Spoilers ahead for the Season 2 premiere of The Irrational on NBC, called "Collateral Damage."
The Irrational is back on NBC in the 2024 TV schedule, and the Season 2 premiere had a kidnapping cliffhanger to resolve as well as a new season to set up. With Rose abducted, Alec was struggling to remain unbiased in "Collateral Damage" before he went and got himself kidnapped, with Kylie as the closest thing to a voice of reason that he was really open to. When I spoke with Travina Springer, who plays Kylie, about The Irrational's second season, she also reflected on the very first scene she filmed with Jesse L. Martin to establish the Mercer siblings' relationship.
While the major crisis of "Collateral Damage" involved rescuing Rose – and then rescuing both Alec and Rose – there were some important moments between the Mercer siblings. Kylie reminded her brother that she knows him better than anyone, and he admitted that he couldn't remain unbiased when Rose was the one in danger, even if he's not ready to declare his love for her. They also shared a moment toward the end of the episode at the hospital, and it paralleled a scene from the series premiere last year.
According to Travina Springer, that scene in the series premiere (which you can find streaming with a Peacock subscription) was also the very first time that she and Jesse L. Martin met in the flesh! When I noted that Kylie and Alec's relationship was one of my favorite parts of Season 1, the actress responded:
Thank you, first of all, for saying that. I love working with Jesse L. Martin. It's really a dream, and honestly, when we shot our pilot, there's a scene at the end of the episode when he's in the hospital, and that is literally the first time that we met in person, and it was just wonderful and really magical that we had instant chemistry and got along. It felt like family instantly, which was really nice and made my job easier.
The Irrational really needed a specific kind of chemistry between the actors for Alec and Kylie to channel true sibling energy, and – as somebody with older brothers myself – I think the show nailed it with Jesse L. Martin and Travina Springer. Who else wouldn't have guessed that their hospital scene in the pilot was their first in-person meeting? Springer went on:
He's just a joy to work with, and I love how the writers have really just showcased the sibling dynamic really nicely. But when you work with someone who's that talented, it makes my job really easy. [laughs] I think it's really sweet and important to show a loving brother and sister relationship, so I love that we get to do that. I don't have a big brother, so I get to live those dreams through Jesse.
Of course, Jesse L. Martin was already a familiar face to plenty of longtime NBC fans, as he's one of the Law & Order actors to appear in the most episodes with a total of 202. That show also wasn't his only hit prior to The Irrational, and Travina Springer weighed in on her experiences with fans of his work:
I know that Jesse has an impressive and extensive resume. I knew that he was on Law and Order for many seasons, and is very beloved in that role. I knew he was on The Flash and has a huge fan base there. But I know that a lot of people also know him for his role in beautiful Broadway play Rent – the musical and the film. Absolutely, he's really a legend in so many ways. It's interesting when you're in the world, and people know that I work on the show, they'll talk about him from one of those projects, the big ones, and people are like, 'Law and Order!' Or like, 'Oh, I love him from Rent!' Or Flash fans. That's really cool.
Interestingly, it was when news broke of NBC developing a pilot for The Irrational back in 2022 that Jesse L. Martin started to step away from The Flash, although not before he put that Rent voice to good use in The Flash and Supergirl's musical crossover. As for Alec and Kylie Mercer, it remains to be seen what Season 2 has in store for them, although it looks like conflict over Alec's knack for getting into danger is on the way:
Considering that the Season 2 premiere alone included Alec allowing himself to be kidnapped, I can see Kylie's point about her brother continuing to do dangerous things! Last season, there was even a stunt so intense for Alec that Jesse L. Martin couldn't do it.
See what's next for the Mercer siblings and the rest with new episodes of The Irrational on Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET on NBC, following The Voice. You can also catch up on earlier episodes via Peacock.
