Russian Doll is the upcoming Netflix show created by an absolute powerhouse trio made up of Natasha Lyonne, Amy Poehler and Leslye Headland. As can already be told from the talented women involved, it has a little bit of everything – drama, comedy, thriller and just enough psychological twists and turns to keep you on your toes.
Russian Doll follows Nadia (played by Lyonne) who is stuck in a Happy Death Day-like loop, where every time she dies, she returns to the night of her 36th birthday. Over and over Nadia relives the night, acting out numerous different scenarios yet always ending in a grizzly demise. However, Russian Doll adds a fresh twist to the familiar story – she can survive several days before dying and being returned to her 36th birthday.
On the surface, the point of the show seems to be just like all the others before it – Nadia needs to find out why this is happening and more importantly why it’s happening to her. However, as the story begins to unravel and Nadia continues to fight both herself and her fate, the story begins to morph into something darker, something more psychological and emotional. Russian Doll spins itself into a discussion about guilt, regret, the ego, selfishness and knowing right from wrong.
Having said that though, Russian Doll is also a show that is trying to not take itself too seriously. For example, in the beginning the deaths are quite sudden and are almost like jump scares – the car you don’t see coming or Nadia falling off things. Yet after a while the deaths become almost humorous; she seems like an overly sensitive video game character where she steps one foot out of line and suddenly air conditioner vents are falling from the sky and chicken bones are getting stuck in her throat (that’s not a spoiler when the premise is her constantly dying, right?). Add this to the already charming and effortlessly charismatic character Lyonne plays so well and Russian Doll ends up having some unique aspects for what I expected to be a far more predictable story.
As amazing as Natasha Lyonne is she couldn’t carry the whole story on her own. A few episodes in, we meet Alan, played by Charlie Barnett who some may recognise from his role in Chicago PD and Chicago Fire. Alan is sensitive, reserved and pretty much just the opposite of Nadia; he balances her out and their characters work in perfect symmetry together. It may be an overplayed trope – think Eleanor and Chidi from The Good Place or Rust and Marty from True Detective – but I think in part due to Nadia’s outlandishness or the extent to Alan’s reservations the pairing was so unexpected that it felt fresh. From the time they meet to when the credits rolled on the last episode, I adored these two being on screen together and would watch a season two just to see more of their unique but undeniable screen chemistry.
Speaking of a season two though, at this point I’m not sure if there will be one. The show left enough questions unanswered that it would be justified to make a second season in order to dig a little deeper however if the show was to end after only eight episodes, I think majority of the audience would feel fairly satisfied with the ending, as unconventional and ambiguous as it is.
Overall, Russian Doll is a show that is definitely going to sneak up on some people – if you persevere through the first few episodes you get rewarded with some interesting, thought-provoking, emotional television that leaves you thinking for hours, not only about the characters and their stories but maybe even some questions you have for yourself.