My Review of Juice - Series 2 (2025, BBC3 Series)

 

Written by Mawann Rizwan And Nabhaan Rizwan And Emily Llyod-Saini

Directed by Eros V

Winnie: "Welcome to adulthood, Jamma."

Jamma: "I don't like it."

Winnie: "No, it's not very nice."

I watched this last year but I had forgotten about it until the other day. I went back to rewatch it and I'll admit that it's a bit of a patchy second series of the zany show that got better as it went along.

The rest of the first series saw Jamma (Mawann Rizwan) and therapist boyfriend Guy (Russell Tovey) break up. In between that time, Jamma also decided to become an actual clown and in no surprise whatsoever, he's rather bad at it. He also really missed being with Guy, so most of this series was Jamma trying to get back with him.

For Jamma, this meant becoming the very thing he dreaded more in thr world. He became boring for half the series, courtesy of making a deal with Kevin Eldon's Majal character. This would be something that have some rather unique consequences as the series went on.

It also turned out that making deals to change yourself was a family trait. Saif (Jeff Mirza) had made a similar pact and it was partly a reason why he was avoiding divorcing Farida (Shahnaz Rizwan). When he plucked up the courage, things took another shift between the pair.

Then there's younger brother, Isaac (Nabhaan Rizwan) and flatmate/friend, Winnie (Emily Llyod-Saini). They get some fun moments in the series, including a realisation that they're not compatible as a couple. On the other hand, Isaac's quest to find his trauma certainly had an amusing final outcome.

Going back to Jamma and Guy. It was obvious that they would reunite before the show ended but both characters needed to get their shit together so their reunion would feel earned. Guy also spent a lot of the series promoting a book and dealing with some past family trauma of his own.

- Episode titles were Sup, House Sh*tting, Emporium's New Clothes, The Bullfighter And The Egg, The Storm Is Coming and Last Chapter.

- Mark Gatiss guest starred in the penultimate episode as Guy's father. Julien Ovenden's Nigel was teased as a love rival but he turned out to be straight.

- Standout music: Shik Ma Van by Mawann Rizwan.

- Chronology: Six months since the events of the first series. 

Series 2 didn't initially land as well as the first series but I'm glad I did a rewatch of it. Seeing it a few months again later gave me a better appreciation for this show. That last episode also felt like a neatly wrapped series finale to me.

Rating: 7 out of 10