Nobody Wants This - (Netflix) 

By: Rachel Brodeur

A rabbi and a podcaster walk into a bar. No, it’s not a joke; it is Netflix’s romantic comedy Nobody Wants This that takes familiar elements of classic rom coms but pieces them together in a way that’s delightfully fresh. 

Lead actress Kristin Bell (Forgetting Sarah Marshall, The Good Place) plays a single woman jaded by the dating scene while sharing intimate details without shame for her sex and relationship podcast, in a modern take on the Carrie Bradshaw Sex and the City style newspaper column voiceover. Like every role she has ever played, Bell manages to be beautiful, unassuming, quirky and likable. Paired opposite dreamy costar, Adam Brody (The OC), playing a grounded rabbi, who is also equally charming and likable, the would-be couple navigate the ‘will they’ ‘won’t they’ plotline that most attractive opposite sex co-stars face in comedies. 

Where Nobody Wants This stands out, is in its directness. It does not rely on the overused trope of whacky misunderstandings and breakdowns of communication that seem easily avoided. Characters communicate. They attempt tough conversations. They are honest with each other. They battle internal and external factors head on, sometimes with fearlessness, sometimes with vulnerability, but always in a satisfyingly human way. 

Nobody Wants This highlights how challenging it can be for two successful adults to find a relationship that works, but like the title implies, that road is even more challenging when there are people actively rooting against a match. So regardless if the problem is a difference in religion, trying too hard, fear of commitment, an abrasive mother in law, or an involved ex, the problems are genuine, honest, and punctuated by humor. This ten episode series is well-paced and offers plenty of end of episode cliffhangers to keep the audience engaged to the end. 

Rachel’s Rating: 8/10  Netflix’s Nobody Wants This offers a grounded approach to relationship hurdles, maintaining humor and heart throughout, making it an enjoyable, binge-worthy watch.