VOD (1)

Seasons(3) / Episodes(18)

Reviews of this series by the user novoten (1)

After Life (2019) 

English Season 1 – 85% – The world can sometimes be the worst place to live, everyone knows that, anyone who has ever experienced something not going their way – without it having to be as tragically definitive as with Tony. Even an innocent consumer of unnecessarily loudly crunching crisps can ruin someone's day irreversibly. When Ricky Gervais navigates such a world, never failing in his perpetual grumpiness, it is a done deal. That is why Tony is close to me, both in the feelings of helplessness when the sad emptiness of the surrounding world falls on him, and fortunately in the magical fleeting moments of small joys that make life worth living. Despite the episodic nature of each event and the cautiously constructed coherence, this is more of a three-hour introspection into every corner of the soul. That's why I'm even more surprised that Netflix and Gervais himself want to try to repeat something so elusive in another season. Season 2 – 85% – One could say "more of the same, just in pale blue," but in this specifically dramedic focus (especially as it leans more towards drama), repeating the success deserves twice the praise. The older I get, the rarer it is for a series to move me to tears, and After Life manages to do it with every episode like a wave of a magic wand. Considering how frightened Gervais usually is, his mature confession (accompanied by his own amazing acting performance) is sincere and touching. If it weren't for the vulgar psychiatrist, it would have earned the highest rating as well. Season 3 – 70% – Sometimes, you meet someone with whom you strike up a conversation and immediately know that they have something to say. You may have known or heard a lot of things, but you still hang on their every word because they can give seemingly ordinary things a different name. When you meet them a second time and they strike the same chord, you happily listen to them again because you might have missed something the first time. But when they start talking about the same thing for the third time, you feel like you could have been somewhere else. Or at least talking about something else. In short, Tony's view of the world manages to turn several somersaults over six episodes, even though it started with a state of permanent removal of everything that appears in his surroundings. I am loyal enough that it wouldn't bother me and I would gladly take that walk with him again. But what Brian is doing in the story is beyond me. Just as the annoying psychiatrist disappeared, the local vagrant is brought to the forefront, who not only tells stories full of vulgar nonsense but also keeps coming back with a flood of them. It was because of this walking annoyance that I originally had a lower rating, but I let myself be swayed by the perfect finale, which, by some mystery, never slides into cheap sentimentality and squeezed everything out of me. Even infinite sentimentality can be experienced with masculine detachment. ()