Saagar Kote
Netflix’s ‘Too Much’ follows the life of Jessica Salmon, an employee of an advertising agency in New York, who is going through a heartbreak. To get away from her past and to get a fresh start in life, she moves to London for an exciting job as a Line Producer for a Christmas-themed advertisement. The show deals with themes such as love, betrayal, toxic masculinity, feminism, body image, self-worth, trust, and loyalty. The Lena Dunham and Luis Felber creation is a romantic drama series that offers a cathartic and emotional journey for the audience through its dynamic and complex characters, and an unpredictable storyline rooted in real human emotions. SPOILERS AHEAD.
London Calling and A Goodbye In New York
The show begins with Jessica “Jess” Salmon, a true New York-er, moving through London and showcasing her obsession with an online influencer named Wendy Jones through a voice-over. She imagines herself in different pop culture settings related to the theme of love in England. She breaks down in tears when she sees on Wendy’s Instagram page that her boyfriend proposed to her. The narration goes back to a month earlier in Brooklyn, New York. In an inebriated state, Jess breaks into the house of Zev Jeremiah Goldstein, her former lover. The man is in bed with Wendy Jones, who is revealed to be his fiancée, and the reason behind the protagonist’s obsession with Wendy becomes clear.
Jess exhibits anger at the couple and tells her ex-boyfriend that leaving her was a bad decision. She storms out of the apartment, breaking a lamp on the way, and runs away crying. As the protagonist moves on the screen, she also keeps appearing in voice-overs, where she directly names Wendy and says that the influencer stole her man and forced her to move into her family’s house in Great Neck, Long Island. Jess is comforted by her sister, mother, and grandmother. The family watches ‘Sense and Sensibility’ and obsesses over Alan Rickman. Jess shows that she is intensely inspired by pastoral England and the love stories set there.
Jess works on-site for an advertisement for Jessica Alba. Her former brother-in-law, Jameson, who is also her boss at the advertising agency, tells her that she doesn’t have her earlier passion for work anymore and gives her a job opportunity with a partnering firm called Ratigan and Vine in London, which needs a strong and experienced producer for a Christmas advertisement. Jess tells him that she has always wanted to be a director but couldn’t achieve it despite being in the field for fifteen years. She accepts the job as she sees it as an opportunity to get a fresh start. She bids goodbye to her family and goes to London with only her dog, Astrid, to keep her company.
A Strange Woman in A Strange City
Upon landing in London and traveling to her apartment building, Jess seems fascinated by the historic landmarks of London, such as Buckingham Palace and Big Ben. When she reaches her new residence, a man named Gaz greets her and reveals that he is in charge of her 3-month stay in London and will take care of everything. Once she settles down in her new apartment, she continues to stalk Wendy Jones on social media, which is when she finds out that Zev has proposed to the online influencer. The narrative shifts back to the present day and follows Jess after she finds out about Wendy and Zev’s engagement. To overcome her grief, she goes to a local pub, where she keenly watches a band performance, specifically seeming intrigued by the lead vocalist.
When Jess goes to the bathroom, she runs into the singer, who asks her for tissues and later introduces himself as Felix. Moments later, he meets her again near the road and offers to walk her home, as she cannot manage to hire a taxi. She shares parts of her past with him, especially the breakup with Zev and why she moved to London. They also talk about their taste in movies and how different they are.
Felix hands her his jacket to protect her from the cold, and they reach her apartment building. She invites her new friend inside and kisses him. However, he says that he is already seeing someone. After he leaves, Jess accidentally sets her clothes on fire and calls the police to help her, who arrive right on time to save her. As she wonders where her dog Astrid went, she sees Felix back in her house, smiling with the dog in his hand.
The Sparks of a New Romance
Jess is taken to a hospital, and the nurse refuses to give her pain medication. Felix breaks her out of the hospital, and the two run away in his car. He drops her back at her apartment, and the two continue to bond. She asks him why he came back, and before he can reply, she starts kissing him again. Unlike their previous encounter, Felix responds more positively this time and proceeds to get intimate with her. The next morning, Jess goes to work while Felix stays for some more time at her apartment.
At work, Jonno Ratigan, her new boss, talks about the Christmas advertisement for Pip & Partners and seems disinterested in Jess introducing herself. She also meets her new colleagues, Kim, Boss, and Josie, and is invited to the International Outfit of the Day holiday event. Felix goes to his apartment and tells his roommate and fellow band member, Auggie, that he met someone and may have real feelings for them.
Auggie states that he doesn’t have any real feelings and is just someone who wants to be physical with women. Felix goes to the house of a former lover called Linnea to tell her that he has met someone else, but she has other plans. She ties him up to the bed and tries to engage in sexual activity, but he does not respond. At the end, their relationship is broken off, and she tells him to be more honest about his feelings the next time he is going to break someone’s heart.
The Silence of Music
At the International Outfit of the Day event, Jess meets a football player called Pawel at a restaurant and flirts with him. She goes to the bathroom to stalk Wendy again and talks to herself. Kim overhears her and asks her why she does so, to which the protagonist says she just uploads videos on social media, addressing Wendy, and that it doesn’t mean anything. Jess goes back to the table and continues to flirt with the footballer, but when he calls her messy, she gets offended and tells him that he is messier, as he is a married man who is still looking to hook up with another woman.
Jess texts Felix to come to her apartment, and when he arrives, she asks him if he is simply love-bombing her. He doesn’t seem to understand what it means, but hands her a mix tape that he made. Due to the gesture, Jess imagines him as a knight from old movies. The two just lie down in her apartment as she listens to ‘Are You With Me Now’ by Cate Le Bon on headphones, and they silently spend time in each other’s company.
Read More: Too Much Ending Explained
