As the opening episode of In Limbo begins, Charlie (Ryan Corr) practices the speech he is going to give at Nate’s funeral. Nate (Bob Morley) gives him advice. Charlie reminds him that he doesn’t need to come, but Nate isn’t going to let him go alone. Nate believes this is an opportunity for Charlie to hook up with women. As they drive to their destination, Nate asks why Charlie is so down. When Charlie practices his eulogy, Nate mocks it and suggests opening with a joke. Charlie doesn’t like that idea or the joke that Nate offers. Nate gives him encouragement once they enter the venue. The show jumps back ten days.

At work, Nate is punished for missing their drinking night. When asked why he missed, Nate says he was looking after Annabel (Kamillia Rihani). He warns Nikora (Aaron Fa’aoso) that he will get him back. Later, Charlie helps Nate build a playhouse in his backyard. Nate admits he lied about why he missed drinking with the boys and instead visited the doctor. He claims everything is fine. Nate reveals he has set Charlie up on a date with Lily (Philippa Northeast) behind his back. Freya (Emma Harvie) video chats with Charlie so she can tell him all about Lily. Charlie claims he is still married. Nate and Freya say otherwise because his wife left about a year ago.

Freya makes Nate promise that he’ll go on the date. Charlie wears Nate’s shirt to the date and Lily recognizes it immediately. It goes well with Charlie making Lily laugh. They make out later. They can’t go to Lily’s place because her parents are visiting. Charlie says his parents are dead so they won’t be at his place. Lily thinks she should go home since it is her parents’ last night. Charlie agrees to get drinks at her place once they leave. When Charlie gets back to Nate’s place, he has to force the door open because Nate is lying in front of the door. He calls for an ambulance. Once Detective Blythe (Anita Hegh) arrives, she tells Charlie there was nothing he could’ve done.

Charlie tells her that Nate was acting normally and wasn’t under any stress. He didn’t have a history of mental illness either. Charlie admits it doesn’t make any sense because he had so much to live for. He suggests someone set it up and made it look like this. Detective Blythe refers him to support services since they can put him in touch with a counselor. Charlie tells the detective that Freya has been visiting her mom in London and will be back Monday. He is told not to post anything on social media. Charlie cleans up and turns out the Christmas lights when the authorities leave. Then, he goes outside and continues working on the project. In the morning, Charlie has finished. He remembers the first time he met Nate.

A young Nate told him that his Celtic shield knot necklace protected him from bad ghosts. Charlie has the necklace in the present. Charlie uses his crane to remove the porta-potty from Nate’s vehicle. When he goes back to Nate’s place, he is attacked by Freya who thought he was Nate. She eventually asks where Nate is. Charlie has to break the news to her that Nate is dead. Freya breaks down. Later, she reveals that Annabel is at her sister’s place because she thought they could have the place to themselves. Freya thinks she’ll give her one more night. Charlie hasn’t told Frank (Russell Dykstra) and Maria (Lena Cruz) yet because he thought she might want to.

Freya falls asleep while watching television with Charlie. Lily texts Charlie to complain about him not showing up. In a flashback, a young Charlie tells Nate about his cat dying. They agree to bury the cat since his stepdad put it in the bin. Charlie sees someone inside the playhouse outside so he decides to look. He is shocked when he sees Nate there. Charlie doesn’t want to believe it because his friend is supposed to be dead. Charlie asks if he is a ghost. Nate prefers the term wandering soul. He admits this is the last place he wants to be. Nate doesn’t want to talk about how much he hurt Freya and Annabel. He tried to talk about it in the past but just can’t.

Nate suspects there is something he must do before he can pass on and he will need Charlie’s help. He knows it is weird, but he is stuck in limbo and Charlie is stuck with him until they can find a way for his soul to cross over. Nate asks if he’ll help. Charlie comes back to reality as Annabel admires the playhouse.

 

In Limbo Review

The opening episode of In Limbo follows Charlie as he loses his best friend, Nate, to an unexpected suicide. However, Charlie is soon surprised to find that his friend is back because he needs help passing over. The series blends comedy with the serious subject matter in an attempt to cater to a larger audience base. While this is understandable, it has become a little cliché at this point because it is so rare to find a serious show that doesn’t dumb itself down with ineffective, over-the-top humor.

In Limbo seems to follow the same path so viewers will need to cringe their way through some scenes to reach the gut-wrenching scenes that will make the difference. Depending on how much the show uses the comedy, it may be more effective than others at conveying its message. However, the comedy will likely be the weakest point of the series since the jokes didn’t hit their target in the first episode.

The episode showed promise though so there is hope that In Limbo will become an emotional, memorable experience. We can only hope that the comedy doesn’t hold it back from reaching its true potential. The opening episode scores a 6 out of 10. Recaps of In Limbo will be available on Reel Mockery here.

Find out how to support our independent site at this link. Learn more about advertising on Reel Mockery here.