Is this show great? No. Does it have a ton of silliness and unbelievability to it? Yes. Do they try too hard sometimes to present the "dorky 40-year-olds" versus the "super irritating (yet infinitely cooler) millennials? Absolutely! Does Sutton Foster look 26? Of course not! But do you know what I say to all that? SO WHAT! This is just a fun entertaining light-hearted show, and I can't stop binge-watching it!
I find this show is like a bag of potato-chips. You can't just have one! You want to keep on going until you feel sort of sick (from greasy bad-for-you junk food) and the bag is almost empty. I watched this show a few years ago, and just recently discovered it on Hulu and decided to watch it again. And I'm having so much fun with it...even the second time around!
Is this show as good as Sex and the City (which it has been compared to)? No. Absolutely not. Sex and the City had amazing insight, incredible humor and wonderful character development. Younger is definitely more in the strictly silly entertainment category. But sometimes you need that. And yet, for a silly comedy, it actually does have some character development. Plus, the relationships amongst the woman are solid, which is nice to see. Especially lately, when it seems like there aren't a lot of good shows out there geared specifically for women.
As far as Sutton Foster (who plays the main character Liza..(.a 40-year-old divorced woman lying about her age to make it in the cut-throat publishing industry in New York) not looking 26, well here's the thing. She's 40. She is a 40 year old woman trying to LOOK 26, via her clothes and make-up, hair, attitude, etc.... So it actually makes more sense that she really looks older, although I don't think she looks 40...at least not in the first season. More like 30-something. If they had hired a younger person to play the main role...like say, a real 26 year old, then everyone would be complaining that the main character doesn't look 40! Besides, it's fiction. You just have to "go with it." How she really looks isn't even the point. The point is the cr...p women have to deal with in the world.
Others have complained that a 40-year-old wouldn't be so dorky when it comes to technology, and I have to agree with that. Then again, that "take" on things just adds to the comedy of the show! They do present the "millenials" on the program as being especially annoying, and they may be over-doing the "annoying factor." (I have a daughter who acts nothing like the young people on this show). Then again...that just adds to the humor. Sometimes, the show itself is trying to be "too cool" with its dumb music and idiotic clothes, but the good news is that the whole story is actually seen through the eyes of an "older woman" (yes, 40 is "old" in this show) so that makes it all so much more watchable if you yourself are not a millenial! (And don't forget...Carrie Bradshaw also had some crazy outfits on Sex and the City)!
It could be that I enjoy the show because it deals with publishing; a maddingly elusive industry that I have tried to push my way into with various things I've written. I love to see how cut-throat and commercial this industry is which makes me happy that I switched over to art instead of writing! (The only writing I do anymore is for reviews...whoo, what a relief)! So yea...you have the main character lying about her age in an industry that demands youth (and I used to think that was just the fashion and make-up industries and Hollywood, but oh well) and you also have interesting side-plots with the side characters who you get to know very well...along with Liza's various relationships...and then you have the over-riding publishing stuff going on, like Liza's company trying to sign a certain author who is very eccentric...there's a lot going on. The episodes zip by quickly, and then...you want another, and another. It's addictive! And I always seem to laugh at something while I'm watching. There are a lot of funny lines.
So yes, I would recommend this show, but don't expect anything really deep and insightful. It's strictly just for fun. But hey...fun is good. I gave the show 8 stars for the fun factor! I believe the show set out to be a fun watch, and it accomplishes that.
