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The French dramedy \u201cReformed,\u201d on Max<\/a> (in French, with subtitles, or dubbed), follows a young rabbi who moves back home to begin her career. L\u00e9a (Elsa Guedj) is smart, knowledgeable and capable, but she is also new at this and nervous. It doesn\u2019t help that those around her, including members of her own family, scoff at the idea of a female rabbi \u2014 when they\u2019re tired of scoffing at religion in general.<\/p>\n \u201cThere was Galileo, there was Freud, there was Auschwitz,\u201d says her father (\u00c9ric Elmosnino), a therapist. \u201cI thought we\u2019d figured it out. God doesn\u2019t exist.\u201d<\/p>\n Doubt is a constant presence in \u201cReformed,\u201d both grandly and in the sense that \u201cEh, aren\u2019t we all just muddling through?\u201d The show is based loosely on the book \u201cLiving With Our Dead,\u201d by the French rabbi Delphine Horvilleur<\/a>, and the episodes center on life cycle events: a bris, a bar mitzvah, a wedding, a funeral, shiva. Most of the people availing themselves of L\u00e9a\u2019s services aren\u2019t particularly observant, and they\u2019re not sure if or how to engage with the rites.<\/p>\n And L\u00e9a isn\u2019t sure either, so she rehearses different voice memos. Yes, do it. No, don\u2019t. Oh no, uh, there was a family emergency, I can\u2019t help you<\/em>. But invariably, she does help them, with real care and curiosity, not in trite or Pollyannaish ways. She is doctrinal but not doctrinaire, and all these rituals of change for her congregants are rituals of change for her, too. She becomes more confident and mature ushering a reluctant bar mitzvah boy through the process. She hones her discernment skills while officiating a wedding.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The most intriguing relationship on the show is between L\u00e9a and Ari\u00e9 (Lionel Dray), the local orthodox rabbi and her former teacher. There\u2019s a magnetic pull and constant fascination between them, a lot of trust but also a sense of betrayal. He\u2019s her mentor, and they have an intense erotic energy, but each also sees the other as practicing religion incorrectly \u2014 a tension that can be playful right up until it is profoundly hurtful. The goings on at their respective shuls highlight their own misgivings about their denominational choices: Maybe her practice is<\/em> shallow; maybe his practice is <\/em>misogynistic. Let\u2019s resolve to smolder at each other about it.<\/p>\n In addition to being charming, \u201cReformed\u201d is interesting. Sitcom shenanigans nestle alongside philosophical musings. A farce unfolds at a seder, and goofy sibling banter segues into deeper conversation and back. Seven episodes are available now, and the season finale arrives on Friday.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n