What if a show was so bad that it was actually good?
Reading the title of Netflix’s new drama series one might be forgiven for thinking that it wasn’t another Black Mirror-esque show. The title ‘What/if’ is essentially how you start describing each episode of Black Mirror. This series, however, is nothing of the kind but in fact might just be something that Netflix is missing, a show that you don’t need to pay attention to. A show that would’ve lasted way too long on regular TV, somehow being popular and somehow keeps going despite far down the scale it is compared to shows like Stranger Things and The Crown.
What/if’s description is confusing and is simply Netflix’s more drama based version of shows like American Horror Story. It is an anthology series which tackles a different morality tale each season. It simply showcases the ripple effect of a single decision and how it can change one’s life.
In the first season, it follows Lisa Donovan (Jane Levy), a scientist who has the technology to help cure issues with people being unable to retrieve the same treatment as others, that it put simply. She has a startup which gets funded by a powerful woman named Anne Montgomery (Renee Zellweger) in exchange for a night with her husband. Yes, you read that correctly and yes this is the decision and the ‘ripple effect’ is both insane and laughable at times.
Starting the show you’re greeted by the strange cinematography and style of the show. Its a style that I can best describe as Joel Schumacher’s Batman films meets Suits, sometimes the music is strange and the camera makes some weird movements or the editing is just too much for whats going on. It’s as if the editor decided to intensify every reveal because they thought it wasn’t obvious enough. I might seem like I am being quite harsh on this new anthology series but in fact, it was these choices that allowed me to be entertained by the show.
I like to watch my TV, and films, in a balance. For there to be great TV there must also be what I describe as trashy TV. The types of TV shows that you watch because you need a palate cleanser or the show is so wild that you can’t guess what crazy thing is going to happen next. It’s one of the reasons I love Riverdale so much. What/if is certainly one of those shows and it worked because I kept watching it.
The show isn’t filled with bad acting or shot awfully or anything of the kind, in fact, I would say Renee Zellweger is pretty darn good in it. Her performance is quite good, especially if you consider the weird decisions her character makes or strange things she has to say. Everyone around her pulls their weight and doesn’t break the illusion of the weird weird world they live in.
There isn’t really more to say, it’s a show that you can have on in the background or you can spend a day watching while you’re sick in bed. It’s a show where each episode is called ‘What (something about the episode afterwards)’ yet somehow breaks its own rules by having an episode just called ‘WTF’. I’ll tell you right now it really is WTF and I hope each series has that episode with the same name, please!
What/if is like many shows I’ve watched before, I mean I used to watch Gossip Girl every week and I currently watch Riverdale every week. I can safely say that it was the palate cleanser I needed after the incredible hype ride that was Game of Thrones. After watching the show I feel surprised it exists and also feel fresh. I can now restart my TV viewing, in a post Game of Thrones world. instead of feeling empty missing my favourite show, I watched What/if and despite how bad and trashy it was, I’m glad I watched it and I’m still wondering if it was deliberately bad or just released at the exact right time.