Life has got a lot more complicated for Nathan Brown since he died. Uploaded to a digital afterlife where his quality of existence depends on the whims of his narcissistic and controlling - albeit genuinely passionate about him - girlfriend Ingrid, he's had to confront the reality of his own self-centred and selfish life, and the way that those characteristics hurt those he cared about, and probably also led to his own death.
Things are about to get a whole lot more complicated for Nathan. First, Ingrid has apparently killed herself to be with him, so now she's an even more omnipresent part of his life. Second, the woman he has genuinely come to care about, his still-living 'angel' Nora, has vanished after being targeted by nefarious persons unknown.
This second season of Upload builds strongly on the groundwork laid by the first. Nathan and Nora are re-united (of course) and continue to work through the complications of their quasi-relationship. Ingrid's controlling ways and tenuous concept of honesty continue to complicate matters for them. Secrets about the digital afterlife and its future implications in the real world are revealed, while continuing technological innovations threaten to once again transform society's concepts of life and death.
My favourite thing about this show is that it rejects the usual simple morality of fictional media. Most of the characters are much more multi-faceted than they first appear. At first glance, Ingrid appears to be a generic 'evil ex' type who exists in the fiction only to be an adversary to overcome, but the writers aren't afraid to give her some redeeming features and good intentions. She may be vain and self-centred ... but so was Nathan, and like him (if not to the same extent) she shows signs of growth. Similarly, "good" characters are confronted with difficult choices where they must decide which of the things they claim to value are actually most important to them, or where they are tempted to sacrifice their morals for personal gain. Unlike a lot of shows, it's not a guarantee that they will make the 'right' choice.
Upload is funny and breezy but it's also a surprisingly smart and well thought-out narrative. The writers consider to think about the implications of 'life' after death and how it both change society merely by verifiably existing, and also how humans would try to use this new technology to deliberately influence the development of society.
If you liked season one, it's definitely worth returning for this second helping.
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