Commentary: ‘Your Friends & Neighbors’ Should Remember Why It Exists

Premises are extremely important when devising a television show. This might seem obvious, but a surprising number of programs forget this major rule, especially in subsequent seasons. A story needs a good hook or pitch to draw viewers in. But as that hook starts to stretch and the story requires more plots to sustain itself, a series can veer away from its initial premise and become something else entirely. In the case of Your Friends & Neighbors, this means focusing less on the main character and more on the side characters, which defeats the purpose of the show entirely.

The program is primarily about Andrew Cooper (Jon Hamm), a wealthy stock broker who runs into financial trouble and resorts to stealing from his friends and neighbors in his upper class community. In addition to all of the crime he is committing, Cooper has to navigate a personal relationship with his ex-wife, Mel (Amanda Peet), who is having an emotional breakdown. He also has to deal with Sam Levitt (Olivia Munn), a woman he was seeing after his divorce who framed him for murdering her husband. To make matters more complicated: Sam and Mel used to be best friends.

Watching Cooper navigate the line between his posh social life and the criminal underworld is the main draw of the show. It is very entertaining and fulfills the story’s premise. But  it doesn’t take up nearly enough screen time to justify an hour-long episode. To fill the gaps, episodes focus on Sam and Mel, who are neck-deep in drama and are constantly at odds with one another and the issues they are facing. Watching their story unfold, it feels more like Real Housewives than anything resembling a show about crime. These subplots are so far from the premise that it feels like a different show entirely, so the series could benefit from remembering why it exists and focusing on that rather than run-of-the-mill rich people drama.

Your Friends & Neighbors is now streaming on AppleTV.