Don’t go into “How to Die Alone” expecting a laugh a minute. There are jokes, to be sure, and star Natasha Rothwell delivers hers with ease. She’s supported by some great and highly comedic performances, notably Arkie Kandola and Christopher Powell as hilarious workplace duo Shawn and Deshawn, and Jaylee Hamidi and Melissa DuPrey as her newly-found gal pals Allie and Tamika.
But as the title suggests, the subject matter is bleak. Rothwell’s Melissa isn’t just a late bloomer. She’s a 35-year-old woman who, by her own admission, is still waiting for her life to start. She works a low-paying job at the airport, lives alone, and has no discernible hobbies or meaningful relationships.
Throughout the series, we learn she likes to sing but doesn’t do it much. She threw away a good relationship with her boss, Alex (a soulful Jocko Sims), when she got scared. Her best friend Rory (Conrad Ricamora) habitually ditches her and takes her for granted. Her family judges her in ways that make her feel like they delight in her failure. Ish is rough
And then she nearly dies—in perhaps the most pathetic way possible. There’s some pretty great dark humor there, and her journey away from it feels real, if not particularly well suited to comedy. She progresses in fits and starts, backsliding aplenty even as her progress is clear, creating a compelling show with sitcom elements and serious character growth.
It’s not clear why Melissa has such arrested development, the reasons given (a father who rejected her, a society that pretends fat Black women are invisible) don’t quite add up. Particularly because Rothwell is so magnetic. When Melissa relaxes (usually when talking to acquaintances with nothing at stake), she glows, dropping rapid-fire wit and self-knowledge that even the bad bangs she starts the series with cannot contain. But it doesn’t really matter. Melissa is where she is when the series starts, and she has to change if she’s ever going to achieve any sort of happiness.
Her journey is compelling. Rothwell has the dramatic chops to pull off Melissa’s low and high moments, telegraphing vulnerability with her big brown eyes. The costuming helps, charting her internal sense of beauty without any silly, big-reveal moment (such as the infamous and oft-repeated scene of movies past where the girl takes off her glasses and cardigan and becomes hot).
The plot clips nicely along, too. Alex’s nuptials serve as a countdown, forcing Melissa’s hand – will she admit to herself (and maybe even him) that she still has feelings for him? Will she bring that date she insisted she had to the wedding? Or go with some other option? You’ll have to watch to find out.
But don’t be fooled – her self-improvement projects don’t boil down to a man. She works on her career, her (non-romantic) relationships, and her fears. She probably needs to go to therapy, too, but the amount of change she can make on her own is impressive and well-earned.
All in all, watching “How to Die Alone ” is a pleasurable experience. Melissa is easy to root for, and the show’s light play with genre makes it feel unique. With the cancellations of “Grand Crew” and “South Side,” we need more Black sitcoms. Let’s not pretend that “Abbot Elementary” is enough. There are so many more stories to tell.
Thankfully, Natasha Rothwell is a fantastic leading lady who seems poised for meatier, more comic star roles like this. May she return to Melissa for several additional seasons and take center screen in many future productions.