Truly psychotic. There are no other words to describe Paul Rudd’s new Netflix series “Living with Yourself.”
When a man is stuck in his job, marriage, finances, writing and everything else that means anything to him, he looks for any solution to make the unbearable days he wakes up to any better.
But when Miles Elliot (Rudd) is handed the business card of a local strip mall day spa, he finds out the relaxing experience that he attempts to attain will only make his life more strained and perplexing.
The series opens with a shot of the grounds of a local forest. It appears to be a beautiful evening, not a cloud in the sky, and viewers are taken into the calm and wooded area of the outdoors as dusk breaks. With no notice, we see a hand burst out of the ground and Rudd’s character begin to rip open a plastic bag that he is encased in beneath the ground. Standing up, barely breathing, Rudd is wearing nothing but an adult diaper.
Now backtracking, we get a look at Elliot’s life. Stuck in his job, he is about to be overlooked for a promotion; his marriage is currently struggling due to his trial and errors with impregnating his wife; all of his savings are being used for fertility treatments that become unsuccessful. Elliot is stuck.
Arriving at the day spa, viewers get the pleasurable experience of a humorous cameo from six-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady. Elliot, whose jaw is on the ground, asks Brady how many times he’s been to the spa and if it actually works.
“Six,” is his only response as he gets into his car and leaves the scene.
After entering the spa and filling out a numerous amount of forms, Elliot lies on a doctor’s table as the men who work there attempt to put him to sleep for a procedure. As they do this, one of the men appears concerned with the gas and the two become panicked. The scene fades as Elliot drifts off.
Cut to the opening of the episode. Elliot not knowing where he is now, collects himself and begins to make the hike back to his home. When arriving at his house, he hears his wife upstairs speaking with someone. Not knowing who could be in his home, Elliot grabs a nearby axe and is quickly face to face with his intruder, who turns out to be none other than –
Himself.
The series only gets crazier from there. Rudd stars opposite of himself in Netflix’s new series that’s fun, witty, amusing, but absolutely insane. The plot of the show is unquestionably crazed, but the writing and comedy of the series make the show not only watchable, but entertaining.
Though, if you’re not a fan of Rudd, I can’t possibly recommend the series, as it’s not too much of him, just a double dose.
All eight episodes of season one of “Living with Yourself” is now available to watch on Netflix.
Ken Downey Jr. is the Managing Editor for Time OFF and Packet Media, LLC. This is a part of his series of weekly columns focusing on arts and entertainment. He can be contacted at [email protected].