Stuart Pritchard is never one to bow out without a fight. Though HBO cancelled the low-rated but highly enjoyable comedy Hello Ladies last January, creator and star Stephen Merchant (The Office, Extras) managed to put together an 80-minute special that promises to wrap up the short-lived series. Hello Ladies was a uniquely qualified show in that it would effortlessly swing the pendulum between uproarious laughter and more-than-subtle sadness, grief, and despair. Merchant’s protagonist Stuart played this gawky, frequently awkward Englishman transplanted in Los Angeles always on the prowl for women way out of his league. “Cringe-worthy” is the term that always came to mind when friends asked me to describe the series to them. It’s true: some scenes were so awkward that they forced me to turn away in utter embarrassment for poor Stuart who could never win at his own game (episode 5, “Pool Party,” instantly comes to mind). But across all eight episodes of the first and final season of the show, I grew to feel empathy for Merchant’s odd character who–at his core–was a dickish yet romantic guy reaching too high. Friends including divorced Wade (Nate Torrence), wheel-chair bound, profane Glenn (Sean Wing), wacky work colleague Rory (Kyle Mooney), and tenant/love interest Jessica (Christine Woods) helped elevate Hello Ladies to its cult status. I’m happy to report all are returning for the special. On a final note, it’s definitively sad to see this promising young series leave the airwaves prematurely, but not every cancelled show gets the chance to properly wraps things up like this. We’ll always have eight episodes and a movie.
The logline for Hello Ladies: The Movie goes like this: “When Stuart learns that his British ex-girlfriend is planning to visit Los Angeles with her husband, he sets out to impress them with his glamorous lifestyle, enlisting a Russian model he’s just met to play the role of his beautiful girlfriend. What could go wrong?”
As much as I want Stuart to “get the girl” or simply get with a girl (whether it be Woods’ Jessica or just a smokin’ hot model), I am largely expecting the series to conclude with poor Stuart sprawled out on his couch at home, alone. This is, after all, Hello Ladies. (P.S. Jenny Slate reprising Jessica’s arch-nemesis Amelia would be the cherry on top!)
Hello Ladies: The Movie airs this Saturday night (11/22) at 10PM on HBO. Hop after the break to watch a new promo and an invitation to the set with commentary from Merchant and other members of the cast.