Drama / TV Series
Is It Worth Watching? No! Not even if you are a Renée Zellweger fan.
The plot line is pretty good, I’d give ’em that. But What/If they hadn’t used this show as the come-back platform for Renée Zellweger? What/If they had chosen better leading ladies? And What/If they didn’t have that stupid “/” between the two words which makes no sense at all? Maybe not the third one so much, but the first two definitely caused What/If to become less than average. Here are some reasons why.
Renée Zellweger
Someone watched Jerry Maguire, Cold Mountain and all the Bridget Jones films and thought: What/If we make this always-goody-two-shoes an evil character? This would totally throw the viewers off and amaze them no end! They couldn’t be more wrong. The reason Renée Zellweger always did such roles is because that’s all she can do. This was painfully obvious in What/If. A tough businesswoman, she promises to fund an entrepreneur’s venture if she is allowed to spend a night with her boyfriend. This is her trying to prove that people decide their own fate by making their own choices. Zellweger tried hard to be hard, but all her dialogues came out sounding like, “You had me at hello!” For a show which is based on her character being ruthless, this was clearly not the desired outcome.
Jane Levy
Then there is Jane Levy who plays Lisa, the woman who chooses her business over her boyfriend, then spends the rest of the program trying to undo that decision. Lisa is an interesting character, in that she is the only one who really has to struggle to remain good with all the bad that’s happening to and around her. A better actress could have easily performed this role and carried Zellweger with her, but Levy is not of that calibre. She has zero inflexions in her speech, her face conveys no emotion other than being perpetually confused and she is incredibly nasal. In one scene, where she has a gun pointed at her, she looks as scared as if she had found a hair in her burger.
Cleverer-than-thou
Apart from Renée Zellweger’s very odd archery performance (where her head shakes as though she’s having a fit), the biggest turn off of What/If was the look-how-clever-we-are monologues. The program starts with one where Renée Zellweger justifies winning at all costs which forms the basis of the entire show. After that, every scene with Zellweger is basically a lecture on the human psyche. In a dinner party scene, we are subjected to a speech on how competition drives invention, as though it’s a completely new concept that the writers have suddenly thought of. Preaching, rather than entertaining them, is not a way to win viewers.
Supporting Cast
This is one area where What/If nearly redeemed itself. Nearly! The parallel-running stories of Todd/Angela and Marcos/Lionel are welcome and interesting distractions from the monotonous Zellweger/Levy interactions. Angela cheats on her husband Todd with her colleague and is now pregnant. While Marcos is hiding a secret which keeps him from completely opening up to his partner Lionel. These are engaging plot lines until one results in being chased by a psycho doctor and the other reveals a contrived childhood incident. What/If these were given a bit more thought?
And of course there is a second season. Perhaps in this one Zellweger’s strange archery practice might come into use!
If you do happen to like this program (and even if you don’t) you will definitely enjoy Dead To Me.
Is it worth watching? 
Great review on What/If thanks
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I was never a fan of Zellweger, but might give this a try because I like the sound of the subplots.
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I saw the preview and can’t say I was overly moved to watch it. Hard pass from me as well.
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This is so amazing…no fate only choice
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Thanks for this precise and censorious review! I really like how you made the What/If – especially the slash – a common theme in this post 🙂
xxxx Aga
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Loved this mini-series, binged right through it! Hoping for a 2nd season?
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No way! I don’t think I could sit through another season.
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This article is hilarious and even though this show sounds absolutely absurd… I feel compelled to watch it just to see how bad it is for myself 🤣
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I’m glad it made you laugh.
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Great review, Im gonna try to watch it later. Thanks for sharing!
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Lol, loved this honest review!
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I hadn’t heard of this show! Thanks for the review. I’ll have to think about it.
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I didn’t even know this was out. I loved the Bridget Jones series, but I’m not sure about this. If it can keep my attention, I may give it a try.
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Not a fan of seasonal movies but you give really captivating reviews. I could work with that.
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Thanks for that review, I did not know about what/if, lately I am so busy and am missing so many great shows.
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The trailer looks good though! But Netflix movies are hit or miss!
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Perfect review. Thank you for saving me from possibly diving into an unnecessary Netflix show!
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I am not a fan of Zellweger or this series. I may give this a miss. Thanks for the review – What/If
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Thanks for the review! I am going to try to watch this. I’ve been looking for new recommendations.
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Hey there, Thank you very much for sharing 🙂 I’m gonna try this.
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Well, now I’m curious. I may watch it just to see how horrible it is! I love a good laugh.
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What a great and detailed review.
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I had never even heard of this one, I think I’ll leave it alone!
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Looks quite interesting. I have so much to watch these days.
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It bugs me too when they all of a sudden throw an actor into a role that is way different than they have played in the past. Very rarely are they able to pull it off!
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It has been a long time since I saw Renée Zellweger. When the last major film or TV show she appeared in.
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Thanks for the great review. I will make sure I avoid ” what if” then as I am looking for some great shows or movies to watch with the hubby.
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Thank you for the detailed review. I heard about this but I am not sure whether or not to watch. It’s been awhile since I’ve seen Renée Zellweger on screen/tv. I had fun watching her at Bridget Jones’s Diary.
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This was a really interesting read, I saw a short clip or What/If (I agree a really dreadful title) on Gogglebox and I must say I was intrigued. However I can completely see from the tiny bit I saw how it could either be really good or reeeally bad, and it seems it’s the latter!
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I was intrigued by the preview but now I am not too sure if this is my sort of thing. I might still give it a go though.
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