The second season of The Two Coreys premiered Sunday night, and those who didn’t see it missed some Grade A reality TV.

Generally, the second time around is never as good as the first. We see this all the time in sequels, remakes and television renewals. How could the second season of The Two Coreys, which ended last season on a highly intense dramatic note, ever be as good as it was in the beginning?

Great editing and text-based narratives created can’t-miss drama in the first moments of the second season opener. The show began with very little recap and preamble, devoting much of its time to showing a series of events which led up to a meeting between Corey Haim and Corey Feldman - for the first time in six months. This meeting was briefly highlighted at the beginning and end of the opener, then more fully explored in the episode which immediately followed. Terrible secrets and past pain were revealed early on, somewhat shocking in their nature.

They went from the meeting into marriage counseling, a fairly natural leap for a pair of friends struggling to maintain their decades-old relationship. What will follow on the second season is anyone’s guess, though promo spots indicate the two will work together on the production of Lost Boys 2 (the parent flick of this sequel was the first film to unite the Coreys onscreen, creating a dynamic partnership which would catapult both into unforgettable teen fame).

Together, The Two Coreys have always been dynamic - nothing showcases this chemistry (which sometimes mixes to explosive results) quite like A&E’s series. The first two episodes of the second season are hardly promising - currently, the friendship between the two (always the very best element of the show) remains fractured. Yet somehow, even this rift works to create great viewing pleasure.

The season opener was filled with intense moments, high drama and the inevitable, male-toned threats. But there is still the tenderness of true best friends and the true pathos each man can’t manage to hide. It’s this pathos that makes The Two Coreys incredibly riveting, and it’s the friendship which helps hold the show together. For the rest of the season, one question will reign in viewers’ minds: will the pathos prevail and drive these two best buds apart, or will their affection for each other be enough to overcome the pain? There’s only one way to know - watch the Coreys every Sunday night on A&E.