When it comes to series, I am a huge fan of Netflix originals, yes they get the big names in and sometimes the plot line leaves you wondering if they were high when they wrote it and 95% of them feature an orgy however, for the most part, they are great and I’ve got to say I really loved their latest series released Valentines Day 2019; Dirty John.
This article is safe from spoilers.
Dirty John is an 8 part series sharing the story of Debra Newell and John Meehan in your classic ‘online dating goes wrong’ plot line featuring a male sociopath and a very naive and somewhat frustrating woman. From the trailer I would say you could predict the general plot line of the first 5 episodes however, don’t let that put you off starting because its all the little bits you didn’t quit guess and the small details that really tie it together. A series tends to really get me hooked from the get go when I know its based on a true story, a book – Dirty John and Other True Stories of Outlaws and Outsider and also a very popular LA Times podcast – Dirty John. I hadn’t read or heard of either so I was going into this series with a real fresh perspective and no back knowledge of the story line.
Being an avid watcher of Netflix’s many series and films I enjoyed seeing other actors make cameos throughout Dirty John, namely Keiko Agena who plays Lane Kim on my beloved Gilmore Girls, Julie Garner from Ozark and Juno Temple who I obviously recognised from St Trinians – who’s with me?! You will definitely spot a fair few more plus John (played by Eric Bana) is most certainly easy on the eyes – I’d probably let him psychologically manipulate the shit out of me.
If you have watched the trailer you’re probably thinking this is very similar to the Netflix series ‘You’ where theres basically a super psycho guy fucking up women’s lives and I’d say that this series definitely mirrors that but Dirty John being based on a true story gave it a more real and relatable edge. What would I have done? Would it really have been that obvious? Would I have liked having a sexy man bring me different juice every morning? Probably but all these questions meant that I really felt I was living this with the characters. I laughed, loved, was scared and nervous but mostly I was frustrated.
If you design the space where the story will happen, you can control them both. If you design the most beautiful life, nothing ugly can get in.”
It’s pretty clear from the wording in the trailer “If you design the space where the story will happen, you can control them both. If you design the most beautiful life, nothing ugly can get in.” and from the fact that it’s called ‘Dirty John’ that they are setting you up to assume this John guy is no good.
It’s one of those series that will have you shouting
‘HOW STUPID CAN YOU BE’
‘ARE YOU FOR REAL’
‘NO EFFIN WAY’
‘COME ON NOW…WHAT?!’
at the TV or laptop or whatever device you’re watching from. I felt like I could relate to when my friends would date awful boys and won’t listen when you say get rid of them – not quite this extreme though.
The story starts to turn around the last 3 episodes if I’m honest with this what can only be described as mad (to not give to much away) climax in the final episode. You see how religion has shaped some of the characters and truly understand the family bond that they have despite the ups and downs through each episode plus I definitely learnt some tricks should I ever find myself in this situation (let’s hope never). There’s a change in power play which leaves you hooked throughout episode 7 and 8 where more about John’s character and what really has been going on episodes 1-6 is revealed.
I feel like this is all I can say without giving too much away as it’s so close to its release date and most people probably won’t have time to binge the whole series in a day like moi but I definitely recommend giving it a go when you skim past it on a Sunday in your PJ’s. It’s not heavily sexual like other series on Netflix, its got a good and true story line plus you could watch it before bed alone and not have to worry about having nightmares about it however, you will probably find it hard to just watch one episode.
Let me know if you loved it as much as me.
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