I Love LA kicks off with a first episode that feels a little messy, a little funny, and somewhat familiar if you’ve ever been in your twenties in LA and unsure what you’re doing. The premiere, called “Block Her,” drops us into the chaotic birthday week of Maia, a twenty something living in Los Angeles and trying to convince herself she’s doing fine. Rachel Sennott, who stars and created the show, nails that mix of confidence and quiet panic that comes with trying to make a name for yourself in a city where everyone else seems to already be somebody.
It’s Maia’s twenty seventh birthday, which she treats like a personal performance review. She’s hoping for a promotion at her kind of cool, kind of soul sucking creative job and plans a calm, grown up dinner to celebrate. But of course, that does not happen. Out of nowhere, her old college best friend Tallulah shows up, played by Odessa A’zion. Tallulah is loud, magnetic, slightly chaotic, and has that effortless influencer energy that makes everyone else feel a little off balance. She hijacks Maia’s dinner plans, turns them into an influencer packed party, and sends Maia into a spiral of jealousy, nostalgia, and self doubt.
The episode uses that birthday disaster to dig into the weird competitiveness that hides inside some friendships. Maia’s frustration with Tallulah isn’t really about the night being ruined, it’s about feeling left behind. In a place like LA, where even hanging out can feel like networking, seeing an old friend succeed can sting in ways you don’t want to admit. The show finds humor in that messy space between cheering for your friends and quietly wondering if you should be doing better.
Los Angeles itself feels like a character, shiny and fake and kind of sad underneath it all. The clubs are pink lit, the conversations half sincere, half performative, and everyone’s chasing something that will make them feel more real. But the show keeps things grounded with a few quiet moments that hit hard. When Maia finally admits she feels like she’s failing, it lands. And when Tallulah’s own image starts to crack, you realize both of them are just trying to survive the same pressure to look like they’ve figured it out.
What makes the episode work is how real it feels. Sennott and A’zion have easy chemistry that makes every awkward silence believable. The tone is honest without trying too hard to be deep. It’s kind of like Girls meets Insecure, but with influencer drama instead of blog posts or startups. It’s about people who know exactly how to caption their lives but still have no idea what they’re doing.
By the end, Maia agrees to become Tallulah’s manager, which feels like the worst and best idea ever. It’s the perfect setup for chaos, friendship drama, and a few hard truths about ambition. If the rest of the season keeps the same mix of cringe, comedy, and honesty, I Love LA could end up being the show that captures what it actually feels like to chase success in a city where everyone’s pretending they already have it.
I Love LA airs Sundays on HBO, check it out!
