Lovesick is a
Netflix original series set and filmed in Scotland. In the first scene Dylan learns that he has contracted chlamydia and needs to contact his previous partners. Each episode is mainly comprised of a flashback to a different failed relationship.
This series provides examples of:
- Anachronic Order: the Fabula is Dylan's entire sexual history, while the Sujet is the consequences and aftermath of Dylan finding out he has chlamydia.
- Best Woman: Evie asks Dylan to be her best man at her wedding to Mal.
- Betty and Veronica: Evie is the Betty to every Girl of the Week's Veronica.
- Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Angus has atrocious social skills and is terrible at reading situations, but he seems to be the smartest of the group (degree in computational mathematics, speaks fluent German) and in 'Evie, Again' his former classmate hires him even after Angus insults him in public, based on how talented he is.
- Call-Back / Call-Forward / Foreshadowing: Many, many instances, given the time-hopping nature of the series. Perhaps the longest (to date) is Tasha, briefly mentioned in episode 1 (as the reason Luke wants his list to be alphabetical; it'll postpone talking to her for a long time) and not mentioned again until the penultimate episode of season 3, when the flashback centres around his breakup with her.
- Cannot Spit It Out: Evie and Dylan.
- The Casanova: Luke.
- Deadpan Snarker: Evie.
- Death by Origin Story: Luke's relationship with Jo. Their breakup coincides with him turning into The Casanova.
- Any of Dylan's flashback exes (excluding Abigail), given the nature of the story.
- Disposable Fiancé: Mal. His breakup scene with Evie isn't even shown.
- Doppelgänger Dating: Phoebe is almost the same person as Luke.
- Repeated with Jonesy, who is less of a clone of Luke, but shares his attitude towards sex and dating in general (at first, at least).
- Embarrassing Nickname: Mumcut for Luke and Ivan the Terrible (In Bed) for Ivan. Dylan gets called Mr Soppy Feelings a couple of times.
- Expository Hairstyle Change: Evie's hairstyle changes, letting you know which scenes are set in the past.
- Freeze-Frame Bonus: The list in episode 1; the name 'Cressida' is in quotation marks, which foreshadows the revelation at the end of episode 3 that this is a fake name for Evie (based on the borrowed business card she used to get them out of trouble right before they slept together). Jonesy is also absent from the list, which matches up with the revelation in 'Jonesy?' that they didn't actually have sex.
- Hard-Drinking Party Girl: Jonesy.
- Idiosyncratic Episode Naming: Each episode title is the name of the woman he is contacting. Except for "Cressida", where the series pulls a Bait-and-Switch, as we find out that Dylan didn't have sex with Cressida rather than Evie, who was posing as her to Ilona's brother.
- By the end of season 2, when Dylan has finished his list, the gimmick changes to being the name of a woman central to the episode - sometimes a woman Dylan is sleeping with (e.g. 'Abigail, Again, Again' for the episode where they break up), sometimes not (e.g. 'Bonnie', for an episode where karaoke singing to Bonnie Tyler's 'Total Eclipse of the Heart' is important).
- Lawof Inverse Fertility: Angus and Helen spend at least a year (potentially longer) trying for a baby with no success. Angus has sex with Holly once (and is interrupted midway through) and gets her pregnant.
- Like Brother and Sister: Luke and Evie's friendship is this.
- Lousy Lovers Are Losers: Ivan has the self-explanatory Embarrassing Nickname Ivan the Terrible (In Bed), supposedly from a Speed Sex incident.
- Mistaken for Gay: Evie and Abigail; when Abigail breaks up with her chef boyfriend, he mistakes Abigail encouraging Evie to try a relationship with Dylan as Abigail encouraging Evie to have a relationship with her. (They roll with it, as it softens the blow for him to think of the breakup as being down to Incompatible Orientation)
- Mentioned a few times in the season after; they joke about it again to drive off an annoying man who hits on them both, and it's key to Dylan realising that Abigail's short story is actually about her and Evie (and thus, that Evie was in love with him for years).
- New Season, New Name: Infamously titled Scrotal Recall when first debuted on Channel 4 in the UK. When Netflix commissioned the second season it retitled the series Lovesick (including the first season).
- Oblivious to Love: Dylan doesn't notice Evie's infatuation with him.
- Only Known by Their Nickname: Jonesy tries to introduce herself as 'Maria'. It doesn't stick.
- Platonic Life-Partners: Evie and Luke.
- Poor Communication Kills: We come to learn that Evie has been in love for Dylan for at least three years. With them being flatmates and best friends, presumably there would've been plenty of opportunities for her to tell him about her feelings, besides the one time we see her fail to do that on her birthday. But she never comes clean, not even when she and Dylan end up having sex. Not that Dylan is any better at it, though, when he starts to develop feelings for her...
- Even between Dylan and Luke regarding Phoebe: Dylan and Phoebe break up due to the obvious chemistry between Phoebe and Luke during a pub quiz (they not only get along very well but have the same mannerisms down to the way they sip beer), but other than kissing her during said quiz after Dylan leaves the pub, Luke never attempts to court Phoebe out of respect for Dylan even though Dylan would have eventually accepted them together. This is never discussed between Luke and Dylan until after they find out Phoebe had died years ago, which leads to a brief fist fight in front of her mother.
- Promotedto Opening Titles: Not quite 'opening titles', but a number of characters get promoted to regulars, with their actors' names displayed in the opening crawl of episodes where they appear - Angus, Mal and Abigail for season 2, Jonesy and Holly for season 3.
- Serial Romeo: Dylan, Luke says he "falls in love twice a week".
- Shorter Means Smarter: Evie is the shortest out of her friends, and is definitely the most level headed, and mature out of her friends.
- Shout-Out: A very long one to Point Break in "Cressida", Luke does a shot for shot reenactment.
- "Shut Up" Kiss: Happens in "Agata."
- Smurfette Principle: Evie is the only female lead in the cast, and it's even lampshaded in the second episode of season 3 that she has no female friends.
- Stalker with a Crush: If Ivan's gift to Ilona in "Cressida" is an indication, the scrapbook contains photos he should not have access to.
- Stripper With A Heart Of Gold: Holly.
- Unreliable Narrator: Everyone in the episode 'Abigail, Again' as Dylan tries to piece together why Abigail isn't speaking to him, but particularly Luke - his flashback revolves around him attempting not to have sex with a girl he meets at the party, and ends with him masturbating in a smoking area to try and avoid doing anything. In Angus' flashback, we see Luke and her heading into the toilets together (presumably to have sex).
- Unrequited Love Switcheroo: Happens constantly between Dylan and Evie.
- Wingman: Luke tries (and often fails horribly) to be this to Evie.
- Worthy Opponent: Ivan and Luke have no hard feelings before and after competing for Ilona.
- Write Who You Knowinvoked: Abigail's short story, 'Andi and Olivia', is a very thinly fictionalised version of her first conversation with Evie.
