Lana Condor has been a reliable go-to for Netflix since she starred in the massive hit romcom To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before in 2018. Now, they’ve given her an entire limited series for her to play a wistful teen who wants to be seen and find some love. But the twist here is that she’s going to try to do all that while she’s very, very dead.
Opening Shot: A shot of tall trees from the ground. A voice says, “I always dreamed of living an epic high school life. But even as a senior I was hiding in the shadows until one fateful night.”
The Gist: Then we see some colorful platform Chucks sticking out from under a moose. “They’re mine,” says the voice of Erika Vu (Lana Condor). “Do the math. OK, I’ll do it for you. I’m dead… ish.”
We go to 48 hours “premortem”, where Erika is bemoaning to her bestie Gia (Zoe Margaret Colletti) that they’ve made no impact on their high school, which usually suits Erika just fine, especially now that they’re only two months from the end. But she gets pissed when she looks in the yearbook and sees the name “Helen Who” under her picture. The moniker was given to her by popular girl Riley (Aparna Brielle) after a literal run-in with Erika on the first day of freshman year, and it stuck. Even Erika’s student ID cards say “Helen Who” on them.
Gia convinces Erika that they still have time left to make their mark on the school, and convinces her to go to the senior blowout party one of their classmates is throwing. Erika gets excited, because she knows her favorite out of her class’ many Jakes, Jake C. (Mason Versaw) will be there, even though he and Riley have been dating on and off through high school. Erika’s parents (Cathy Vu, John Brantley Cole) are thrilled because she finally has a social life.