YOU

Based on a novel of the same name, You is easily one of the most watchable shows of 2018. Starring in it are Joe Goldberg (Penn Badgley), a book store manager with amazing deduction abilities that’d put Sherlock to shame, and Guinevere Beck (Elizabeth Lail), an aspiring poet with ambitions too far out of reach for her empty wallet and a questionable taste in friends (and men).

Joe, after running into Beck and taking a particular interest in her, resorts to social media to feed his curiosity about who she really is. His growing obsession, although unnoticed by Beck, doesn’t go past Peach (Shay Mitchell) who just cannot stop being so condescending, and Benji (Lou Taylor) who’s number one at making Beck feel used. Putting aside their terrible personality, they do have the right to be worried about Beck’s wellbeing. Joe finds it hard to differentiate between whether what he’s feeling is love, intrigue or plain obsession. 

Badgley portrays Joe as a psychopath, that’s easily visible. He plays himself as the good guy in front of everybody, but his narration throughout the episodes and freaky actions when he’s alone tell us otherwise. Lail’s character is more flexible, up to our imaginations. We could either take her as the innocent victim of all the subjected torture or place her as the impudent blonde. It also seems as though she’s fooling everyone to think differently of her than who she actually is. Who knows?

As great as it is, You is moving… slowly? I mean, the excitement and anticipation about whether Joe will get caught snooping around Beck’s belongings is getting dragged out. I’m waiting for the final blow, Beck’s epiphany. Joe’s daring actions are keeping the show going, and if the series really wants its viewers to be even invested, the writers need to coerce actual distress onto its watchers.

It genuinely is an enjoyable show that’ll keep you up, thinking about whether you should’ve posted about your trip to the store on twitter.

Rating: 4Stars

STAR FALL

Star Fall is about Sophia Miller (Siena Agudong) who strives to get her mother Beth (Elena V. Wolfe) and celebrity Craig (Dion Johnstone) together when the aforementioned is in town with his family for a shoot. On the journey of helping her mother experience the beauty of true love, she ends up befriending his children who team up together to get Craig and Beth to date each other.

The show, aired on Nikelodeon, is not really different from the rest that have been aired. Sophia gives me major Carly vibes from iCarly with her enthusiastic and optimistic perspective on life, seeming as if nothing can let her down. The girl tries really hard, perhaps too hard, to get the two adults together. 

I can’t help but feel slightly frustrated at how her mother is literally doing nothing to stop her attempts. Clearly, she wanted to wholeheartedly date the man as well. If it was any brown mom, I’m sure Sophia would’ve been on the receiving end of a hard soled sandal.

The show is mediocre; I haven’t seen anything out of the ordinary other than a bunch of teenagers fooling around – something visible in almost every show Nikelodeon airs, and that’s a given since it is a channel for children. 

It’s got the same humour as every other show aired in the channel, and honestly, I can’t see it making a break.

Rating: 2Stars

I FEEL BAD

Emet (Sarayu Blue) strives for perfection, trying to cover all the responsibilities in her fussy life by being the flawless wife, model boss and ideal mother. But of course, no one is perfect, and neither is she. Like every other human being toppled over by work, she has her guilty pleasures too; be it having an inappropriate dream about a man while her husband sleeps next to her, or breaking into her neighbour’s house for a quick get-away.

Not only does she struggle at work with Norman (Zach Cherry), Grif (Johnny Pemberton) and Chewy (James Buckley), acting as a mother hen towards her immature teammates who simply cannot function without her, she also has to take care of her three children, her husband David (Paul Adelstein) or 'humpty David’ whom she patches back up when he feels insecure, and her parents who absorb whatever little free time she gets out of her busy schedule.

I Feel Bad discusses Emet’s professional and personal life with her voice steering the show. Its general idea of comedy is well-perceived and I can sense it hitting big in the future if it continues on doing whatever it is. Although, minor mistakes are visible such as Grif’s perverted behaviour that should’ve been shown as a man-child personality since it was only the pilot. It also talks about feminism through Norman’s and Emet’s short conversations, making us love Norman’s established and comedic character even more.

All in all, I Feel Bad is an amazing show which is breaking the stereotypes NBC has been entitled with.

Rating: 3.5Stars