Introducing the London based web series you need in your life. Eva and Amy are flawed but dammit, they’re trying, and the world isn’t exactly doing them any favors. 

Today I am going to do something that I haven’t done on this website since Ozark hit Netflix.

For all of 2019, I wrote movie reviews exclusively. This year, I am switching my focus to more independent work. The first work I want to highlight is the London based web series Call it a Day.

About the show

The series features Oriane Pick (Say Your Name) as Eva and Rachel Mariam (Just Saying) as Amy. Two women in their late 20’s living in London whose lives are at a different crossroads.

At the start of the series, Eva is at her engagement party. What should be one of the happiest times of her life quickly turns sour as her fiance, James, doesn’t appear to be completely into what’s happening there. You could chalk it up to him being a guy but that’s not what’s happening. He’s having second thoughts.

Meanwhile, for Amy things seem fine at first as well. She’s partying the night away and seems to be having a blast. Clearly we’re being set up to see Eva as the serious one and Amy as the free spirit. However, after that night of partying Amy arrives “early” to work only to find out that she will no longer have a job.

At the end of the episode both women have been delivered life altering news and they meet by chance in a park. Amy is drinking from a flask staring off at absolutely nothing when Eva comes running by trying to keep her mind off of things most likely. Eva stops in her tracks as she passes Amy and takes her flask. Amy’s only reaction is to pull out her backup flask and the two ladies have forged a bond in that instant.

The pilot episode sets the table for the rest of the series. Throughout the series you have these two women finding themselves in hilariously awkward situations that then shift to something more serious. None of it is over the top and that keeps the show grounded and relatable. Each episode gives you a great tease at the end and a reason to want more.

About the cast

Oriane Pick is definitely a talent on the rise as she’s had a strong 2019 between Call it a Day, Say Your Name, and seven episodes of  Just Saying. She earned two Best Actress nominations for her role in the short film Say Your Name (which was also written and directed by the director of Call it a Day, Kieran Bourne.) One nomination was from the Unrestricted View Film Festival and the other from the Oniros Film Awards. Pick herself wrote and produced Just Saying, and she is an executive producer on Call it a Day as well.

Rachel Mariam is a Renaissance woman in her own right. Besides playing the deliciously complex Amy on the show, she is also the show’s writer and co-executive producer. As if that wasn’t enough hats to wear, Mariam is a singer and provided some of the music used in the series. Her singing is featured in at least two different episodes with the promise of more to come based on how the story is going. You’ll get a taste in the trailer at the end of the review.

Why you should watch

I don’t watch many independent web series’. If I’m being honest, the closest I get to watching a web series is following a few different comedians and watching their skits religiously. I went into Call it a Day with absolutely no expectations and I was blown away within 5 minutes.

Appearance

First of all, the quality. If the team at Call it a Day got a call from Hulu or Netflix tomorrow, the show is ready to stream. The cinematography, the editing, the pacing, the music, all of it works. You can tell that everyone involved with this project knows what they’re doing and they aren’t here to arse about. (Ok, play around. I don’t think I watch enough British shows to say that and be taken seriously. Some day perhaps.)

Relatable

Then the content. I love characters that feel real. Both of these ladies come off as genuine people reacting to the world around them. Within the first five episodes, I can gather that Eva has a traditional family that wanted her to follow a certain path and she had different ideas on what she wanted out of life. She came close to following their trajectory for her but that has suddenly fallen apart and now she’s not sure where to go.

As for Amy, she’s more of the type to keep her real life issues to herself. She is a free spirit in public but at the end of episodes when she’s alone you get the real fears and struggles. I enjoyed seeing her open up to Eva slowly over the course of the series. In the 5th episode she drops something heavy on Eva completely out of nowhere and just the idea that she could tell her this the way she does is hilarious. I relate to her character WAY too much.

One of the relatable things going with her is that she’s working jobs she doesn’t care about while she has a passion for singing. She has not invested much in trying to pursue a singing career, but that appears to be changing over the course of the show.

The series bio on twitter is: “Urgh, another series about vulgar women being C**T*. You’re welcome.” They compare the show to Fleabag and Broad City, and that is a good way to describe the vibe. For me, since I haven’t seen much of those shows I’ll add Workin’ Moms to that list as another example.

The ladies are flawed and they don’t pretend not to be but you cheer for them because dammit, they’re trying and the world isn’t exactly doing them any favors.

When and Where you can watch.

At the time of this writing there are 5 episodes out on youtube and the first season will be wrapping up with the 6th episode on January 23rd. The trailer for the show is below to give you somewhat of an idea of what you’re getting into.

I’m looking forward to that release and will be following anything these ladies do going forward. I think I’ve started off 2020 on a good foot with Call it a Day. Do yourself a favor and give it a shot. If you like the show as much as I did, you will be subscribing.

If you REALLY enjoy the show consider donating to the show via greenlit at the link below

https://greenlit.fund/project/call-it-day

The money raised goes toward fundraising entries to the festivals to grow the series’ visibility.

-Bibs