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Review: ABC’s ‘A Million Little Things’ Premiere is a Strong and Emotional Start to a Promising Series

This is a spoiler-free review of ABC’s upcoming new drama series A Million Little Things:

“Friendship isn’t one big thing; it’s a million little things,” and “everything happens for a reason.” Those are the central themes of ABC’s brand-new drama appropriately titled A Million Little Things which is premiering on the network this fall.

The series features a stellar cast including David Giuntoli, Ron Livingston, Romany Malco, James Roday, Stephanie Szostak, Allison Miller, Christina Moses, Christina Ochoa, Grace Park, and Lizzy Greene.

Review: ABC's 'A Million Little Things' Premiere is a Strong and Emotional Start to a Promising Series
CR: ABC/Matthias Clamer

A Million Little Things follows a group of friends who met by chance when their elevator got stuck. After hours of being trapped together and discovering a common bond over their love of the Boston Bruins, they walked away wholly changed and as new best friends. Fast forward to several years later; their friendship is still going strong despite each person having his own struggles. Everything comes to a screeching halt when one of their own unexpectedly and unfathomably commits suicide. The group is then forced to face their realities and to start living their lives to the fullest in honor of their lost friend.

The series doesn’t waste any time bringing the viewer up to speed with its characters. We meet the main four within the series’ opening scene which consists of a montage showing us where each character was right before they found out their friend had taken his own life. Even in their state of grief, these characters come across as complex, likable and relatable but not overbearing. Viewers will be able to see a little bit of themselves in each of the main four. While other main characters were also introduced in the series pilot, their story was not nearly fleshed out enough for the viewer to form an emotional connection, but I suspect we’ll see much more from them in the immediate following episodes. To start with, my deep connection to the main four characters was more than enough to keep me invested throughout the pilot episode.

To address the metaphorical and dramatic elephant on the internet, A Million Little Things and NBC’s This Is Us are two totally and completely different shows. ABC’s new show is being compared to NBC’s megahit drama, and while some of those comparisons are being said in a positive light, they are mainly meant to be negative against A Million Little Things. The similarities between the series start and end with the fact that both are beautiful, well-written dramas with plots that contain a main character’s death. That’s pretty much where the comparison should stop because beyond that, it’s clear from just the series pilot alone that A Million Little Things stands all on its own as a fantastic original dramatic series.

Now, I know what you’re thinking. “This show sounds so depressing,” and I hear you, but let me assure you the series is not all gloom and doom. A Million Little Things pours on the heavy emotional drama at times, but that is nicely balanced with welcomed and refreshing humor, mostly from Roday’s character, which adds a level of realism to what would otherwise be overly emotional situations. Each character has an interesting storyline to follow, so the series is way more than just an emotional punch in the stomach. The pilot provides twists, turns, and mystery in addition to some interactions between the characters which will tug tightly on your heartstrings.

Overall, the pilot is thoughtful, emotional and entertaining. It provides a strong, promising and intriguing start to what could be the best new drama this season.

Review: ABC's 'A Million Little Things' Premiere is a Strong and Emotional Start to a Promising Series
ABC/Jack Rowand

A Million Little Things is created by DJ Nash. Nash also serves as an executive producer along with Aaron Kaplan and Dana Honor. James Griffiths is the director on the pilot and an executive producer, from ABC Studios/Kapital Entertainment.

Be sure to catch the series premiere of A Million Little Things on Wednesday, September 26th at 10 PM EST.

Are you as excited as we are about this series? Are you looking forward to watching A Million Little Things this fall on ABC? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.

For more details on A Million Little Things, check out our exclusive interview with star Christina Ochoa!