Please Like Me – Seasons 1 & 2 and Season 3 Preview (TV Review)

Sometimes you have to wonder what is wrong with British TV broadcasters. We have hundreds of channels full of absolute nonsense and yet not one of them has picked up this Aussie gem. That’s despite the fact it’s won plaudits and awards around the world, and has a massive international following, led partly by its legion of fans on the internet who’ve found ways (legal or not) to watch it whether it’s shown on TV in their country or not.

So far there have been two seasons of Please Like Me, with the third debuting this month in Australia, and on Pivot in the US starting October 16th. American viewers can also now find Seasons 1 & 2 on Hulu.

I’ve only just managed to catch up (that’ll teach me to live in Britain), as well as getting a preview of the first four episodes of Series 3.

The show is co-written by and stars Josh Thomas as (aptly) Josh, a young, gay man finding his way through the world, while negotiating the complexities of his own insecurities, his difficulties dating, as well as his mother’s mental health issues and his father’s relationship with his new girlfriend. Season 1 follows Josh as he copes with his mother (played by the brilliant Debra Lawrance) trying to kill herself, as well as his first gay relationship. However, while his paramour Geoffrey is hot and muscly, Josh isn’t sure whether he actually likes him, and he’s also nervous about letting his parents know he’s now dating a guy.

Season 2 finds Josh committing his bipolar mom to a private mental hospital due to her being in the middle of a manic episode. He’s also fallen for his new roommate, Patrick, something that seems unlikely to work out the way he’d hope. Josh also meets Arnold, who he undoubtedly shares an attraction with, even though Arnold is also in and out of the same hospital Josh’s mom is in, due to his anxiety issues and general difficulties coping with life.

Alongside Josh all through this is his best friend and roomie Tom, who has plenty of his own relationship issues to deal with, including his inability to rid himself of an awful girlfriend called Niamh, falling for his friend (and Josh’s ex) Claire, and dating an 18-year-old rabbit lover called Jenny.

It’s a great show that manages to feel honest in a way few shows do. It’s clear Thomas has based the show partially on his own life and the way he interacts with his own friends, creating a picture of the type of life many people lead, but which is rarely shown like this on screen. Josh is a guy muddling through, leading a pretty happy life despite the difficulties added by his relationships and his mother’s mental health issues.

He’s a bit nerdy, not particularly cool, rather insecure and a little needy, but like many of us, he’s not completely any of those things. He’s certainly not perfect either, sometimes projecting his own issues onto others, being a little selfish and having difficulty knowing when to shut up. However, his heart is in the right place, he’s funny and he genuinely cares about his friends and family, even if he screws up every so often.

Please Like Me manages to be very funny in an extremely relatable way, where an awful lot of people out there who don’t feel TV reflects them and how life so often tries to blindside you with problems (of your own and others’ making) while you’re just trying to make your way through, will feel they’ve got their own hero in Josh. There’s not as much masculine ego as you often get in some similar semi-autobiographical shows. Instead there’s a sort of no holds barred, sometimes ironic, honesty between the main friends that could have seemed forced in some hands, but here accurately depicts the sort of too-much-information intimacy many young friends share, where they feel safe in that bubble to discuss the difficulties they all feel with the confusing world outside.

Admittedly there is a little ego, such as how Josh seems to manage to only pull hotties and the occasional need to suggest how nice everyone’s penis is, but these touches are more than forgivable.

And while insecurities, anxiety, self-sabotage and mental health issues don’t sound like they’ll be fun, Please Like Me is often very funny, with some genuine laugh out loud moments. Like its main character, the whole thing possesses a sort of bemusement about life and its vagaries that translates into a lot of humour. It appreciates that even when you’re dealing with a lot of crap, many people try to do their best and get on with things, making the best of what they can.

Luckily its success hasn’t diminished the quality, with Series 3 picking up where Series 2 left off. Josh’s mum is out of the hospital and living with fellow ex-patient Hannah, with the two of them trying to move forward with a life where medication has made both of them feel ‘beige’. Josh and Arnold are still together – sort of – as dating him involves negotiating his obsessive characteristics, severe anxiety and other difficulties. However, they both care about each other, and Arnold slowly starts to open up and may even be ready to tell his parents he’s gay. Josh’s dad is also having a bit of a crisis after his girlfriend, Mae, reveals that she had an affair while she was pregnant.

Fans will be pleased to hear that it’s as good as ever, and it’s nice to see that with the evolution of Josh’s relationship with Arnold, he’s finally part of a couple where his personal hang ups and insecurities don’t appear to be what’s dictating what will happen, with the other person slightly at their whim.

Click here to watch the Season 3 teaser.

It’ll certainly be interesting to see where it goes in the other six episode of Season 3. Oh, and if any UK broadcasters are reading this, can one of you pick it up and air it, as the British public is really missing out?

Overall Verdict: A great show that many will find is far closer to the truth of their own lives than 99% of other television series. Please Like Me manages to be funny, modern and honest, as well as extremely entertaining, and it’s great to see that as it goes into Season 3, the quality isn’t slipping.

Reviewer: Tim Isaac