Getting Laid

I really feel like I get Laid (currently available on Peacock).

Right from the flash forward hook in the pilot, I’ve been continually entertained, and I have ADHD…but I quite think I’ve paid attention. The writing and acting is lovely, so I want to.

Our charming and hilarious MC Ruby — driven by the charming and hilarious Stephanie Hsu and writing that works as well for her as in Everything Everywhere All at Once, if not better — is electric, but selfish.

Zosia Mamet (Girls) adeptly plays her supportive, analytical, OG true crime enthusiast best friend AJ. White best friend to an Asian lead? That’s still pretty new to me! Thanks Nahnatchka Khan and team (Nahnatchka, I don’t think you remember, but I’ve seen/briefly met you at a panel at LA, and it was a lovely experience for me. You seem super cool)!

~ Episode 1 background spoilers below ~

Anyway, Ruby works as a party planner. She is 33, single, and frustrated with dating, but otherwise, her life seems good. She’s even started working for a very cute client (Tommy Martinez) who appears to enjoy her quirky company, to plan his parents’ anniversary party (also cute!). Then, her exes start dying. First, two: a coincidence.

~ Spoiler for midway through episode 2 ~

And then, after an ex has died right in front of her and she has learned about another on a phone call, one more dies on the TV as she watches. That makes three. More than a coincidence, AJ’s childish and insensitive boyfriend posits. “I rode an elderly donkey when I went to the Grand Canyon. Could that be related?” Ruby asks her doctor. But no, says this doctor as did several others — physically, she’s fine.

~ Spoiler for the end of episode 2 ~

Then, before Ruby comes to believe that “her vagina is killing people” in the order she slept with them, she does the ultimate selfish act — drunkenly sleeping with her best friend AJ’s very-recent ex the day before they end up getting back together. So now, by all appearances, he will soon die.

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She must figure this out. She wants to believe it’s a stalker, making me wonder how a stalker would give someone lymphoma, sepsis, and some kind of death by anorexia (that’s all I got on that)…I suppose there are ways? Similarly, though more rudely, the police don’t take her seriously, even though she gives them a “healthy” (thanks, cop lady!) sex timeline and a chronological account of deaths.

Also, cute client/fellow romantic/undercover musical lover (Mr. Family Man watched them with his parents) has a beautiful, charitable marine biologist girlfriend. Probably the safest thing for him in this scenario. Anyway, she doesn’t date clients.

~ Episode 3 spoilers ~

Then Ruby discovers that there’s a looot of blood on her client’s carpet, and as he holds a baseball bat (for squirrels, he says, which are supposedly the source of the blood…) and they look at each other, he seems to provide no explanation. Thus, Ruby thinks he’s her stalker.

But AJ — who has been supporting her by analyzing the situation temporally, linguistically, and mathematically — says stalkers can’t give someone cancer…and now, another ex has died, following the timeline. Not good.

Ruby starts informing her living exes in the area that they will die. AJ, still unaware of Ruby’s recent lapse in judgment, faithfully tags along. It is, as many things are in this show, awkward, and funny. One ex has lost a lot of weight. One was her boss (who immediately fears she’s pregnant when she identifies herself). Two have found a new third. Ruby explains the timeline and warns of coming death — even in Portuguese, sorta — while AJ asks investigative questions to gain more information, particularly to calculate the time between each death.

But Ruby can’t pronounce the Portuguese (?) ex’s name. She seems to have broken up with all of them carelessly, and treated them disrespectfully when they were together, cheating, calling them names, and ghosting them. They’re all upset. “Typical Ruby chaos energy,” they chime. “A f***ing nightmare.” “You’re still in your disease,” says one, when she says this is her lowest point — but though she was his lowest point, she also saved his life.

Ruby’s ego likes that, as well as when AJ calls her mature that evening. But a guilty Ruby says that she’s not, but AJ is, and once again alludes to ~ things she’s done ~. AJ just compliments her work today again, and says she will work on this tonight with her new information. What a good friend! After they separate, Ruby, whose selfishness may soon kill AJ’s boyfriend, starts crafting an apology to her, but a bag is put over her head and she’s whisked away…

~ Beginning of Episode 4 spoiler ~

…and it’s not cute client, by the way (whom we haven’t seen in a while).

I will pause here…I may come back and edit this to add more; I may not. So I will just say that I can’t wait to see what’s in store. I’m having a good time. I hope you enjoy and get Laid, too!