Despite the depressing name, How to Die Alone is actually a comedy series, at which I laughed a fair amount.
More than that though, I would also slap a “drama” label on this series. While most scenes were shot with a great deal of levity, lead character, Mel, had a way of brining the mood down quite a bit. But this series was really all about Mel, a JFK worker who seems to be living through a great deal of bad luck. While a near-death experience does get her to want to start to take control of her life, she sure does have a lot of reluctance to actually do so.
Perhaps the catalyst to her willingness to change is to book a flight to Hawaii. This would be her first flight ever since she ironically has an extreme fear of flying. I think this decision comes more from the fact that she got invited to the wedding of her ex (and boss), Alex. They still have good interactions with each other, and it’s clear that Alex is a caring person. We learn along the way that Mel felt the same way, but she was too afraid of what the future could hold. Though I did really like Alex’s character, I knew pretty early on that she should be pursing things with another co-worker and friend, Terrance. That man is always there for Mel and always trying to lift her up. I wish I had a Terrance!
Aside from her love life, which does fuel a lot of her actions in the series, there are a few other relationships that greatly test her. For instance, her best friend and co-worker, Rory, are very close, but it’s clear that they hold a lot of opinions inside. They are both sensitive people, and unforunately they wait so long that they just kind of vomit out their resentments to each other much earlier in the series than I was expecting. I like that they didn’t try to have them resolve their issues immediately. I don’t think that’s how a lot of conflict is resolved in real life. But this series does prove that when real friends need you, real friends will be there for you.
She also gets to deal with her family. It centers on the fact that her mother seems to favor her older brother, Brian, which has always gotten under Mel’s skin. it shocks her to learn that Brian feels the same way about the relationship Mel had with their dad. There is plenty of bickering in this episode, but a lot of it is something I think most families exeperience with each other. We are each others biggest supporters and worst critics, and I think that they manage to capture that dynamic really well in this episode.
The conclusion of this first season really did land on a perfect cliffhanger, but sadly we will never know the outcome because Hulu canceled it! Boo! If you can live with a cliffhanger though, I do think this unique series is worth your time.