Misguided is a sitcom pilot made for Channel 4’s Comedy Blaps series of one-off shorts.
Rhiannon (Lauren Morais) is an ex-popular girl who is forced to join the most unpopular organisation imaginable: the Girl Guides. She has to spend a day with nerdy good-girl Kate (Nerys Amber Stocks), Libby (Meg Alexandra), who likes older men, and Nisha (Nia Gandhi), who really dislikes Rhiannon. Rhiannon convinces the trope to ditch their Girl Guide activities to hang out with some teens partying in the woods.
I came across Misguided because I follow one of the actresses on Instagram and thought the short looked fun, so I may as well give it a view. After doing some research, it turned out that a lot was going on behind the scenes. The writer, Cary Thomas, a rising talent because she has been noticed by major organisations like BAFTA, the BBC’s Writers Room, and Edinburgh Television Festival, and signed to two major agencies in the UK. Comedy Blaps has a strong track record of shorts being turned into TV series: prime examples are Chewing Gum, We Are Lady Parts, and Pusher.
Misguided has been compared to Derry Girls. It’s easy to see why, since both shows focus on teenage girls. Thomas stated she was influenced by her own experience growing up in Cardiff, like Lisa McGee, who based Derry Girls on her teenage years growing up during The Troubles. The Inbetweeners must have been an influence as well; it was a teen comedy that many British sitcoms have copied, including Derry Girls.
Misguided had a main quartet of characters with distinct characteristics. There’s a ‘normal’ character, like Simon and Erin, a troublemaker (i.e. Jay and Michelle), the academic (Simon and Claire), and the weirdo (Neil and Orla). It’s a setup that works. Misguided does mix things up a bit. Rhiannon was a mix of being normal and a troublemaker who let her disdain be known. She found herself right down the social ladder because of the event that forced her into the Girl Guides. Rhiannon butted heads with Beth (Sarah Hadland), the leader of the troupe, and the older lady wasn’t going to put up with any nonsense from the girl. Hadland was the most recognisable actor in the short, and she got to act as the Mr Gilbert/Sister Michael authority figure, although she was a more chipper character.
Nisha was also a mix of being normal and a troublemaker. She was the most socially well-adjusted out of the three Girl Guides, and she enjoyed the chaos of everything going pear-shaped. Kate was much like Claire from Derry Girls since she was smart and neurotic in equal measure. Kate even had a Claire-like moment when she tried to show she could let her hair down and ended up taking extreme action. Kate’s drinking prowess was similar to what Claire did at Ms De Brún’s home when she ended up downing glasses of wine.
Finally, there was Libby, and her character was the most off-putting. The gag revolving around her was that she fancied a man who was old enough to be her dad. It felt uncomfortable, especially in a post-#MeToo era. If Misguided does get greenlit to be a full series, Libby will probably be retooled. Alexandra had to play the role as written, and she was good at playing other aspects of her character: a horny virgin.
Misguided does have a lot of potential to fill a large Derry Girls hole, whilst being able to put its own spin on the teen comedy genre. It was an amusing 12 minutes and gives audiences a flavour of what a full series can be.
Misguided is available on 4oD and YouTube.
