In ‘Nobody Wants This’ Season 3, Less Is More When It Comes to Judaism

Editorial note: Spoilers ahead for season three of “Nobody Wants This.”

In season three, episode two of Netflix’s virally popular show “Nobody Wants This,” dating podcaster Joanne (Kristen Bell) tells her Intro to Judaism class what brought her there in the first place. “I love the rituals and the openness. And I love the close-knit community and the, you know, cozy vibes,” the rabbi’s girlfriend shares with the group. “I really like the part about the cozy vibes, ” her conversion class nemesis Sebastien (Andrew Rannells) quips. “Is that from the Torah?”

It’s a moment that concisely encapsulates the tenor of the show’s latest season, which dropped on Netflix today. It’s the key to what makes these 10 episodes work well and it’s something that our rabbi-loving protagonist is not: “Nobody Wants This” has finally become self-aware.

As much as Judaism is at the center of “Nobody Wants This,” portraying it has never been the show’s forte. Critics Esther Zuckerman and Jessica Grose concluded that season one of the rom-com relied heavily on stereotypes of Jewish women, something that “Nobody Wants This” creator Erin Foster admitted to Hey Alma she wasn’t “thinking about too much.” Season two was worse — and it lacked the writing, character development and novelty to bolster it. It concocted a version of Judaism that was, to (annoyingly) quote myself, “not a religion to be explored with genuine curiosity and care, but one to be dealt with, maneuvered around, generalized and laughed at.” Finally, after an entire season of Joanne waffling about her decision to convert or not convert like she’s Erewhon-brand Hamlet, she ultimately decides that she is ready to be Jewish after sister-in-law Esther (Jackie Tohn) says Joanne already “feels Jewish.” According to Esther, this is because Joanne is, among a handful of other exceedingly non-specific qualities, “warm and cozy.”

That’s a whole lot of amorphousness upon which to base your decision to convert to a new religion, and Vulture critic Fran Hoepfner said as much in her review. “This is Judaism as hood ornament,” Steven Zeitchik affirmed for The Hollywood Reporter, “elements dropped in to make you feel like something is being explored but in a show that has zero interest in actually doing the work.”

Flash forward to Sebastien’s snarky “And what?” to Joanne in season three. Seemingly, this is a wink from creator Erin Foster and showrunners Jenni Konner and Bruce Eric Kaplan. Message received.

The result is a season which leans into what “Nobody Wants This” is actually good at. The most interesting conflicts the show has developed are not because Joanne and her family are agnostic and the Roklovs are Jewish. They occur because Noah’s family are a prim, united front, aspiring towards high society culture while the Williamses are low-brow, woo-woo gay chaos incarnate. Viewers return to the show because Noah is sexy and emotionally mature, and there’s a juicy love triangle between Sasha (Timothy Simons), Esther and Morgan (Justine Lupe).

Season three delivers on all of these fronts. Joanne commits to the long-term by beginning conversion classes and Noah does the same by popping the question. This forces the Roklov and the Williams families even closer together to great comedic effect. We now live in a “Nobody Wants This” universe where Bina is overly involved in Joanne’s wedding plans, insisting Noah and Joanne get married on the basketball court in her backyard so Eliezer (Noah’s childhood pet hamster who is buried there, obviously) can witness the ceremony. Morgan and Sasha’s relationship deepens too, first when a newly single Sasha moves into Lynn’s spare bedroom and later when they hook-up on a business trip to New York. Timothy Simons and Justine Lupe are winsome comedy partners and freedom from Jackie Tohn‘s Esther (as much as we love Jackie) gives them the opportunity to really romp.

By contrast, Joanne’s conversion class is relegated to a handful of short scenes. Rabbi Eden (Sarah Silverman) drops a few pieces of Jewish wisdom, Sebastien and Joanne verbally spar, end of scene. By episode eight, Rabbi Eden is wrapping up Intro to Judaism and there’s really no sense of how much time has passed, nor how Joanne has grappled with what living a Jewish life means to her. Rabbi Eden says that each of her students will meet with a beit din, but we never see how that conversation goes for Joanne or hear about the beit din again. Presumably that conversation goes well because in episode 10, aptly titled “The Plunge,” Joanne completes her mikveh in the Pacific Ocean. Voilà, the blonde podcaster once called a shiksa is now a Jew.

In a different version of this show I would’ve loved for “Nobody Wants This” to seriously contend with the rigors of conversion to Judaism. Scenes of Joanne preparing for, in conversation with and maybe even challenged by her beit din could have established an interiority and depth to her connection to Judaism. Perhaps the Shechinah (the Divine Feminine) resonates with this version of Joanne, or maybe Judaism’s connection to the natural world and lunar cycles is appealing. At the very least, this version of Joanne could latch on to tikkun olam.

But “Nobody Wants This” is pretty explicitly not interested in deepening Joanne’s relationship to Judaism outside of her relationship with Noah. I’ve come to accept this as a good thing. Using how the show has portrayed Judaism in the past as a guide, I don’t think it would be very successful in attempting to do so. And as a Jewish viewer, I’ve learned the hard way that with Jewishness and “Nobody Wants This,” less is more. I’d much rather the show hold back on Judaism than attempt to take on depth it is not equipped to support. That Konner and Kaplan shepherd “Nobody Wants This” in this direction is a wise move.

The moments of Judaism that do exist in season three are enjoyable to behold because of their simplicity. In episode three, Noah and Joanne hold a hanukkat habayit, or Jewish home dedication ritual. As their family, friends and Joanne’s ex gather, the couple affix a mezuzah to the last unadorned doorpost in their house, beginning the process of building a Jewish home together.

The promise of the hanukkat habayit is then fulfilled in the finale mikveh. As Joanne stands on the beach with Noah and Rabbi Eden in the episode’s final moments, she talks about her conversion in relation to Noah and their future family. “I want our kids to know that they are part of something bigger than themselves or even our family,” she says. “And when they feel lost, they can have these traditions to guide them.” She then proceeds to walk into the waves, remove her bathing suit, dunk herself three times and recite the blessings.

In both instances the prayers are uttered correctly (brava specifically to Kristen Bell on her pronunciation), the rituals are done with intention, the values are consistent and everything is authentic to Noah and Joanne. The pinnacle of it all is when Joanne steps back onto the beach and Noah, so moved by the proceedings, asks her if she wants to get married then and there. It’s an ending I can certainly get behind. As the camera pans upward, zooming out from Noah and Joanne exchanging rings on the sand, it feels like “Nobody Wants This” is finally on the right track.

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