Home for Christmas: Season 1 - all episodes
December 6, 2019 6:28 PM - Season 1 (Full Season) - Subscribe
After lying to her nosy family about having a boyfriend, Johanne sets out to find the real thing in time to introduce him at Christmas. (Netflix Original, Norwegian production, 6x30mins)
The Daily Dot - "As the holiday arms race between Netflix, Hallmark, and various lesser players rages on, you would think that Christmas series would have been tried more often. If American execs take a close look at the acerbic Norwegian delight Home for Christmas, it’s only a matter of time until the limited series is the next frontier in American holiday content. "
Decider - Stream It or Skip It: ‘Home for Christmas’ on Netflix, Norway’s Refreshing Riff on a Hallmark Premise
The Daily Dot - "As the holiday arms race between Netflix, Hallmark, and various lesser players rages on, you would think that Christmas series would have been tried more often. If American execs take a close look at the acerbic Norwegian delight Home for Christmas, it’s only a matter of time until the limited series is the next frontier in American holiday content. "
Decider - Stream It or Skip It: ‘Home for Christmas’ on Netflix, Norway’s Refreshing Riff on a Hallmark Premise
I should mention one thing that was off-putting was Johanne disparaging the short(ish) escape-room-date creep by calling him 'midget' but I don't know if that was a slur on the subtitler's part or the original Norwegian. But part of the appeal of this show was the fallibility of the various characters. Johanne isn't a typical Hallmark-style lonely single lady, nor a complete train wreck of wackiness, just a mix of competent adult and fucked-up-disaster, like an actual human person.
posted by oh yeah! at 7:59 AM on December 7, 2019
posted by oh yeah! at 7:59 AM on December 7, 2019
I really liked this -- it was funny and sweet and I did appreciate how most of the people she dated weren't exactly bad people so much as they were wrong for her.
So much of it was just so low-key -- I liked that Johanne was good at her job and while her boss often called her out about some of the things she did, it was tolerated. There was some broader comedy moments but a lot of it felt grounded in the real world. (And even the speed dating sequence -- as much as Johanne was over the whole thing & as ridiculous as everyone was, there was a certain amount of empathy that came from Johanne.)
I loved the ending.
Mostly, I just loved all of it.
(Also, I was really struck by how diverse the supporting cast was. This is from Norway and yet they still managed to have non-white people in this. If Norway can do it, no one else has an excuse.)
posted by darksong at 4:33 AM on December 13, 2019
So much of it was just so low-key -- I liked that Johanne was good at her job and while her boss often called her out about some of the things she did, it was tolerated. There was some broader comedy moments but a lot of it felt grounded in the real world. (And even the speed dating sequence -- as much as Johanne was over the whole thing & as ridiculous as everyone was, there was a certain amount of empathy that came from Johanne.)
I loved the ending.
Mostly, I just loved all of it.
(Also, I was really struck by how diverse the supporting cast was. This is from Norway and yet they still managed to have non-white people in this. If Norway can do it, no one else has an excuse.)
posted by darksong at 4:33 AM on December 13, 2019
God this was fucking delightful, I loved this so much. Having lived in Sweden for several years I'm biased with Scandinavian TV shows but still. If only every Christmassy stuff Netflix produced would be as good as this.
posted by KTamas at 2:25 PM on December 16, 2019
posted by KTamas at 2:25 PM on December 16, 2019
This was a real delight. Johanne was such a great character and performance, it was actually really funny. And the ending! Shouts in our household.
The one thing I had a bit of an issue with was also related to the escape room guy. He seemed like he had anger and control issues, and I wasn't happy to see him wind up with her fellow nurse, Inga. Like, there were guys who were shown as not good matches - the clown is the best example, not great for Johanne but delightful with her quirkier roommate. But escape room seemed like he was just not in a place where he should be in a relationship, and there was no indication that he'd changed or that Inga was particularly well suited to handle him.
posted by Homeboy Trouble at 11:19 PM on December 25, 2019 [2 favorites]
The one thing I had a bit of an issue with was also related to the escape room guy. He seemed like he had anger and control issues, and I wasn't happy to see him wind up with her fellow nurse, Inga. Like, there were guys who were shown as not good matches - the clown is the best example, not great for Johanne but delightful with her quirkier roommate. But escape room seemed like he was just not in a place where he should be in a relationship, and there was no indication that he'd changed or that Inga was particularly well suited to handle him.
posted by Homeboy Trouble at 11:19 PM on December 25, 2019 [2 favorites]
Yeah I was a bit baffled why they kept that guy around. Hell I was baffled why they left Stein around, for that matter given the disaster first two dates. I can chalk the latter up the the in-universe trope that she doesn't know what's good for her, but yeah, they should have gotten rid of the escape room guy.
posted by KTamas at 4:39 AM on December 26, 2019
posted by KTamas at 4:39 AM on December 26, 2019
Thanks for posting about this show, oh yeah!. I wouldn't have noticed it otherwise, and it was very enjoyable. Made me want a kick sled, although I wouldn't get much use out of it here in Maryland.
I loved Johanne's relationship with her dad, and also with her roommate. And her patients and coworkers. They did a really good job of creating a full life for her and not having our entire emotional investment tied up in whether or not she finds a partner.
posted by the primroses were over at 6:09 PM on December 30, 2019
I loved Johanne's relationship with her dad, and also with her roommate. And her patients and coworkers. They did a really good job of creating a full life for her and not having our entire emotional investment tied up in whether or not she finds a partner.
posted by the primroses were over at 6:09 PM on December 30, 2019
Hey, just noticed Netflix added a trailer for season 2 of this show, dropping on December 18th. Guess we'll be finding out who was at the door at the finale after all. (I haven't watched the trailer itself, would rather be surprised by whatever S2 has in store.)
posted by oh yeah! at 11:52 AM on November 23, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by oh yeah! at 11:52 AM on November 23, 2020 [1 favorite]
Ha! I was just scrolling through the Netflix Christmas offerings yesterday to remember the name of this show so I could rewatch this season. Excited to hear there's going to be more!
posted by the primroses were over at 12:55 PM on November 23, 2020
posted by the primroses were over at 12:55 PM on November 23, 2020
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I liked this one - it was quirky without being twee, I guess?
posted by oh yeah! at 6:45 PM on December 6, 2019