After completing Matlock in a stretch of one night, there was an empty void of what to watch I had to fill. I did not know what was next on my radar, and even when I was watching Matlock, I did not think about what would be the next movie or in this case, series. Well, I came across a new show called Your Friends and Neighbours, once again thanks to TikTok. I have to say TikTok has been my go-to place for new series to watch, and Apple TV+ is another level when it comes to their series.
Your Friends and Neighbours is a satirical drama filled with dark comedy based on the lives of the suburban families living in a wealthy, privileged neighbourhood. The neighbourhood is so wealthy that when the owners are off for vacation probably during the summer, they notify the neighbourhood cops to keep an eye on their property in case of any suspicious activity. Well,l if that is not enough, there is also an elusive party organised by one neighbor or another during the weekend.
To show us the neighbourhood and what's going on within, the creator of the show, Jonathan Tropper, who also happens to be responsible for other shows like Banshee, Warrior, and See, introduces us to the lead character Andrew Coop, played by Jon Hamm. In the first episode we see how Andrew works his ass off to climb the social ladder move from one house to another with his family as he moves further in his job thanks to his ambitious drive and wizardry knowledge of finance.
But things come crumbling down when he gets more distant from his family while chasing more money at the hedge fund he works for. This leads to his wife having an affair with a neighbourhood friend, Nick, a retired NBA player because as it so happens the wealthy are friends with the wealthy. What even makes it more pitiful for Andrew is the fact that this affair has been on for a while but he only discovers it when he rushed back home to pick up a document and saw his wife in bed with Nick.
That is some heavy blow to the face and it is only season one but the drama is just getting started. Next up Andrew loses his job due to a silly mistake that his boss tries to capitalize on because he wants to get rid of Andrew fast before he climbs the corporate ladder higher to the top, where he is more powerful than him. With this, things begin to get worse when his business manager even informs him that what he has left in his bank account can only keep him afloat for 6 months or 7 at most, since his capital account was seized by the company as well.
Now, Andrew is left with the harsh truth that what he spent years building could all come crashing down faster than he imagined, and this is not what a family man with responsibility wants to hear. He has alimony, child support, his bipolar sister, and the high-maintenance lifestyle to maintain due to the neighbourhood he lives in and the friends he has to keep up appearances with.
Then the series improves as Andrew resorts to petty theft to maintain the facade he has built for himself. Although what he told himself was: these are things the rich neighbours will never miss, and even if they did, they have insurance to cover the expense. Now that is crazy because Andrew is a petty thief but yet you are made to feel pity for him because the plot has made you understand his plight. Even while stealing, Andrew gets mixed up in a murder mystery.
All I thought was this would simply be another satirical drama about the rich and the melodrama that goes on in their lives, probably something more like Desperate Housewives or Succession, but then a murder mystery gets involved and takes the series to a whole other level. Andrew is not only a petty thief, but he also gets mixed up in murder, where he is the lead suspect. Even worse, the case worsens since he cannot open up about the real reason he was in that house in the first place, and he cannot tell his lawyer, whom he blackmails, to represent him. Damn, the twist keeps getting better as things keep getting worse for Andrew Coop.
Go check out Your Friends and Neighbours, the show is so good that even Apple TV+ renewed it for season 2 before the first season aired. That's some bold move to tell you how good it is.
Matlock Review: @samostically/movie-review-matlock-the-old-and-smart-granny-5im
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