High Maintenance (2016–2020)
8/10
Wonderfully quirky, funny and engaging...for the first two seasons
12 March 2017
(Review updated after Season 4).

A series of short stories on the lives of everyday people living in New York. All the stories have one character in common - a pot dealer known simply as "the guy".

Wonderfully quirky and engaging series of vignettes. A great mix of drama and comedy. The short stories, of which there are one or two each episode, suck you in with likable characters in interesting situations. From there it is a leisurely ride to a great punch- line.

Writer-director-creators (and husband and wife) Katja Blichfield and Ben Sinclair do a great job at keeping the stories simple, yet profound, and the characters relatable. Sinclair also stars as The Guy, and does so very well, coming across as an entrepreneurial version of The Dude in The Big Lebowski.

My favourite episode: S1 E3, where the dog falls in love with his walker. You actually feel you are seeing the world from the dog's eyes, and it's a wonderful experience. (Incidentally, the walker is played by Yael Stone, of Orange Is The New Black fame).

Unfortunately, the writing quality started to diminish after Season 2. Season 3 wasn't bad, it just wasn't as engaging as Seasons 1 and 2. In Season 4 it just got dull. The spark is no longer there. Or maybe the novelty has just worn off for me.

Season 1: 9/10. Season 2: 9/10. Season 3: 7/10. Season 4: 5/10.
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