(Credits: Netflix)

Call it cliché or time-worn, rom-coms are the comfort food as fans know what they’re getting, and they wouldn’t have it any other way. Despite the chord of predictability, the rom-com can invite distinct Tinseltown memories. For some, the genre peaked when Tom Hanks met Meg Ryan for the first time at the radio station in Sleepless in Seattle. For others, Julia Roberts’ “I’m just a girl…” line in Notting Hill did it. Similarly, when Too Much wrapped on Netflix, many were left questioning whether it was another friend of the genre.

According to creator Lena Dunham, speaking to Tudum, Too Much inclines towards a rom-com as much as it deviates from it, claiming it was because of rom-coms that she grew interested in the world of entertainment. From Nancy Meyers to Penny Marshall, Dunham has been a lifelong fan. So, how exactly does she take Too Much out of the box of the typical tropes associated with the label? With a frostbite of reality and emotional baggage.

Too Much doesn’t sugarcoat the challenges Jessica and Felix face while giving love another try in their 30s. It is raw, untamed, and a slice of reality no number of butterflies in the stomach can compensate for. The difficulties they encounter are not on the surface level; they’re rooted in their past.

In fact, the show doesn’t only count for what’s in the moment. It talks about everything that comes before and after in their respective lives.

How does Too Much live up to the expectations of a rom-com?

In keeping up with tradition, Jessica and Felix, the protagonists of Too Much, face several roadblocks. The seeds of discord are sown in episode eight at Felix’s friend’s wedding when cracks begin to form. Although there’s no inherent love triangle, a tried and tested formula of the category, the presence of their exes sets the stage for some familiar drama.

From self-sabotage to self-discovery, Too Much is in the DNA of a rom-com in more ways than one. But the scene where the Netflix series displays its real roots is the ultimate grand gesture to save love. Although viewers won’t find Steve and Miranda running across the Brooklyn Bridge to declare their love or Edward watching Vivian from a distance, they will see Jessica asking her neighbour for a high-stakes favour to drive her to the protest spot during rush hour to reach Felix.

How does it break the expectations of a rom-com?

Dunham doesn’t absolve the show of its meet-cute moments or tropes of reconciliation. What she does, though, is make them believable to an extent that it’s “truthful”. She draws inspiration from real experiences rather than a fantasy vacuum. Even while concluding the series, she implores viewers to introspect and question. Sure, it ends on a happy note, and the wedding looks like a fairytale conclusion, and while Too Much ends up akin to a dream come true, a thread of dissociation breaks the rhythm.

After the bouquet is tossed in the air, Felix asks Jessica how long she wants to stay married. While both chuck it with a laugh, the question stays long after the credits roll. The quick transition to their wedding montage may distract the viewer, but the tenterhook? That cannot be left out. It seemingly grabs onto the anxiety regarding the days following the happily ever after, the rest of their lives that lie ahead.

Although Too Much departs from rom-coms invariably, it borrows just as much. A few definite allusions include Jessica referring to Felix as Mr Darcy and Mr Rochester, the walk across Tower Bridge, which instantly reminds one of Bridget Jones’s Diary. When they pull an all-nighter, Dunham gives a nod to Before Sunrise, and in episode four, they have dinner in Notting Hill.

Ghosts of Girlfriends Past is evoked when Jessica is haunted by her ex, Zev’s visions, and the climactic scene when she rushes through traffic to reach Felix is inspired by How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days. Fans will find references from Four Weddings and a Funeral, Grease, and She’s All That, among others. So, yes, you can say Too Much is indeed a rom-com progeny, but it refuses to push past the rose-tinted glasses, painting each scene with a realistic hue alongside the tropes that inspire it.