Charlotte Peach Have you ever thought prosciutto was made from beef? Or pondered the ethics of dating your longtime therapist? Or choreographed and performed a highly intricate and vulnerable contemporary dance for someone who didn’t appreciate it at all?
If you answered yes to any of those questions, you’re not alone! These are all questions, among many more, that the brilliant season two of Nobody Wants This also ponders, with much of the witty charm of season one.
Understandably, many Gen Z audiences might be quick to overlook this show – I myself had abstained from watching season one until just this month. To me, the series seemed to be marketed as a show purely cashing in on Millennial’s nostalgia for the 2000s shows of Adam Brody (The OC, Gilmore Girls) and Kristen Bell (Veronica Mars), alongside those sort of smarmy, cringey Millennial jokes. And, though it was well-done and very satisfying, the guest appearance of Leighton Meester (of Gossip Girl fame) only further contributed to this cynical theory of mine.
But, I have joyous news:Nobody Wants This is a pleasurably subversive, genuinely funny, and quite witty show. It is, thankfully, not another of Netflix’s atrocious rom coms lacking heart or authenticity (or happiness, such as the trainwreck of My Oxford Year). Instead, it is a show where every laugh is earned through great screenwriting, you are forced into caring for every character, and you are delightfully surprised by so many of these characters (Morgan and Sasha’s wholesome friendship continually astonished me, as did Morgan telling Bina she was ‘very chic’).
Season one followed Joanne (Kristen Bell), a “shiksa” as the show proclaims, falling in love with a rabbi, Noah (Adam Brody), and the season was essentially the rocky start to a relationship, with siblings and parents interfering, along with the strict rules of Noah’s judaism (namely that he can only marry a Jewish person).
Season two, I’m a little disappointed to report, is pretty much the exact same as season one: this first season’s central issue – whether Joanne will convert and therefore have a future with Noah – is thrown around and beaten up so so many times that it’s frustrating and almost painful. But, this is my only genuine complaint about the new season; all other aspects are honestly wonderful. The screenwriting is still there, the chemistry between Bell and Brody remains magnificent, and the authenticity is still strong (or as strong as any show set in LA can be).
My favourite part? The side characters. Joanne’s sister Morgan (an intensely charming Justine Lupe) made me root for her, from her outrage at a dry couples pasta-making session (Nightmare Material) to her mortifying relationship with her therapist (Nightmare Material 2.0), Dr Andy (Arian Moayed). The Guardian claims her “brattiness and barely disguised fragility” make her “one of the best comic creations currently on our screens” and I wholeheartedly agree. Her shamelessness and fearlessness keep a show that could be very sombre and serious (at its core, it is about long term relationships in your 30s) light and hilarious.
Another brilliant element of season two was Timothy Simons’ character Sasha. To me and most other viewers, Simons may never escape his imbecilic character from VEEP, Jonah Ryan, and I think that perfectly compliments this role, as Sasha: both Jonah and Sasha are witless, awkward men, but where Jonah was slimy, Sasha continually surprises audiences with his kindness, integrity and good manners. In fact, sometimes I even prefer Sasha over Brody’s Noah, who – though gorgeous – can be selfish.
In short, I adore this show. It’s not perfect and there are discrepancies and dips from season one, but it is incredibly enjoyable, hig
