Am I Being Unreasonable?

Discovered Daisy May Cooper rather late, at the recommendation of someone else watched This Country and it quickly became a favourite of mine. With so much British television set in cities and towns I love the fact that Daisy actively pushed for village life to be heard and seen. The witchfinder was an absolute mess of a show, and absolutely squandered her talents so am glad to see her back on TV working on such an enjoyably unique comedy/thriller/noir. Daisy and her co-writer Selin have concocted a truly bonkers and somewhat hellish universe here, occasionally comfy and cosy and then quickly sledgehammered with a queasy darkness. Some great performances and a unique journey.

Cooper & Hizli's darkly twisted comedy about a toxic friendship, a toxic marriage and toxic secrets is an inconsistent beast and does not always hit the right mark - but a fantastic cast (particularly national-treasure-in-waiting Lenny Rush and the brilliantly unpleasant Dustin Demri-Burns) anchored by the two writer's own magnetic presence and some smart unfolding mysteries keeps it very watchable throughout. Where the series can go from here is an intriguing prospect because it's hard to argue with accusations that it didn't quite tie everything (or, indeed, anything) up by the last episode.

So excited to watch this and loved the opening episode. But then... Well. What is it? It's not funny enough to be a comedy. It's not thrilling enough to be a thriller. There are wild tonal shifts where it switches on a dime from soap to comedy to thriller. It feels like the producers said "we want Fleabag meets I Will Destroy You" but it's neither. What it is is an oddly muddled melodrama with two friends having fun playing unlikeable characters doing unrealistic random things, with bits of this show and bits of that thrown in. All in all, it overstays its welcome by at least 3 episodes. A strange show.

Brilliantly written and observed, the chaos surrounding the lives of Nic (Daisy May Cooper) and Jen (Selin Hizli) are perfectly set against the backdrop of English village life. Great piece of writing by them both, and so well played. It may confuse some as it doesn't fit in the normal simple genre boxes, this is as life is, funny, dark, weird, confusing, heartwarming and it's simply something to enjoy without constraints. Ollie (Lenny Rush) absolutely steals every scene he is in and was perfectly cast. If you liked 'Dead to Me' then you will love this (and if you like this and have not seen 'Dead to Me' give that a watch).

Nic is in a loveless marriage, surviving on alcohol and the love of her son, her fortune's change when she meets Jen, on a drunken night, Nic reveals her big secret.

I thought this series was pretty awesome, if you're a lover of black comedy, this should be right up your street, it's clever, funny and definitely a little twisted.

The writing from Daisy May Cooper and Selin Hizli is the show's best feature, it stands apart from pretty much every recent comedy release, with perhaps the exception of Inside no 9, it's humour in that area.

Lots of laughs, lots of drama, it's one of those shows that crosses many genres, it's a comedy, it's a thriller, it's a whole lot more.

Nothing is quite what it seems, so expect the unexpected, more twists and turns than a ride at Alton Towers.

The acting is excellent, Daisy May Cooper and Selin Hizli are excellent, they share some great scenes together.

I came away from series one with lots of questions that still need answering, I cannot wait for series 2.

Superb, 9/10.