Such Brave Girls, a BBC original sitcom, hit Hulu this month. A new take on the classic comedy show format, it’s a hysterical option for anyone looking to close the year with a new watch.
Warning: Spoilers ahead.
‘Such Brave Girls’ Premise
Such Brave Girls stars creator and sole writer Kat Sadler as Josie, a young woman living with her sister Billie (Lizzie Davidson) and their single mother Deb (Louise Brealey). With their father/husband out of the picture, Josie, Billie, and Deb navigate their familial and romantic relationships while still carrying the wounds of abandonment.
This sitcom is an easy binge. In addition to its first season having only six 22(ish)-minute episodes, it moves quickly. It’s never in one setting for too long, and Sadler does an excellent job of getting scenes to the point without feeling rushed. Viewers don’t need to be eagle-eyed to catch everything, but there’s only ample time to live in some of its more poignant moments.
A Sitcom with Fresh Situational Comedy
This sitcom shines for multiple reasons. It’s got outstanding characterization (something that’s become more commonplace in the comedy landscape as a whole but hasn’t fully bled into sitcoms just yet). Each of these characters is a fully-formed person, completely different than the rest, but there’s still plenty of room for growth. The show also utilizes its supporting characters well, with Paul Bazely (Dev) delivering a particularly balanced performance.
Such Brave Girls is rife with subtle yet impactful physical comedy, like Billie literally foaming at the mouth while her sister bleaches her hair or the three main women sitting around a fire in the woods covered in paint after a fight. It aptly portrays the dynamics of female relationships that anyone who grew up with a sister can relate to (and it helps that Sadler and Davidson are sisters in real life).
What’s perhaps most outstanding about Such Brave Girls is that it’s a sitcom with a unique set of situations. There are certainly laugh-out-loud moments in the dialogue, and humor builds throughout the season as more about each of the characters is revealed, but the funniest parts live firmly in the situations. Josie walks in on Dev bringing her mother to orgasm in the kitchen. Deb brings Dev and the girls to a tombstone she claims belongs to her living ex-husband. Billie befriends her boyfriend’s other girlfriend and ends up hooking up with her. All new and all hilarious.
Irreverent, dark, and dry, Such Brave Girls isn’t afraid to go places sitcoms haven’t yet gone before. So far it’s paid off, and we hope it gets a second season to further prove itself.
Such Brave Girls is streaming now on Hulu.