Weekend Watch: Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist
Music is life in this charming comedy, back for a new season
Image credit: NBC
Welcome to the latest edition of Weekend Watch, in which I recommend (or occasionally warn against) movies or TV shows I’ve been checking out. This week, sing out for Zoey’s return to TV.
In one of my earliest posts for this blog, I wrote about cheerful shows to help get you through the earlier days of the pandemic. Obviously, we’re – at least, a lot of the world – is still deep in the crisis, and there remains a powerful need for fun viewing that might just take your mind off the hell-scape that is the current situation. And one series that probably should have featured on that list is most definitely Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist.
The basics: Zoey Clarke (a luminous Jane Levy) is undergoing a health check in an MRI when an earthquake strikes. The resulting event causes Zoey, who up until this point hadn’t really been much of a music fan (she prefers Podcasts) to start hearing the inner thoughts of people around her via the medium of song. Now, on top of holding down a job as a coder at a tech company, navigating the choppy waters of dating and dealing with her father’s fast declining health, she’ll find herself helping out those around her after hearing what they want; what they really, really want.
There are many things to recommend about the show, not the least of which is the sheer truckload of charm that Levy brings to the lead role. She’s more than ably supported by Skylar Astin as colleague and potential love interest Max, Alex Newell as neighbour Mo, who sings even when not expressing hidden feelings, Mary Steenburgen as Zoey’s mother, Maggie, who is trying to keep her family upbeat even as her husband (Peter Gallagher) succumbs to progressive supra-nuclear palsy, which has robbed him of the ability to express himself (you can guess how Zoey’s new ability might help with this).
Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist manages to juggle all of this – finding the fun of the musical moments (including some excellent choreography) while also tackling the tougher emotional sides without dipping too far into schmaltz. It finds room for both a workplace comedy and a family comedy drama and allows the various characters the breathing space to carry their stories.
Season Two kicks off a few weeks after the – spoiler alert if you’re only about to jump in with the first – death of Zoey’s father, and she’s not coping well. Retreating into her shell, Zoey is hoping that her mysterious ability has finally vanished, and has mixed feelings when she’s treating to a rousing rendition of ‘Hello Dolly’ from her work mates on her return to the office. Oh, and there’s also Max and romantic rival Simon (John Clarence Stewart) serenading her with ‘Are You Gonna Be My Girl’. The balance of comedy to heartstring-tugging is still in full effect, and as usual Levy pulls off the high wire act of being part of musical sequences without singing or dancing (though it was fun to see her do both in a first season episode).
If you need something cheerful in your life right now, Zoey’s certainly fits the bill, even if you should also prepare to need several boxes of tissues at times.
Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist airs Thursdays on NBC and is available the next day on Hulu in the US. In the UK, it is carried by E4.