Drama
A Man in Full
Talent and intrigue ultimately can’t cloak the truth about this vulgar, crass and graphic drama on Netflix.
Billy and Ollie were inseparable. They were pirates together, cowboys together, superheroes together. Through countless hours they forged their friendship. They became each other’s rock in a stormy sea.
So what if Ollie was a foot tall and covered in patchwork fabric? So what if Billy might be getting a little too old to be playing with stuffed animals? They needed each other.
So when Ollie found himself separated from Billy—lost, stuck in a thrift shop in an unknown town—he knew he had to get back. For both of their sakes.
It won’t be easy, of course. I mean, Ollie’s a toy. It’s not like he can hotwire a car, turn on the GPS for “Billy’s House” and drive up to the front door. Ollie has no idea where Billy even lives—or even the boy’s last name. All he has are hazy recollections of pictures pinned to the “memory wall” that Billy and his Momma made, when Momma was so, so sick.
But those fragments that Ollie remembers may give him just enough of a map to piece his way home. With, perhaps, a little help.
Zozo, a plastic clown Ollie meets in the thrift store, is traveling with him. So is Ruby, a fuchsia-colored bear with a lightning-shaped patch over one eye and a set of plastic swords to swing at any threat that comes.
And Billy’s searching for Ollie, too—hanging up “Missing” posters and scouring the land.
They need to find each other again. They need a reunion more than perhaps either of them know. Unexpected threats loom over the horizon, lurk in the corner, and might be closer than either could ever imagine.
If the basic setup here—toy loses boy and goes on a crazy adventure to find him—sounds familiar, perhaps that’s no coincidence. The Netflix miniseries is based on Ollie’s Odyssey by William Edward Joyce, who worked on art design for Pixar’s Toy Story.
But Lost Ollie is no Pixar popcorn muncher. It’s more wistful. And it’s quite a bit darker, too. Lost Ollie tackles themes such as bullying, grief and betrayal. It’s as if Woody stepped into The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and asked Tim Burton (The Nightmare Before Christmas) to hop on the raft.
Even though Lost Ollie is based on a children’s story, the show doesn’t feel as though it’s appropriate for children—not all children, at any rate. The dark vibe and serious issues might disturb some kids. The profanity and bathroom humor might disturb some parents.
But elements of faith sneak into the story, too. And for those who choose to engage, Lost Ollie is engaging. To see two souls search so sincerely for each other gives the story a certain bittersweet poignancy. And it’s hard not to root for Ollie to, against all odds, find his way home.
Ollie finds himself separated from his boy, Billy, and stuck in a thrift shop guarded by a massive mutt named Buttons. He and a new friend, Zozo, make plans to escape—but it won’t be easy. Especially since Ollie has no clue which direction “home” is for him.
Zozo is attacked by Buttons and lies in a mangled mess before he eventually mostly rights himself. (Some of his limbs are still prone to fall out of socket, though.) Ollie suffers, too—having a price tag stapled to his ear. He also loses a bit of stuffing, but Zozo patches the hole with a postage stamp of Elvis Presley.
We see some flashbacks of Ollie’s life with Billy. It’s clear that Billy’s mother is very ill, and that both she and Daddy are trying to pave the way for her eventual departure. (Billy’s dad wants him to put away Ollie and not be “some baby,” while Momma continues to encourage Billy’s imaginative, childlike side.) Momma spots bruises on Billy’s arms and quizzes him how he got them. The conversation suggests that Billy’s regularly bullied because he was apparently adopted.
Zozo tells a story about another doll that he loved and lost. “I think it’s best if we just stay put, where we’re safe,” Zozo says. “You can’t trust this old world, Ollie.” Another stuffed animal drives off Buttons with a pair of plastic swords before the dog can gnaw on anyone else. (Ollie asks if she’s a Jedi.) Ollie, for his part, prides himself on his martial arts skills.
We hear some brief allusions to faith: Zozo tells an exuberant Ollie to use his “church voice,” and we hear a reference to prayer. Momma shares a disgusting story involving Billy’s dad when he was a kid and a misplaced kick that lodged in a dog’s backside. We hear more swearing than you’d expect from what’s ostensibly a kid’s story, including “a–,” “d–n,” “h—” and “p-ssed.” God’s name is misused five times.
Paul Asay has been part of the Plugged In staff since 2007, watching and reviewing roughly 15 quintillion movies and television shows. He’s written for a number of other publications, too, including Time, The Washington Post and Christianity Today. The author of several books, Paul loves to find spirituality in unexpected places, including popular entertainment, and he loves all things superhero. His vices include James Bond films, Mountain Dew and terrible B-grade movies. He’s married, has two children and a neurotic dog, runs marathons on occasion and hopes to someday own his own tuxedo. Feel free to follow him on Twitter @AsayPaul.
Talent and intrigue ultimately can’t cloak the truth about this vulgar, crass and graphic drama on Netflix.
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