Alaska Daily is one of the best and most refreshing shows coming out of this fall/winter TV cycle, with Hilary Swank as Eileen Fitzgerald, a disgraced journalist who finds a new home in Alaska, bringing coverage to the often overlooked (purposefully ignored) stories of murderer indigenous women alongside her partner-in-crime, Roz Friendly played by Grace Dove. 

With the season finale scheduled to air on ABC on Thursday, March 30, marking the season’s 11th episode, fans begged the network for a second season allowing audiences to follow Eileen’s adventures of pursuing truth and justice on a local scale. 

Sadly, the series has not been given a green light by ABC, which means it was canceled and it will not return for a second season.

While the series has amassed a loyal and dedicated following—with many of you reaching out to me and noting that you wish the show received more publicity and promotion from the network itself—it wasn’t able to build up the audience or gain the momentum it needed in its short primetime run, which honestly, is a shame because of the important storytelling and refreshing and diverse cast propelling meaningful conversations and calling for change and action.

As Deadline reported earlier this year, the series has “sizable internal support but has not been able to break through in a meaningful way, making a Season 2 renewal unlikely.”

In terms of ratings, these series brought in about 2.7 million viewers weekly, according to TVSeriesFinale.

It may not be the news we wanted, but we’re grateful for the journey regardless. 

I thought I loved Alaska Daily when the series first premiered, but the season finale—hopefully not the series finale—made me fall in love with it even more.

You don’t go into a show like Alaska Daily, one that deals with tough subjects like crime, corruption, and the murder of missing indigenous women, expecting a happy ending, but it sure feels good when you get one. 

Roz and Eileen gave Gloria Nanmac’s case their all, pursuing the truth and following every lead, wherever it took them. When they hit dead ends, they backtracked and kept digging. And they never ever gave up, not only solving Gloria’s murder but calling out the state of Alaska for the broken system that it had in place. 

They did the heavy lifting that no one else wanted to do because it was important. It mattered. And it’s what sets apart The Daily Alaskan from the competition—they are determined to pursue the truth at any cost.

Several times throughout the episode, it felt as though the answers just fell into their lap while pursuing the real suspect in Gloria’s case, but there was always an air of believability. Eileen and Roz put in a season’s worth of research, so when things started presenting themselves, it was their hard work and perseverance paying off. They established credibility amongst the Alaskan people and were shining a light on issues that others likely wanted to be addressed for a long time, so not only did people feel like they could trust them, many wanted to lend a helping hand in any way that they could, encouraging them to keep digging and keep hunting.

When they finally located Clarence Redding, a.k.a Skeeter, he was the missing puzzle piece that could hammer home the timeline of events from the presumed night of Gloria’s murder. He wasn’t willing to blow up the life he’d created for himself, however, his partner and mother of his child insisted that he finally come clean and stop carrying around Ezra’s secret. 

If it wasn’t for Gloria’s 9-1-1 voicemail setting everything into motion, Skeeter may not have turned on his former friend, Ezra, but since Gloria uttered his name while begging for help—and effectively being ignored by the people who should’ve been putting together a full-fledged search party—there was no denying his involvement. 

Skeeter provided the insight, but he also handed over the smoking gun, or, as Stanley said, the smoking crutches, which linked Ezra to Gloria’s murder. Eileen and Roz’s gut instinct about the guy was right, and I’m glad that he won’t be able to get away with any more violent crimes. 

Not only that, but they were able to provide all of the evidence before Toby’s trial started, which meant that the DA cleared him of all charges. Roz and Eileen obviously wanted to get justice for Gloria, but Toby was their motivation in the end because they were racing against a clock—and they couldn’t see an innocent indigenous man go to jail for a crime he didn’t commit.

And they didn’t stop there. Ezra may have led to Gloria’s murder, but there’s no doubt about it that the broken system in place played a role every step of the way. The fact that the mayor called their reporting “fake news” proves that the government wanted to wash its hands of it.

So many people failed Gloria, and other men and women like Gloria, but Eileen and Roz were determined to bring the corruption to light after getting a tip from an anonymous texter by the name “Disillusioned,” who turned out to be Commissioner Haynes’ assistant, Mary Anne. She knew that there was a report that provided some very basic solutions to the MWIW problem—something as simple, straightforward, and obvious as getting these small towns a functioning 911 system—yet they were ignored and pushed aside because they weren’t a priority when they should’ve been. 

ALASKA DAILY – “Most Reckless Thing I’ve Ever Done” – With rumors of a new Alaskan newspaper swirling, the team investigates their competition and what it means for the future of local news. Meanwhile, Eileen and Roz listen to Gloria’s final call and find their lead before an innocent man is put away. THURSDAY, MARCH 30 (10:01-11:00 p.m. EDT), on ABC. (ABC/Darko Sikman)
IRENE BEDARD

Eventually, Haynes did the right thing after realizing that Mary Anne got into public service because of her and left because of her. Haynes likely got in it for the right reasons once upon a time and then became a disappointment by always turning a blind eye when it was convenient. It was nice to see her finally come around and be on the right side of history after creating so many roadblocks for Eileen and Roz. Everyone views journalists as the enemy until they realize that it’s actually the system in place that’s doing a disservice to the people it’s supposed to be protecting. 

Laying it all out there for the Alaskan people was a good start and a reminder of why they do all of this in the first place. They were holding the right people accountable for the first time ever. And it was also a reminder as to why local journalism matters and should be preserved. Sylvia’s visit and gratitude drove that point home as she wouldn’t have gotten the closure she needed if it wasn’t for Roz and Eileen.

Those two did not start on the best terms at the beginning, but by the end, they were two peas in a pod, bettering each other along the way. Stanley was right when he said that they could both learn a great deal from each other, and they went on one hell of an adventure together that really contributed to their respective character growth. Eileen still possessed the part that made her such a stellar reporter—her integrity never wavered—but she softened around the edges, opening up to the idea of being a part of something and learning new ways to get things done. She didn’t have all the answers when it came to figuring out the dynamics in Alaska, but by the end, she was part of the community that respected her for her work. 

Most importantly, she stopped searching for that next big thing to consume her mind—she was finally comfortable where she was, informing Roz that she wasn’t going to take the job in New York and choosing to stay in Alaska instead. Not only did she have a family at The Daily Alaskan that she couldn’t leave behind, but she owed it to herself to explore a potential romance with the pilot poet, both on and off the ground.

I’m not confident that the series will get renewed, which is a damn shame because, with Gloria’s case wrapped up, there’s so much story left to tell in a series that has so much heart, warmth, and light, despite all the obstacles thrown in its way.

For starters, the situation between Aaron Pritchard and his father, Conrad, is intriguing, and I’d love to see how they would navigate a competitor daily. It’s one thing to say that they won’t be taking the bait and going into war with the Anchorage Eagle, but it’s another thing to actually see it pan out on screen when Pritchard’s money is pushing and pushing them against a wall.  

I feel like things between Eileen and Aaron were also left up in the air, and while the pilot poet was the clear winner of her feelings, I don’t think Aaron would’ve been out of the picture completely. I could see them growing closer as they rallied to remain the best and most just publication in town.

Each newsroom member had storylines that didn’t get closure—from Bob’s sick wife to Yuma and Austin’s budding relationship, right down to Austin’s fight for paternity for his son.

We have a diverse cast of different backgrounds, ethnicities, and ages that bring so much to the table, and fans deserve more time with them.

On the other hand, if ABC never planned on renewing the series, it wasn’t the worst finale. I’d say it was the best possible finale we could’ve gotten—with the Daily Alaskan’s employees reinvigorated, and Eileen and Stanley soaking up their victory (and lamenting that embarking on this journey was the most reckless thing they’d ever done… though it paid off!) with the Northern Lights and a warm paper fresh off the press, proving that there’s still something to be said about the power of print and the written word. 

What did you think about the season finale of Alaska Daily? 

The penultimate episode of Alaska Daily Season 1 Episode 10 made plenty of headway in the Gloria Nanmac case, largely due to Eileen and Roz’s determination to find the truth and get justice. 

While on the surface Alaska Daily is an entertaining murder mystery, the series taps into the beloved genre to create a movement and inform the masses of the crimes against native women, which isn’t a widely talked about topic. It’s a shame that the series isn’t getting enough attention as it’s trying to bring attention to something so important and overlooked as missing women and a justice system that fails them on the daily. Not to mention, the lack of infrastructure and resources in Alaska that’s allowing these cases to be swept under the rug.

The episode revealed that there are villages that don’t have their own police department and are forced to rely solely on volunteers from the community to keep the peace and order, which should be unheard of in this day and age.

It also dug into Rule 40, which Eileen explained protects domestic violence abusers and allows them to hide in plain sight. I’m not entirely clear on the law, though I did find this, however, the episode establishes that Rule 40 is largely to blame for allowing Ezra Fisher to get away with abusing women.

He clearly has a pattern, but since every case was dropped or dismissed, it never had to be logged on his records and thus, in the eyes of the law, he had no criminal past when his name came up as a suspect in Gloria’s murder. Toby Crenshaw looks guiltier as he was involved in a bar fight not too long ago, which indicates a violent past. 

There were so many frustrating layers discovered as Eileen and Roz tirelessly pursued the truth, eventually realizing that none of their work actually mattered if they couldn’t do anything to change the outcome. The DA wasn’t interested in looking into Ezra again because everyone was just happy that justice was being served on a platter and in a nice bow—no one actually seemed phased that they were putting the wrong man away for a crime he didn’t commit and due to a false and coerced confession. And that’s strange considering Rule 40 was put in place so that a man’s reputation wouldn’t get tarnished by false allegations. It made no note of a scenario in which the allegations were real and true, so I guess the government only cares when it benefits them… or a white male. No surprise there. 

However, the evidence against Ezra is mounting and becoming harder to ignore. He lost his alibi when Eileen and Roz got their audio guy (also the weed guy, which tracks) to isolate the background noises and realized that Ezra was at Skeeter’s party with his son instead of leaving the party to go pick up his son. Ezra wasn’t willing to speak to them, which wasn’t much of a surprise, but after they pulled all of his prior offenses against women and presented them to Taylor, she knew she had to do the right thing. While the DA was rather dismissive of a child’s testimony, 10-year-old Jackson painted a picture of what transpired that night—Gloria was hurt, she passed out and Ezra drove her home while leaving his son behind at the “adult party.” He then told the kid not to say anything. And that last part honestly tells you everything you need to know about the man. 

I don’t know how anyone could ignore that evidence, especially when they have a recording of Gloria begging Toby for help and telling him she loves him. That absolutely would never happen if Toby was the assailant. Hopefully, once they print their story and make the public aware, there will be enough outcry that the DA and everyone else involved in the case will have to take pause and take a look at the facts… the real ones this time. 

The Daily Alaskan has thrown itself behind Gloria’s story wholeheartedly, including Bob, who channeled his inner Fitzgerald to get his friend Gary to send over the confidential phone records. I always knew Bob had it in him. Alaska and Eileen’s colleagues at the Daily Alaskan seem to be rubbing off on her—she asked Bob how he was doing and genuinely cared, and she didn’t jump at the New York Times offer when she should have—but Eileen is also rubbing off on them and making them better reporters. 

Bob doesn’t need to burn bridges daily and enact pushy tactics, but this was a situation that called for it—they want justice for Gloria, but they also want to help her cancer-stricken mother find peace. 

Those phone records proved to be more crucial than anyone could have ever imagined as they revealed that Gloria placed a 9-1-1 call two days after she was reported missing, which means she was alive and begging for help all while police refused to search for her. Eileen and Roz basically hit a gold mine with this because they are coming for the broken system in place that is letting these women down and allowing them to slip through the cracks. Gloria deserved better—and everyone who let her down needs to be held accountable. It also changes things because it means that Gloria likely froze to death, which they would have known if anyone did their due diligence, or, I don’t know, their job! 

This changes the whole trajectory of the case because as Stanley pointed out, it’s now a dialogue with the Alaskan people. They are speaking for them, they are advocating for them, and they are unearthing issues that directly affect them. 

ALASKA DAILY – “Truth is a Slow Bullet” – While making progress on Gloria’s case, both Eileen and Roz are offered new career opportunities, leaving them to consider what may lie beyond Alaska. Meanwhile, Bob steps out of his comfort zone, and Austin’s custody agreement turns sour. THURSDAY, MARCH 23 (10:01-11:00 p.m. EDT), on ABC. (ABC/Darko Sikman)
HILARY SWANK, GRACE DOVE

It’s a good thing Gabriel decided to return to the newsroom because his expedited project with Jindaháa and the other volunteers only emphasized the importance of the work Eileen and Roz were doing. Visually seeing the faces of the missing women come to life was even more gut-wrenching than just hearing their stories. It’s crucial to drive even more people to speak out and hold their government accountable. 

And the MMIW project is the very reason that I believe Eileen and Roz are both going to turn down their respective offers from The New York Times and The Washington Post. Both of those offers are a dream come true and would give them the career advancement that they want, but the work they are doing right now is just too important. Neither of them can give up, nor can they walk away from a paper that, though holding on by a thread, is so vital to the people of Alaska. Eileen, in particular, has seen firsthand and understood the power of local journalism, and there’s simply no going back from that. This seems to be the first time she’s ever felt passionate about the story she was seeking out, and it’s the first time she’s ever had a “family” at work. Yes, she could choose to go back to NYC and work out of a swanky office and throw a big middle finger to cancel culture, but none of that matters if her heart isn’t in it. I dare say covering the local beats has made her a better reporter.

Not to mention she has two potential suitors—Conrad Pritchard and the pilot. Even if Alaska has its fair share of problems, she has so much going for her. 

The same can be said for Austin, who is in a contentious battle with his ex, Anna, who wants to accept a new job in Chicago and move their son Zach there. While there’s nothing wrong with wanting to advance in your career, Anna isn’t respecting Austin’s point of view. Her solution was to basically have him uproot his whole life and move if he wanted to stay in his child’s life. That’s not a fair compromise. Her argument that Chicago is safer than Alaska because there was one shooter in the newsroom is also laughable—and I’m glad Austin brought that up. Does she know what happens in Chicago? I live here, and while it has its perks, I wouldn’t say it’s a safer place to raise a child. 

Anna does bring up some good points about being closer to family, but the fact that Austin is even considering if she has a point proves that he’s a good dad who only wants what’s best for his son. And if his son is happy in Alaska, why ruin a good thing? Things between them are going to get even uglier as things head to court, but I’m kind of hoping the judge will rule in Austin’s favor. 

Austin also can’t give up his life in Alaska because of Yuna! That kiss was electric, and the idea of them as a couple is so exciting! Newsroom romances tend to be my favorite. 

The season finale is coming up next week, and hopefully, Eileen and Roz will be able to see this through and emerge victorious in putting the right man behind bars for Gloria’s murder.

What did you think of the episode, Cravers?