HBO Sundays @ 10:30pm ET
"Looking" offers up the unfiltered experiences of three close friends living -- and loving -- in modern-day San Francisco. Friendship may bind them, but each is at a markedly different point in his journey: Patrick is the 29-year-old video game designer getting back into the dating world in the wake of his ex's engagement; aspiring artist Agustín, 31, is questioning the idea of monogamy amid a move to domesticate with his boyfriend; and the group's oldest member -- longtime waiter Dom, 39 -- is facing middle age with romantic and professional dreams still unfulfilled.
"Looking" would be an impossible sell pretty much anywhere except HBO. Not only is it targeted to a very niche market, but the media's pre-premiere comparisons to "Girls" certainly didn't do it any favors. That show may have lots of online buzz, but in reality the ratings hover around a paltry 1 million and the vast majority of the public only knows about it for the controversy surrounding Lena Dunham's nudity. It's unfortunate that such a promising new show should be put in such a restrictive box before its debut -- but it's easy to understand why the comparison is made.
Airing immediately after "Girls", "Looking" is also about a group of young same-gendered friends living, looking for love, and trying to get their act together in an urban setting. But all those similarities are on the surface. Under the hood, the shows are very different. Over the course of its run, "Girls" has devolved from insightfully self-deprecating humor into cringe-worthy unpleasantness. It's clear that the "friends" on that show don't really care all that much for each other, and the show seems eager to treat them unkindly, like the relentless mocking of Marnie's artistic ambitions. On the other hand, the overall tone of "Looking" is infinitely more optimistic. Yes, the lives of these young men are messy and yes, they often commit embarrassing faux pas, but there's an underlying sense of hope here that "Girls" sorely lacks. While "Girls" seems increasingly eager to drag its characters through the proverbial mud, "Looking" patiently attempts to lift its characters out of it, despite their best efforts to continue wallowing.
Most of this hope is anchored by star Jonathan Groff ("Boss", "Glee") as our protagonist Patrick. He's a cheerfully noncommittal guy who is continually bemused by his predictable bad luck in love -- but he's always convinced it's waiting for him just around the corner. He's a baby-faced tabula rasa, and easy to relate to. (In fact, he'll probably need a bit more of a personality going forward if he hopes to continue being the focus of the show.) Frankie J. Alvarez ("Smash") is Augustín, the only of the three friends with a partner, though he finds himself terrified as his relationship is on the verge of a major change. Murray Bartlett ("Guiding Light") is by far the strongest of the three leads as Dom, the perennial waiter who's unfulfilled in both love and his career. His scene with bestie/roomie Doris (Lauren Weedman, "Hung") is the strongest of the whole pilot.
The most progressive thing about "Looking" is how, despite the public's best attempts to brand it as such, it's not really a "gay" show. Unlike its progenitor "Queer As Folk", there isn't constant drama surrounding coming out or conservative parents or homicidal homophobes. "Gay" is just one part of who these men are, and not their defining characteristic. That said, there are plenty of "gay" goings-on in the pilot, such as cruising in the park or a casual threesome, but they're presented in a refreshingly understated manner, especially for a channel as notorious for sex as HBO. In fact, "Looking" is so casual about the lives of its characters, that the pilot occasionally verges on being (*gasp*) boring at times. I'm loath to encourage the writers to bring more "drama" into these young men's lives, but the show could certainly use a bit more action going forward if it hopes to retain a loyal audience.
Tweet us @Stagebuddy and let us know what you thought of "Looking"!
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I1u1CkRFVRs[/youtube]
