Love Life, an original romantic comedy series being offered by the new streaming service HBO Max, focuses on Darby, a twenty-something who is looking for love, played by Anna Kendrick.

The show is sweet and, if you are a fan of romantic comedies, frustrating at times, but quite enjoyable. 

Each episode focuses on Darby’s love interest so fittingly, the episode titles are all the names of said love interest.

10 episodes in the first season and no plans for a second season being announced as of yet, maybe Darby will find her true love by the end of season one. Without knowing what the future holds for the series, hopeless romantics like myself will have to hope for the best.

Initially after watching the first episode entitled Augie Jeong, similarities to another HBO original from years ago, Sex and the City come to mind, but it deserves more credit than that.  Yes, it is about a girl in New York looking for love, but this series has a younger vibe to it and seems more innocent, where Sex and the City, and its characters, seemed more jaded.

Both series are narrated, but unlike Sex and the City where the infamous Carrie Bradshaw was the narrator of her story, Love Life is narrated by an at-this-time unknown woman with a British accent. Maybe we will find out who she is later.

Episode one tells us the story of Darby and her first real adult love, Augie, who meet at a bar.  Darby is working for Bradley Field at a museum as a tour guide. Augie is a sweet guy and you can understand why Darby falls for him and is so heartbroken when he tells her about a job offer he has received that is too good to pass up, so he will be leaving the city soon.  The two decide to try long-distance when they spend their last night together at Bradley’s wedding.

In the second episode, which takes place a year later, Augie is no longer in the picture and Darby meets up again with her old boss Bradley, who is now going through a divorce.  Although there is a substantial difference in their ages, Darby and Bradley begin dating, but throughout the episode you see Darby letting go of her dreams and becoming the hostess type that works best with Bradley.  Darby seems happy and her friends love to spend time with her at Bradley’s well-equipped apartment, but things quickly change when Bradley’s father passes. The couple, including an understandably upset Bradley, attend the wake at his family home.

Darby feels uncomfortable at the event and doesn’t seem to fit in, and that feeling increases when Bradley’s soon-to-be ex-wife Kate shows up and is obviously still a favorite of and very close with Bradley’s mother. Darby spends the day drinking, ending up with her head in a toilet, and later carrying her belongings from Bradley’s apartment to the train to return to her roommates.

The third episode takes place shortly after the break-up with Bradley. Darby’s roommate Sara convinces her to attend a roof-top party, giving Sara the excuse to miss her live-in boyfriend Jim’s family gathering. Sara leaves after a short time to go to Jim, but Darby decides to stay and meets Danny. Initially, he doesn’t make a very good impression on Darby, but after she injures her leg and he offers to administer some first aid, Darby and Danny begin to get to know each other.

Credit: Love Life/ Netflix

Darby notices that Danny has two phones, which they both joke is a classic indication of being a drug dealer, but his reasoning is more complicated.  Danny is keeping the old phone active because it contains voicemails from his ex that he doesn’t want to lose.

Although not prone to one-night stands, Darby has sex with Danny. She knows this is not going to be a relationship, and is fine with that, feeling a bit of freedom and no pressure. After, the two talk more about how hanging on to the old phone isn’t good for Danny and he decides to get rid of it and throws it out the window. Darby cheers him on until realizing that Danny was ok letting go of the phone because he thinks that she can be the replacement for his old girlfriend. Panicked, Darby quickly makes up a story about moving in two days and beats a hasty retreat.

A week later, Darby is working at her new museum job when Danny shows up and sees her.  He realizes that she lied to avoid his attentions and lets her know how she has hurt him. Although she feels bad about it, Darby acknowledges it is nice to know that she wasn’t the one who left.

Episode four is titled Magnus Lund and starts with Darby getting more used to the one-night stand. Her roommates see different men coming from Darby’s room in the morning, but one stands out.  Magnus Lund, a sous chef at a local restaurant, begins appearing more often. He charms not only Darby but her roommates as well. His career shows promise and seems to be following the same track as Darby’s, which is heading on an upward tick. Darby is now the assistant to Naomi, who takes up all of Darby’s time and causes her quite a bit of stress. But Darby is up for a promotion, Magnus meets her mother and brother and makes a great impression, and the two begin talking about their futures together. Magnus moves into the apartment with Darby and her friends.

Magnus seems perfect, although not the most responsible. Darby is continuing to work hard and finally finds out that she has gotten the promotion to Assistant Sales Associate. When she rushes home to tell Magnus the good news she finds out that he has lost his job and in the coming weeks shows he is not very interested in finding another.

Darby has finally had enough with Magnus not working and lets him know how she feels. He wakes her up the next morning dressed in a suit, advising that he is going out to find a new job, but later does not show up at home and is not answering calls or texts.

Concerned, Darby begins to go through Magnus’ things to try and get some hint as to where he could be and finds many past due bills and indications of a huge amount of debt and financial irresponsibility.

Magnus shows the next morning, looking a mess, saying that he went away to think and realizes how much Darby means to him, gets down on one knee and proposes.

Will Darby say yes? Can Magnus get his life straightened out? From all indications, the answer to that question would be no, but we shall see in the future episodes of Love Life.