In the US : Thursdays/Fridays, 10pm/10.30pm/11.30pm, Starz/Starz Cinema/Starz Edge
When last we left Gravity, we were pondering the oddness of a comedy-drama about failed suicide attempts. Three episodes in and we’re still pondering.
After an opening episode that mostly featured just two members of the suicide counselling group – staid Rob and quirky Lily – episodes two and three felt a bit more anthology show, focusing mainly on other members of the group, as well as the weird police detective following Rob and Lily. We got to meet the slight weird perfect housewife, who turned out to (spoiler) have shot herself because it was either that or tell everyone how trapped she felt in her life. And then in the third episode, it was all about the (spoiler) Latino construction worker-come-comedian who has a very small penis.
The police detective, we’re not sure about – we don’t know why he’s following Rob and Lily, but we do know he has (spoiler) gambling problems, hypochondria, cash issues and more, including a very aggressive yoga style.
As of yet, though, there doesn’t appear to be any real plot. We’re merely seeing a group of people struggling to change their lives so they don’t try to take them again. Sometimes we see the things in their old lives that made them want to end them; sometimes we see the promise of their new lives; sometimes we see the intersection. Sometimes it’s tragic, sometimes it’s sad, sometimes it’s funny.
But it’s almost never truly sad, and it’s almost never very funny. It’s that kind of weird, quirky insubstantial dealing with deep issues in a shallow way that legions of independent film makers have perfected over the years.
Despite this failure to truly excel, it does have some decent actors, some intriguing characters and some rib-tickling moments. It’s just a little bit too fey for my taste. But I’m going to keep watching.
Carusometer rating: 2
Rob’s prediction: Could go either way with Starz, given Party Down is still going, but it should last a season at least.
