I am Not Okay with This begins where it eventually ends and sets the tone right from the start that it is a dark teen comedy, which is something similar to End of the F**king World (created by the same producer Jonathan Entwistle), Sex Education and other similar shows on Netflix. It is a story of a teenage girl Sydney (Sophia Lillis of IT fame) who has some strange superpower and is a loner.
As she calls herself “a boring 17-year-old white girl” the show initially portrays her to be socially awkward and somewhat weird. As the story unfolds, it shows deep emotional issues related to the loss of her father who committed suicide and her not-so-cordial relationship with her mother. The other characters, Dina (Sydney’s best friend and crush played by Sofia Bryant) and Stanley (who is in love with Sydney and is played by Wyatt Oleff of IT fame), significantly stand out with their performances.
The chemistry between Sydney and Dina has some sexual tension with ingredients of homosexuality, which gives you a vibe of Sex Education. On the other hand, there is another weird bonding between Sydney and Stanley who are both socially awkward, have family issues but share a charming relationship. Teenage romances and the onset of adolescence are fascinatingly merged in the episodes.
Sydney also has a sweet relationship with her younger brother (played by Aidan Wojtak-Hissong) which is funny as well as a bond that perhaps most siblings aspire for. The show doesn’t take a long time to establish the superpower angle, in fact most of the episodes have running lengths of around 20 minutes so I am Not Okay with This ranks high on our weekend binge-watching list. What’s interesting is that the superpower to control things with the mind that Sydney possesses is somewhere linked to her fears and anger. This leads to constant tussle between Sydney controlling her anger or fear, and it results in outbursts.
As the story pans out, the focus moves towards her superpower and a back story related to her father. As soon as the viewer feels the show is finally making sense beyond its teenage tropes, there is an abrupt ending which means only one thing in this age of Netflix and Chill. There’s a second season in the works. While we’ll happily wait for the new season to be produced, we’d be happier with a more rounded off ending instead of all the loopholes and questions that emerged in the end which makes us want to say “I Am Not Okay With This” finale.