Why You Should Be Watching "You're the Worst"

Scene from You're the Worst

*NOTE: Originally published on Readwave

It's the funniest and smartest romantic comedy-skewering series on TV.

You're the Worst may be the series that I have most anticipated for the fall 2015 season. I know that we're likely to run into a ton of great new shows scattered throughout the TV landscape, but I have found myself incessantly giggling for the umpteenth time at the promos that have Chris Geere saying "This dog I saw on Dateline." It's a sensation you only get when something great returns. For me, this FXX show is that.

To recommend You're the Worst is to set up a caveat that is kind of cliche: give it a few episodes. The pilot is rough to those not ready for a show about awful people. Geere ruins his ex's wedding and meets Aya Cash. There's some "explicit" (for non-HBO cable) sex as well. Even if it ends with one of the best split screen shots in recent TV history, you're already a little repulsed because, frankly, they are the worst people on TV. There's almost no incentive to keep watching, even if Cash and Geere's chemistry in the final minutes suggest something promising.

That is of course the selling point of You're the Worst. They're the antiheroes of the romantic comedy sitcom - the perfect rebellion against other doomed sitcoms such as Manhattan Love Story, A to Z, and Selfie. It wasn't just that its cast was edgy. It was actually the best modern depiction of contemporary romance. Geere and Cash spend most of season one dissecting the tropes of the genre, which mostly works because they are "the worst." Anything less would not make it work. 

It also helps that the supporting cast is very strong between Kether Donohue and Desmin Borges. Between the four, they have created one of the most lived in sitcoms of recent years. They aren't just characters repulsed by love. They all have their own identities and slang such as trash juice, Sunday fun day, and ongoing debates about Peter Gabriel or Phil Collins. Even if you've never heard of half of these terminologies, there's a realism to them. They sound like friends who have developed their own tightly wound bond. They're so close that they don't feel ashamed to call each other out for bad calls. In a sense, these are the most human characters in comedy TV right now.

There's something freeing about not expecting these characters to have happy endings. While the show is rarely cruel towards them, they don't get the preferential treatment that plagues most stories of this nature. It's a mix of reality and stubbornness clashing together to make a wonderful portrait of love. They may be awful, but there's a comfort in them being together. They're in some ways more tolerable, complimenting each other's flaws perfectly. It helps that Gere and Cash are hilarious together and can make any scenario, no matter how obscene, into the best of subversive TV. 

Some credit should go to the writing as well, which seems like it comes from some place far more honest. During the promos, there were the typical reviews talking about how You're the Worst is the most honest romance of the 21st century. True, it does seem a little crazy to give this somewhat obscure comedy show that entitlement. Even if I love this show, I don't know if it works beyond a (hopefully effective) marketing gimmick. 

What I can say is that it is an underrated show that may not appeal to all, especially if you get hung up on the first episode. Still, it feels like it was written by people with PhD's in romantic comedy, who know what has been done to death and subverts it with the perfect twist: what if they were awful people NOT looking for love? It makes the romance all the more encouraging and already makes us root for them. Everything else is just the perfect scoff at the idea of love. In that sense, it is the perfect 21st century love because commitment is scary, especially if you're "the worst." 

All I can really say is that I hope that this gets its due this year. Its first season is already on Hulu, and hopefully Netflix won't be too far off. I imagine when that happens, you'll understand why I love this show. Otherwise, just get ready this fall for one of the funniest shows out there.