Such Brave Girls - new BBC3 / iPlayer sitcom

[Deano]

Really enjoyed the first couple of these - deals with mental health issues and such but still really broad:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p0gqd7sc/such-brave-girls-series-1-1-such-happy-girls

[Pink Gregory]

Might give this a look.  Can't think of much I caught on old auntie beeb bee cee this year but Colin From Accounts was fantastic.

[Garam]

Hope they do a crossover ep with Are Brave Boys

[Jerzy Bondov]

Watched the first one last night, it's good. It's an uncomfortably accurate representation of depression, not remotely romanticised or dramatic, just the terrible unshakeable sense that you don't belong in the world and that every interaction you have with other people is a disaster. And it was funny when the sister did a smelly poo

[Fambo Number Mive]

Watched episodes 1-3 last night, really enjoyed it and really felt for the elder sister.

Spoiler alert

The mum is so horrible to the elder sister - I imagine that doesn't help her depression.

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[Norton Canes]

Started the first one on the iPlayer yesterday, didn't get further then the opening scene. But then I caught most of the second episode on BBC3 later and really liked it, so I'll definitely get the rest watched.

Not the same kind of show but very much up there with Juice in terms of relentless self-flagellation.

[Fambo Number Mive]

Some of it was filmed in Crawley: https://sussexfilmoffice.co.uk/crawley-an-ordinary-town/

[Pink Gregory]

think this might be a bit too bleak for me, just sort of a level of hate that I'm not really ready for.

There's just something about the level of abuse between the two sisters and their mum that just sucks all the humour out of the room.

Perhaps I'll stick with it, dunno.  Bit too much too soon.

[neveragain]

think this might be a bit too bleak for me, just sort of a level of hate that I'm not really ready for.

There's just something about the level of abuse between the two sisters and their mum that just sucks all the humour out of the room.

Perhaps I'll stick with it, dunno.  Bit too much too soon.

Similar thoughts here. The dialogue and acting are all of good quality, there are jokes, it's made well... but I just don't like the characters enough to continue. Feel sorry for the downbeat sister but that's not enough.

The moment where

Spoiler alert

one sister came on the other's arm during a pregnancy test

[close]

left me open-mouthed in shock. And I think that takes some doing these days.

[Pink Gregory]

It sort of goes in too hard without earning the bleakness of it.  I feel like if they leaned harder on the visual elements or the drabness of their surroundings it might give a bit more context but it's a lot of tell, don't show.

The laughs comes often and, like you said, the performances are consistently good, but it feels like it needed a bit of heart up front to keep me more engaged?

[neveragain]

Yep, agree.

[flotemysost]

It sort of goes in too hard without earning the bleakness of it.

Yep, I didn't even finish the first episode and thought this too. Feels like it's kinda relying on "instant gallows humour, just add" without really introducing the characters or having enough charm to pull it off. The dialogue felt a bit forced too, some of the setups for gags seemed kinda predictable (imho).

The whole "troubled characters making breezy offhand references to dark/serious things" can work, but this kinda bashes you over the head with it from the get-go; it's a shame because I liked all the performances and thought the characters and relationships were interesting, but yeah not massively sold on it so far.

[Norton Canes]

The moment where

Spoiler alert

one sister came on the other's arm during a pregnancy test

[close]

left me open-mouthed in shock

Spoiler alert

It wasn't hers...

[close]

[Norton Canes]

Feels like it's kinda relying on "instant gallows humour, just add" without really introducing the characters or having enough charm to pull it off

Maybe that's why accidentally skipping to the second episode (see above) worked so well for me. I just assumed the characters had been properly introduced.

[DSBoy]

I've now seen all six. Loved it! More please...

[Milo]

Really enjoyed that too. Great dysfunctional people stuff.

[Fambo Number Mive]

I hope there is a second series, have watched all six episodes and really enjoyed them.

Spoiler alert

So the mum was consistently horrible to Josie as she regretted having a daughter? Is that it? Why was Bille so horrible to Josie all the time?

[close]

[neveragain]

Spoiler alert

It wasn't hers...

[close]

What was happening then? I mustn't have been paying full attention.

[Greyhound]

What was happening then? I mustn't have been paying full attention.

Spoiler alert

It was her boyfriends, she was having sex with him a couple of scenes before. They watch him run off into the night and then Josie makes Billie do the pregnancy test.

[close]

I enjoyed it a lot, would definitely like to see a second series. And most of the outdoor stuff was filmed around where I grew up so that was fun. The bench that Deb and Dev sit on in the woods episode is where I broke up with my first boyfriend, which did distract a bit from the scene. Very surreal.

[rude soil]

Really liked this.

Spoiler alert

Had a giggle when I saw the boyfriend Nicky was played by the guy who was Bash in the Ten Dates dating sim Limmy played

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[StewartLeehaslethimselfgo]

Thought this was great, just the family guy esque "shut up Meg Josie" every 5 minutes was one note

Seb was brilliantly cringe, great acting

[FeederFan500]

The first two episodes were on BBC1 last night so I watched them, I thought the characters were done/acted well but it was not really my cup of tea. The main sister was too weird for me and the pregnancy test scene was something I'd expect from American Pie. I don't really like shows that are too uncomfortable.

[Deano]

For those who enjoyed the lead writer's earlier radio sitcom is also up on BBC Sounds: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m001f50n

[dissolute ocelot]

Just finished watching the 6 eps. I thought this was great: distinctive, funny, horrible writing that was both grotesque and relatable. The character of the mother in particular was brilliant - horrible in all kinds of ways (her total disdain for Josie) but at the same time all her horrible actions had reasons. All the characters were shitty but often in small, believable ways - Dev the mum's bf was vaguely untrustworthy without ever doing much wrong, just small details like his refusal to pay for things.

I thought it was more nuanced and less uncomfortable than the cringe comedy of the 00s, but certainly not comfortable. There were things like Josie bleaching her sister's hair while wearing her new dress that could have ended horribly but passed without incident. It managed to mix the horrible with the very mundane and anticlimactic.

The writer has a very distinctive voice, and the world of the story felt very real even if the actions were very over the top. The romantic obsessions, the boredom, the suburban squeezed-middle financial woes, the way the family's history was gradually revealed, it was great world-building. I'm not sure where it would go in a second series, but it seems like there's a lot of scope (their problems aren't going to be solved any time soon) and I look forward to it.

[Steve Faeces]

I absolutely loved this, particularly the characters of the sisters, but also Dev.

[Ja'moke]

Just binged all six episodes. It took a couple of episodes to get into but loved it by the end. Fun to find out they're sisters in real life too.