Name: Blockbuster
Director: Payman Benz
Released: 2022-11-03T12:30:00

Blockbuster (2022) revolves around Timmy Yoon who finds himself owning the last Blockbuster video store in the world and doing everything he can to keep it running. The series is now streaming on Netflix.

Story

Timmy Yoon becomes the owner of the last Blockbuster location in the US, and the world thanks to the rising popularity of streaming services and the internet.

Timmy holds great pride in Blockbuster and wants to see it survive so he comes up with ways to increase business and popularity. To help him are a mixed group of employees with different backgrounds and varied experiences.

Timmy also has romantic feelings for one of his co-workers, Eliza, who is dealing with a rough point in her marriage after her husband cheated on her. Timmy and Eliza have a real will they-won’t they vibe about them throughout.

There’s also Carlos, Hannah, Connie and Kayla who have their own issues to deal with but they’re all connected by their love for Blockbuster, or at least mild appreciation for the job.

Performances

Randall Park epitomises the everyman character that is Timmy with his naive yet sweet optimism, his clumsy nature and the dedication he has toward his business and his employees. His dynamic with J. B. Smoove and Melisa Fumero works well too.

Melissa Fumero plays a character not too dissimilar from her Amy Santiago but this time it’s a little less uptight. However, she plays it just as well and she’s also got her funny moments throughout the series.

The supporting cast of J. B. Smoove, Tyler Alvarez, Madeleine Arthur, Olga Merediz and Kamaia Fairburn get ample amount of time on screen as well and they do their best to make the series an enjoyable viewing experience.

Positives

The script is considerably funny and every character is written so well with relatable aspects to them. Watching this series provides a level of familiarity that is pleasant to watch.

There are also subtle moments where the customers in the store get involved or the running joke about the newscaster constantly being replaced and this attention to detail deserves some credit.

The story chugs along without dragging too much and there are no issues with pacing. At 10 episodes, it is quite easy to binge the series in one sitting without considering it a waste of time or energy.

Negatives

Many of the side plots feel like afterthoughts and don’t have the same kind of impact as the main focus of the series. They feel like clear fillers to pad up the story.

The movie references can get a bit niche and specific at times which means that only a select percentage of the audience might get them, lowering the impact of the jokes.

Verdict

Blockbuster (2022) is a simple series with decent humour and entertaining characters that can be casually enjoyed to pass the time, especially by fans of nostalgia and movies who will get a kick out of all the references.

However, it’s not groundbreaking or a must-watch and does the bare minimum to be considered a good series.