Magnus
HBO Max’s latest rom-com Love Life returns this week with its first of 3 episodes dropping in one hit. Much like before, the format remains largely unchanged as a romantically hopeless Anna Kendrick finds herself mixed up with another man who just isn’t the right fit for her. With more depth given to the ongoing woes of Sara and her partner Jim, along with a cliffhanger ending that leaves things wide open for episode 5, Love Life delivers a pretty good episode here. Episode 4 of Love Life begins several months after the saga with Danny Two Phones, as Darby starts dating a new-guy called Magnus Lund. With her friends approving of this relationship and Darby receiving a lot of flowers at her office, her mood is shaken slightly when she returns home to find Magnus has had a bad day at work. He suggests they take a break and get away together, prompting her to agree and head out. Although her life feels like it’s on the up, they enjoy their time together until Magnus suddenly suggests they move in together. Two months later, these doubts are pushed to the back of her mind as things seem to be going great. After a dinner with her Mother, Magnus tells Darby to watch her back after comparing her to a magpie. Not long after, Darby sits working on her laptop until Sara arrives and sits with her, talking about relationships. She mentions Jim and how her relationship isn’t going so great, going so far as to compare him to a faded tattoo she now regrets. In the morning, Darby learns that she’s been promoted at work and rushes home to tell Magnus. Only, it turns out he’s been fired and given he’s been drinking all day, his attitude toward her is one of disdain and bitter regret. The group head out to celebrate Darby’s big promotion but Magnus is not himself, eventually ordering an expensive bottle of champagne and declaring to the ground that Darby can now afford it. Suffering from depression, Magnus lashes out at Darby and begins messaging another girl and their fight leads to Magnus walking out on her. In the morning he decides to try and get a job but after radio silence from him all day, she discusses what to do with her friends. They suggest going through all of his belongings and in doing so, she finds numerous letters including Final Notice sums and past due bills totaling an obscene amount of money. When Magnus finally returns home, he catches Darby off-guard by asking to talk. He drops to one knee after admitting he has debt problems and asks her to marry him. Before we get a reply however, the episode ends. With a consistent story now and another date that’s spread out between multiple episodes, Love Life returns with a decent 30 minutes of drama and a cliffhanger that’s sure to keep you sticking around to find out what happens next. Unlike Darby’s poor motivations with the previous few men she’s dated, the issues with Magnus feel a lot better realized and you can really empathise with Darby’s situation. Quite what will happen next remains to be seen but for now, Love Life bows out with another good episode. Published: 05 June 2020 at 6:57 pm on TheReviewGeek.com
