Lunch Room

Through an eclectic selection of characters, off-beat interactions and heavily focused thematic discussions, Lunch Room is a series with a big heart, and a lot to give. It bravely takes on a plethora of today's most talked about issues, from national heritage to the police and pandemic, opening up discussions for viewers to take back into their everyday. While its lukewarm aesthetics and slight lack of polish may butt up against some, for me its stripped back style only served to underpin the familiar and deeply human interactions we see on screen. Pulling its many messages closer to home.

The strength of Lunch Room's plentiful themes comes in their small packages, utilising the familiar sitcom formula of episodes homing in on one discrete talking point. Each providing neat discursive bundles to tackle the given topic. If you're looking for overarching plot lines, you'll be left high and dry, with very few episodic overlaps until the series' closing moments. This lack of interconnectivity certainly has its benefits, allowing viewers to skip around in true skit fashion, but it also takes its toll. Most notably in the series' rocky start.

Before reaching the series' juicy core, viewers must weather its somewhat shaky first few episodes which fling a barrage of rapid-fire interactions without introducing character, motivation or clear-cut themes. Given, this jettisoning of clever introductions to each character is refreshing and results in us eventually knowing the characters for their actions, not a neat list of buzzwords which they are categorised by. But without having a clear means of engaging with the series' first few episodes-in the absence of overarching plot, discernible characters or even razor-sharp wit-some viewers may resist the urge to click onto episode 2.

This would be a shame, though, as Lunch Room refines itself with each episode, with notable changes to the formula coming in at episode 3 and 8. These turns, to theme-driven episodes and explorations of a wider world outside of the titular location, shake up the formula keeping its mainly static, dialogue-heavy episodes fresh for the full fifteen episodes. Albeit while providing a mixed bag of quality along the way.

Moreover, as time goes on its 21-strong cast each take brief moments in the limelight fleshing out their characters in a natural fashion most series are unable (or unwilling) to adopt. This saw me, by the series' close, feeling a strong affinity for a good portion of the cast. Understanding them as people far more than characters. A testament to the actors' laid-back, natural performances. That said, these performances do see hiccups throughout. Be it in some rough deliveries to some questionably risqué punchlines in the series' all-important first episode. But such moments are easily swept under the series' themes and stripped-back budget.

The aesthetics of Lunch Room are not something many will be writing home about. While its incredibly crisp, low-contrast black and white images work as a stylish backdrop to its rich themes, the occasional, and often unimpactful, use of colour images minced minor plot points being obscured by the monochrome had me questioning whether this aesthetic was tacked on after the fact.

The camera itself has a limited vocabulary. It is at its best in the series' many strong, extreme-wide long takes which hold a swagger which doesn't translate to the stale, repetitive medium close ups. And the less said about its turn to facetime for the pandemic-inspired episode 8, the better. A sentiment which boils over into the series' audio which clearly suffered time and again during the series' shooting-leaving a sour taste of amateurism, as is so often associated with mediocre sound.

While its overall formal minimalism, in colour, shot type and stripped back audio, ensures that the series remains coherent across its 15 episodes, it doesn't hold a candle to the series' human themes and protracted characterisations.

Lunch Room's occasional comedy was very hit or miss. Throughout the 15 episodes, only a few discrete moments had me chuckle. Even including the cute outtakes which bookended some episodes. Worse, some of the bizarre, swear-fest jokes thrown in from left field during the first episode towed a line between unintentional offense and irrelevant black comedy. But I must lay bare that comedy certainly isn't my forte.

My time with Lunch Room is one best remembered through the humanity it cultivated. Somehow, decentred plot and bloated cast resulted in a strangely natural bond being built between spectator and spectated. In the end, having me feel truly acquainted with that lunchroom and those who pass through it as if I had been one of the dairy staff myself. Through the patchy humour, tepid aesthetics and mixed bag of episodes it is the series' humanism which will stick with me.

This humanism is truly felt underneath all of the thematic discussions. Instead presented discreetly through the silent, fun-loving support the characters have for each other and quietly reinforced by understated plot moments. All of which come together to into an encompassing feeling of positivity which is hard to truly pin down. But it is a positivity I am ready to cherish with both hands.

Lunch Room adds a comedic spark to what is seemingly a mundane environment, providing situations and interactions relatable to people from all walks of life. The web series focuses on the lunch room of a low-budget supermarket, and the many interactions between its employees.

What first strikes you about the series is that the vast majority of the episodes are shot completely in black and white. For me, the colour palette of the series connotes that feeling of the mundane which comes from most workplace lunch rooms. However, the hijinks and situations that the employees continually get themselves caught up in frees the narrative of any sort of dreary atmosphere. The comedic tone, specifically within the first few episodes really hits well and any scene with Wassim is bound to leave you in stitches.

Despite the comedic nature of Lunch Room, it definitely isn't scared to tackle much wider, societal issues such as race or sexuality. There are a couple of episodes that particularly stand out to me that confront these matters head on. Firstly in Episode 3, Tall, Carlo tries to explain how he believes it a common occurrence for the police in Australia to racially profile people and assume criminality without any background on the person in question. His date, Julia, expresses her opposition to this, creating a balanced argument. There is also a similar incident in Episode 6, Politics, where Dennis and Sky are arguing about the quality of Robert Mugabe's controversial presidency in Zimbabwe. Lunch room does a great job in both of these situations of presenting both sides of a moral argument clearly, without crossing the line into a prejudice or offensive boundary. Both arguments end with a relatively positive ending with both sets of couples uncovering the similarities in their views. As I mentioned before lunch room provides a remarkably relatable set of situations for anyone who inhabits a similar working environment.

The use of sound and music within Lunch room also deserves a special commendation. Whether it was the pure silence perfectly heightening the on point comic timing, or the increasingly catchy outro song, the audio was always successful in leading the audience into the emotion it intended and definitely assisted in keeping my attention hooked throughout.

Throughout the series there are occasional episodes that differ from the standard format of the show, Episode 8 Faces and Episode 11 Eddie in particular. The filmmakers showcased their ability to be able to carry over the same vibe from the characters and the overarching narratives, into individual stories presented in different varieties of filmmaking. Episode 8 really allowed the audience to see the characters in a different light, not least due to it being the first time we see them in colour, away from the confines of the lunch room and this was something I really did appreciate.

Overall Lunch Room, provided a pleasant and comforting story that was a pleasure to watch. The humorous narratives paired with it's reluctancy to shy away from hard hitting issues make it into something the creators really should be proud of.

Lunchroom offers an insight into the daily lives of the staff at a low-end supermarket named OzSupermart. At the core of the sitcom lies a compelling array of character types, each with their own quirks and motivations. Divided into 15 episodes of varying length, the webseries is episodic for the most part with a few tie-ins in between. It is mostly shot in the lunchroom of the supermarket the staff works in, quiet aptly giving it its title. It does not get claustrophobic or stale, however, as the character interactions are way too engrossing for you to feel the campiness of the room. The way the show is directed, the viewer feels like just another worker among the staff sharing the hilarities and the awkwardness of their interactions. The characters feel three dimensional with the way they gossip and whine, rant and chatter. Even though a bit dramatized, you could place a coworker or a friend upon each of the characters as the archetypes are super relatable and well written.

As the episodes go on you will fall in love with the characters and come to care for their frustrations and happiness. The humor is universal and the characters evoke empathy. The camera work adds a personal touch so the viewer feels like they're standing and chatting among and with the staff. The acting is particularly great, as none of it seems too forced or pretentious. The pacing of the show is also just right, so the viewer doesn't feel like they're being dragged along too fast or too slow.

All in all Lunchroom is a light afternoon binge-able watch that is sure to make you laugh for the duration of its length.

This series takes a non-descript supermarket and its mediocre staff and turns what should be rather boring interactions into full-on comedic moments. Great cast, great timing. Episodes are short enough to watch a couple at a time. Definitely recommend.