Such Brave Girls

I binge watched this in two days. It's the type of comedy that us Brits do really well. There is nothing 'polished' about it. It's down and dirty and very real. The relationship between the two sisters is brilliant. A combination of disdain, toxicity, combined-delusion and affection. And then I found out that they're sisters in real life! I think it's the raw honesty that makes this so funny. The acting from the whole cast is spot-on. From Louise Brealey as mum, Deb, who plays favourites in the most narcissistically manipulative way, to Freddie Meredith as Seb, the wet-dishcloth 'boyfriend' of Josie. As for Lizzie Davidson who plays one of the sisters, Billie, and Kate Sadler as Josie. Just wow! No doubt the honesty and chemistry between Billie and Josie came from the actresses being sisters in real life. Yet, even so, the acting is top notch. In some ways, I imagine it could be more difficult to play out what was, undoubtedly, certain real scenarios or feelings from their own personal lives. But they put it all on the line in the most endearing, gross, watchable and compelling way. This makes you feel so many emotions. It's laugh-out -loud funny and it definitely makes you cringe at times. These characters should be unlikable, but they're not. And that's because such a good job is done of exposing their vulnerabilities amid the humour and self-serving actions of the sisters and their mum. Each character is multi-dimensional - even Dev (mum's boyfriend). As a viewer, it's hard to get a grasp on his motivation. He's a combination of wet, weird, sympathetic and odd. And it's impossible to know who's playing who as Deb desperately tries to work her way into moving her and their girls into Dev's huge house, yet seems to end up always paying for everything (including his petrol). This is up there as one of the best comedies in recent years. And I think that's because it doesn't 'try' to be funny - it just is. It takes brilliant writing, as well as acting, to pull that off; so I was in awe when I found out Kate Sadler, who plays Josie, also wrote this. And she's still in her 20s! I literally can't wait to see what she comes up with next.

There's plenty of dark humour in 'Such Brave Girls', the story of mother and her two daughters trying to make sense of their lives and loves; and I smiled fairly often while watchig it. But great sitcom (as opposed to a quick sketch) doesn't just need a set of self-sabotaging characters: it also needs something they can sabotage. And if they're deluded, it helps if this delusion is in essence believable. In 'Fawlty Towers', Basil is always so close to, but also so far from, running his idea of a quality hotel. Black comedy is best when you recognise that something like it could happen to you. But in 'Such Brave Girls', the failings of our trio (and also those of their menfolk) are so front and centre that disaster feels inevitable; the most telling moments are foreshadowed by the essence of the setup, while spritely music connecting individual scences invites us not to take the story too seriously. The script does have merits; but the feeling of pervasive cheapness lets it down.

A family of three (mom and two daughters) is trying to solve their existential problems involving love, trauma, money, housing, by hooking up with men that they think are there to grab.

The mother is lying and doing her best to charm a single odd man who has a big house with heated floor though he never pays for anything in their relationship.

The beautiful daughter is being silly after a guy who cheats on her and leaves her every time he feels like it.

The second daughter is a wannabe complex girl who is afraid of anything and is making excuses to drop and run away from anything coming her way.

I love all three of them.

The comedy is smart, at a fast pace, quirky, and has few sexual scenes, one in particular involving the two sisters trying to test for pregnancy right after one had sex. Imagine what s coming down.. Anyway, big surprise seeing such a unique take on comedy and drama.

You should see this one.

It might be because I hyper identify with this family dynamic, but this is the greatest, tight season of comedy tv I've seen in a good long while. Damn, Brits take self deprecation to another level of art and I'm all for it. Kat Sadler is an incredibly talented writer and artist. The most compelling drawing of a horse I've ever seen.

Every character is great. The actor who plays Seb is like a bizarro Michael Cera but funnier. Billie goes all in on being "that girl" and the desperation is palpable. There's complexity in here that mocks tropes and is totally self aware. I also love the nod to bodily functions, and the closeness of female relationships. This show kind of addresses all the qualms I have with quirky sitcoms! Can't wait to see more.

Not often I binge watch a comedy, but this has made me laugh out loud so many times. It's, a, surprise hit for me, who knew such dysfunction could be so hilarious. I guess it is funny because we can all see things in it we recognise in ourselves or others. Josie brilliant character. Kat's performance and comic delivery is right on point, her pathetic awkward smiles and twisted body demeanor pure funny. Her mum desperate and super funny, her crazed deluded sister. Dev is just so awkward and cringetastic as is the boyfriend. Hope it continues, a great female led comedy of ultimate awkwardness with some great lines.

Favourite scenes include the pregnancy test, the trying to get sectioned by taking two paracetamol and the concerns about giving illicit drugs to a young girl of similar age. And the layers Josie wears on the boat trip cracked me up.