DAVE DAVIES, HOST:
This is FRESH AIR. The new Netflix series "Nobody Wants This" stars two former teen actors, Kristen Bell from "Veronica Mars" and Adam Brody from "The OC," in a 10-part rom-com. They play single people in their early 30s who meet and are attracted to one another despite some substantial differences and obstacles. Our TV critic David Bianculli has this review.
DAVID BIANCULLI, BYLINE: Erin Foster, the actress and writer-producer who created "Nobody Wants This," has produced a new 10-part series for Netflix that almost seems like a throwback. It's an old-fashioned romantic comedy. Two opposites who attract has been a staple of movie comedies and musicals since the 1930s. And even this TV show's particular wrinkle - Jewish man falls for blonde, non-Jewish woman - is an established subgenre. Neil Simon's "The Heartbreak Kid" is one famous film treatment from more than 50 years ago. And around that same time on television, the concept was brought forth in the then-controversial sitcom called "Bridget Loves Bernie."
For "Nobody Wants This," Erin Foster borrows from her own life, in which she met and fell in love with a Jewish man. For her Netflix sitcom, Kristen Bell from "The Good Place" stars as her counterpart, Joanne. And Foster ups the ante by having the potential boyfriend, Noah, played by Adam Brody from "The OC," be a young rabbi. Joanne, who's self-absorbed and somewhat uninformed, doesn't realize this until after already hitting it off with Noah at a dinner party. As he walks her to her car afterward, she's still processing the rabbi part.
(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, "NOBODY WANTS THIS")
KRISTEN BELL: (As Joanne) Can you have sex?
ADAM BRODY: (As Noah Roklov) Right now?
BELL: (As Joanne) No, like, in general.
BRODY: (As Noah Roklov) Yes. That's priests. We're just people. Are you even a little bit Jewish - like, an aunt or a great-grandmother, a forged document?
BELL: (As Joanne) Nope. Why?
BRODY: (As Noah Roklov) Well, rabbi, gentile - it's pretty hard to pull off. We're trying to repopulate our people, you know?
BELL: (As Joanne) Plus, I don't believe in God. Sorry. Is that offensive to say to a rabbi?
BRODY: (As Noah Roklov) You can say anything you want. Also, not that it matters, but baked into the Jewish experience is wrestling with what God is or isn't, not knowing.
BELL: (As Joanne) Really?
BRODY: (As Noah Roklov) No.
BELL: (As Joanne) I didn't know that.
BIANCULLI: The show's title, "Nobody Wants This," refers to the name of a podcast Joanne records with her sister where they talk about all things outrageous, personal and especially sexual. But the title also refers to the reaction by everyone around Joanne and Noah - friends, colleagues and especially family - as they begin stepping into each other's worlds. This is where "Nobody Wants This" gets increasingly thorny and complicated. But thanks to a top-notch supporting cast, it's also where the show gets increasingly, endearingly hilarious.
Tovah Feldshuh, whose first major TV role was in the super-serious 1970s miniseries drama titled "Holocaust," plays Noah's protective mother, and she's a riot. But the show's best supporting characters are the respective siblings, who are written and performed so well, they easily could be spun off into their own series. Joanne's brash, outspoken sister, Morgan, is played by Justine Lupe, who was featured on "Succession" as Connor's wife, Willa. And Noah's even more brash and outspoken brother, Sasha, is played by Timothy Simons, who endured seasons of abuse as Jonah on "Veep." Whenever the two sisters or the two brothers in "Nobody Wants This" share a scene, the series clicks into a higher gear, and when all four are together, it positively soars.
Here are Noah and his brother, Sasha, piling into the back seat of Morgan's car with Joanne in the front passenger seat. They've all just met for the first time. And when Joanne, played by Kristen Bell, plugs her phone into Morgan's car system, the texts just sent by Morgan become embarrassingly public.
(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, "NOBODY WANTS THIS")
BELL: (As Joanne) Oh, I need to charge my phone.
TIMOTHY SIMONS: (As Sasha Roklov) God, I need to charge my phone, too. What percentage are you at? I'm like...
JUSTINE LUPE: (As Morgan) No, you're not borrowing my charger.
SIMONS: (As Sasha) ...Jump in plenty. I'm at, like, 22.
BRODY: (As Noah Roklov) That's plenty.
AUTOMATED VOICE: Connected.
BRODY: (As Noah Roklov) It's plenty.
SIMONS: (As Sasha Roklov) I use it a lot. Oh, my best friend's mom got into a bike accident right over there.
BRODY: (As Noah Roklov) That's a good story.
SIMONS: (As Sasha Roklov) Yeah.
AUTOMATED VOICE: Message from Morgan - he's cuter than I expected.
LUPE: (As Morgan) Oh.
AUTOMATED VOICE: He doesn't look that Jewish.
LUPE: (As Morgan) Oh, my God.
BELL: (As Joanne) Morgan.
LUPE: (As Morgan) So sorry.
AUTOMATED VOICE: Next message from Morgan.
LUPE: (As Morgan) Oh, my God.
AUTOMATED VOICE: The brother is brutal.
BELL: (As Joanne) What are you doing with the screen?
AUTOMATED VOICE: Ogre emoji.
LUPE: (As Morgan) OK. That's not...
AUTOMATED VOICE: Vomit emoji.
BELL: (As Joanne) Morgan, turn it - unplug the phone. I'm so sorry about my sister, with whom I have since cut ties.
LUPE: (As Morgan) Listen. That feature has gotten me into some very bad situations, but that was top three for sure.
BRODY: (As Noah Roklov) If I may inquire, what does Jewish look like to you?
SIMONS: (As Sasha Roklov) Yeah, I had the same question.
LUPE: (As Morgan) No.
BRODY: (As Noah Roklov) Are you picturing a bigger nose or, like...
LUPE: (As Morgan) No.
BRODY: (As Noah Roklov) ...Curlier hair?
SIMONS: (As Sasha Roklov) Does my brother not look like he could control the media?
BIANCULLI: One of the executive producers of "Nobody Wants This" is Steven Levitan, who racked up a string of outstanding comedy series Emmys for his work on the ABC sitcom "Modern Family." That series was so popular and so effective partly because it explored the differences of its various characters without ridiculing or dismissing those differences.
"Nobody Wants This" does the same thing. I've seen all 10 episodes and was impressed by how even the minor characters over the course of the series are given not only screen time but dignity. And in the leading roles, Adam Brody and Kristen Bell are so funny and yet so vulnerable. It's easy to imagine "Nobody Wants This" emerging rapidly as the rom-com standard for a new age. It's sweet, but it's sharp. It has laughs but also has bite, and I suspect it will shoot to the very top of the Netflix viewing list.
DAVIES: David Bianculli is a professor of television Studies at Rowan University. He reviewed the new Netflix series called "Nobody Wants This." If you'd like to catch up on interviews you've missed, like our conversation with Ta-Nehisi Coates about his trip to Senegal, where he reflected on his ancestors' enslavement, or with actor and comedian John Leguizamo, whose latest project is a PBS docuseries about the history of Latinos in the Americas, check out our podcast. You'll find lots of FRESH AIR interviews. And to find out what's happening behind the scenes on our show and get our producers' recommendations for what to watch, read and listen to, subscribe to our free newsletter at why.org/freshair.
(SOUNDBITE OF TERRY GIBBS' "PAPIROSSEN (CIGARETTES)")
DAVIES: FRESH AIR's executive producer is Danny Miller. Our technical director and engineer is Audrey Bentham with additional engineering help today from Adam Staniszewski. Our interviews and reviews are produced and edited by Phyllis Myers, Roberta Shorrock, Ann Marie Baldonado, Sam Briger, Lauren Krenzel, Therese Madden, Monique Nazareth, Susan Nyakundi, Anna Bauman and Joel Wolfram. Our digital media producers are Molly Seavy-Nesper and Sabrina Siewert. Thea Chaloner directed today's show. For Terry Gross and Tonya Mosley, I'm Dave Davies. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
