This was an enjoyable, at times very perceptive, sometimes touching series but I feel that it was not quite sure whether it was comedy or drama; we often seemed to lurch from one to the other and while its concision (only 6 episodes) was in one respect admirable, given the ‘bloating’ tendency of many of todays films and series, I felt that it could have done with a little less speed and a little more slow reflection and development.
Sandra Oh held the piece together but I was not always convinced as her being the chair of a department - and certainly not by her close and at times inexplicable relationship with irritating Bill - I felt that in her role she would have been tougher and harder if she had reached that position as a non-white female although the multi-tasking required of her (a single mother with a tricky young daughter, an aged father etc etc|) was effectively shown if at times, a little over-emphatic.
The disreputable Bill was an annoying figure - he was clearly meant to be endearing but he just came across as an a***hole tbh… The character of Yaz, a young brilliant woman of colour was very well shown however a nd her interactions with Yentz, a rigid old-timer was both realistic and at times touching; there was a lovely and quiteg moment when, while team teaching with him as his class enrollement was so low, as she was being wonderfully creative with the class getting them to rap/perform/respond to Moby Dick as opposed to being lectured at by the venerable Lentz, a cutaway to his expression sittig at the back with a look of both sadness and envy was very powerful. A pity there were not more moments like that in the series.
But it gave an effective picture of many of the issues that academic faced althuogh it would be interesting to hear the response of actual lecturers in un iversities - but necessarily American I think.