Nobody Wants This (Netflix series, 2024)
Nobody Wants This is a very funny romantic comedy series, about the odd couple relationship between Kristen Bell and Adam Brody.
The ten part series was created by Erin Foster, who took inspiration from her own life as a single shiksa, dating and eventually marrying a Jewish man - and converting to Judaism in the process.
In Nobody Wants This the stakes are raised even higher. Kristen Bell is a sexy podcaster, Joanne, agnostic to the point of atheism, while Adam Brody is an attractive and progressive rabbi, Noah, who is positioned early on as a hot rabbi to obviously spark off comparisons with Adam Scott as Hot Priest in Fleabag.
And, yes, pretty soon sparks fly in all directions, as ‘shiksa goddess’ and ‘hot rabbi’ meet at a dinner party and immediately hit it off.
‘There is not a Jewish bone in her body,’ Joanne’s friend Ashley (Sherry Cola) tells Noah, ‘unless you put one in her.’ Which means their budding relationship may be a recipe for disaster. After all, Noah could still get back together with his ex-fiancé Rebecca (Emily Arlook), who is just as Jewish as he.
Joanne’s sister Morgan (Justine Lupe) - with whom she makes their podcast Nobody Wants This - just thinks Noah is not her type. She should instead date a man with ‘tattoos, a thick neck and a light criminal record’.
Noah’s family is even worse. His extremely typically Jewish mother swears they will never be together, while another family member simply labels Joanne a ‘whore’. Fortunately, Noah does get some support from his ‘brutal’ brother Sasha (Timothy Simmons), at least when he’s not trying to play both sides.
Of course the odd couple also have doubts themselves whether they will overcome the obstacles in their path and stay the course. But Bell and Brody - who apparently are great friends in real life - have such believable chemistry that it’s hard to think imagine anything else than a happy end.
The witty banter between not just the two leads but also the large supporting cast, is pretty impressive throughout. While underneath it all there is a serious look at what happens when two different cultures clash and what the potential repercussions could be of a romantic relationship that is frowned upon. A person could be ostracized from their family or it could derail a promising career.
Will Noah keep the faith? Will Joanne and Morgan keep their relationship podcast as spicy as their potential new owners would like it to be?
Not all of Netflix comedy series are all that funny, but this one is so well written and directed, that based on the first three (highly bingeable) episodes I would say this one looks like a surefire winner.
Nobody Wants This? I guess a lot of people will actually want this, thank you very much.