Will & Grace is saying goodbye. Again.
After the beloved and groundbreaking NBC sitcom was successfully revived in 2017, returning to the network's comedy lineup to act as an anchor for an additional three seasons over a decade after first going off the air, the series is signing off once more with its second series finale on Thursday, April 23. And that means our Thursday nights are going to be a whole lot less funny without the antics of Will Truman, Grace Adler, Jack McFarland and Karen Walker to look forward to.
"When NBC had the opportunity to reconnect this amazing cast and creative team, we jumped at the chance," said George Cheeks and Paul Telegdy, Co-Chairmen, NBC Entertainment, in a statement last July when they revealed the show would be coming to an end after 11 overall seasons."The impact and legacy of Will & Grace simply can't be overstated, both as a true game-changer in the portrayal of the LGBTQ community and as one of the finest comedies in television history. A huge thank you to [co-creators] Max [Mutchnik], David [Kohan], [director] Jimmy [Burrows] and a cast that is second to none for their brilliance over an incredible run."
Before we say goodbye to Eric McCormack, Debra Messing, Sean Hayes and Megan Mullally for the second time, let's send them off by taking a look back at the best moments each of them had to offer in this revival.
Best Will Moment: Schooling Grace's Dad
In an episode from the revival's second season--its 10th overall--McCormack got to flex his deft drama muscles when Will let Grace's dad Martin (Robert Klein) know how hurtful it was that he refused a blood transfusion from him in a time of need because of antiquated beliefs about gay men and their health. At a moment when gay men still are barred from donating blood as freely as the rest of this country's citizens despite overwhelming need for donations, the scene remains a powerful reminder of the discrimination the gay community continues to face.
Best Grace Moment: Vitameatavegamin
Messing proved that those comparisons to Lucille Ball all these years thanks to a shared prowess at physical comedy and hair color were no fluke when, in a season three episode dedicated to I Love Lucy, Grace reenacted to hilarious perfection the classic sitcom's iconic Vitameatavegamin commercial.
Best Jack Moment: The Numbing Cream Incident
In this season two episode, Hayes proved yet again just how incredible he is with physical comedy when Jack goes overboard with a face numbing cream at a truly inopportune moment. By the time a banana is added to the mix, we have one of the best bits the show delivered throughout its entire 11 seasons.
Best Karen Moment: Rosario's Funeral
Early in the show's first season back, the writers made the difficult decision to kill off Karen's beloved and beleaguered maid Rosario after the late Shelley Morrison, then just in declining health, opted not to return. The resulting episode was a tour-de-force for Mullally, who got to spar once more with Minnie Driver's Lorraine, as seen in the hilarious clip below, while tugging on our heartstrings with more emotionally nuanced moments than the show ever allowed her, both before or since. It was no surprise that this was the episode that netted the actress her eighth Emmy nod for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. (She lost to The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel's Alex Borstein.)
Best Returning Character: Beverley Leslie
While the revival brought back many of the show's beloved guest stars during its three seasons--the aforementioned Driver, Molly Shannon's Val, and Charles C Stevenson Jr. as Smitty were some highlights--none stole the show more than Karen's unhinged and diminutive nemesis Beverley Leslie, played to perfection by Leslie Jordan. And while his appearances in all three seasons were hilarious, we're partial to his last appearance in the "We Love Lucy" episode, joining Mullally to recreate I Love Lucy's iconic grape stomping scene. These two truly are comedy gold.
Best New Character: Estefan Gloria
The series welcomed an impressive list of bold-named guest stars during its three seasons back on the air--Demi Lovato! Vanessa Bayer! Matt Bomer!--but none of them fit in with the core four and cracked us up as much as Brian Jordan Alvarez as Jack's hilariously-named flight attendant boyfriend-turned-husband Estefan Gloria. Don't believe us? Check out this season two episode where he goes toe-to-toe with Mullally. We rest our case.
The Will & Grace series finale airs Thursday, April 21 at 9 p.m., followed by a retrospective special hosted by McCormack entitled "A Will & Graceful Goodbye" at 9:30, only on NBC.
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