Review Of 2019 Pt 2 - Funny Women

I think that I (and pretty much anyone else who is into comedy in any way) have banged on enough about Fleabag (from me, you can read about it here and here). There are, however, plenty of other funny women out there producing good comedy. Here are some of 2019’s highlights for me…

This Way Up - Series 1
Mental health is a difficult subject to tackle in comedy but, in her debut sitcom, Aisling Bea manages to balance treating the subject with sensitivity with being genuinely funny about it. It’s a confident first sitcom - I particularly the real feel to the character relationships in that they were capable of being pissed off with each other one minute and joking again the next (as can often be the case in real life). There's some great casting involved too as Sharon Horgan makes a believable older sister for Bea and, even though she only features in one episode, Sorcha Cusack makes a strong impression as their mother. I’m hoping this one is coming back for season two.

GameFace - Series 2
I really enjoyed the first series of this. The silly side of Roisin Conaty’s character definitely carried across from Man Down (I’m always amused by someone who is unfraid to make themselves look utterly ridiculous for the agag) but is rounded out with more emotional depth here. There’s an innate likeability to Conaty that makes it hard not to be charmed by her.

Russian Doll - Season 1
More of a comedic drama than an out and out comedy, this was a string debut series from Natasha Lyonne. Before I started watching it, I was initially sceptical as to how well the Groundhog Day style premise would hold up over the course of the series but was pleasantly surprised that it did, introducing a new element part way through that kept the intrigue going. I thought it was a nicely contained one-off series but apparently they’re making a second one. I’ll wait to see how well it keeps itself going for more than just the one series.