‘Dudes’ (2025) Netflix Series Review - A Self-Referential Marketing Tool

If Dudes/Alphamännchen were a thesis paper, its title could have been Toxic Masculinity. But the original title is also quite apt. Alphamännchen means Alpha Male, and Dudes… well, the series is about four dudes who suffer from that common problem called male toxicity. These four characters, who are also best friends, are Ulf (Tom Beck), Erik (David Rott), Cem (Serkan Kaya), and Andi (Moritz Führmann). Each of them, in their own small or big way, is toxic. Ulf is your typical sexist who can't bear to be around or work for successful women, including his wife, Elif (Mona Pirzad). Erik is a "modern man" on the outside, who pretends to be okay with Kim's (Marleen Lohse) open relationship deal, but on the inside, he remains insecure, jealous, and weak. Andi's issues are more, um, bodily (he has low hormones, which means he doesn't get aroused while making out with his wife), but he also displays little interest in talking about his problems or having a meaningful discussion with his spouse, Silke (Franziska Machens). Finally, there is Cem, who looks sweet, behaves sweetly, almost like an adorable puppy. However, he is commitment-phobic, and he lies to Ulf about dating Vanessa (Jaëla Probst) and lies to Vanessa about his ex-wife. (Ulf doesn't like Vanessa because he thinks she stole his CEO job from him; Cem tells Vanessa that his ex-wife died in a car accident.)

In theory, a show like Dudes looks pretty promising. It exposes male fragility through sexist, problematic characters by treating them as comic figures — as a source of comedy. The more Ulf brandishes his chauvinism, the more stupid he looks in front of your eyes. He shoots himself in the foot by rejecting progressive ideas and embracing patriarchal viewpoints. Erik, too, spoils his relationship by refusing to, ahem, open his mind. Cem is a therapist who himself needs therapy, and Andi doesn't see that to be a good husband, one also needs to be alert toward, let's say, "bedroom duties." What about women? Silke starts an affair with her gym trainer and does feel guilty. However, it's made clear that her actions are a result of Andi's asexuality. In other words, blame Andi. Kim is very clear about her desires and doesn't hide anything from Erik. Vanessa hates sexist men like Ulf and doesn't want Cem to hang out with him. Finally, we have Elif, who is surprisingly very patient with Ulf and his thinly disguised misogyny — she constantly presents herself as a good wife.

Nonetheless, something felt off, something seemed missing while I was watching the series. For a show that announces itself as a raunchy comedy, there is neither enough raunchiness nor enough comedy. There are a couple of decent (heh!) jokes, like the one involving a vibrator or the one where Erik encounters his parents in the most surprising of places. However, the tone overall is benignly bland, and most jokes rely on the obvious (a group of incels grabs their balls and jumps when commanded to do so by their motivational speaker; a daughter tells her parents that one of her friends found them wrestling on the bed). The filmmaking, too, is plain, point-and-shoot, and impersonal. The images lack the smuttiness of the American Pie movies (specifically the first two installments), and the sex is brief — it only indicates that the characters have engaged in a sexual activity. There is also something off about the space the characters inhabit, the geography. For instance, in one scene, we see Kim, Elif, and Silke in a restaurant, so that Elif can learn about Silke's infidelity. No other conversation occurs apart from this. In the very next scene, we see Silke at her home talking to Andi. The two moments are connected disjointedly. The transitions feel abrupt and hasty. Most of the conversations carry an expository whiff (people filling each other in on what we already saw), and after a while, you realize that the show's only novelty is its approach to a relevant topic.

Funnily enough, that novelty loses some of its charm when you discover that Dudes is a reworking of Alpha Males, which is also available on Netflix. Alpha Males consists of three seasons, each with ten episodes. Dudes, by comparison, has eight episodes in its first season. What was added? What was removed? I have not watched Alpha Males in its entirety, but based on brief glimpses while casually browsing through it, I found sufficient similarities between the two series. The scene where the wife goes on a date with her gym trainer and the scene where the teacher talks about the vibrator just look a bit different on the surface, but the core is similar. What Dudes does is make you aware of Alpha Males, and if you like the former, you can continue watching the latter if you don't want to wait for Dudes' second season, which, whether it happens or not, doesn't really matter.

Is this the future of Netflix remakes? An online library so chock-full of content that it has to promote some of it through recycled iterations? Movies and shows have really become self-referential marketing tools. The future seems riddled with old wine in slightly new bottles.

Final Score- [3.5/10]
Reviewed by - Vikas Yadav
Follow @vikasonorous on Twitter
Publisher at Midgard Times