Summary
Russian Doll is back with a brand new twist on the time loop comedy. Season two opens with the same quick wit and complicated concepts that were previously applauded, promising similar success.
This recap of Netflix’s Russian Doll season 2, episode 1, “Nowhen,” does not contain any significant spoilers.
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Previously on Russian Doll: video game developer Nadia Vulvokov found herself caught in an infinite time loop on her thirty-sixth birthday, where she repeatedly died in countless horrifying ways. The Groundhog Day narrative took an innovative detour when Nadia (played by Natasha Lyonne) discovered another soul trapped in the exact same time loop with her, enter the awkward Alan Zaveri. Together they solved the riddle at the heart of this nightmarish punishment and returned to their original timelines.
The first season was a fresh and unique take on a tired genre, which neatly tied up all loose ends in a perfectly executed finale, begging the question, does it really need a second season? Only time will tell if this return to the whimsical world of Nadia and her neurotic New York was at all necessary. The premiere continues in the same stylistic vein as its predecessor, yet with a new gimmick to play with. This results in an equally entertaining series that allows room to explore the cast in greater depth.
Russian Doll season 2, episode 1 recap
The series picks up four years after Nadia and Alan entwined their time lines in the finale and returned to some form of normality. Our wise-cracking lead visits her therapist and family friend Ruth Brenner at the hospital. She’s been involved in a car accident and needs support. Nadia’s back on our screens after three long years away, still sporting the same luscious red bouffant and jabbering on in that same croaky voice. Nothing much has changed in her world, probably unaffected by pandemics and global crisis, which is comforting. Honestly though, we’ve all just been waiting for her to utter the words ‘cock-er-roach’ in that famous New York twang. Well, you won’t be disappointed.
She calls her best friend Maxine and they discuss her up and coming fortieth birthday celebration. Nadia is obviously wary of the annual event and wishes to spend the day with Alan instead. She takes the subway home and in true Russian Doll fashion things take an unusual cosmic turn. The opening episode is full of surprises and those wishing to avoid spoilers may want to look away right now, you have been warned. Nadia finds herself in an eighties styled carriage, the walls covered in film posters from the era and the passengers dressed similarly. She starts to freak out and exits the subway into a distinctly different New York, having been transported back in time.
The ending
As the episode zips by there are further twists to look forward to as Nadia journeys from one character to the next, addressing the new phenomena with the same philosophical and educated thirst as before. Season two has the same elaborate humour and distinct tone as the first, with a new time related concept to get behind. There’s new cast members to enjoy too, with Sharlto Copley (District 9) clearly having fun playing a con man coke head. A great eighties soundtrack and some smart plotting make this a promising start. So sit back and relax, ready to watch how the whole saga unfolds.
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