With the help of streaming services like Netflix, people are able to watch a variety of shows and movies at their heart's content. And thanks to Netflix's suggestion section (where the streaming service recommends other TV shows and movies based on the things you've already watched), we're able to watch new things that we've never even heard of before.
For those that watched the Australian comedy The Letdown when arrived on Netflix internationally in 2018, they may have noticed that it's incredibly similar to the Canadian sitcom Workin' Moms that came to Netflix a year later. In fact, they're eerily indistinguishable. Both shows revolve around women (and their partners) meeting with a parenting group to discuss and connect about all things childcare. Along the way, life gets messy. Keep reading to see what elements the shows nailed in comparison to the other.
10 Workin' Moms: Shows The Complexities Of Marriage After Baby
Workin' Moms is so progressive that it's at times heartbreaking. Life gets complicated after kids are thrown in the mix and the series does a fantastic job at showing the complexities and differences in relationships.
For starters, due to Kate working so much and not making her family a priority, her husband begins an affair with Anne's nanny. And while Anne and her husband seem like the perfect match, they too argue over the option of having more kids. Jenny also struggles with not just being a partner but motherhood in general, and checks out of her relationship. When looking at both of the series, Workin' Moms shows more variety in the relationship drama department.
9 The Letdown: Shows How Often Women Compare Their Children To Each Other
It's an unspoken rule that mothers shouldn't compare their children to other kids their age. Every child grows in their own time and there's no need to alarm oneself over digressing or progressing. While both shows highlight this aspect, The Letdown does a phenomenal job of showing how it can cause more harm than good.
Throughout the series, we can see Audrey overthinking Stevie's development the more she talks to the parenting group. Sophie tells Audrey that her baby sleeps throughout the night thanks to sleep training, to which Audrey agrees that Stevie does the same thing. In reality, the sleep training methods weren't working for Stevie at all, and yet she felt compelled to act as if everything was brilliant.
8 Workin' Moms: Emphasizes Being A Working Mom
Thanks to the title, it's obvious Workin' Moms shows the everyday battle a working mom has to go through. And unlike many shows on TV, we see one woman (Kate) choose her personal business success over becoming a stay-at-home mom. Likewise, we meet Jenny who would rather work and have a social life than be a mother and wife. There are so many unique angles Workin' Moms takes that we don't see on everyday TV, and yet happen in countless homes. Seeing a woman's battle over juggling work, motherhood, and being a good partner was at the forefront of this show.
7 The Letdown: Shows The Strength Of A SAHM
As one can imagine, Workin' Moms doesn't have many stay-at-home moms, but The Letdown does. The character Barbara is the more notable stay-at-home mom since she has twins and a newborn.
We see her shining SAHM moment when she wasn't invited to her kids' career day, despite the fact that being a stay-at-home mom is one of the most important jobs in the world. Barbara grabbed the kids' attention as she told them all of her secret powers and how hard she works for zero money just for the gratification of motherhood.
6 Workin' Moms: Sees Motherhood At Different Stages
In The Letdown, we don't see too many toddlers or older kids running around. Barbara has twins who are older, but they're not in many scenes. We also don't see Barbara's at-home life all that much. But in Workin' Moms, Anne has an older daughter along with a newborn. While she's trying to balance a new baby and work, she's also dealing with her rebellious daughter who may be hanging out with the wrong crowd. We see the effects of social media, defying someone's parents, safety concerns, and so much more. Seeing the complexities of parenthood at different stages in a parents' life was eye-opening for parent viewers.
5 The Letdown: Brings Light To The Drama Around Child Birthday Parties
Whether parents want to bring it up or not, throwing the first birthday party is a tedious event for many parents. Most moms and dads claim it's "no big deal" because their one-year-old won't remember the party, but it's more for the parents. It's a time to bring everyone together and celebrate a milestone in a baby's life.
However, as we saw in The Letdown, it's also a time to worry, over-plan, and forget. We saw Barbara tell Audrey her backyard wasn't childproofed, that her baked goods didn't taste good because they were sans sugar, and that she pulled a rookie move by scheduling her birthday party during Stevie's nap time. All these things are raw and honest moments in a new mom's life.
4 Workin' Moms: Focuses On Friendships Outside Of The Moms' Support Group
A major difference between the two shows is the friendships. In Workin' Moms, Kate and Anne are best friends who join the parenting group together. They've known each other since before kids and are very involved in each other's lives. It's not until the parenting group that they become friends with Jenny and Frankie.
In The Letdown, Audrey is still hesitant about opening up to the mothers in her parenting group. It appears that she's afraid of being judged for not always having her stuff together or knowing what to do. There are more secrets kept among the mothers in comparison to Workin' Moms, who have no problem putting their failures out there.
3 The Letdown: Talks About The Differences In Births
The Letdown does a great job of talking about the differences in how a child is delivered. When Sophie is worried about parts of her body prolapsing, she decides to lay all her cards on the table and discuss each option thoroughly. She invites both Ester and Audrey over to discuss the differences in their C-sections and what she can expect. Ester tells both women that her C-section was perfectly done and she didn't suffer a bit. Audrey, on the other hand, had such a traumatic experience that it hindered her from having more children. Hearing the differences in experiences proves how unique motherhood and childbirth are.
2 Workin' Moms: Shows More Than Just Parenthood
What makes Workin' Moms such a success is the storylines. It's not just about moms learning how to be a mom; it's about relationships, drama, ageism, maintaining friendships — the entire series is entertaining while also being educational. That's not to say that The Letdown doesn't do the same, but Workin' Moms nails it. We see the death of Kate's father (and her husband's affair), Anne dealing with her ex-husband working in the same building as her own, Frankie battling postpartum depression, and Jenny's ex becoming a single dad. Each storyline is complex, and brings both the drama and the laughs.
1 The Letdown: Handles Body Issues After Baby Honestly
The Letdown shows the changes in a woman's body differently than Workin' Moms. Sophie is very honest and embarrassed about her incontinence and how it affects her day-to-day life. Barbara tells Audrey that "mommy brain" is not a myth but a very real thing that she struggles with daily. We learn about different body parts prolapsing during birth, which can make healing quite tricky. And we see how intimacy between a couple changes when bodies are still healing from a major event like childbirth. In their own time, each woman becomes comfortable in their own bodies, but it takes work.
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