This article contains spoilers for Dang!
Discussions around television often focus on the form’s reliance on reboots and spin-offs, many of which amount to little more than nostalgia bait designed to attract a reliable viewership and generate social media interaction rather than earn strong critical reception. What often gets overlooked in these discussions is adult animation, a genre that was once highly sought-after and now increasingly feels like an easy way for streamers to produce comedies. 2026 has already produced plenty, from Netflix’s own Strip Law, which was cancelled in May, and Ricky Gervais’ poorly received Alley Cats to Prime Video’s Kevin, also cancelled just months after its release. Never a streamer to learn from viewing habits, Netflix is trying its hand at the genre once again with Dang!, to mixed results.
Created by Andrew Law (Hacks, The Good Place), Dang! centres on three Asian American siblings: Andrew (Andrew Law), Eunice (Poppy Liu), and Ruthie (Stephanie Hsu). Andrew and Eunice live together in New York, until Ruthie joins them in the city after her marriage falls apart following an affair with her married business partner. When the affair leads to an unexpected pregnancy, she is left with little choice but to seek help from the siblings she – and vice versa – has spent years trying to avoid.
The premise gives Dang! a strong foundation, though its central sibling relationship is considerably more compelling than the individual situations surrounding it. Andrew has problems of his own after losing his job at the company he co-founded, while Eunice attempts to establish herself professionally despite having considerably less confidence in where her life is heading. Andrew, Eunice, and Ruthie are selfish, judgemental, immature, and frequently incapable of having a normal conversation with one another, but there is an obvious affection beneath their constant attempts to undermine and one-up each other. Ruthie’s return initially causes resentment, particularly as Andrew and Eunice believe they have finally escaped their perfect sister’s clutches, yet the three gradually become closer as they confront their respective problems, many of which tie back to their overbearing mother and absent-but-present father.
Despite the talent involved – beyond Law, the series is executive produced by Matt Murray and Michael Schur – the comedy itself does not always demonstrate the same level of consistency. Dang! wastes little time establishing its fondness for contemporary references, with Marshmello, Timothee Chalamet, Kate Hudson, and Justin Timberlake all receiving mentions within the opening minutes. There is nothing inherently wrong with topical humour, but the frequency with which these references appear can make the series feel like it is trying to demonstrate its relevance rather than allowing its characters to be funny on their own. The jokes are often amusing in isolation, but relatively few remain memorable after the episode ends, perhaps because there is a buzzword a minute.
That humour is at its strongest when the series satirises celebrity culture. A storyline involving Mother, a fictional celebrity diet drug Eunice is asked to take while writing a piece about it for the company she interns for, provides one of the show’s most effective examples of using humour to comment on the increasingly horrifying relationship between celebrity culture, pharmaceuticals, and weight loss, even more so once the truth about Mother is revealed.
After suffering severe side effects, she finds herself exploring her subconscious with Hayley Williams of Paramore, where foundational memories take the form of celebrity appearances, including Fergie cartwheeling on the Today Show. It comes as no surprise, then, that the animation is the most impressive aspect of the series. Dang! is colourful and expressive, giving its characters the distinctive appearance Titmouse, the show’s animation studio, is known for. The running sequences are delightful, though the exploration of the recesses of Eunice’s subconscious after being hit by several cars is equally as clever and visually breathtaking.
There are also moments where Dang! demonstrates an ability to address its themes with more thoughtfulness than its comedy initially suggests. Eunice’s relationship with Nate, for instance, allows the series to examine the difference between attraction and fetishisation. Her frustration at being treated as an exception rather than an individual gives the storyline weight, even if the show does not necessarily explore the subject as deeply as it could. However, it is the series’ exploration of the trio’s relationship with their parents that proves to be its strongest storyline, as their return to Boston reveals why Andrew, Eunice, and Ruthie have developed such complicated relationships with one another.
If Dang! has a major weakness, it is that many of these ideas feel underdeveloped. It’s difficult to maximise storylines across eight 30-minute episodes, but that is not to say that the show is unsuccessful. It’s colourful, occasionally very funny, and its characters are entertaining enough to spend eight episodes with.
Ultimately, Dang! feels destined to disappear into Netflix’s algorithm alongside the countless other adult comedies vying for viewers’ attention. There is nothing particularly wrong with spending a few hours with Andrew, Eunice, and Ruthie, and the series becomes more enjoyable as their relationship develops. Yet for all its visual creativity and occasional flashes of sharp humour, Dang! rarely gives itself the opportunity to become something more memorable.
