It hurts to write this as I love Nicola Coughlan and Lydia West. I also really enjoy shows that shed light on mental health issues and find a way to add a comedic slant, however, this one really misses the mark. The main actresses deserved better. The first ep is decent, but with the show in its entirety, I struggled to see the humour. There are very, very few funny moments littered across the episodes but just a handful. I personally felt that the show generally deals with the issue of mental health quite poorly. Maggie's bi polar episodes are almost ignored by her friends and even more so, her long time best friend - It's bizarre, Eddie seems to lack compassion and empathy for Maggie whilst she's in an episode. I appreciate that Maggie is not her responsibility, but the second episode is nothing short of bizarre. It's heartbreaking to watch the ignorance and lack of understanding, especially with the party. The portrayal of friendship between the "best friends" is lacking substance and even ep 5 can't save it. If anything i'd rather have see more frustration and angst from Eddie towards the disorder as opposed to pretending it's just a bad mood or a phase, and a little dance and cake will help it all go away and Maggie will instantly be cured. Besides that there is no coherent storyline, depth or anything gripping to unfold, there is little development or journey and very few laughs. This show should have taken guidance from the myriad of shows in this genre like Big Boys, This way up, Alma's not normal, Everything now or Tell me everything. However, Nicola's performance is great throughout and I'd have loved to have seen more of it. Her character's battle should have been the whole show yet it seems likes an alternate subplot going on in the background . Otherwise I do usually love a C4 comedy, however, it saddens me to say that one is severely lacking.
Review of Big Mood
