One Day Netflix Review: A Tale of Triumph, Pining and Tragedy.

One Day, a 2009 novel by David Nicholls, has seen a few adaptations since its release 15 years ago, but I'm inclined to believe nothing has hit quite like the Netflix series.

A friend told me to watch One Day with both of us having never read the original novel. Her selling point: "They're just like Marianne and Connell." 

If you know me or any other girlie in Gen-Z, you will know that we live for a slow burn and will-they-won't-they romances. I still haven't finished Normal People, and to be frank, Daisy Edgar Jones and Paul Mescal are too good at playing them, because the frustration is real.

However, One Day is refreshing to me because of its concept: We see where our main characters, Emma Morley (Ambika Mod) and Dexter Mayhew (Leo Woodhall) are every year from age 22 until their mid-thirties. Every year like clockwork on July 15th. 

Stylistically, this premise drew me in from the beginning because of the ability for character development. Frequently we see both characters at new points in their careers, love lives, and general lives. Yet the entire time, the show makes it clear to us that there is still something lingering there between Dexter and Emma, the promise of something more. 

And there is something more, which is what I liked most about this show. We get to see Dexter and Emma live in domestic bliss. It's also interesting we see them as much as we can in the half-hour episodes in other relationships. I think I am in the minority here when I say I liked Dexter's relationship with his posh, loaded girlfriend, Sylvie, (Eleanor Tomlinson.) 

Particularly because, without spoiling, this relationship forced him to grow up and move on with his life. While her family was downright horrible, in this chapter of his life, Dexter is pretty lost and seems to be doing just enough to stop himself from sinking, since his popularity as a television presenter is dwindling. Emma, however, is on her slow path to success having become a beloved teacher, dabbled in theatre production, and got back into it with her writing. 

These two are contrasting figures, total opposites with big dreams yet we get to see them at their lowest and highest points. The class disparity between them also makes for an interesting commentary on class, connections, and wealth. Dexter Mayhew having always had everything come easy to him because of his charm, wealth, and connections, is no stranger to instant success. Emma, however, is the first in her family to go to university and is from a modest South Asian background. She doesn't have connections like Dexter does, and her success is all of her own making.

Therefore, watching these two bicker and discover each other's differences is such an interesting watch. It's a beautiful story that helps each character to develop. After all, Emma is the one to tell Dexter he has changed, and that she doesn't like who he is now after he becomes famous.

Of course, at this point in their lives, the angst is at an all-time high. The show does an immaculate job of showing and not telling us that Dex and Em haven't spoken in a few years at that point. There are subtle nods to them missing each other, like when Dex mentions Emma to Slyvie, and Emma's annoying boyfriend, Ian, brings Dex up towards the end of their relationship. 

And to be honest, the time apart continues to enhance their personal growth and life milestones. I have seen many will-they-won't-they stories where the characters consistently stay and linger in each other's lives like Alex and Rosie and Ross and Rachel, and it stunts the character's journies. In Friends, when Rachel gets pregnant by Ross after a messy one-night stand, she wants to go on dates and start dating again, and Ross gets crazy jealous, even though at this point the two haven't been together in years, and he's even been married! It becomes annoying.

In One Day, while Dexter and his commitment issues and womanising ways can be annoying, he never leads Emma on. He never pretends to be something he's not or tries to stop her being with other men. There are no toxic jealous or possessive tendencies between the two, and it makes the pining so much better. The most we can say is at one point, Dexter treats Em horribly when he becomes famous, and that these two can be selfish at times when it comes to each other (a couple of shared kisses here and there, maybe infidelity if you squint.) But really, isn't that love?

And to go through all that and we finally get our endgame, and it gets ripped away like that. Honestly, at first, I was enraged seeing the scene because I didn't expect it to happen so fast! Although seeing it in the context of the show's same-day-every-year format, it makes sense. 

The moment is so final and so quick, showing the audience that life really can change in an instant. There's no poetic justice in the show or dramatisation of that moment, it is shown when we see Dex and his journey to picking up the pieces of his life.

I will say I did find episode 14 a bit of a drag because of the scenes. I expected to see him drunk, because honestly, why wouldn't you get drunk after something like that? I do wish we'd gotten more scenes in Edinburgh though, back to where it all began. The two scenes at the top of Arthur's seats and the stairs where the two had their first mind-altering kiss were beautifully crafted.

I'm also grateful that as a series with a tragic ending we as an audience got some form of closure saying goodbye to the relationship between these two. It made my heart ache as Dex imagined Em and had flashbacks of her, and that montage where the memories of her were coming back to him made me almost tear up.  

And, we must take our hats off to give credit to our two leads, because these two played the characters beautifully. The chemistry felt natural as did the tension and the dialogue and Woodhall in particular excels in playing the attractive confident bad boy archetype incredibly well. He is also able to transition from this role into a mature and sober Dexter years later without the change being too drastic. 

And for Mod, her speech to Woodhall as she tells his character that he's changed and that she doesn't like him anymore is heartbreaking. We waited for the moment, the moment the pot boils over, and it is nothing short of heartbreaking. While I would've liked to see more scenes of emotional Emma, I think it's pretty fitting for Mod's acting and for the character that Emma isn't overly emotional most of the time. Plus, her speech at her best friend Tilly's - (played by the incredibly funny Amber Grappy) - wedding shows her emotional range and reminds us of how talented a writer Emma Morley is.

For a taste of tension, laughs, heartbreak, and great chemistry, One Day is a must-binge-watch series.