhile, Kim lets her guard down when she meets Harrison, a sensitive tech mogul with a humble background - but her insecurities and jealous tendencies continue to hamper her personal life and threaten to push Harrison away. With her spiraling credit card debt driving Kim even further towards rock bottom, she makes a hard choice to regain control of her finances and personal life. Since taking care of Ryan was her life's purpose until their fight, Karen realizes that she needs to take an active approach to create a fulfilling life for herself -- beyond just taking care of her ailing mother. Will she be content with continuing to clean up everyone else's messes, or will Karen be able to lean into her newfound independence and create a life that centers around her own desires for once?