Rather than picking up directly where the first season ended, “Paradise” Season 2 takes viewers back in time, exploring the fate of those who didn’t make it to the bunker before the world fell apart. The story begins with Annie, played by Shailene Woodley, a disillusioned nursing school dropout who finds refuge as a tour guide at Elvis’ Graceland. This iconic location becomes her sanctuary amidst the nuclear catastrophe that decimates much of the global population. Through Annie’s perspective, viewers witness the devastation and its impact on the survivors. She is just one of many new characters seamlessly integrated into the “Paradise” narrative, reminiscent of the character-driven storytelling that made shows like “Lost” so compelling.

Each new character and backstory in Season 2 connects back to our protagonist, Xavier. Following the Season 1 finale, Xavier is on a quest to locate his wife Teri, portrayed by Enuka Okuma, beyond the confines of Paradise. Meanwhile, those he left behind, including his family, the bunker leader Sinatra (Julianne Nicholson), and the volatile Jane (Nicole Brydon Bloom), grapple with the fallout from the rebellion he incited to expose governmental deceptions. Across the seven episodes available for review, we track Xavier’s journey as he encounters survivors with various motives, while Sinatra and Paradise’s leadership strive to restore order. At the same time, others, like Xavier’s teenage daughter Presley (Aliyah Mastin) and her boyfriend Jeremy (Charlie Evans), are determined to challenge authority and surface above ground.

Once again, Fogelman proved that sometimes going backward and digging around in the past is the most effective way to move a story forward. The possibilities, connections, and fascinating individual stories feel never-ending in this follow-up, bearing the kind of rewarding fruit in long-form storytelling that’s quite rare these days. Peak TV might be over, but Fogelman certainly didn’t get the memo.

Season 2 doesn’t immediately pick up where “Paradise” left off last year. Instead, it spends some time in the past to show us the other side of the coin — of what happened after The Day to those who weren’t fortunate enough to make it to the bunker before s*** hit the fan. We begin with Annie (Shailene Woodley), a lost young woman who dropped out of nursing school, as she finds her new home at Elvis’ Graceland as a tour guide — the very place that also becomes her and another woman’s shelter when the world ends. Through her eyes, we get to peek into the nuclear catastrophe that obliterated most of the world’s population and the effect it left on those who survived it. She’s just the first of many survivors that Dan Fogelman introduces and seamlessly weaves into the narrative fabric of “Paradise” this time around. With this approach, he evokes the kind of character-driven storytelling that made trailblazers like “Lost” so immersive and captivating.

There’s a connection behind every new face and backstory, and it doesn’t take long until they lead to our hero, Xavier. As we know from the Season 1 finale, he’s now on the mission to find his wife Teri (Enuka Okuma) outside of Paradise, while the people he left behind — including his family, the bunker’s ruler Sinatra (Julianne Nicholson), and the unhinged Jane (Nicole Brydon Bloom) — are dealing with the aftermath of the rebellion he started to reveal the lies they were fed by the government. In the seven episodes that were provided for review, we follow Xavier on his journey as he encounters survivors of various intentions, while Sinatra and the leaders of Paradise attempt to restore order and stop those who want to fight the power and break above ground — like Xavier’s teenage daughter, Presley (Aliyah Mastin), and her boyfriend, Jeremy (Charlie Evans).

In terms of main plot progression, Season 2 might seem disproportionately slow, but Fogelman and his writers give us so much else to care about that it almost doesn’t matter. Instead of leaning into the actions and the feud between Paradise and the outsiders, they focus on the smaller, more intimate moments, and that’s where the series excels far better than anything else on TV right now.

Your mileage may vary depending on your expectations, but I personally preferred the stand-alone episodes that take place almost entirely outside of Paradise. In those, Dan Fogelman manages to channel his peak “This is Us” moments, transforming them into a completely different series without disrupting its tone, atmosphere, or flow. Without spoiling anything, I must say there are stories wrapped in this season that are complete and potent enough to stand on their own — yet Fogelman somehow infuses them with nuance and character development that effortlessly feeds into the more major arcs that are quietly brewing under the surface.

At its best, “Paradise” Season 2 plays like a painstakingly perfected emotional symphony held by a master conductor. Whether it’s finding love in a hopeless place, dealing with grief, facing trauma, or being undone by an overwhelming loneliness, the dramatic beats here link together like indelible notes to form a flawless melody of the heart and soul (underlined by a fantastic score that keeps using alternative covers of classic songs just like the first season did).

Where Fogelman’s genius falters, however, is when he’s forced out of his comfort zone to build up to and execute murders, physical altercations, or gunfights that at times fall flat and feel clunkier than they should. While he’s elaborate and gifted at forging suspense — especially by interweaving flashbacks with present threats — he can’t always nail the crescendos they inevitably lead to. Thankfully, these mishits happen very seldom since he’s aware of his own limitations (as well as the medium’s).

Ultimately, “Paradise” rides on masterfully constructed mysteries and beautifully drawn characters, and those still abound in Season 2. And so do the twists, with the biggest one remaining a secret, even to us critics who got early access to several episodes (but not for the finale). What I can confirm is that the episodes leading up to that something are truly spectacular, enthralling, and immersive television that follows in the footsteps of “Lost” with the heart of “This is Us.” If that’s not a good enough recommendation, I don’t know what is.

“Paradise” Season 2 hits Hulu on February 23.