Marco (Miss Benny) is a young queer makeup enthusiast who is just trying to make it. He has big dreams that cannot be contained by the camera setup he has at his vanity—or at the mall cosmetics counter he works at. So when the former model and current beauty mogul Madolyn Addison (Kim Cattrall) walks into his life, Marco can’t deny his destiny. She sees the spark in him; he’ll tell her the truth, even when it hurts, and he has a lot of fresh ideas she’s looking for. There’s only one thing to do: Hire Marco as her assistant!
Marco is ready to take the fashion world by storm—but first, he has to learn how it works. He’s shown the ropes by some of the staff, including Venetia Kelaher (Jade Payton), Madolyn’s first assistant, and Ben (Michael Hsu Rosen), a graphic designer with a crush. But not everyone at Glamorous is on his side—finance bro Parker (Graham Parkhurst) can’t tell whether he wants or wants to hate Marco, while Madolyn’s son Chad (Zane Phillips) is…well, a Chad (this show is rather on the nose).
As Marco finds his place in the company and continues to grow as a person and makeup guru, he makes mistakes—but he also owns up to his mess and fixes it. Each episode showcases a different chance for growth for him, while developing the chemistry and personalities of those around him in this workplace dramedy. Miss Benny is a wonderful lead who brightens every scene, and I can’t wait to see more!
Meanwhile, Kim Cattrall is having an absolute ball as Madolyn, commanding every scene she’s in with affected poise. The cast all do their best with the writing, which is often stilted and filled with clichés. There are moments that will make you wince; sometimes it feels like this show should’ve come out a while back but didn’t make it until now.
It’s nothing groundbreaking or even all that great but it will make you smile—Glamorous is light & fluffy, set to an effervescent soundtrack that hits all the right notes even when the show doesn’t. So if you’re looking for an easy watch with lots of queer characters you can easily root for, give this one a try—maybe you’ll even pick up some great makeup tips along the way.
