Stream It Or Skip It: ‘High Maintenance’

Transitioning from one medium to another can be tricky, but if done well, extremely advantageous for a web series turned television sitcom – characters are already well-established and the show has already found its voice. HBO’s High Maintenance demonstrates just that – created by and starring Ben Sinclair and Katja Blichfeld, the show chronicles the misadventures of a small-time Brooklyn pot dealer. We’re here with a closer look at the show’s debut episode. 

A Guide to Our Rating System

Opening Shot: The opening of a pilot can set a mood for the entire show (think Six Feet Under); thus, we examine the first shot of each pilot.
The Gist: The “who, what, where, when, why?” of the pilot.
Our Take: What did we think? Are we desperate for more or desperate to get that hour back?
Sex and Skin: That’s all you care about anyway, right? We let you know how quickly the show gets down and dirty.
Parting Shot: Where does the pilot leave us? Hanging off a cliff, or running for the hills?
Sleeper Star: Basically, someone in the cast who is not the top-billed star who shows great promise.
Most Pilot-y Line: Pilots have a lot of work to do: world building, character establishing, and stakes raising. Sometimes that results in some pretty clunky dialogue.
Our Call: We’ll let you know if you should, ahem, Stream It or Skip It.

HIGH MAINTENANCE

Opening Shot: Quick cuts of a barber shop introduce us to our guy, a scruffy marijuana dealer played by creator Ben Sinclair. He asks for just a little off the top, and the barber tells him that he’s “not a magician” and he will do what he can.

The Gist: A biking Brooklyn pot dealer known only as “The Guy” encounters a series of characters as he delivers his product to them. He is somehow swayed to accept a container of loose change as payment from a seemingly intimidating, samurai sword-wielding client (who is really just an actor practicing for his class). The heart of the episode, however, are Max (Max Jenkins) and Lainey (Helene York), a best friend/roommate duo first introduced as they celebrate their friend’s bachelorette party. Max soon leaves to have a one night stand but evidently joins his hook-up at an A.A. meeting, where he examines the destructive nature of his relationship with Lainey and lies about a crystal meth addiction. Lainey soon outs him to the group and he’s once again left alone with her to exist in their own special squalor.

Our Take: High Maintenance‘s massive following prior to the show’s switch to HBO certainly put the pressure on the series to keep up its success, and it certainly does not disappoint. The Guy exists as an excellent mechanism to open the doors to a series of eccentric characters and take a look at what they’re really like. The protagonist’s social awkwardness and complete lack of confidence throws any kind of preconceived notions about a “dealer” that one might have, and that makes the show even more interesting to watch.

If High Maintenance was going to make the transition to any place, HBO was exactly the right one for the job – Sinclair and Blichfield clearly feel at home and somehow manage to utilize the more restrictive 30-minute formula to their advantage. The eclectic cast and simple settings allow for an intriguing look into the lives of modern New Yorkers.

Sex and Skin: Moments after we are introduced to Max, he meets up with a one night stand that he’s found on his “sex app” and proceeds to go to his apartment and have sex set to a dramatic score. He also later receives a blowjob on his quest to live up to his lie and take meth.

 

Parting Shot: After Lainey throws coffee in Max’s face and appears to break his leg, the two sit on the couch and toss back Percocets and Diet Coke while Max attempts to recover. He dazedly proclaims that he’s the “luckiest boy in the wooooorld” and Lainey asks him to braid her hair, once again demonstrating that her selfish ways aren’t going anywhere.

Sleeper Star: Helene York, grating and cringeworthy as her character Lainey may be, delivers the most enjoyable performance of the pilot. She’s reckless, obnoxious, and unfiltered, and her unpredictable nature makes each scene a delightful roller coaster ride.

Most Pilot-y Line: “It’s like, we get it, you have access to social media” is about the closest the pilot comes to a pilot-y line, as the show tries to set up Max and Lainey’s relationship while they do coke and bitch about Lainey’s terrible friends. The show generally already feels comfortable in its own shoes, however, and almost none of the dialogue feels forced or unnatural.

Our Call: Stream it. The show delivers a series of fascinating character studies under the simple premise of a “stoner comedy”. There are more genuine moments from the characters here than one might find on most dramas, and that makes this one a must-see.

[Watch the pilot for High Maintenance on HBO Now.]

Jade Budowski is an indecisive sometimes-writer with a knack for ruining punchlines and harboring dad-aged celebrity crushes. Follow her on Twitter: @jadebudowski.