From the fourth episode onwards, 'UnderEmployed' just works. It finds the right tone, the characters become real, and the story arc becomes addictive.
The most important thing you need to understand about 'UnderEmployed' is that it is essentially a "teen" genre show. Given the seriousness of the title & age of the characters, many will likely expect the dark/cynical realism of HBO's "Girls" & "Hung". Instead, a better comparison would be shows like 'Pretty Little Liars', 'Jane By Design', or 'Vampire Diaries'.
If you have watched and enjoyed those teen shows, you will have noticed that most have rough starts. That is usually because the writers struggle with just how "obvious" to make things for a younger audience. The characters are introduced as annoying caricatures
they are either too perky, too morose, or too evil. The stories seem to be going nowhere interesting
there is no compelling arc that makes you excited for the next episode. This was a problem for all the teen shows I previously mentioned...and it is definitely a problem with the first three episodes of 'UnderEmployed'.
Thankfully (like a lot of successfully executed teen shows) 'UnderEmployed' finds itself by the fourth episode. As of this review, episodes 4/5/6/7 have aired. The characters have become comfortable in their own skin, so you begin to admire them as real human-beings. The dialogue has become more subtle & clever, which increases the emotional punch & LOL! factor of the scenes. Most importantly, you notice that each character MATTERS as an individual
despite their friendship, each is on a unique and compelling journey with no guarantee of success. All this leaves you wanting MORE after each episode.
One additional note about "characters"...'Vampire Diaries' viewers will know that the secret of the shows success is that the supporting characters are treated with as much care & respect as the main characters. They don't merely exist as "challenges" to the main characters
they have humanity of their own. I have noticed a similar thing with 'UnderEmployed'. From the fourth episode onwards, Lou & Daphne's bosses get "shades of grey"...and this makes the workplace scenes way more funny & interesting. More importantly, we are introduced to the compelling supporting characters of Jamel & Bekah. They are such unique & developed individuals, you will come to think of them as main cast members.
One note of praise about the acting & writing in recent episodes...there are a series of beautiful scenes between the new character Jamel & a regular character in the series (name withheld to avoid spoilers). The writers could have easily bombarded those scenes with snappy dialogue and raw physicality
but instead, they allowed the actors to employ silence & express awkwardness. As a result, we get scenes of great emotional poignancy & incredible tension. I hope 'UnderEmployed' continues to take creative risks like this.
To think...a few weeks ago, I was about to post a harsh review of this show. Now I am praising it and craving more!.
