When advertisements for the Adult Swim Yule Log aired, they showcased the familiar features of a Yule Log video-- cracking wood, soothing tonal muzak, and the warmth of a simulated fire. And, indeed, for the first few minutes of the production that is what we get. But then, well, things happen.
The camera pans out and we are introduced to Ben, a part-time ad guy and aspiring YouTube Yule Log content creator, and Zoe, a career environmentalist burdened by her familial past and an event that has thrown her into an existential crisis. They intended to have romantic getaway at a rustic cabin in the woods but their plans are thrown awry, by a series of strange encounters. An ever-present threat lingers in the background as curious events connect characters, the past, present, and future, the house, the fireplace, and even the titular Yule Log.
Overall, it is definitely worth a watch, and, if you know your audience, sharing it is a great experience. It is a psychedelic straight-faced comedy that is not afraid of exploring the ordinary horror that we call history or the extraordinary horror of the unknown, unknowable, and absurd. There are some rather interesting visual effects and the production is not afraid to lean into or away from its initial framing device.
Ben and Zoe are well written characters and the actors pull their weight. Unlike Netflix shows where interracial couples are used as unexplored props or vehicles for Silicon Valley ideology, the script and the performers are conscious of the identity dynamics in play, which are handled thoughtfully without dominating the production.
Thematically, it is cohesive. More parts could have found their way to the cutting room floor, others needed fleshing out, but the Aesop is clearly communicated: Our existence is already unlikely, our continued existence is always eventually impossible, and strange even absurd things happen-- that's life. Rather than wish it were otherwise, we should fight for it.
