in limbo, now streaming on Hulu, originally aired in Australia in 2023, and creator and writer Lucas Taylor brings snappy Australian humor to a six-episode limited series that fills its chatty comedy framework with more serious themes of loss, grief, suicide, depression and redemption. So, a little heavy! But also: pretty fun. It’s a shock when Charlie (Ryan Corr, aka Ser Harwin “Breakbones” Strong from the first season of Dragon House) discovers that his lifelong friend, Nate (Bob Morely), has died unexpectedly. But it’s even more surprising when Nate reappears just as quickly. “It may not be a living organism,” he tells Charlie. “But I am very real…â€
IN LIMBO: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?
Initial shot: —Thank you all for coming. Today is a sad day. Charlie stops, looks in the mirror, and starts again. And that’s when Nate intervenes from the other room. “You need to have some advantage. You are the main act. “You want to look sad, but still attractive.”
The essence: It’s not a spoiler to say that an honest and wisecracking Nate is accompanying Charlie as the latter prepares to deliver a eulogy at the former’s funeral. This is in the first minutes of in limbo, before the series returns to their lives before the tragedy. Eventually, he’ll rewind even further, to his childhood, when Charlie and Nate immediately bonded, and Nate’s mother liked to say things like “People don’t disappear when they die, as long as you keep them alive in your home.” heart. But now that Nate is gone, there’s a void in Charlie’s life. And like lifelong best friends who used to tease each other for using a supposedly sentimental term like “best friends,” he realizes that emotional repair and greater transparency was sometimes lacking in his most important male relationship.
While he was alive, Nate acknowledged to Charlie that he had seen a medical professional, but only hinted at the nature of the visit. There seemed to be nothing to suggest a problem in Nate’s marriage to Freya (Emma Harvie, Colin of Accounts), or their lives as happy parents of soccer player Annabel (Kamilia Rihani). Charlie was even helping his best friend build a charming treehouse in the backyard called “Casa Bella.” So it’s overwhelming when Charlie comes home from a blind date set up by his matchmaking friends only to discover the body of his best friend. . “Suicide rarely makes sense,” a police lieutenant tells him. And now he will have to break the terrible news to Freya and Annabel.
In each turn, in limbo tempers the easy rapport between its cast with the serious notes of Nate’s passing. But it’s actually Nate himself who ends up doing most of the heavy lifting as the series moves into the chapters after his death. Nate was always the confident, calm, charming friend to Charlie’s quieter, more thoughtful, hesitant self. And that dynamic remains after Nate reappears as an apparition. Why is it an apparition? Why hasn’t he “crossed over”? these are questions in limbo will address. But he will also explore why he did it, how his decision is reflected in his marriage to Freya, and what the living can learn. Remember: stay present in the lives of your loved ones. And always hug your friends.
What shows will it remind you of? ghosts – the US version airs on CBS – heightens the sitcom vibes and, with that, more traditional laughs. But he shares a kind of examination of the afterlife with in limbo, as well as the presumption that only certain human characters can see and hear spiritual ones. And speaking of the afterlife, Dead Child Detectiveswhich recently premiered on Netflix, features two guys investigating supernatural crimes. rather crossing.
Our opinion: in limbo He quickly and effectively establishes an ease with his writing that makes the mundane things of his adult relationships valuable, like the casual revelation of a private part of Nate and Freya’s marriage that turns into a comedy of errors that’s both physical and paranormal. . And it’s a shock when Nate leaves, because even as a character he seemed like the guy who had everything to live for. But isn’t that what we always say when faced with the loss of someone we love? In this series, the humor lives up to the message as he has more to say about suicidal ideation and maintaining mental health, particularly among men. While in limbo he sells his supernatural angle with suggestive wit: when circumstances prevent him from keeping his date, an angry woman texts him that he’s “cheating” on her; What we look forward to most is how she rectifies even more. that side of the premise of it with what’s happening in the world Nate departed into and what changes will occur to those existing relationships.
Sex and skin: Nothing in the first episode, anyway.
Parting Shot: “Where is dad?” Whether his best friend in the spirit world is willing to admit it or not, here on the mortal plane, Nate’s passing has left Charlie in a really difficult situation.
Sleeping star: Whether alive and vigorous in flashbacks or appearing to Charlie as an apparition: “I prefer the term ‘wandering soul,’ it’s more mysterious, like it’s in a Jeff Buckley song.” “Bob Morely’s charisma as Nate is a constant draw for in limboand one of the best tools the series has to establish its occasionally complicated tone.
Most pilot line: Charlie’s first conversation with Nate since his best friend unexpectedly passed away is tough, but it’s also based on their enduring bond. “I am him, friend. I know this is strange, but it is happening. I’m stuck in limbo. “You’re stuck with me, until we find a way for my soul to cross.”
Our call: TRANSMIT IT. As sitcoms go, in limbo It’s extremely bittersweet. But at least Nate is still with us as a ghost, and we’re committed to finding out more about him, even if those revelations must, by nature, take place within the small community of loved ones and friends he left behind.
Johnny Loftus (@glennganges) is a freelance writer and editor living in Chicago. His work has appeared in The Village Voice, All Music Guide, Pitchfork Media, and Nicki Swift.TO
