Dating has become a complicated business – gone are the times when respectable men and women would try to court each other civilly. Nowadays, it’s all about Tinder, night clubs and one-night stands, with any hope of a meaningful relationship lost in a sea of lust and horniness.
One programme looking to examine these modern phenomena is The Other Guy, an all-new Australian web series created by erstwhile Triple J presenter Matt Okine. Our mates at Stan allowed The Iris to preview the first two episodes, and based on what we’ve seen so far, it looks like the streaming service has found a winner.
The Other Guy presents itself as an ocker-variation of the acclaimed American series Atlanta, with its quirky, oddball characters attempting to navigate the complexities of modern-day Sydney, often with amusing results – for instance, the episode “Strangers” sees one character take their date to the local lawn bowls club for dinner.
This is only a morsel of what you can expect in The Other Guys, for there is plenty more to anticipate besides. Listed below are five reasons why you should be paying attention to the upcoming series.
1. Matt Okine is the lead
In addition to being creator of the series, Okine plays the central protagonist, AJ. He is no stranger to acting, having gotten his feet wet (literally) on the television series H2O: Just Add Water, as well as with guest roles in It’s a Date and Wham Bam Thank You Ma’am.
2. It also stars Valene Kane
She may not be a household name, but you will certainly have seen Valene Kane before – the Irish actress is most famous for her role as Jyn Erso’s mother, Lyra in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. In The Other Guy she portrays Olivia or “Liv”, the love-interest to AJ.
3. It’s about a break-up
The Other Guy begins with Liv and AJ, who have been in a relationship for years, splitting to spend time apart. This proves to be a struggle for both: Liv is considering whether to move back to her home-country of Ireland, while AJ is bemused by the modern dating world. Both protagonists try their best to move on, but neither seem to be able to.
4. Some other familiar faces appear
Joining Okine and Kane in the supporting cast are several talented performers, including Harriet Dyer of Love Child fame. She plays AJ’s quirky flatmate Stevie, who helps him to overcome his break-up. Also making appearances are rapper and comedian, Adam Briggs, and one half of the Bondi Hipsters, Christiaan Van Vuuren.
5. Unbeatable talent behind-the-screen
While The Other Guy is based on Okine’s stand-up show of the same name, two other personalities have assisted in the creation of the series: Becky Lucas (Please Like Me) is co-writer of the first two episodes, while Greg Waters (Soul Mates) is on-board as script supervisor. Director of all six episodes is Kacie Anning, who previously worked on Wham Bam Thank You Ma’am and the third season of ABC ME’s You’re Skitting Me.
With these factors, it’s no wonder The Other Guy is already generating plenty of buzz. If you have a Stan account, or are looking at creating one, it’s definitely worth checking out.
All six episodes of The Other Guy will be streaming on Stan from August 17th.
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