Schitt’s Creek co-creator Dan Levy returns to family-oriented sitcom with Big Mistakes, co-created with I Love LA’s Rachel Sennott. The new 8-part Netflix comedy sees Levy play a priest who gets in too deep when he and his sister accidentally become embroiled in a crime plot.

Nick (Levy) and his sister Morgan (Taylor Ortega) acquire what they think is a cheap piece of costume jewellery for their dying grandmother. What they don’t realise is that this local gift shop is actually a front for a local crime ring. The duo, as a favor to the shop’s owner Yusu (Boran Kuzum), must undertake a series of increasingly odd jobs for local criminals.

A Family Drama Masquerading As A Crime Caper

On paper, Big Mistakes sounds like a crime drama, but the shining diamond of this series is Nick and Morgan’s family. The duo must hide their new acquaintances from their overbearing mother, Linda (Laurie Metcalf), who is running for mayor, their uptight young sister, Natalie (Abby Quinn), Morgan’s clueless husband, Max (Jack Innanen), and Nicky’s secret boyfriend, Tareq (Jacob Gutierrez).

Every single member of this family feels like a fleshed-out, believable character. Although the series focuses on the siblings’ entwinement in a crime organization, the moments that will linger are those that involve the family. Nick is an interestingly layered character, a gay minister, but his sexuality is a very minimal part of his development. He has a partner, which he should not as a celibate minister, but the struggle is more between him and God than any societal problems with his homosexuality.

Morgan is the antithesis of the neurotic Nick, a boisterous but lovable bimbo. On the surface, she looks like a wayward party girl, but underneath it all, she’s an disenfranchised teacher in an unhappy relationship looking for something else. Unlike Nick, she almost enjoys her time being involved with criminals because it’s something new to do. While Big Mistakes co-creator Rachel Sennot does not appear in the show, there is a sense that Morgan is the type of character she would play.

Laurie Metcalf’s Linda is a delightful nightmare, especially recognisable to anyone who has had a mother who refused to give her input on a situation. Metcalf steals every scene she’s in, almost making you wish the main plot were about her efforts to become mayor. She’s a woman who has spent so long being a helicopter mother that now she is finally allowed to chase her own passions, she doesn’t quite know how to go about it.

The only person who gets hard done by when it comes to screentime is Natalie. She’s the black sheep of the family as the only one with her life together. She has a good job, a nice partner, and a put-together wardrobe. Her role in the family is to put the others to shame, and, with her sibling preoccupied, she uses the opportunity to suck up to their mom even more. In a layered world of people who feel real and easy to connect with, Natalie is the cardboard cut-out.

Big Mistakes is at its best when the whole family are together, volleying insults and judgements. The opening episode sees the family gather at their dying grandmother’s bedside, the mood is not respectful and sombre at all. This sets the tone for the entire show, which isn’t precious with a lot of darker themes.

A Series Of More and More Unfortunate Events

Nick and Morgan’s family problem starts to seem minor when they become embroiled in a huge crime plot. The show expertly showcases how one poor decision can cause a domino effect. Of course, there are times when a crime boss seems nothing in comparison to their overbearing mother.

The siblings’ one minor crime snowballs and escalates through the episodes. Each episode gets more and more ridiculous, but it works because Levy and Sennott have created a cast of believable and likable characters. Just when you think the show has reached peak absurdism, it finds a new, far-fetched scenario to put the siblings in. They bid for cattle, end up at a deadly yacht party and lie to the face of some of the country’s most high-powered crime bosses, all to help protect themselves and their loved ones. Sure, it probably pushes its concept to the limits, but this show is a comedy, not a realistic, gritty drama.

Big Mistakes draws a parallel between crime families and real families and balances both expertly. The crime family Nick and Morgan find themselves involved in isn’t any less chaotic than their real-life family unit. The criminals they become embroiled with are hardly masterminds; in fact, for an organized crime family, they are severely unorganised. Some of their lack of communication is reminiscent of Toros, Igor and friends from Anora. By the end of the series, you’ll trust a middle-aged, menopausal mother over a Russian gangster to get the job done.

Big Mistakes is not big or clever, it’s not a witty, thought-out piece about people forced to a life of crime. It’s pretty much nonstop laughs and never takes itself too seriously. Part family sitcom, part crime caper, this series feels like a breath of fresh air. In a world where most comedies come with morality tales and as much tragedy as a drama, society needs something as silly as this.

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