Review: Unstable Is a Futurist Comedy

A biotech lab led by a lightly fictionalized alternate version of Rob Lowe works to save the world.

In the new Netflix comedy Unstable, Rob Lowe stars as a lightly fictionalized alternate version of himself. Rather than a wildly successful, Earth-stoppingly charismatic Holly‑wood star, Ellis Dragon is a wildly successful, Earth-stoppingly charismatic Silicon Valley scientist. He runs a biotech lab that's working to save the world by, among other things, growing cheap replacement human organs and developing a carbon-capture procedure that will turn greenhouse gasses into cement.

The startup's future is at risk as Dragon spirals into mental-breakdown territory following the death of his wife. In a last-ditch effort to restore him to sanity and get the company back on track, his chief of staff secures the reluctant help of Dragon's son (played by Lowe's real-life son), who traded a promising career in science for work as a children's flute instructor in an ill-fated effort to outrun his father's celebrity.

The mental health angle may sound heavy, but the show's vibe is playful and heartwarming. With a plot that involves geoengineering, futurism, and the potential for entrepreneurial eccentrics to change history for the better, there's plenty here to smile about.