By Sarah Osman

Too Much’s swings from comedy to tragedy generate considerable whiplash.

Megan Stalter in Too Much. Photo: Ana Blumenkron/Netflix

When Jessica (Megan Stalter) first sees her new flat in the first episode of Lena Dunham (and British husband Luis Felber)’s, Too Much, she’s disappointed. She assumed that, because it was named Hoxton Grove Estate, it would be a pastoral estate akin to the ones in Pride and Prejudice and Downton Abbey. Instead, it’s a dingy apartment building in the middle of London. Why would Jessica, who’s from New York, assume this? But her reaction seemed to me to be a tip-off: Too Much would be another Emily in Paris ripoff, this go around set in London.

And, for the first two episodes, that’s what Too Much is. Initially, it is a pure, lighthearted romcom. Jess moves to London following a breakup. We meet Jess’s quirky coworkers, her oddball dog whose tongue is perpetually hanging out of her mouth, and Felix (Will Sharpe), her romantic interest. Felix is a sheepish, chill indie musician who, after meeting Jess in a bar, goes home with her. After Jessica sets herself on fire (don’t ask), Felix shows up at the hospital, her derpy dog in tow, to take care of her. But this is a series from the creator of Girls, and like that series, Too Much ends up varying wildly in tone. Once episode three comes along, the narrative shifts into a tragicomic character study of the couple: Jessica is recovering from her breakup with Felix, who turns out to be a recovering addict dealing with family issues.

Despite the confused shifts in tone, Too Much works well at times particularly because of the performers. I didn’t initially recognize Sharpe, who you may be familiar with as Ethan from The White Lotus. Felix is the polar opposite of that character. Sharpe plays Felix with plenty of charm; it is easy to see why Jess would fall for this British fuckboy. Dean Charles-Chapman steals scenes as Gaz, Jess’s nonchalant neighbor who begrudgingly checks up on her. Adèle Exarchopoulos is hilarious as Polly, Felix’s very tempestuous French ex-girlfriend, who picks fights at weddings. She informs Jess during conversations that she is “bored now” and walks away. Dunham pops up as Jess’s sister, who’s going through a nasty divorce with her ex, played by Andrew Rannells. Frankly, their brief fights made me wonder if a spin-off series revolving around those two would make for a more interesting series.

Stalter does her best with Jess, but the script presents formidable limits. She was a terrific comedic actress on Hacks, but she had better material to work with there because that series had sharper writers. Jess is meant to be an appealing amalgamation: chaotic and messy but also engaging and endearing. But the mix doesn’t jell — this is an infuriating heroine who is very difficult to root for. At times, I wondered what Felix saw in her, especially since their romantic chemistry is sorely lacking (a point underscored by their many cringeworthy sex scenes).

Other random characters pop up and receive meandering storylines. Jess consistently talks to her mother and grandmother (played by Rita Wilson and Rhea Perlman) about her sex life and UTIs, which is indeed a choice. Their relationship doesn’t amount to much more than that, which might explain why Jess is the way she is. Two of her coworkers begin a relationship that’s intended to be an exploration of queerness, but it ends up being sidelined in favor of spotlighting the straight couple. It’s never quite clear if Jess is any good at her job; she constantly makes faux pas, but her boss comments on how he hired her for her brilliance.

Too Much‘s shifts from comedy to tragedy generate considerable whiplash. Cutting down on unnecessary plot lines, focusing on Jess and Felix along with a few key characters, would be fixes for that problem. Probing more of Jess’s past — and why she is the way she is — would be another. Girls also had its share of structural/tonal issues, and it seems  Too Much has these serious bugs as well. Dunham is not known for modulation — there’s a good chance that Too Much is indeed going to become too much.

Sarah Mina Osman is based in Los Angeles. In addition to the Arts Fuse, her writing can be found in The Huffington Post, Success Magazine, Matador Network, HelloGiggles, Business Insider, and WatchMojo. She has an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of North Carolina Wilmington and is working on her first novel. She has a deep appreciation for sloths and tacos. You can keep up with her on Instagram @SarahMinaOsman and at Bluesky @sarahminaosman.bsky.social.