I am a huge fan of Ben Platt. Huge. So when I found out he was going to be starring in a Netflix original series alongside stars like Zoey Deutch and Gwenyth Paltrow, I was beyond psyched.
However, as I began to watch, I wasn’t quite sure. The show is classified by Netflix as both a TV Comedy and TV Drama. While the highly polished rich high school kid look was a visual marvel (um, have you seen David Corenswet??), the overplayed drama of a class president election was a bit much for me in the beginning. But I quickly grew to see past it, and accept the show for the near satire it is. I mean, you have to look no further than the show’s Instagram page to see how non-seriously they take this drama.
The show is filled with everything from politics to kidnappings to love triangles to cancer as Payton Hobart (Ben Platt) fights to win the race to become student body president. The show does include some difficult content, even choosing to start the series with a disclaimer stating:
“THE POLITICIAN IS A COMEDY ABOUT MOXIE, AMVITION, AND GETTING WHAT YOU WANT AT ALL COSTS. BUT FOR THOSE WHO STRUGGLE WITH THEIR MENTAL HEALTH, SOME ELEMENTS MAY BE DISTURBING. VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED.”
**SPOILER ALERT**
That disclaimer is made mainly towards the suicide of River Barkely (David Corenswet) in episode one. The series does good though by not making light of the serious subject.
Related to the obsession with Ben Platt, I was pleased to see that screenwriter Ryan Murphy (Eat Pray Love, American Horror Story) had Platt singing from episode one (thank god for his beautiful voice), and even included one of Ben’s original songs in episode two and beyond.
An additional benefit to the show? The wardrobe. I’ll admit, it made me a little uncertain of what the setting of the show was supposed to be, but costume designer Claire Parkinson knocks the fashion ball out of the park. So many immaculate suits!!
But you’ll just have to see for yourself! The Politician is streaming now on Netflix.