Sweetpea Review: A Promising Black Comedy Falters

Name: A Promising Start, but One Line Made Me Lose Interest in Sweetpea
Item: Sweetpea
Rating: 3
Author: kevinWard

A Promising Start, but One Line Made Me Lose Interest in Sweetpea

summarizeEditor's Summary

I went into Sweetpea expecting a gripping black comedy about everyday life, but one major plot point threw me off. The show's engaging premise and strong cast hooked me at first, but its inability to deliver a satisfying conclusion left me underwhelmed. Sweetpea explores morality and the human condition in a thought-provoking way, but its lack of coherence in the narrative is a major letdown. With a runtime of 1 season and 6 episodes, Sweetpea shows promise, but ultimately falls short of its potential.

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KararOrta

DizininKonusu9/10

DizisiKalitesi8/10

DizininYönetimi7/10

Hello everyone!

I was really intrigued by the description of the series Sweetpea - it's always fascinating to watch how gentle, kind people lose their patience with the audacity of those around them and fight back, even if not in the most humane way. So, I immediately decided to watch it as soon as I read the description. But I didn't expect my desire to watch it to fade away for such unexpected reasons.

◎ General info ◎Release year: 2024Country: United KingdomRating: 6.8/10 on KinoPoisk, 7.2/10 on IMDBRuntime: 1 season, 6 episodes, 45 minutes eachGenre: Black comedy

◎ What's the series about? ◎ The main character, Rianon, is an office wallflower. She's played by young actress Ella Pernell, who might be familiar to those who watched the decent series Falcons. Rianon works in a magazine's editorial office, somehow as a secretary, and is constantly FORCED TO BE PATIENT. And she has to be patient with a lot of things.

This includes a disgusting boss who completely disregards Rianon's efforts, calls her «sweetpea» with contempt, and refuses to promote her to a reporter.

And her sister, who doesn't care about Rianon's opinions and treats her like a doormat.

And the worst reminder of the past - former school bully Julia, who turned high school into a nightmare for the main character and now has returned to their town, having become a successful realtor.

One thing that really got under my skin about Rinnan was her constant treatment of everyone around her like dirt – from cashiers at the supermarket to people sitting next to her on the bus who take up way too much space. And to make matters worse, she's hit with not one, but two pretty rough setbacks that I won't mention, just in case – spoilers ahead. At some point, her patience finally runs out, and things take a bloody turn.

Rinnan takes it upon herself to teach her tormentors a lesson, all while learning to stand up for herself and speak her mind. But what does it all ultimately come down to? Honestly, it's a bit of a mixed bag for me.

My thoughts and why I lost interest

The show really had me hooked. As someone who's generally a pretty softie, I can relate to Rinnan's struggles with dealing with jerks. I found myself feeling a sense of sympathy for her, and her unorthodox methods of dealing with problems were just a fun fantasy. I've definitely had my fair share of imaginary comeuppance for people who've wronged me – it's always satisfying to imagine sending someone packing, even if it's just in my head.

Of course, if I were in Rinnan's shoes, I would've lost my cool a long time ago – she's just too nice and accommodating for her own good. But that's necessary for building tension, so that her eventual breaking point can be all the more impactful.

It was all going well, but one little phrase completely ruined it for me. In a conversation with someone, Rinnan says:

You're ruining everything – like a cancer, like climate change, like Russia.

I was really surprised when I heard that – I initially thought maybe the translators were just messing with me, so I went back and listened to the original. Nope, that's exactly what she said. I hate it when politics gets forced into creative work in such a clumsy way. I get it if it was said by a character who's supposed to be bad or off-putting, but this is the main character we're supposed to be rooting for.

Honestly, I was a bit too sensitive, but after that, my desire to watch the series just vanished. Finishing it for me would be like being as patient as Rianon when someone's just dumping on you, and you're just wiping your face and keeping quiet. Why couldn't they just keep their political opinions out of the script? It's a total lack of respect for all the creators who brazenly push their views into their work – regardless of their direction. In my book, minus that one phrase, the series deserves a good rating, but I'm giving it three stars. It's up to each individual to decide whether or not to watch it. Personally, I just found it really uncomfortable. The magic of the screen world came crashing down when I realized that even here, there was room for some ridiculous and clumsy propaganda.

Thanks for reading my review!

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What is Sweetpea about?

Sweetpea is a black comedy series that follows Rianon, a kind and gentle person struggling to cope with the audacity of those around her. As the series progresses, Rianon's patience wears thin, and she begins to fight back in unexpected ways.