A brutally honest review of Lena Dunham's new Netflix rom-com Too Much.

Before you settle down to watch Lena Dunham's new highly anticipated Netflix series Too Much, I must first issue you with an urgent warning.

You see, I fear that Too Much is in grave danger of suffering from what I have recently dubbed 'The Materialists' effect', which is where, if you've only thrown a casual glance towards the marketing of a project in the lead up to it being released, you might go into it with a very preconceived and ridged notion of what it is supposed to be.

Suddenly, you're left sitting before the screen in a pool of disappointment, and not because the content is bad, but because you had prepared your viewing palate for something very different. Much like ordering a plate of fries and then being served Duck à l'orange — an arguably better and fancier dish — it's just not what you were craving in the moment.

Too Much is in no way a generic rom-com; the happy news is that it is something so much better. A 10-part series brimming with laugh-out-loud humour, emotional turmoil, love, lust, family drama, jealousy, and an exploration of why hooking up with the grungy-looking musician you met in a pub bathroom is really the best course of action to take.

Too Much centres on a 30-something New Yorker named Jessica (Megan Stalter), who is feeling lost and alone following the end of her seven-year relationship with the highly strung Zev (Michael Zegen). Jessica now finds herself stuck in a depressing 'Grey Gardens' situation, living with her grandmother (played by Rhea Perlman), her mother (played by Rita Wilson), and her newly separated single-mother sister (played by Lena Dunham) in Long Island.

A former workaholic, Jessica finds herself faltering in her production job, prompting her soon-to-be former brother-in-law (played by Andrew Rannels) to send her to London on a work secondment, thrilling the rom-com-loving Jessica, who has been raised on a diet of Jane Austen adaptations and sweet British love stories.

However, the reality of London life is not the idyllic experience that pop culture and classic literature alike promised. Quickly, Jessica is shocked to find that her 'estate' accommodation is more prison-style than Pemberley.

Take a look at the trailer for Too Much on Netflix.

Despite this setback, Jessica dusts off her disappointment during her first night in London and makes her way to a pub where she has a classic rom-com meet-cute with a musician named Felix (Will Sharpe). It kicks off when he romantically calls out to her through the stalls in the filthy pub bathroom and requests she throw him some "bog roll". The pair start out as a hook-up, but it quickly turns into something a little more serious than either of them was expecting. Felix is very much not the Mr Darcy figure that Jessica dreamed of meeting (he is a far cry away from both the Pride and Prejudice and Bridget Jones Diary versions), but their story is more complex than a surface-level love, and therefore more compelling to watch.

Too Much is peppered with a particular brand of witty, visual, and pop-culture-infused humour that will have you cackling at the screen numerous times throughout the series' run. Along with the impeccable writing, much of this humour stems from the standout performance of leading lady Megan Statler, a beloved comedian whose breakout acting role came to us via the critically acclaimed and award-winning series Hacks. Her performance in Too Much allows her to build on the bawdy comedy turn that made us fall in love with her the first time around, while also showing off a nuanced and sometimes emotionally devastating side of Jessica as the series progresses.

With Too Much, creator Lena Dunham perfectly walks the line between the sweet and serious sides of this story, creating a TV show that appeals to viewers just like her. Those of us who crave the magic and comfort of classic romantic comedies, but need them to be microdosed alongside more realistic tales of love and life.

But while Jessica and Felix's romance does come with more than a few sweet moments worthy of a flick starring the likes of Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks, and their sex scenes are steeped in a realism that would never see the light in a traditional fluffy rom-com, there is a darker side to their story.

Megan Stalter and Will Sharpe in Too Much. Image: Netflix.

Felix is struggling with sobriety, a faltering music career, and trauma from his childhood and family circumstances. Meanwhile, Jessica is still burying the hurt she carries from the demise of her past relationship (which in later episodes is revealed to be much more traumatic than we first thought) and so she spends increasingly large amounts of her time recording videos directed at her ex-boyfriend's new fiancé Wendy, an influencer (played to perfection by Emily Ratajkowski) who embodies the seemingly perfect type of woman we all demonise in our heads.

Lena Dunham has provided us with a steady-ish output of film and TV releases since her critically acclaimed series Girls came to an end in 2017, but the release of Too Much has added an extra layer of frenzied excitement to her fan base. Not only because it explores some of the same themes as Girls did, but it is also loosely based on some elements of Dunham's real life.

Much like Jessica, Lena travelled to London after the breakdown of a long-term relationship, where she met a musician named Luis Felber and quickly fell in love. The couple married in 2021, and some moments inspired by their real-life romance are peppered throughout the series, such as a scene where Felix checks on Jessica in the hospital, even though they have just met.

Dunham and Felber created Too Much together, and the series is both a love letter to traditional rom-coms and a tribute to their story.

The magic of Too Much can also be attributed to a truly impressive line-up of supporting cast and guest stars, including Richard E. Grant, Naomi Watts, Andrew Scott, Stephen Fry, Adwoa Aboah and Jessica Alba.

All 10 episodes of Too Much have been released in one go, so the opportunity is there to call in sick to work this week and devour them all in one day. But in this case, I would caution against a full binge-watch. This is the type of show that deserves to be savoured a little bit, so you can properly drink in every joke, heartbreak, and joy-filled moment.

Too Much is now streaming on Netflix.

Laura Brodnik is Mamamia's Head of Entertainment and host of The Spill podcast. You can follow her on Instagram here for more entertainment news and recommendations.

Feature Image: Netflix.