If you are unfamiliar with danish celebrities, a lot of the jokes will be lost on you. In every episode there is supposed to be a funny cameo that I rarely think is that good.
We are supposed to laugh at the idea that Thomas Blachman is some mafia boss, that Sidse Babett is bipolar and that Nikolaj Coster-Waldau has hired a personal bard. These sorts of jokes usually falls flat, perhaps because of the delivery but it's also really hard to buy any of it. Danish celebrity-life is not nearly as crazy as what we hear from the states. Look at any danish tabloid and the most crazy thing you'll learn is usually that some actor bought a new house.
The celebrity camoes aren't great but even worse is the recurring characters.
Our main character Joe, is a charismatic man who tends to party a lot with his associates. We are supposed to think that he takes his job too seriously, sometimes being more of a marriage counsellor, a babysitter or a psychologist to his clients. The man also tries to connect with his daughter, but his ex-wife is reluctant to let them spend too much time together, with drugs and wild parties being a regular occurance in Joe's appartment.
A major problem is that Joe is the only recurring character that is allowed to at least have a bit of depth. There are three other characters we see in every episode, his mother who is also his boss that is serious and thinks Joe needs to get his act together. His ex-wife who seems to have full custody over their daughter and who seems to think Joe needs to get his act together. Finally we have Joe's daughter who seems to like him, but she is at least on some level aware that Joe really needs to get his act together. Notice a pattern here?
I know that it's common in danish fiction that the woman fills the serious role that yells at her silly husband, but isn't it about time to try something new? It was a similar dynamic in Klovn, with wives yelling at their stupid and disgusting husbands and that show is from 2005.
The worst character is probably Joe's mother because she yells at him in every episode and she has good reason to be mad at Joe - he is a liar and have borrowed millions in what I assume is the company name, behind her back. Joe is clearly not a person you should hire anywhere, so you ask yourself why he has been allowed to work in his mother's agency for what seems to be most of his adult life. The show also seems to forget that you can make the straight-man funny. Here we have one male lead we are supposed to laugh at, and three female characters that are all serious obstacles that Joe needs manage, somehow.
I give the show three stars because the acting and scenography is okay and while the celebrity-cameos aren't saving the show, I at least think Sidse Babett made an entertaining performance so you can at least check it out if your favorite celebrity makes a cameo. Just don't expect anything great.
