Although Fleabag, Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s opus, ended after two seasons in 2019, I nonetheless discover myself fascinated about (and revisiting) it fairly ceaselessly. For those who’re something like me, you’ve got discovered it laborious to fill the void left behind by a stupendous present that had the whole lot from sizzling monks to penis partitions to a deliciously impolite Olivia Colman.
When you may all the time cope with it by invoking the aforementioned Priest (Andrew Scott) and making an attempt to persuade your self “it will move,” you might additionally simply check out a few of TV Information’s suggestions for the perfect reveals that may remind you of Fleabag, from one other of Waller-Bridge’s tv ventures to tragicomedies starring difficult protagonists to extra reveals that includes distinctive romances.
On the lookout for extra suggestions of what to observe subsequent? We’ve a ton of them! And should you’re in search of extra hand-picked suggestions primarily based on reveals you like, we’ve got these too.
Crashing
The place to observe: Netflix
Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Crashing
This one’s a gimme, however the very first thing it is best to do should you’re in search of extra of Waller-Bridge’s singular voice is try Crashing. Predating Fleabag, the six-episode collection facilities across the relationships and romantic entanglements of a bunch of twenty-somethings dwelling collectively in an deserted hospital. Along with creating the collection and writing each episode, Waller-Bridge additionally performs Lulu, the flighty childhood buddy of one other resident who disrupts the whole lot together with her arrival, and Bridgerton‘s Jonathan Bailey co-starring because the sex-obsessed Sam, who begins to discover the complexities of his sexuality because the episodes progress. It is positively much less polished than Waller-Bridge’s later work, but it surely’s a enjoyable, straightforward watch the place you possibly can clearly see glimmers of what would make Fleabag so particular.
You are the Worst
The place to observe: Hulu
Aya Money and Chris Geere, You are the Worst
Stephen Falk’s FX collection follows the triumphantly messy evolution of the connection between Gretchen (Aya Money) and Jimmy (Chris Geere), two usually sad, distrustful individuals who discover themselves falling in love regardless of their reservations, emotional constipation, and separate private demons. There are such a lot of issues to like about You are the Worst: It is exceptionally humorous and intelligent, it takes on the realities of scientific melancholy thoughtfully and thoroughly, and its supporting characters, Kether Donohue’s Lindsay and Desmin Borges’ Edgar, are written simply as lovingly as Gretchen and Jimmy, however the factor almost certainly to hook any Fleabag fan is Gretchen herself. Very like Fleabag, Gretchen is bitingly sarcastic and makes nearly infuriatingly dangerous choices, attracting bother prefer it’s her job, however Money’s dedicated, empathetic efficiency is paying homage to Waller-Bridge’s in that even in her lowest moments, it is laborious to not root for her, or at the very least see your self in her. Her recklessness is a part of what makes her lovable, and her arc over the course of the present’s 5 seasons is stunningly human. There’s in all probability an alternate model of this universe the place You are the Worst and Fleabag did a ’90s-style crossover episode that noticed Fleabag and Gretchen realizing they have been lengthy misplaced cousins and subsequently inflicting numerous issues collectively. That is the utopia I select to move myself to in lieu of meditation, anyway.
Disaster
The place to observe: Amazon
Sharon Horgan and Rob Delaney, Disaster
The love story between Fleabag and the Scorching Priest(™) will undoubtedly go down in TV historical past as some of the affecting and memorable of all time, and if it is extra of that you just’re in search of, Disaster ought to be your subsequent watch. Co-creators and co-writers Rob Delaney and Sharon Horgan star, respectively, because the affable Rob and the sardonic, disillusioned Sharon, two single individuals who discover themselves falling right into a relationship after a brief fling leaves Sharon pregnant. Paying homage to Fleabag‘s second season, which discovered Fleabag and the priest tentatively, fleetingly exploring their outstanding connection, Disaster is the form of present that celebrates the fun and frustrations of sudden romance. Disaster tells us that love is not straightforward, but it surely’s value having if you will discover it. If all that wasn’t sufficient, the late, nice Carrie Fisher is the present’s reply to Olivia Colman’s godmother character, making recurring appearances as Rob’s eccentric, judgmental mom.
I Could Destroy You
The place to observe: HBO Max
Michaela Coel, I Could Destroy You
If a lot of Fleabag is in regards to the rocky path that comes together with therapeutic after trauma, I Could Destroy You took that idea and ran away with it. Michaela Coel’s darkish and deeply private masterpiece mines from her actual life expertise to inform a narrative in regards to the aftermath of sexual assault. Just like Fleabag, Coel’s protagonist Arabella is strong-willed however completely misplaced on this planet. Episodes see her experiencing the complete, troublesome spectrum of feelings and reactions as she flails to remain afloat whereas struggling to piece the evening of her rape again collectively. In some episodes, she presents herself as hardened and sensible; in others, she fully breaks down. After only one episode of I Could Destroy You, it turns into instantly clear that Waller-Bridge and Coel have very related inventive kinds. They each flourish within the cerebral, they usually share a expertise for writing (in addition to portraying) troublesome girls, and presenting them to the viewers, warts and all.
I Hate Suzie
The place to observe: HBO Max
Billie Piper, I Hate Suzie
Billie Piper pulls double obligation as co-creator and star of I Hate Suzie, a brutally humorous collection that follows the unravelling of Piper’s Suzie Pickles, an actress whose private {and professional} life spirals out of her management after her telephone is hacked and compromising pictures are leaked for the world to gaze upon. The present is so paying homage to Fleabag in the way it would not draw back from its protagonist’s darker qualities, and the desperation she usually feels as she struggles to realize again some semblance of normalcy whereas coping with such an astounding invasion of privateness. It isn’t all the time a straightforward watch, although I am prepared to wager that should you like Fleabag, you are not somebody who shies away from the extra cringeworthy features of life.
Excessive Constancy
The place to observe: Hulu
Zoë Kravitz and David H. Holmes, Excessive Constancy
Not many reveals can pull off breaking the fourth wall as expertly as Fleabag managed to, however Excessive Constancy is certainly one of them. A televised adaptation of the 2000 movie of the identical identify, Zoë Kravitz steps into the function of disaffected document retailer proprietor Rob, beforehand performed by John Cusack, and it is not lengthy into the primary episode earlier than she’s trying proper into the digital camera to start telling us about her High 5 best heartbreaks of all time. She slowly begins to spin out because the present progresses, her rigorously constructed partitions starting to crack, and within the spirit of Fleabag, she invitations the viewers in to share in her ache (and, typically, the comedy born out of her ache) by addressing us instantly.
Mrs. Fletcher
The place to observe: HBO Max
Jen Richards and Kathryn Hahn, Mrs. Fletcher
For those who completed Fleabag and thought, “That’s good, however I might like even extra intercourse,” look no additional than Mrs. Fletcher. Based mostly on the Tom Perrotta novel of the identical identify, Kathryn Hahn stars because the titular Mrs. Fletcher, a divorced girl who tries to get her groove again, so to talk, when her son goes off to school. A part of what made Fleabag so alluring to so many individuals was the best way it portrayed need in all of its many types: need for love, need for self-actualization, need for a great relationship together with your sister, and that is in the end what Mrs. Fletcher is all about. It is in regards to the methods people need issues, and the way that need can come to vary the course of your whole life.
Atlanta
The place to observe: Hulu
Lakeith Stanfield, Donald Glover, and Brian Tyree Henry, Atlanta
Donald Glover as soon as mentioned that, after spending a complete evening bingeing Fleabag, he walked into work on his FX collection Atlanta the subsequent day and instructed his whole writing workers to do the identical. It is smart: Atlanta is simply as authentic as Fleabag, if not weirder and extra experimental, and these two reveals share all types of DNA. On Atlanta, Glover stars as Earn, an aimless, cynical faculty dropout turned music supervisor working additional time to get his cousin’s (Brian Tyree Henry) rap profession off the bottom. Earn hustles continually, and infrequently fruitlessly, rising up briefly solely to be kicked proper again right down to the place he began. Like Fleabag, Atlanta is about looking for a spot for your self in a merciless, unforgiving world; in contrast to Fleabag, there’s an episode set at a Juneteenth social gathering.
Russian Doll
The place to observe: Netflix
Natasha Lyonne, Russian Doll
Does something sound worse than being caught in a time loop, compelled to expertise the identical day time and again? I sincerely do not suppose so. That very Groundhog Day impact is the premise of Russian Doll, which was co-created by and stars Natasha Lyonne as Nadia, a girl doomed to repeat the day of her thirty sixth celebration again and again, dying on the finish of the evening solely to get up the subsequent morning, fully unhurt. Lyonne and Waller-Bridge’s anti-heroines share an acerbic wit, and although the worlds they’re in are very completely different, Fleabag followers will immediately see hints of Fleabag in Nadia as she struggles to determine why the universe has seemingly turned in opposition to her.
