TheDireBriar

Happiness begins as a generally competent zombie infection drama, but swiftly becomes a frustrating watch, and one consistently haunted by Sweet Home. Seriously, if you freeze frame at certain scenes you'll probably catch the shadowy specter of Sweet Home giving double middle fingers to the proceedings.

Which, frankly, if it had just been a rip-off I could have dealt with it. BUT Happiness fails to understand the messy, sincere humanity of Sweet Home which made it successful, and instead rams occasionally contradicting, tactless messaging down our throats. Almost all of these characters are the worst kind of people, and not in any thematically fulfilling or narratively sensible way. They just suck and have no skills, because it's their sucky decisions and lack of teamwork which propel the stumbling inbred beast I will call 'the plot' because I have to, not because there's any cohesion or thought to it. Most of the 'plot' is just our cop couple running to different ends of the building to put out assorted fires caused by all these sucky, venal, stupid, selfish people. Of which more than the average number are murderers.

Money and social hierarchy are the primary messaging here- not happiness and the avenues through which it can be achieved. Rather than understanding the complexities of financial situations, the plot fixates on the money- there is almost no character motivation that isn't about monetary (and therefore social) advances to an almost satirical degree. They keep mentioning fees for things, stealing other people's cash or property, specifying that those who rent their condos are less worthy of resources than those who own, or otherwise centralizing money in the narrative in a way that makes no sense given the literal apocalypse going on outside. 'Oh, but you're living here for free' the HOA woman points out to two cleaners. BITCH You're all quarantined under indefinite martial law?!

So, while taking people to task for overt greed instead of financial desperation, fascist undertones can't help but manifest. The two police are essentially the only smart, capable, good people. They also represent the ultimate hegemonic family unit; a straight couple with a child. I know the kid is adopted, it still stands. The other residents, if left to their own devices, will hurt each other; the viewer is supposed to go 'this is dumb, just do what the police tell you!'. Their constant disobedience of the police and government edicts is painted in comically bad strokes; in service to hubris and the chaos of the plot, and not for any good character reasons. It also ignores the subtly that, yes, sometimes you should obey what an authority says, but also you have to be able to tell when that authority does not have your best interests at heart. The fact that our leads are both cops/special forces makes this messy; the turning against them in the building serves as the people turning against the force for law, order and salvation. Not that the government has been doing anything sensible anyway. What are you saying about cops? Government? Civil Obedience? Do you even know?

I'd be remiss in mentioning the strong theme of men being terrible to women. Which was something. What, I'm not sure. I do enjoy media being critical of gender inequity, but this was weird. You have at least three spouses showing differing levels of neglect, abuse and disregard of their often inoffensive to sensible female partners. Men are impulsive, self-serving and tunnel-visioned. The women are weak and inefficient. Even here, Happiness has feelings about gender dynamics, but doesn't know what it wants to say about them.

At episode 7 I was really done with this. It hates all it's characters, it thinks people are the worst. It has nothing to say as it makes you sit through excruciating moments of dumbassery and ham-fisted stupidity, but with no pay-off and no justice. The ending is just as forced and hollow, not even the tepid love story is tied up in a satisfactory way.