Carnivàle

Carnivàle's dusty rumble out West picks up right where the first season left off: with Ben Hawkins (Nick Stahl) on a collision course with freaky Brother Justin (Clancy Brown). But where the first season was plodding and confusing, the second season ups the pace, intent on answering the questions left wide open in the first 12 episodes. Turns out that Ben's father is the key to mankind's fate, touching off a race to find him to determine whether we all live, die, or wind up waiting another six episodes before something meaningful occurs in this bizarre and addictive series. To aid his cause, Brother Justin uses subliminal radio messages to recruit help, while Ben looks for Daddy with his merry band of pranksters, including a bearded lady, a dwarf, and the occasional slack-jawed yokel. After patiently waiting an entire season for something to happen on this apocalyptic freak show, it looks like the carnies are finally ready to stand tall before the wagon in season two.