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SpoilerDiscussion for Human Resources (Big Mouth Spin-off)
On Netflix, the second season of the Big Mouth Spinoff, Human Resources, just dropped.
As a disclaimer, I like Big Mouth. I think it normalizes, with wit and humor, the puberty that many kids are fleeing today. There’s a lot of heart and female solidarity in the show (mother-daughter is especially poignant), with good LGB representation. It’s absolutely vulgar humor and not without flaws, and I could write an entire essay criticizing them, but overall i feel like Big Mouth earns my laughter and appreciation.
I think that the spin-off, Human Resources, might actually be better. This series, currently in its second season, focuses on the various creatures that coordinate the issues human beings face. They work in teams to tackle common and complex problems. Hormone monsters, shame wizards, love bugs, anxiety mosquitos, depression kitties, logic rocks and all sorts of other personifications of abstract concepts come together, and it’s genuinely heartbreaking in places? Season 1 killed me with one woman suffering from schizophrenia and another suffering from dementia and reliving her lost loves, but season 2 ramps it up with a grieving father and daughter coming to terms with the loss of the most important woman in their life, as well as the clash between a nonverbal neurodivergent child and a spurned and overzealous disability advocate. It’s honestly beautifully done and I found myself genuinely in tears a few times during this season.
One thing that both Big Mouth and Human Resources do well, as a rule, is demonstrate “the other side” with empathy. A daughter still raw from her mother’s death to cancer clashing with her father’s desire to start dating again is without fault or villain, and compassionately written from both perspectives.
While the best parts involve the human stories these creatures are involved in, the creatures are still often genuinely good characters. That being said, the reliance on comic relief can cause some tonal dissonance. I felt like while every fan of Big Mouth knows that Maury is a huge pervert, it’s still shocking to see him tie down Connie to care for her while she’s sick. I felt like the B-plot hormone monsters still weren’t that funny since not being that funny in the first season. And the “jizz mitzvah” gag wasn’t good from the start.
I also didn’t love Connie and Maury’s non-binary son. While I appreciate them exploring this topical matter with non- humans instead of actual human kids (they’ve been pretty hands-off about trans stuff all things considered), the character seems deliberately obnoxious, and a major plot point is his choice to become a Shame Wizard instead of a Hormone Monster like his parents. I’m still trying to figure out if this is pandering or brilliant satire. I felt like obliquely this might have been commentary on NB kids actually being attention-seeking, or just gay or gender-nonconforming, and devoting their lives to SHAME in order to deal with it instead of just embracing who they actually are, and want to express, and want to have sex with.
I know that Big Mouth and all associated IPs aren’t universally loved here (and I totally get it, it’s not for everyone), but does anyone want to talk about this latest season of Human Resources? Sarah and her dad are tearing me UP.
I logged back into the site just to comment on this - finally, another HR fan! 😆 I actually haven't seen Big Mouth but I really really like Human Resources. I like workplace comedies. I have all the same thoughts about it as you. It's really quite a good and heartfelt show.
The puberty monsters are the worst part of it but even then, some of their story lines can be entertaining. But this season they were mostly just disgusting and not particularly funny. I also didn't care for the zombie dick storyline. Gross-out humor isn't generally my cup of tea. Now I will admit I was pretty amused by how they hooked up with the shame wizard and had to admit they liked it... Even though the shame wizard character himself is pretty creepy and gross.
I hadn't even thought about that angle of their son becoming a shame wizard as satire but that is brilliant. I hope that's what they were actually going for, on the down-low.
I'm not very eloquent but I think this season said some compelling things about how we can use anger and flawed "logic" to push people away and build walls to protect our emotions. The grieving daughter and the disability activist both did this in different ways. I like how they had Van the logic rock literally building walls of rocks. Rochelle's hateworm storyline was so relatable, as was her clash with flighty Hope. I actually did sniffle and tear up at the end when Rochelle came back to herself and chose love and compassion over her anger. I just really like the message about choosing compassion for yourself and others over fear, anger, and hopelessness.
Hooray! I’m so glad to find another fan and give you a reason to log in!
I feel like the hormone monsters are really hit-or-miss with their comedy. I tend to enjoy Connie a lot most of the time, but the rest of them are either pretty funny or just really gross. Especially this season, like you said!
I didn’t mind the zombie dick storyline but felt like it went on waaaay too long. When the humor in the show misses I feel like it’s because they’re all-in a running gag that should have been like one brief scene, or a Family Guy type flashback. The writers are talented and clever but sometimes they overestimate the longevity of a joke; this is also true for Big Mouth, especially in season 1.
I actually really like Lionel most of the time! His design is one of the best ones in the show, and David Thewlis really gives a unique and funny performance. I don’t know if you caught the “Lupin” joke but it was right after flashbacks showing that Sarah was a Harry Potter fan as a child. I feel like that was very intentional and appreciated it! Stuff like that make me think that there might be some GC people working on both Human Resources and Big Mouth, along with the fact that when genderwoo does make it into the show, it’s brief and makes sense for the characters. In Big Mouth one of the main characters, a teen girl, Jessie, seems to be very libfem-coded. Her friend, Missy, seems to be more radfem-coded.
The creatures in general in both shows follow their natures, as nonhuman entities that exist to guide and influence specific human behaviors. Many are pretty one-note and predictable this way, but the love bugs and hate worms can be super compelling. Rochelle’s arc was absolutely great, and I love how for many of the bugs, they get VERY invested in their cases compared to the other creatures. I think that’s a great mode for the audience to really care about them too, because the love bugs frequently get it wrong and enable something unhealthy while meaning so incredibly well. It’s such an intelligent way to present a conflict and inspire empathy from the audience.
Hope was also GREAT. I was worried she would be a drag queen based on the still frames teasers, but I found her a really delightful addition to the cast.
I gave up on Big Mouth with the "Marsha P. Johnson threw the first brick" line. I thought the show was great at first, but after a few seasons it wore thin for me. Therefore I never tried HR.
After reading this, I think I'll give HR a chance. Thanks.
OOF, that was probably my least favorite episode! I will say that having Maury of all characters lazily spout the approved myth of Stonewall was pretty clever. Of all the characters, he’s the one who would be lazy with history and rush through it (probably what countless teens have heard in their classes) so he can get back to being horny. It seemed glib and almost sarcastic to me.
If you like the overall tone and humor of Big Mouth I really recommend HR! I also recommend continuing to watch Big Mouth; the trans episode felt like obligatory lip service but they even ended it with a joke about the trans character and Jessie promising to write (while actually never speaking again.) I feel like the writers are trying to do the bare minimum to stay with Netflix while still faithfully representing the sex/gender experiences of the actual writers and comedians on the show (many of whom came of age well before this dogma took hold. They want to tell a simple story about inconvenient erections and periods, damn it, and gender just isn’t a huge part of that.)
When gender DOES come up I feel like those characters are presented as especially dramatic/annoying/attention seeking. Maury and Connie’s (obviously male) child is a great example, he’s insufferable from the start and it’s actually less grating to know he’s not human and belongs to a species that has different customs and biology. I’ve never had a problem with NB stuff in alien species in sci-if and this feels similar to me.