‘Sex Appeal’: Hulu Teen Comedy Is All About the Foreplay

Sandra Miska

A high school senior’s unusual approach to taking on a major milestone is chronicled in Hulu’s teen comedy “Sex Appeal.” Mika Abdalla stars as Avery, a high-achiever bound for MIT who is more at home in a science lab than at a school dance. Avery has always been able to tackle most any project or obstacle with logic and reasoning, but two developments in her last semester of high school push her out of her comfort zone. First, she learns that the assignment at this year’s student science competition, STEMcon, is to create an app that solves a personal problem. As Avery doesn’t have much of a personal life, this is an issue. She does have a boyfriend, Casper (Mason Versaw), but they only see each other once a year at STEMcon. When Casper tells her during a video chat that he wants to have sex, she’s caught off guard, but decides to combine her two problems by creating an app that help someone have great sex. 

Predictably, Avery isn’t thinking about a major part of the equation, love and emotions. This isn’t surprising, as we see early on her arguing with her English teacher (Hayden Szeto) over a B grade she received for a paper on “Romeo & Juliet” — She argues that the tragic lovers were morons who gave into their “adolescent impulses.” Avery is probably on the autism spectrum, but this is never stated. In order to find data, she goes around asking her classmates blunt questions about sex, and while some have useful, and even profound things to say, a lot of comments are profane and silly. She even asks the sex education teacher (Artemis Pebdani) about how to masturbate, but she’s no help.

Someone who does help is local sex goodness and artist Danica (Paris Jackson), an effortlessly cool check who doles out useful and hilarious wisdom. Avery’s mothers, Deb (Margaret Cho) and Suze (Fortune Feimster), along with Deb’s other partner, “bonus mom” Kim (Rebecca Henderson), are well-meaning, but we can see here how even the most progressive parents can be clueless when talking to their kids about sex, and throwing condoms around only does so much. Feimster gets the most laughs as “steadfast lesbo” Suze, who even goes as far as turn on straight porn for educational purposes.

Avery ends up turning to her childhood friend, Larson (Jake Short), to “experiment on” in preparation with her sex date with Casper. Larson was her close friend and frequent experimentee for years before he made a move on when they were 14, and things have been awkward since. Still, they end up running the bases together, stopping short of going all the way, but Avery doesn’t think about the emotional fallout that is right around the corner.

What director Talia Osteen and screenwriter Tate Hanyok do right is show how sex doesn’t have to be some big climax, both literally and in the plot. While movies and society as a whole often portray penetrative sex as the be-all and end-all, it’s just part of the journey here. Fantastical, quirky sequences that include Avery synchronized swimming in a glamorous pool and Larson exploring a pink tunnel are somewhat silly, but they drive home the swirl of emotions, pleasure and awkwardness one experiences while navigating physical intimacy for the first time.

“Sex Appeal” also has fun making fun of the tropes commonly found in teen sex comedies and rom-coms. However, in its quest to be different, it goes a little too far and the ending leaves the viewer wanting. While it’s understandable that the strong female lead should make personal growth a priority over having a relationship, sometimes one just needs an old-fashioned romantic release.

“Sex Appeal” begins streaming Jan. 14 on Hulu.