Feb. 2024
‘Colin from Accounts,’ my recommendation for this month, is the story of two single strangers brought together by an accident. Ashley (Harriet Dyer), a 29-year-old medical student, is on her way to a safety seminar at the hospital when fortysomething microbrewer Gordon (Patrick Brammall) stops his car to let her cross the road. To thank him – and cheer herself up – she pulls the side of her top down briefly and goes on her way. Until, just behind her, she hears the sound of a distracted driver running over an unaccompanied dog.
Before you know it, they are on the hook for a $12,000 vet’s bill and Ashley has moved into Gordon’s place to help take care of the dog while she looks for an apartment that will allow pets. Since the dog has no collar or tags, they decide to name him Colin. Jokingly they call him Colin from Accounts, but the name Colin sticks.
Thus begins the relationship of Gordon and Ashley, who would never have met at all without this incident. But whatever attraction there is between them, there’s a bigger issue — namely, the age gap between them. Colin is somewhere in his 40s and Ashley is 29. She doesn’t get his old man references — When Harry Met Sally, butlers traditionally being named Jeeves — but the gap becomes wider as things progress.
What follows is a very well-done, surprisingly insightful, and well-rounded romantic dramedy. Brammall and Dyer, real-life husband, and wife and who also wrote and created the show, are perfectly capable of not just carrying the episodes, but also being funny at the correct beats and elevating their story arcs in unexpected ways.
The show is realistically written too, Ashley being portrayed as an honest representation of someone who’s having a bit of a tough time and coming up against constant hurdles that someone in her position would face. Her landlord selling all her possessions without her consent; her toxic mother showing up unannounced at the worst possible times; her ex-boyfriend and current colleague being an all-round jerk to her as she nurses a bruised heart. Gordon is also having a hard time, going through nerve-wracking checkups after undergoing treatment for cancer.
We are also spared the cringey dialogue that you get in many romantic comedies these days. The show doesn’t get corny. It’s honest and messy and complicated, as most love stories so often are. The series shows that, with the right set of actors, you don’t need to go overboard with physical comedy or over-the-top situations, and that life can be funny and tragic in its own way.
Besides the great chemistry of the two leads, the rest of the cast shouldn’t be overlooked either. The supporting actors are all terrific. All in all, ‘Colin From Accounts’ is charming, compelling, and comedically convincing.
‘Colin From Accounts’ has already been renewed for a second season and is available to stream on Paramount+.
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