A Review of ‘Laid’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

LAID -- "Flagstaff" Episode 104 -- Pictured: (l-r) Stephanie Hsu as Ruby, Michael Angarano as Richie -- (Photo by: James Dittiger/PEACOCK)

If there is one particular genre of storytelling that has in many ways, grown a tad stale, it would have to be romantic comedies, and we can lump stories about relationships in general into that line of thinking. Simply because… they have really reached a plateau of sorts. In part, because so much of what they do is formula based. For instance, the romcom always offers up similar lead characters, who often lead different and fulfilling lives but are of course, lacking something important… love. Which they find through a harrowing courtship of one another, after they meet in the quirkiest way imaginable, and formula is also the name of the game for generalized stories about relationships.
​
Since those stories tend to focus on strife and overcoming it so love can conquer all and well, let’s be honest… audiences just aren’t finding anything worthwhile in those genres anymore. Because we live in an era of storytelling, where fluffy stuff like that is fine here and there… but audiences now want depth in their stories. They want them to try new things and go new places, and thus far… no one has been willing to try and see what else they can do. But thankfully, that has recently changed. For there is a new series on Peacock, entitled Laid, that manages to outright reinvent the genre and inject new life into it, and it accomplishes such amazing feats, just by offering up a vastly different plot than we are used to from this storied and now stale genre. 

Wherein we meet Ruby. A woman that is, as so many individuals are, looking for that one true love that will transform her life. But alas, the dating pool she’s wading in is in need of a cleaning because her experiences are lackluster at best. But that of course isn’t stopping her from trying to find that elusive love. But the search takes a turn when an old boyfriend from way back when, dies, and soon after, she comes to learn that other people she’s been with in this life, are starting to pass on as well. Prompting her to work with her best friend AJ to not only figure out the cause of this nightmare, but to stop it by warning former lovers of what’s to come, and well… that is indeed about as original and refreshing a plot as it gets.

Simply because it immediately thumbs its nose at the tropes present in romantic comedies, and instead injects a sense of mortality into matters of love. Which in turn allows for unique commentary to come forth about the nature of modern dating, of our fears that we will end up alone. Not to mention, it does speak heavily to how much we let the past influence us in love and those are some powerful themes to find in a story that does handle such matters in a quality, comedic light. Because make no mistake about it, this is a romantic comedy, and the jokes work here and truly do make the sometimes-dark material palatable. But what matters most is that at last, this story features what so many of us have believed to be the outright impossible.

In that, it does reinvent the rom-com genre, and it really does showcase how this type of story can be more than just fluffy love and quirky characters. It can ponder upon the nature of life and how it impacts love, it can be honest about the ups and downs of relationships through simple moments, instead of over-the-top ones, and that makes this a must-see show. One that features some amazing storytelling and some amazing performances as well. Since Stephanie Hsu (Ruby) and the supporting cast sell the earnest nature and the laughs in this amazing story, that you can enjoy right now. For Laid is out on Peacock and we hope you give it a look, since it is a genuine breath of fresh air in a genre that has desperately needed an infusion of it.

---

Watch ‘Laid’

Powered by JustWatch