DTF St Louis Review – An addictive tale of middle age, swinging, and murder | television

nAlways trust the man who rides a recumbent bike. That seems to be the first lesson offered by DTF St Louis, a new seven-part black comedy starring Jason Bateman, David Harbor and Linda Cardellini, and who – frankly – could fail to back up such a message?

Bateman plays Clark Forrest, a local meteorologist, celebrity and biker lounging around his little patch of St. Louis, Missouri. He becomes fast friends with a sign language interpreter, Floyd (Harbour), when they are sent together to report a violent storm and Floyd saves him from being decapitated with a stop sign. Floyd is a kind-hearted soul with a rebellious stepson, a sexy wife and Peyronie’s disease. This is when the penis gains an abnormal curvature that can make penetration difficult, due to a connective tissue problem that is often associated with middle age.

However, the difficulties of penetration are a moot point because ever since Floyd saw his wife, Carol (Cardellini), in her baseball umpire’s overalls, he has had problems seeing her sexually. We see it in gear and get his point. We also see her face as she watches him reread Batman comics shirtless, the stepfather’s doughy body is on display, and we wonder if the referee’s gear doesn’t provide more than one kind of protection for her.

Unfortunately for all concerned, Clark has never seen Carol in her referee gear and she’s actually interested in swinging. Floyd introduces himself to an app he found for people looking to spice things up without jeopardizing their marriage or traveling too far – DTF St Louis.

After some explanation (“Ready to Fuck”) and hesitation, Floyd agreed to the recording. For those who have been following the headlines surrounding the release of Lily Allen’s latest album, in which she actually accuses her ex-husband Harper of — well, let’s call it “adjacent stuff” — this will be delicious. As for the port, perhaps less so. However, the publicity for the show must have been ripping.

Up until this point in the proceedings, the show has been threatening to become too eccentric for its own good. Governance platforms? Peyronie’s disease? Recumbent bikes? One more privacy and it would officially be an exhausting endeavor. Fortunately, from there, Stephen Conrad’s (who writes and directs) creativity gains confidence: by introducing the subject of a murder mystery, he begins to pursue the more important question of what marriage and life expectancy are, and whether listening to motivational podcasts has ever really helped anyone with anything.

Is feeling upset inevitable? Where do you come from? Detective Homer (Richard Jenkins), one half of the odd duo investigating the suspicious death, looks on sadly at the body they find at dawn at the local sports center (Kevin Kline Jr. Community Pools – this really pushes it up against the “effortless endeavour” boundaries but it also made me laugh, so we’ll leave it) surrounded by gay porn. “You don’t have to wake up early to be you,” he says. “It should be all day long.” You don’t need to hide your sexuality to feel echoes of that past period at a certain age. All you have to do is notice the accumulations that have accumulated over the years – of duties, responsibilities, friendships and acquaintances that have become more comfortable than real connection that has formed a cloak under which your true self may hide or quietly surrender.

DTF St Louis asks if sex can solve anything. Is sexual dissatisfaction just a condition or is it always a proxy for a greater emotional need or a harbinger of an existential crisis? And is it possible to explore all of your sass (and there’s a mix of sexy and funny intimate scenes across the seven episodes) with someone new who at least takes your mind off things long enough to get you through another day? Isn’t it worth a try? Especially if, as Carol discovers, you’re lucky enough to have a lover with a certain bent that means you can still outrun your day’s official while serving him. Honestly, I would encourage men to put this as a highlight on their profiles.

All the leads give great performances, as do Jenkins and Joey Sunday as his partner, a special crimes officer. Batman’s ability – first extensively showcased in Juno – to infuse his everyman persona with carefully calculated degrees of “creepiness” has never been so perfectly deployed before. But everyone here is faced with a strange and difficult part – especially now that the whimsy has worn off – and making it relatable and believable on an individual level is a feat in itself. You may find yourself finishing the whole thing in an hour.