Insert unfunny pop culture reference here - Blockbuster (Spoilers, but you weren't planning to watch this anyway)

Hello whoever might be out there, 

I hope you're having a great summer holiday, or simply a great day. I was having a boring day, so I scrolled through my Netflix recommendations to see what I can watch next despite my watch list already being absurdly long.

Now, usually I am adamantly against comparing media because every piece of media is different and it isn't fair to hold the work of one team against something entirely different. But this time I am excusing myself as I was recommended the ten episode workplace sitcom "Blockbuster" by Netflix solely "because [I] liked Superstore."

I do like Superstore, I love it even. I'm currently about half way through re-watching it (although I watch it on Disney+ now because adverts suck) and I will then immediately start it again. It's on my rotation of shows, and is the only one on that rotation that actually has a plot that runs through it rather than episodic plots. So I watched Blockbuster.

The premise is simple; it's the last Blockbuster store standing, set in 2022 (and my gosh, does it let you know it's set in 2022). There were six people working there, which one review on Serializd informed me was extremely unrealistic, and they all follow extremely predictable character tropes, which for me isn't an issue as such, until in the first episode the writers clearly forget this is meant to be a sitcom and therefore funny. They instead dedicate 90% of the episode to telling us that the male protagonist (Timmy) peaked in high school and his parents are divorced, and the female protagonist (Eliza) dropped out of Harvard and her husband cheated on her with a girl called Erin, whose name we learn before the protagonists, or what I gathered anyway.

Then there's four more workers, remembering their names will be a test for me despite the fact I finished the show less than an hour ago. There's Connie, the older woman who likes all the classic grown women things. Hannah, my favourite character, the ditsy one with the strange upbringing - including the death of her mother, homeschooling, and a patriotic father - who is trying to move forward in life. Carlos is a bisexual wanna-be film maker. Kayla, whose name I definitely did not forget, is the sassy teenager who reminds Eliza of her daughter. Then Timmy's best friend and also landlord is Percy, Kayla's dad. Based on that information alone you could probably write most of the show.

Here's where the comparisons start, because within literal minutes of the show starting, Timmy and Eliza are already extremely reminiscent of basically every sitcom couple ever, but there's one in particular it is near impossible to ignore... (It's Jonah and Amy by the way). The main difference is that while in Superstore we have two seasons of getting to know Amy and Jonah without the relationship stuff, in Blockbuster we get maybe two minutes if that? Timmy and Eliza don't get together right away, in fact they don't ever officially get together, but it's not even teasing it, it's just dumb. There is no gentle introduction to the trope, it's their whole identity and dynamic.

I described the first episode on my Serializd (https://www.serializd.com/user/MaeDreams/profile) as "having watched a whole season story wise, yet it was only 25 minutes" and that I "felt like I was being caught up on the characters' lives rather than introduced to them." Now I have watched the whole show I stand by that. It felt like a montage of "last time on Blockbuster" rather than a pilot episode.

Issue number two with this show is something I also mentioned in my review of the first episode, and that is the pop culture references that make me want to gauge my own eyes out. If you have read my review of The Great North (https://maedreams28.blogspot.com/2025/10/is-north-really-that-great-great-north.html) you will know that my biggest issue with the last season of that show was the sudden onslaught of direct pop culture references, and Blockbuster is full of it from the start. The first episode alone mentions TikTok twice, as well as Bridgerton and Buzzfeed Quizzes. The easiest thing to do as a writer would be to change it to a similar sounding name as to allude but not to mention. By mentioning these names and brands directly, you have instantly made a show that is a product of a very specific era. In a time where trends are changing so quickly, giving examples is a risk. This does improve later on in the show and I do think that contributes to why I enjoyed the second half more. The most annoying thing about these pop culture references is that there was a severe lack of movie references, and it's a show about Blockbuster for crying out loud! Cloud 9 from Superstore will be timeless because Cloud 9 isn't real, nor is Super Cloud or Halo. Animal Crossing is very real.

You could be petty and argue that Superstore had real references too like the Golden Globes or Target, and to that I say sure, but the saturation is a huge deal. The Golden Globes and Target aren't niche unknown fads, I can tolerate that. But Blockbuster was driving me insane.

I think the last thing I really need to touch on is the plot and humour. In terms of humour? There is no humour. Seriously, I didn't laugh once during this, or even come close to even smiling. It isn't funny. Unless you like laughing about how bad things are, then it's hilarious. The plot is, well, it's a plot alright. If you need something to fall asleep to, I would genuinely recommend this, it does make very good background noise. I don't even think I can summarise the overall plot past my description of the premise, other than maybe adding some romance plot. It's just so dull, and I don't even mean that in an insulting way because I managed to watch all ten episodes, it's just such a nothing burger. Maybe the last three episodes have something going on? But the first seven episodes have already ruined it. People watch the first episode, rate it horrendously, and don't stick it out long enough to find how mediocre it really is. Not horrible, just not good, which could arguably be worse.

The finale is like an old dog, determined to keep going but needs to be put to rest. You can tell the writers had a glimmer of hope that they might be getting renewed, so much so that the very last line was left to either be a dramatic cliffhanger, or, as I probably would've interpreted it anyway, the closest thing this show has got to a joke (thank you Hannah). This show didn't need another season, the conclusion was very natural, but it's just a shame that glimmer of hope stopped them from doing something cute rather than downright depressing.

The acting was good I will say (excluding the pilot), the writers are the ones to blame more than anything. I do think "Timmy" was an interesting choice compared with "Tim". It took me out of the moment, if I was ever really in it. The characters were the best bit and I was admittedly slightly invested by the end. If this had the "com" part of "sitcom", I think it would've done a million times better.

If you have read all this and still feel an urge to watch it, just watch the last episode and save yourself four hours, or ignore me and we can laugh about it afterwards together. Take this as me "telling you so."

You just have to acknowledge the irony in Netflix making a show about Blockbuster, and then promptly dropping that show.

Yours faithfully, MD