At just eight roughly 10-minutes episodes making up season 1, “360 with Abby” is binge-worthy.
YouTuber Adenike Adebayo-Esho is the director of the web series. And if you are not much of a binge-watcher, this series will make you act to the contrary. Because it will keep you glued to your screen.
“360 with Abby” is the story of a vlogger, Abiona “Abby” Owolagba (Ariyike Abidele) who is living with epilepsy. Thankfully, Abby has her mother (Omobola Akinde) and best friend Yemi Olorebikan (Olawande Adetula) to lean on when the going gets tough. Yemi and Abby have been friends since childhood. In fact, they are like sisters.
As one would expect, Abby has to deal with the stigma of suffering from epilepsy whilst juggling work and her love life. She finds herself in a love triangle with businessman Kunle Adewole (David B) and actor Alex Ekwere (Michael Ejoor). Who will Abby choose?
The audience feels Abby’s pain and can relate with her confusion. A conflict most women have have at one time or another. Rejected by the man they love. Yet, unable to love the seemingly more sincere guy.
It is very common to hear of onscreen chemistry. This cast truly has it. Despite being a low budget production but the cast is superb. First off, are the Adewole brothers. Unlike in “The Bling Lagosians” where Jimmy Odukoya barely spoke, he has the best pick-up lines in “360 with Abby.” Anyone in need of lessons on how to woo a woman, is sure to get inspiration from Odukoya. He plays Dayo Adewole, Kunle’s brother. The Kunle character is arrogant and David B is great at it. On the other hand, Alex is pitiable. The seemingly good guy who gets friend-zoned. His friends Fred (Rian Ozobu) and Aliyu (Charles Born) – also add authenticity to the story.
The only thing that isn’t captivating about the series is the music. There was also a slight disconnect when Yemi narrated the story of her abusive by an ex-boyfriend. It is surprising that Abby did not know the said boyfriend given how close the ladies are supposed to be. Whilst it would have been understandable that Yemi kept quiet about the abuse because of shame, in reality, Abby would have at least met him.
Season 1 raised the bar very high with the emotionality. It left fans wondering if the writers would be able to sustain the quality of the storytelling. Sadly, they couldn’t. With episodes in season 2 now stretched into 30-minutes, “360 with Abby” has become less exciting. Some scenes were unnecessarily extended with repeated establishing shots which add no real value to the story. From what has been released so far, season 2 falls short.
Nonetheless, Adebayo-Esho proves that a social issue drama can be interesting even if its goal is to educate. “360 with Abby” is available on YouTube.
