I Am Not Okay with This is an American coming-of-ageblack comedy television series based on the graphic novel of the same name by Charles Forsman. The series stars Sophia Lillis, Wyatt Oleff, Sofia Bryant, and Kathleen Rose Perkins. The series was released on Netflix on February 26, 2020, and received positive reviews, with praise for the performances, particularly for Lillis and Oleff. This series follows the story of an emotionally turbulent teenage girl, Sydney Novak (Lillis), who discovers that she has psychokinetic powers that are triggered by strong emotions. As the series progresses she aims to gain control over her powers while navigating the complicated relationships of her life. She navigates the coping of her fathers death, an estranged relationship with her mother (Perkins), a blossoming friendship between Stanley Barber (Oleff), and her feelings towards her best friend and possible crush, Dina (Bryant).
Originally renewed for a second season, Netflix canceled the series in August 2020, citing "circumstances related to the COVID-19 pandemic".[2]
Cast and characters
Main
Sophia Lillis as Sydney Novak, a 17-year-old lesbian girl who begins to realize that she has telekinetic powers
Wyatt Oleff as Stanley "Stan" Barber, Sydney's neighbor and friend
Sofia Bryant as Dina, Sydney's best friend, whom she has a crush on
Aidan Wojtak-Hissong as Liam Novak, Sydney's younger brother
Richard Ellis as Brad Lewis, Dina's jock boyfriend whom Sydney dislikes
David Theune as Mr. Peter File, the high school science teacher
Zachary S. Williams as Ricky Berry, confident, monied jock and Brad's best friend
Jackson Frazer as Richard Rynard, a bully who torments Liam and whom Sydney confronts
Photographs of Alex Lawther and Jessica Barden are briefly used as an easter egg to their respectively portrayed characters James and Alyssa from The End of the F***ing World (2017–2019), the events of which are intended to be taking place simultaneously with those of I Am Not Okay with This.[3]
Episodes
No.
Title
Directed by
Teleplay by
Original release date
1
"Dear Diary..."
Jonathan Entwistle
Jonathan Entwistle & Christy Hall
February 26, 2020 (2020-02-26)
Sydney Novak is a 17-year-old living with her mother and younger brother a year after the death of her father. Sydney is frustrated she and her mother never talk about her father's suicide, and constantly argues with her mother. Her guidance counselor recommends Sydney start a diary to channel her anger, and Sydney agrees reluctantly. Sydney meets up with her best friend Dina, who has begun dating jock Bradley Lewis. Suddenly, Bradley's nose starts bleeding, which Sydney is almost convinced was her doing. On her way home, she runs into Stanley Barber, her neighbor, who suggests they should hang out soon, to which Sydney reluctantly agrees. At home, she looks after her brother, Liam, who tells her about a kid who got into trouble for punching someone. Later that night, after a cold discussion with her mother, Sydney sits frustrated on the floor of her room when part of the wall cracks behind her.
2
"The Master of One F**k"
Jonathan Entwistle
Christy Hall
February 26, 2020 (2020-02-26)
The next morning, Sydney convinces herself the wall collapsing was a result of the house being old. Her mother asks her to get groceries and Sydney asks Dina if she would give her a ride after school. However, Dina admits that she's going to the pep rally and the football game. Feeling betrayed, Sydney takes a walk, throwing some stones, one of which knocks over a sign, startling her. She then recruits Stanley for his car, but falls short of money to pay for groceries and begins to put food back. While Sydney is attempting to calm down in an aisle of the store, the food in said aisle falls off the shelves, causing Sydney to run out of the store after Stan walks over to check on her. Stan believes that Sydney has had a panic attack, and talks to her outside. Afterwards, they go to the football game and then to Stan's house. Stan kisses Sydney, and they end up having sex.
3
"The Party's Over"
Jonathan Entwistle
Liz Elverenli
February 26, 2020 (2020-02-26)
Sydney confides in Dina she had sex with Stan the night before, but hides her true feelings from Dina. Afterwards, she walks Liam home and they encounter Liam's school bully, Richard. Sydney confronts him, but when her powers fail during this confrontation, she gives him a warning to back off. At home, Sydney goes into the basement to find puzzles for Liam, a part of the house in which Sydney has not been since her father's death. Feelings of grief overwhelm her and she has a panic attack, shaking the house and killing Liam's pet hedgehog. Later, Sydney goes to a party. Finally she gets the chance to spend time with Dina, but Brad comes and takes her away. Later, Stan asks her to homecoming, to which she gives him a reluctant yes. Sydney finds an upset Dina, alone in a room after an intense argument with Brad. Sydney comforts her and kisses her thereafter. Dina reacts, unnerved by it, Sydney leaves in a rush and heads to a spot alone in the woods. She screams, causing the trees surrounding her to fall to the ground.
4
"Stan by Me"
Jonathan Entwistle
Tripper Clancy
February 26, 2020 (2020-02-26)
Following Sydney's incident in the forest, she realizes Stan saw everything and she swears him to secrecy before running off. The next day, Sydney's mother asks her to look after Liam again. She and Sydney get into another argument, in which Sydney's mother tells Sydney her father wasn't who she thought he was. Later, Sydney runs out from class, almost triggering her powers again, but she stops them by thinking about happy memories. Dina runs after her and asks if she's okay and if they can talk about their kiss, but Sydney lies and says everything is fine. Sydney goes to the bowling alley and meets with Stan, who tries to help her understand her powers. She admits to Stan the trees blew down because she kissed someone at the party and her powers seem to be tied to her emotions. Stan then tries to trigger Sydney's powers by making her angry. In the process, Sydney almost hits Stan with bowling balls, angering her. While Sydney is walking home, she believes she sees a figure following behind her.
5
"Another Day in Paradise"
Jonathan Entwistle
Tripper Clancy
February 26, 2020 (2020-02-26)
During class, Dina and Brad are caught cheating on a test and given detention. Sydney and Stan are given detention for protesting this. In detention are the four of them and their classmate Jenny. She suggests that, instead of cleaning the bleachers, as they were instructed to, they play "Fuck, Marry, Kill". Sydney runs off in anger after Jenny suggests Sydney isn't "fuckable". Running into the library, Sydney inadvertently knocks over all the bookshelves with her powers, and she and Stan recruit Dina to steal the security footage by telling Dina the tapes show them having sex in the library. The three devise a plan and break into the office, successfully stealing the footage. In the locker room, Sydney overhears Jenny and Brad admitting they had sex and Brad cheated on Dina. When Dina walks in, Sydney tells Dina, despite Brad's pleas for her not to. Dina and Brad break up. Sydney tells Stan what happened in the library: something else was making the lights flicker, and she felt like she was not alone.
6
"Like Father, Like Daughter"
Jonathan Entwistle
Christy Hall
February 26, 2020 (2020-02-26)
Looking at the security footage, Sydney questions her sanity before angrily snapping at Stan. At school, Brad confronts Sydney, angry he caused him and Dina to break up. In anger, Sydney causes the lockers behind him to slam open. Later, Dina confronts Sydney about what was actually on the tape, but Sydney refuses to tell her. At Liam's school, he tries talking to his crush, Veronica, before Richard punches him. At lunch, Ricky Berry tells Brad about a rumor about him, while Stan tries to make plans with Sydney about homecoming. She gets angry at him, telling him that she doesn't care about homecoming and he asks someone else. Sydney tells her counselor about the man she saw. Her counselor convinces her they were hallucinations of her father. At home, Liam calls Sydney out for her terrible behavior lately, citing his black eye from Richard and her horrible attitude. In an attempt to get more answers, Sydney goes through her father's belongings in the basement, where her mother describes her father as having had similar experiences like Sydney's. When Sydney goes to write in her diary, she finds it missing.
7
"Deepest, Darkest Secret"
Jonathan Entwistle
Christy Hall & Jenna Westover
February 26, 2020 (2020-02-26)
The next morning, Sydney decides to take a happier attitude to the situation and makes amends with her brother. In gym, Dina admits she feels distanced from Sydney. Sydney tells her about her "grief hallucinations". Afterwards, Sydney tells Dina she and Stan are not going to homecoming. Dina asks Sydney to go with her, since neither of them have dates. Later, Brad tells Ricky the dance was going to be mind-blowing. At the dance, Sydney talks with Stan, who admits his feelings for her, but Sydney tells him she only sees him as a friend. Stan asks whether Dina knows about her powers, to which Sydney says that only he does. While dancing together, Dina and Sydney talk about their kiss, and Dina tells Sydney she "didn't not like" it. While the homecoming king and queen are being announced, Brad interrupts, and it is revealed he took Sydney's diary. He exposes Sydney's feelings for Dina and her recent problems at home. Before he can expose her powers, in anger, Sydney blows up his head, killing him. Shocked, Sydney runs off into the woods, climbing a watch tower in the woods when a man appears from the shadows. When Sydney asks if she should be afraid of him, he replies she should not be afraid, but everyone should be afraid of them.
Production
On December 12, 2018, Netflix announced it had given the production a series order for an eight-episode first season, of which only seven were produced. The series was created by Jonathan Entwistle and Christy Hall, who executive produced alongside Shawn Levy, Dan Levine, Dan Cohen, and Josh Barry.[4] Entwistle also directed the series.[5] Alongside the series announcement, it was announced that Sophia Lillis, Sofia Bryant, Wyatt Oleff, and Kathleen Rose Perkins would star in the series, with Aidan Wojtak-Hissong and Richard Ellis recurring in the series.[6] Filming commenced in Pittsburgh in June 2019.[6] The town of Brownsville, Pennsylvania[7] served as a primary location, while Wilmerding's Westinghouse Arts Academy Charter School was used as the high school exterior.[8] The series was released on February 26, 2020.[9] The series was renewed by Netflix for a second season.[10] On August 21, 2020, Netflix canceled the series after one season, stating "COVID-related circumstances".[2]
Reception
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the series has an 87% approval rating with 67 reviews, with an average rating of 6.82/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "As awkward and charming as adolescence, but with twice the supernatural twists, I Am Not Okay With This' first season at times veers into shallow territory, but Sophia Lillis' strong performance keeps it afloat."[11] Review aggregator Metacritic gave the series a score of 68 out of 100 based on 16 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[12] The series was nominated for "Best Adaptation from Comic Book/Graphic Novel" at the 2020 Harvey Awards.[13]
