Dummy

After being discarded by her original owner, a spoiled, jealous, and manipulative sex doll named Barbara convinces aspiring writer Cody, the only one able to hear her speak, to take her home so she can help cure Cody's writers block.

Dummy (2020) is a American short-form comedy series created by Cody Heller for Quibi. Aspiring writer Cody Heller (Anna Kendrick) rescues a discarded sex doll, Barbara (voiced by Meredith Hagner), who is spoiled, jealous and manipulative, and who promises to cure his writer's block if he takes her home. The engine of the show is their uneasy partnership: Cody wants to finish something worth finishing, while Barbara sabotages, schemes and mocks him at every turn, and each brief episode is built around a fresh escalation of their absurd domestic life. Donal Logue appears as Dan Harmon, adding a sly industry-insider presence to the writers-room bite. The series runs for a single season of ten very short episodes, so it plays as a tight, quick burst rather than a long saga. Its tone is sardonic, irreverent and deliberately crude, with a breezy, self-aware energy that pokes at creative anxiety and modern dating absurdity. Fans of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Eastbound & Down and Atlanta will find a similar mix of neurotic protagonist, raunchy humor and offbeat premise.

Audience reception is mixed, with viewers finding the absurd premise and Anna Kendrick's performance amusing but the very short episodes uneven.

• Crazy Ex-Girlfriendraunchy absurd comedy, sardonic tone, outrageous premise about an unlikely companion
• Eastbound & Downshort-form comedy built on a self-contained premise and irreverent adult humor
• Atlantacreative struggle comedy with a neurotic writer protagonist and sharp meta humor

Created by

Cody Heller

Release Date

2020-04-20

Episode runtime

8 min

Rating

6.7 / 10 (57)

What is Dummy about?

A struggling writer takes home a manipulative sex doll who claims she can cure his writer's block.

What is Dummy like to watch?

Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Dummy as brisk, its intensity as mild and its storytelling as simple.

Is Dummy violent?

No — Ember's analysis finds no violence in Dummy.

What did critics think of Dummy?

Audience reception is mixed, with viewers finding the absurd premise and Anna Kendrick's performance amusing but the very short episodes uneven.

Which shows are like Dummy?

Shows with a similar feel include Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Eastbound & Down, and Atlanta.

How long is Dummy?

Dummy: 1 season, 10 episodes.

Is Dummy still running?

No, Dummy has ended.