“How to Die Alone” sounds like a fear-mongering headline in a women’s magazine listing the do’s and don’ts of dating or fashion, a way to scare women into behaving or looking a certain way to not end up like a “childless cat lady” or some other misogynistic descriptor lobbied by insecure weirdos. The fear of dying alone is not exclusive to women, but American society certainly treats single women as moral failures. It’s why magazines used to produce lists of “eligible bachelors” while women age into “spinsters.” In Natasha Rothwell’s brilliant new comedy, “How To Die Alone” isn’t just the title of the show, but a jarring wake-up call for Mel (short for Melissa, played by Rothwell) who has a near-death experience while alone on her 35th birthday (the same day she’s invited to her ex-boyfriend and current manager’s wedding) that puts her in the hospital and face-to-face with the woman in the bed next to her that does die alone.
Mel is a self-proclaimed “broke, fat, Black, JFK airport employee,” and the intentional descriptive language sets the tone to constantly play with the audience’s expectations. Mel being broke, fat, Black, and working at the airport isn’t meant to be viewed as pejorative, but our society most certainly stigmatizes (if not moralizes) each of these identity intersections. When Mel almost dies, she knows she needs to make some serious changes in her life but she’s not able to pull an Elizabeth Gilbert and “Eat, Pray, Love” her way around the globe on a quest of self-discovery. Mel has bills to pay! She has a job she doesn’t want to lose! And above all else, despite working at JFK, she’s terrified of flying!
As much as “How to Die Alone” is a story about Mel’s new lease on life, it’s also a wildly entertaining workplace comedy about the people who make one of the busiest airports in the world function — folks behind the tireless, thankless work that anyone who travels has likely taken for granted.
Give Natasha Rothwell the Emmy now
The 76th Primetime Emmy Awards may have just happened, but Natasha Rothwell is already positioning herself as a contender for next year. The star of “The White Lotus” and “Insecure” has been not-so-quietly proving herself as one of the most formidable voices in comedy for years, but “How To Die Alone” is the culmination of her incredible talents as a writer and performer. The show was originally developed for HBO, but the staggered weekly release schedule on Hulu quickly turned it into a must-watch appointment viewing.
As a character, Mel is so relatable it’s often painful, holding up a mirror to our own insecurities and shortcomings we’ve been pushing away for far too long. It’s the type of nuanced writing that gives audiences the chance to have “A-ha” moments usually reserved for breakthrough sessions at therapy. But at the same time, she’s so effortlessly charming and funny that you can’t help but wish you were more like her. There’s a warmth to “How To Die Alone,” even from the most prickly characters like Mel’s work nemesis Patty (Michelle McLeod) because the love Rothwell has for all of the characters she’s created is palpable. Episode 5, “Trust No One,” shows Mel engaging in psychological warfare against her prodigal son of a brother Brian (Bashir Salahuddin) who has been acting out in ways that would paint him fully as a villain on any other show.Â
But “How To Die Alone” knows there’s more to him than his selfish decision-making, and by exploring the complexities that brought him to his bad decision-making in the first place, Rothwell forces us to break away from binary good/bad ways of thinking. Writing, directing, it doesn’t matter — there better be an Emmy on Rothwell’s shelf before this show comes to an end.
A community for Mel
While Mel is the undeniable focus, she’s also surrounded by a stellar ensemble cast. Shaun (Arkie Kandola) and DeShawn (Chris “CP” Powell) are two tarmac workers who boast some of the best one-liners of the show, new friends Allie (Jaylee Hamidi) and Tamika (Melissa DuPrey) give the kind of “bestie” feedback we could all use a bit more of, Rory (Conrad Ricamora) walks the difficult line of caring about someone but failing at showing up as a friend when it counts, Carl, a falcon handler known as “the Birdman” (H. Jon Benjamin) seemingly exists for nothing more than comedic relief, while Alex (Jocko Sims), Terrance (KeiLyn Durrel Jones), and Carlos (Gabriel Infante) all serve as friends/potential love interests with vastly different personalities.
The airport setting is also ripe for comedy adventures, because it’s a place most people visit at some point in their lives but by design, is temporary. What goes on at these places when you’re not running from terminal to terminal and getting yelled at for taking out your electronics before security because today you can keep it in the bag but no one told you? But unlike many workplace comedies that came before, “How To Die Alone” doesn’t lose any of its power outside of the airport. During Thanksgiving, Mel’s mom Beverly (Ellen Cleghorne) unintentionally roasts the hell out of her by commenting on her outfit by saying, “I didn’t know Rainbow sold blazers,” a comment that will mean absolutely nothing to someone who has never shopped at Rainbow but will feel like a stab in the heart for those who have. (For the record: YES THEY DO AND I OWN TWO OF THEM!)
We know that Mel is surrounded by plenty of people who care about her, so why does she feel so alone? That’s a question I think a lot of us ask ourselves most days. I don’t know how “How To Die Alone” will end the season, but just as the words used to characterize Mel are meant to be a neutral descriptor, I feel like the title of the show is going to eventually be a reflection of Mel finally at peace with herself even if she’s not quite there yet. There’s no age limit to growing up, becoming the person you were always meant to be, and living your life to the fullest. And we’d all be a hell of a lot less miserable if we invested more time in nurturing our relationships with ourselves.
“How To Die Alone” is available to stream on Hulu.
