Top to bottom: Melissa, Bobbi, Nick and Frances
Based on the novel of the same name, this miniseries is about Frances, a student at Trinity College in Dublin. She is best friends with Bobbi, an African-American young woman who's her former girlfriend. Things become very complicated when they meet Nick and Melissa Conway, a married couple. Frances begins seeing Nick, while Bobbi is attracted to Melissa. Things spiral from there.Examples:
- Age-Gap Romance: Frances is 21, with Nick being at least a decade older.
- Amicable Exes: Frances and Bobbi dated in the past, but this evolved into just a close friendship (though they butt heads at times). They even work together reciting the spoken word poerty Frances writes. The pair also get back together later.
- Author Appeal: Frances is a communist (though here it isn't discussed much), while the author Sally Rooney has said she's a Marxist.
- Brainy Brunette: Frances and Bobbi are both dark-haired students at Trinity College in Dublin, who show the keen intelligence along with knowledge of sophisticated subjects you'd expect as a result.
- Brutal Honesty: Bobbi isn't one to mince words, crossing over into outright rudeness sometimes when she speaks her mind without reservations.
- Calling Parents by Their Name: Frances sometimes calls her father "Dennis" not "Dad", as she's not very close with him, only even visiting due to obligation since she dislikes his lack of affection toward her.
- Chummy Commies: Frances is a shy, sweet-natured communist who isn't that outspoken and says she's not very committed to it. She's the protagonist as well.
- Crying After Sex: Frances does this after having sex with Nick the first time, insisting it doesn't mean she's unhappy though, it's just a physical reaction she had with Bobbi too.
- Dreadlock Rasta: Bobbi has dreadlocks, and she's a bold, freespirited, independent woman.
- The Ghost: Bobbi's parents both also are living in Ireland (they're academics working there) and get discussed with her going to see them regularly. Them getting divorced affects Bobbi deeply. Neither actually appears though.
- Interrupted Intimacy: While they're on vacation, Bobbi accidentally walks in on Frances in bed naked with Nick (although not having sex at the time, rather post-coitus), then awkwardly apologizes before leaving hastily.
- Intimate Marks: Bobbi, it turns out, has a tattoo on her waist underneath her right breast.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Bobbi can be a bit rude and judgmental at times, annoying Frances. At heart though she means well, apologizing over this.
- Light Feminine Dark Feminine: Frances is more shy, reserved and vulnerable. Her best friend/former lover Bobbi is bold, confident and very outspoken. Frances complains how they clash at times, with Bobbi thinking that she's repressed as her emotional life isn't as strong and open, while judging things too much for her tastes. It's a pretty interesting portrayal of an introvert and extrovert being friends, who have realistic difficulties given that. However, even so Frances movingly tells Bobbi that she's the center of her world.
- Lipstick Lesbian: Frances is long-haired, pretty demure and also wears fairly conventionally feminine clothing, but it isn't exaggerated. She's bisexual and previously dated African-American lesbian Bobbi, who's now best friends with her.
- Love Confession: Nick confesses he loves Frances after the pair have a brief falling out. She tells Nick the same thing in return. Frances later also tells Bobbi she loves her via an email.
- Love Dodecahedron: Frances begins an affair with Nick. He still also loves his wife Melissa. Frances' ex and friend Bobbi is attracted to Melissa meanwhile, having kissed her. Later on, Frances kisses Bobbi, and expresses her desire to sleep with her again, confessing her love for her. Frances and Nick break up in the end. She and Bobbi get back together.
- Masculine–Feminine Gay Couple: It's downplayed, but tomboy lesbian Bobby and femme bisexual Francis used to date before becoming just friends. They rekindle their relationship later in the finale.
- Modesty Bedsheet: Frances and later Bobbi both sometimes have the sheets around their chests while in bed nude. Here it's definitely simply for warmth, since they are both shown topless as well.
- Ms. Fanservice: Frances is a pretty young woman who's shown in revealing swimsuits when visiting the beach and while having sex with Nick, when she's often seen topless (along with once afterward). To a lesser extent, Bobbi (who's also good-looking) is shown too in swimsuits and revealing clothes, with one sex scene where she's topless as well.
- Nice Guy: Nick is a kind man who's very understanding of any vulnerability Frances has, while being sure she's comfortable.
- No Celebrities Were Harmed: In-Universe, Frances creates a character that Bobbi feels is clearly based on her. She's so offended by the portrayal that she ends their friendship (temporarily).
- No Periods, Period: Averted as Frances gets bad cramps in the first episode, which Bobbi helps her out with by providing painkillers.
- Not Staying for Breakfast: After having sex with a guy whom she met on a blind date, Frances sneaks out afterward, dissatisfied.
- Opposites Attract: Shy, reserved Frances dated bold, outspoken Bobbi. It's perhaps deconstructed because they stopped dating and became simply best friends instead. They get back together later though.
- Precision F-Strike: If Bobbi is angry about something, she'll drop an f-bomb to make sure it comes across to other people.
- Relationship Revolving Door: Frances is best friends with Bobbi, whom she previously dated. She begins seeing Nick, a married man. After they fall out, they get back together. Then she breaks up with him. She then gets back together with Bobbi. Yet at the end it's indicated she may also reunite with Nick-polyamory, perhaps.
- Self-Harm: Frances cuts herself slightly after Bobbi leaves, and promises she won't again after Bobbi's noticed the wound later.
- Sex with the Ex: In the series finale, Frances and Bobbi sleep together again, rekindling their relationship afterward.
- Shrinking Violet: Frances is pretty quiet and shy, often thinking but not saying things like her friend Bobbi points out, who says it makes her seem enigmatic. She gets embarrassed easily by Bobbi, who's more outspoken by far, revealing personal information of hers to others (such as that she's a communist or a bisexual).
- Skinny Dipping: Bobbi takes her top off quite matter of factly at the seashore and goes swimming (she's only seen from the back and with her long hair covering her though).
- Soapbox Sadie: Frances performs feminist prose with Bobbi. This is portrayed positively, and pretty downplayed since they don't make many political statements otherwise.
- Sympathetic Adulterer: Nick, who's married, begins seeing Frances. He says his wife Melissa cheated on him multiple times before, and this convinces Frances that it's okay to start their affair. After she finds out Melissa confesses that she deserved that, since she'd had an affair with his best friend before, portraying this as revenge by Nick and saying Frances even made him better by their relationship.
- Their First Time: Frances having sex with Nick was her very first time with a man, as she admits after they've done it. He doesn't mind.
- Tomboy and Girly Girl: Bobbi has the Tomboyish Name and is a bold woman with her personal style being slightly more masculine. Frances is shy and more conventionally feminine. It's downplayed since neither is that extreme either way.
- Tomboyish Name: Bobbi, Frances' female best friend/former girlfriend has this and she's a bold woman who's mildly tomboyish.
- Twofer Token Minority: Bobbi, who's a young black woman, is the only person of color in the main cast. She herself notes after living in her native New York City that Ireland is very much whiter. She's also a lesbian.
