TV Review: FX’s "Adults" is like a Gen-Z ‘Friends’ - Messy, Hilarious, and Surprisingly Heartfelt

Being an adult doesn’t mean having it all figured out. FX’s Adults follows five New York City twenty-somethings who are legally grown-ups but emotionally still faking it until they maybe make it. Think Friends for Gen-Z—less gloss, more chaos, and a whole lot of self-discovery.

Unemployed optimist Samir (Malik Elassal) lives in his childhood home with his best friend Billie (Lucy Freyer), who’s quick to chase opportunity despite not being ready for it. They’re joined by Anton (Owen Thiele), a sweet, pathologically polite friend; Issa (Amita Rao), a chaotic extrovert whose instincts are as reckless as they are endearing; and her boyfriend Paul Baker (Jack Innanen), a human social chameleon whose personality shifts with whomever he’s around—sometimes even romantically.

Created by comedy duo Ben Kronengold and Rebecca Shaw (The Tonight Show, Naked in the Rideshare), Adults strips away the sitcom sheen to reveal a raw, hilarious portrait of found-family dysfunction. It’s Friends without the Central Perk filter—more grounded, more gritty, and often more emotionally honest.

Whether comparing medical procedures to sexual positions or awkwardly navigating doctor visits, job interviews, and the adulting minefield of insurance, the characters face it all with a cocktail of naivete, optimism, and sometimes delusion. But through it all, they have each other—flawed but fiercely loyal.

As a millennial who initially assumed Adults wasn’t for me, I couldn’t have been more wrong. The series is firmly rooted in Gen-Z sensibilities—characters raised on the internet, steeped in irony, and deeply aware of their neuroses—but it’s accessible across generations. Supporting roles from older characters—including a standout guest turn by Daredevil: Born Again’s Charlie Cox as a potential romantic interest for Billie—offer funny and sometimes poignant contrasts that round out the world.

Each lead brings nuance and charm to their role, and despite the characters’ frequent missteps, they remain deeply likable. Elassal’s Samir is a people pleaser with a yearning to grow. Freyer’s Billie masks insecurity with a can-do attitude. Thiele softens the gay best friend trope with gentle sincerity. Rao’s Issa could have headlined Broad City had she been born a decade earlier. And Innanen’s Paul Baker (never just Paul) is magnetic in his shapeshifting fluidity.

Adults may aim its voice at Gen-Z, but like Friends and Broad City before it, its core themes—friendship, failure, love, and growth—are timeless. It’s a comedy about not having it together, and that’s something anyone can relate to.

I give FX’s Adults 4.5 out of 5 on the “spectrum of men."

FX’s Adults premieres Wednesday, May 28th, on FX, and starts streaming May 29th on Hulu.