Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone! From the couples enjoying each others company to the many singles who are still waiting and searching for that special someone. For this week’s installment of The Binge, we’re looking at one of our favorite TV romantic comedies: Love.
Love debuted on Netflix almost one year ago, and it’s really an anti-romantic comedy. Most of the Hollywood romantic conventions are mocked or even savaged in this series. Because the truth is that love is imperfect and romance can’t be as easy as it is in the movies. Sometimes it’s not even romance at all.
Paul Rust co-created Love with Judd Apatow, and he stars in the series as Gus, a seemingly nice guy whose persona masks his own imperfections. He’s “fake nice,” insecure, and not always realistic about who he is or what he really wants. His potential romantic partner, Mickey, as played by Community’s Gillian Jacobs, is also quite a handful. She’s not just insecure, she’s outright self-destructive with addictive tendencies. The first season was all about the slow build up of Gus and Mickey’s relationship, and whether they should even have one at all.
But that’s the beauty of Love. It’s best comedic moments come from the many ways it illustrates how Gus and Mickey aren’t just bad for each other, they’re bad for everyone. When they try to date or court other people, it’s just as disastrous as when they circle back to each other. To a certain extent, their personalities are exaggerated for effect. But their defects go a long way towards making them more relatable. For better or worse, the vast majority of people probably have more in common with Gus and Mickey than they would care to admit. As Gus and Mickey go from one toxic relationship to another, it’s all too easy to see shades of reality in them.
Also: The Binge | ‘The Man in the High Castle’
Without giving too much away, the end of the first season left Gus and Mickey in a place where they can further explore a relationship…even if they’re not quite ready to fully define what they have. That brings us to the second season of Love, which is set to drop on March 10 with 12 new episodes. And whatever trials await them, it’s likely that Gus and Mickey will remain in each others’ orbit for at least another year. Netflix has already picked Love for a third season as well.
What was your favorite episode from Love season 1? Let us know in the comment section below!
