Common Side Effects Season Finale

On March 31st, the season finale of Common Side Effects aired, and I had no clue. I wasn’t even aware of the amount of episodes released because, to me, they all clumped together into a mass of something I loved.

I cried relentlessly that Monday evening and I’m not ashamed about it. The reason this show had such a grasp on me, was because it is so much more than just “my show”, like I call it. It’s a staple of friendship and family, a measurement of time, and a meaning of my identity.

This show, very clearly, means a lot to me. It’s hard to write this knowing new episodes aren’t releasing at this time. Common Side Effects was something that I looked forward to after a hard week. It’s tough to sit here and realize I don’t have that comfort anymore (for now).

But Common Side Effects wasn’t just “my” show, it was me and my friend’s! I never watched an episode without them, unless it was with my dad. He was actually the person who got me into Adult Swim in the first place. But I was still surprised to find out he knew exactly what I was talking about when I was rambling to him about the upcoming show I was excited about.

He was able to watch new episodes before me since his TV constantly stayed on the Adult Swim network. New episodes would air on Sunday nights and then were released on Max the Monday after.  Sometimes, on a Sunday, he would text me, “Common Side Effects” to let me know he was watching it. I think it was to taunt me…

But ever since early February, my friend and I would schedule time together and make sure that we would be able to have this thing that was completely ours. And now, I wonder what’s going to bring us together like this again? Should we just watch reruns of each episode? Should we move onto another show until season 2 is released? I don’t think I’ll be able to find another show as good as Common Side Effects, that’s just not possible for me.

I called Common Side Effects “my” show. That’s what everyone knew it as, and if they didn’t know the title, they knew the plot and they knew it as “Steph’s show.” This may sound silly, but there are so many instances where I felt like this show was perfect for me.

When I first saw the trailer for Common Side Effects, at about 12 AM alone in my dorm, my first thought was, “Oh this looks good, but I bet it’s on its 5th season and I’ll have to catch up so I won’t bother.” What a stupid thought! The first episode wasn’t even out by this time. It was going to be another week before the first episode aired. It was perfect timing.

I have a lot of trouble getting into TV shows because, most of the time, there’s already multiple seasons out by the time I find it, and I get really intimidated by the amount of time I would have to spend catching up. So I never watch shows.

Common Side Effects‘ characters are absolutely perfect and I’ve fallen in love with every single one of them. There’s so many realistic and human flaws to every character and that makes them even more lovable to me. 

Some characters, like Frances, have subtle flaws that you can only define after calculating all of their actions and intentions. Frances initially comes off as a quirky, hardworking, and kind woman. She’s very cute! But as the story progresses, you see how she can be selfish, power-driven, and exploitative on top of her other traits. But of course, I can’t hate her because she’s also relatable, funny, and somewhat understandable. If I was in her position, I’d probably do what she did and more!

There are so many little things about this show that I proudly over-analyze. Like when a character takes the Blue Angel mushroom, they experience a vivid hallucination in a place coined “The Portal.” Each character has a different vision and I think every single one of them is either foreshadowing, reflective of the character’s inner desires, or exposing of their traits. There was even a time where I analyzed characters’ outfits down to the earrings and shoes! But that’s a topic for an entirely different day.

The soundtrack is also absolutely amazing. The original songs are so well done and the songs picked to be used in the show are perfectly chosen. There’s so many different genres of song used throughout the show but they all work together and fit in perfectly. I made a playlist and (tried to) put the songs in chronological order in the show. I’m also working on a personal playlist of songs I associate with Common Side Effects rather than just the songs in the show.

All of this rambling to say, I absolutely love Common Side Effects and I think it’s a great show that everyone should watch. The art style is very unique, and I’m aware that a lot of people won’t pick this show up purely because of it, but after a while, it definitely grows on you. I’m a huge fan and I love every single thing about this show. I’m really sad that season one is over, but I’m excited and hopeful for season two!