Why you should watch Girls
HBO's new series kicked-off with a bang in America in spring last year. It took about 4 months for the word of mouth to reach me on the other side of the atlantic, and another 2 months before I decided I would risk watching a series which was said to be the "new Sex and the City". I had no intention of replacing Carrie,Charlotte, Miranda and above all things Samantha. Like Beyoncé would know, she's irreplaceable.
I was prejudiced into thinking it would be some weak remake from a bunch of dollar hunting tv producers - who decided it was about time to target the little sisters or even daughters ( no just kidding, I'm not THAT old) of the Sex and the City viewers.
First good surprise was to discover that the series was written by none other than the main character of Girls : Lena Dunham AKA Hannah Horvath, who had previously written and played in Little Furniture , which aired on HBO in 2010.
What's so refreshing about Girls s is that it takes all the codes of what makes a great girls show, like Gossip Girl, and pees on it.
Hannah Horvath is the absolute anti-heroin. She's the girl you'll love to hate. She's slightly overweight, takes a lot of things for granted ( her parents paying her rent and all of her expenses), and is involved in a submissive relationship with a "why-did-they-cast-this-guy-as-her-lover" character. But on the other hand she is so disarmingly human and genuine that you immediately feel close to her. The opening scene shows her waking up in the same bed as her best friend Marnie (Alison Williams), who is supposed to be the hot girl, but who, in this key scene is wearing a hideous brace. And that's the first of the non-telegenic things you will see in Girls. Not to spoil the fun, but there is an amazing number of "toilet scenes" in this show. As though the loo would be some kind of social hotspot where characters would often meet and discuss subjects of various importance whilst being completely oblivious to the fact that it's not that common to be more than one in this room. The days where the production code would get into a fight with Hitchcock about his toilet flushing scene in Psycho are long gone (thank god) !
And then comes Jessa Johansson, played by the brilliant Jeminma Kirke. She's the perfect impersonation of the YOLO generation but with a vintage posh british twist. A sort of character who could have come straight from the 70's and is in clear contrast with the "how to make it " mentality that seems to be consuming the other characters. She obviously plays her European mentality card quite well , with a different approach to seduction, social relationships, ambition and life in general. She challenges what is socially acceptable and you kind of wish you were like her but at the same time her " I don't give a shite" attitude appears to be auto-destructive as the show develops... her flaws are the ones I can most relate to, and it turns out she is also chasing something in New York, which all of the other girls are chasing too. Feeling alive.
Above all things, what makes this series worth watching, is the genius dialogues and risky humour ( that's when you're not sure anyone is going get your joke), and the completely absurd awkward scenes... which you will need to discover by yourself. And going back to the initial prejudice I had: It's nothing like Sex in the City.
I'm already watching season 2, which is is currently airing in the US, and I have intentionally not described the plot of the 1st season, first of all because you can just google it if you are desperate, but also because I was hoping that the above has enticed you into watching the series from the beginning !
ps: oh, I didn't mention this but you must have guessed that: it contains a looooot of crude sex scenes, so if you're used to watching gossip girl, then yes, it will be a bit of a change !
here's the trailers of series 1 and 2, enjoy!!
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