'Flaked' Season 1 by Will Arnett Review: A show on fighting the past, present, and future

Will Arnett is hardly known for his take on real-life struggles, instead often performing in comedic shows and films that push the hardships of life to the side as if they never existed. At best you could mention the connection of BoJack Horseman, though even that show focuses on its comedic elements to balance out the reality of the character's struggles.

Flaked removes a large portion of the traditional comedy we'd expect from Will Arnett and replaces it with a more grounded reality. We're introduced to Chip, a stool-crafting store owner in the beautiful area of Venice, Los Angeles. A small community featuring paradise, but paradise is far from what's going on within Chip's mind.

Each episode feels a bit dreamlike, authentic, featuring beautiful cinematography and lighting that is both aesthetically pleasing but matches the isolation and darkness that haunts Chip. He's a man with many struggles but manages to essentially shrug them off and provide a relaxed demeanor. We often see him roaming around Venice alone, with little interaction outside of a very small group of people.

We are introduced to Chip's character and a few of his secrets: having accidentally killed a man due to his alcoholism a decade before, and his struggles to remain sober and move forward with the knowledge of the past forever in his mind. These events forever haunt him, even in the present in which he struggles to connect with others. But Chip is generally good at heart. This character development is quick, but very concise and it allows us a very personal and real look into self-destructive behaviour.

Chip's biggest secret, however, isn't one that anyone else is aware of, it's one he keeps hidden but falls back to every episode: a fridge in his house, containing a see-through flask labelled "kombucha" -- it's actually filled with wine. Amidst the struggles of maintaining a failing business, a friendship, and relationship in which he's heavily unreliable, Chip keeps falling back into his old habit, returning home and having a few sips of his "kombucha" before getting back out there and attempting to fight those struggles.

Each episode of Flaked displays the numerous attempts of Chip to maintain his own life while trying not to let others down, though it's evident that he's constantly seen as irresponsible and somehow manages to fail at keeping to arrangements with others, though it's typically for a good cause. However, to others, his disappointing actions are just Chip being his old self: a selfish liar only looking out for his own interests. To a degree, this is true in parts, but we see the bigger picture as Chip's character evolves and struggles to maintain a healthy relationship with those around him.

While this only details the first season out of two that currently exist, the show is a pleasant surprise that offers authenticity and simplicity with a nice amount of character focus that has you wanting more; clinging on to the hope that Chip somehow manages to correct everything and find solace in the few things he has going for him. It offers an interesting perspective into the life of someone that on the outside is outgoing and always has answer, though is the entire opposite in reality.