Stream It Or Skip It: ‘LOV3’ on Amazon, A Brazilian Dramedy About Dysfunctional Siblings Trying to Find Themselves

In LOV3, now streaming on Amazon Prime Video, three adult siblings find themselves thrown for a loop when their mother announces she’s leaving their father after 30 years of marriage. With their own personal relationships, careers, and connections with each other also fraught, the trio must break their generational ties and learn how to navigate life and love on their own (or maybe together, if they can only stop pushing each other away). We’re here to let you know whether or not it’s worth your time. 

LOV3: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: A young woman screams.

The Gist: Sofia (Bella Camero) and Beto (João Oliveira) can’t stomach dealing with the mouse that’s taken up residence in their home. Fortunately, their older sister Ana (Elen Clarice), crashing following her separation from her husband, has no qualms about beating the life out of a mouse with a frying pan. Despite her help with their pest problem, Sofia can’t stand having Ana in the house anymore, fed up with her moping around and sleeping on the couch. Their argument is cut short by the arrival of their parents, Baby (Chris Couto) and Fausto (Donizeti Mazas), who inform them that their marriage is over. Baby is done, and she’s ready to only be committed to herself. When Ana tries to convince her to stick around, Baby only tells her that they are the same – and that Ana should get out now instead of waiting 30 years like she did.

As they take in this news about their parents and realize that they’re going to have to start taking care of themselves, Ana, Sofia, and Beto respond quite differently. Ana goes into work planning on quitting and finds herself promoted to sous chef, and after a night in another man’s bed, goes to pay her husband a visit. Sofia, meanwhile, tries to get involved with a throuple and winds up left out, but doesn’t get discouraged by this; she becomes determined to get them to move into her house. Finally, Beto, who has an unfortunate habit of going after straight men, realizes he too must cut the cord, and decides to find his own place, sick of Sofia’s behavior. As the three go their separate ways, it seems as though it’s only a matter of time before they sink or swim without each other.

What Shows Will It Remind You Of? LOV3 might bring to mind shows like You’re the Worst, Girls, Transparent, and Casual.

Our Take: LOV3, visually, is presented in shades of gray. It makes the whole thing dark and flat, a lackluster experience that isn’t helped much by its unlikable characters and bland script. There’s undoubtedly something interesting about a group of dysfunctional adult siblings attempting to navigate life after things take an unexpected turn, but this apparent inciting incident doesn’t seem to shock the trio much at all. Their parents’ relationship already seems like a total bummer (just like everything else on this show), so there’s not all that much to grieve for as viewers or for Ana, Sofia, and Beto. On the subject of the siblings, I’m not all that sure why we’re supposed to be rooting for them at all; they aren’t lovable like the stars of so many of our favorite comedies, and you don’t love to hate them like you do the characters on Succession or Girls. Instead, they fall right in the middle, an unappealing and annoying group of people who are all deeply self-absorbed and lack self awareness. They don’t even seem to like each other, so how are we supposed to like them or care about what’s happening in their lives? Perhaps there’s some serious growth for all of them past the pilot, but based on one episode of LOV3 alone, it’s hard to want to continue on any of their respective journeys.

Sex and Skin: There’s some throuple sex that Sofia tries to join in on, Beto almost has a bathroom hookup, and Ana gets some fade-to-black sexy time.

Parting Shot: Sofia looks on, unsure of the future, as her siblings leave her.

Sleeper Star: Though she only appears for a scene or so at the beginning of the episode, Chris Couto is totally memorable as Baby, the matriarch of this dysfunctional family. She begins her time on screen rather stoically, but by the time her introduction is over, she’s revealed herself as a woman on the verge, snapping and breaking a plate as she gives a speech about all the dishes she’d done in her life, and how nothing turned out the way she hoped it would. That solemn face soon breaks into a manic smile and eventually a woman assured in her decision to blow up her life. Couto perfectly embodies a woman who has been trapped by her family for decades and now finally wants to go after something for herself, and she’s far and away a highlight of LOV3‘s pilot.

Most Pilot-y Line: No particularly pilot-y lines here, but Beto’s line towards the end of the episode really got me: “we weren’t raised as a family. We’re just survivors of the same disaster.”

Our Call: SKIP IT. While there’s something interesting about the family dynamic on LOV3, none of the characters are likable and the writing is bland, leaving us with little to get invested in.

Jade Budowski is a freelance writer with a knack for ruining punchlines, hogging the mic at karaoke, and thirst-tweeting. Follow her on Twitter: @jadebudowski.