Selfie – A Hilarious Rom-Com That Needs A Second Season #SaveSelfie

During the recent holidays last week, I stumbled upon a new TV series called Selfie. Initially, the title was a turn-off, bringing up visions of self-absorbed hipster millenials taking selfies non-stop. But all the other TV series I was watching were on winter break. So we thought we’d give Selfie a chance.

And, OMG! I was hooked on the first episode! It reminded me a little bit of Drop Dead Diva, but shorter and faster-paced, and FUNNIER! Like, LAUGH OUT LOUD funny.

I couldn’t stop binge-watching it! Finished all 13 episodes.

John Cho

Also, it is AWESOME that John Cho is the male lead! John Cho! I first noticed him in Charmed, and I am always happy to see him in other shows. He is Harold from Harold & Kumar. He is also Sulu on the Chris Pine Star Trek movies. This guy is very underrated. He can play a serious character, but he shines in comedy. And he can sing and let loose! Seriously, this guy deserves more than what he’s getting from Hollywood! I actually felt pretty bad for him when he had to play that neck-twisting undead in Sleepy Hollow.

Karen Gillan – I haven’t seen any of her shows but she is also spot on for her role as Eliza Dooley. The names are dead giveaways! It’s obviously a Pygmalion / My Fair Lady adaptation – girl with negative traits is transformed into someone with more positive traits, with help from a wiser gentleman, and they eventually fall in love. But that explanation of the plot does not give it justice at all.

SUMMARY

Eliza Dooley is a beautiful, social media-obsessed, superficial, narcissistic top sales rep at a pharmaceutical firm. On one very bad day, she realizes she has no real friends and that nobody really likes her. Then an idea strikes when she sees the company’s marketing genius, Henry Higgs, rebrand a failing product into something hot again. She persuades him to help her repackage herself.

Henry Higgs is a workaholic. He has nothing happening in his life, and he’s fine with that. He’s also all about real human interaction. He doesn’t have Facebook or any other social media account. Except LinkedIn. He has LinkedIn.

What I Love About the Show

But the best thing about this show, aside from the funny gags, is the chemistry between our two main characters. Each episode, we see them both learning more about each other, and helping each other grow. Henry is teaching Eliza how to be more caring to other people, and Eliza is, in her own way, forcing Henry to have more fun.

Eliza wasn’t always this beautiful, hot, superficial woman. She used to be the ugliest girl in school until she learned makeup, proper nutrition, etc.. and transformed herself into social media hot property. We get glimpses of her sad life from her memories of her ugly years, and we realize there’s still real sympathy hidden underneath those layers of superficiality.

I like how we don’t need to wait for a few years before seeing the characters realize their developing feelings towards each other. They get closer each episode. The show also finds ways to put our characters in various situations. John Cho riding a white horse? Check. The rest of the cast singing in some form or other? Check. Karaoke night? Check. John Cho letting loose in a concert? Check. Work-themed party at Henry’s house? Check. Skinny dipping? Check. Mud Race? Check. Karen Gillan in a onesie? A Jerry McGuire moment? Reference to She’s All That? Check, check and check.

After a long day of slaving it out, this show was a welcome escape. It’s light, it’s funny, it doesn’t demand too much brainpower but for the suspension of disbelief and understanding its many references to pop culture. If you’re up to date on pop culture, you’ll get the show. They also make fun of a lot of people! Like Gwyneth Paltrow for being beautiful outside but not beautiful inside (I knew it! I knew it! I have been searching online for confirmation but found it on this show instead!). I actually wonder if this isn’t the real reason why it was cancelled.

The Selfie line I will probably use in real life: Make like Elsa, and let it go!

Cancellation

Many people have said that the title of the show, Selfie, was a big turn off for a lot of people and caused them to avoid watching it. Yes, the title, Selfie, really is a turn off for people who have no idea what the show is about. But then again, I think it’s an appropriate title. It pokes fun at the Selfie generation and all the pop culture phenomena that are really funny to people with a bit of sense.

It didn’t even really occur to me that this was the first Asian-American leading man in a rom-com. To me, it was just really funny, the leads had great chemistry, and I really like John Cho as an actor. No, I don’t have a crush on him. I just find him very down-to-earth and fun to watch, and admire him to because he can be a serious actor as well. He’s always very committed to his characters.

I am really bummed that Selfie was cancelled after only a few episodes were shown. I really think this show has great potential. It already has a loyal following petitioning for the show to be saved.

If you haven’t seen the show, please give it a try. If you like the show, please support the #SaveSelfie efforts.

Here’s their change.org petition:
https://www.change.org/p/hulu-please-renew-selfie-for-a-second-season

Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/saveselfie
http://www.facebook.com/ABCSelfie

Twitter Hashtag:
#SaveSelfie