It's not often that a show comes along that can offend people across all walks of life — while still entertaining them. That's why if you're not watching FXX's twisted romantic comedy You're the Worst, about two toxic people who fall in love, you should change that fact, stat. It's not too late, since Season 2 just kicked off on Wednesday, Sept. 9.
To keep it simple, here are five reasons why this comedy is more than just another… well… comedy.
1. It's Got a Stellar Cast
It's not rocket science: Put four stellar actors together and you get a stellar cast. All of the mainstays are stars you recognize, but you're not sure why. In this way, they feel both familiar and mysterious — a mix that makes watching their shenanigans all the more delightful.
Aya Cash has appeared on everything from Law & Order: Special Victims Unit to the short-lived comedy Traffic Light to the drama of HBO's The Newsroom. Her partner in crime (on the show, that is), Chris Geere, cut his teeth on the supermarket-centered sitcom Trollied and the decidedly more serious Waterloo Road. Affable Desmin Borges and snappy Kether Donohue round out the gang. In fact, the chemistry among them is so good it's hard to imagine they don't hang out all the time off-screen.
2. It's Politically Incorrect
Unlike so many sanitized TV shows, this one goes for the political incorrectness and doesn't back down. In the first episode of the season alone, there are jokes about drugs, the pathetic attempts people make to hold onto their youth by partaking in those drugs, and how "homophobes all really want d—s in their mouths." Because the story lines don't shy away from material other shows would leave on the cutting room floor, You're the Worst feels different and fresh.
3. It's Edgy
Again, You're the Worst sets itself apart by refusing to shy away from scenes or topics that will turn off some viewers. From all-night cocaine benders to an exploration of "butt stuff" (yes, that's what they called it), the show is unapologetically dirty — but not too much.
Somehow even the edgiest scenes manage to retain a sense of innocence. It's as if these characters just can't help themselves, and it makes it hard not to root for them. In the premiere episode, when Jimmy (Geere) and Gretchen (Cash) attempt to keep the excitement in their relationship alive by buying unknown Belgian drugs from strangers in a bar, it's pretty obvious the night isn't headed in a positive direction, but it's impossible to not watch the disaster play out. That, dear friends, is what good television is all about.
4. It Deals With "Big Issues"
Though it's irreverent, You're the Worst tackles the big issues young adults face. Somewhere in between all the jokes lie uncomfortable truths about growing up, and its those honest moments that elevate the show from another comedy about people whose lives aren't going according to plan, to something more.
From co-habitation to unrequited love to struggles with commitment (as evidenced by Jimmy and Gretchen's inability to sign up together for a family cell phone plan), the storylines include real struggles of modern life. Most of those struggles aren't very pretty (see: Lindsay drinking beer in her wedding dress while sitting in her garage after her ex-husband leaves her… again), but they are most certainly relatable (well, maybe not that scene in the garage specifically, but in general).
5. It's Really, Ridiculously Funny
Themes, casting, and production aside, the true measure of a comedy is whether or not it's funny. This one is. All four main characters — Jimmy, Gretchen, Edgar, and Lindsay — have distinct voices that ring out in every line of dialogue, and the banter among them sounds like something Newsroom creator Aaron Sorkin would write … if he were somehow thirtysomething but still stuck in his quarter-life crisis.
Coming full circle, it doesn't hurt that all of the lines are delivered by actors who have completely mastered their characters. Half of the triumph of the lightening-speed dialogue, most certainly, comes from the impeccable delivery.
And considering that the first episode ended with Lindsay tucking the used condom her ex-husband (who had sex with her one last time before leaving her again) into the freezer for safe-keeping, there may be another delivery on the way rather soon.
You're the Worst airs Wednesdays at 10:30 p.m. ET on FXX.
