Russian Doll Season 2 comes out today on Netflix which means that it’s imperative to do a Russian Doll Season 1 recap for those who cannot remember anything about what happened in Season 1 of the mind-bending show. This is only natural considering the show’s 1st season was released 3 years ago, in February 2019. It’s been such a long time that we almost believed that there would be no new seasons of Russian Doll. Thank god we were wrong.
As if the repeated death scenarios of the show weren’t enough, the series now incorporated into its universe another crazy concept, time travel. You can see what we mean by this in the below official trailer for Russian Doll Season 2.
Let’s cut to the chase and give you what you have been waiting for: a brief Russian Doll Season 1 recap that includes only the major events that are necessary to be known to understand the 2nd season.
What is Russian Doll about? Russian Doll Season 1 Recap
What is Russian Doll about?
The series starts with Nadia Vulvakov (Natasha Lyonne) who is a game designer in New York. Nadia is on her 36th birthday when she gets hit by a cab and gets mysteriously teleported to her birthday party. At first, she thinks it is the effect of weed that she has smoked but it happens again, and then again. She is stuck in a time loop of her death. She dies and finds herself at her birthday party in the same position every time.
Of course, she then starts to investigate the reasons for what’s happening to her while continuously dying and reliving the same night. One day, by chance, she stumbles upon Alan (Charlie Barnett) in an elevator that is plummeting to their death. However, both of them are quite at peace, and Nadia cannot help herself and asks him if he realizes that they are dying. Alan answers and says he dies all the time. So, we learn that Alan is also stuck in his time loop where he dies and relives again and again.
Alan’s loop is more traumatic as he finds himself reliving the day he is getting ready to propose to his girlfriend only to find out that she has been cheating on him with a man named Mike, strangely that’s the man who is Nadia’s on-and-off hookup. So, realizing that he is not alone, Alan teams up with Nadia to understand and break out of their loops.
They discover that Alan’s 1st death was his suicide, jumping from his building. Only when they trace back their lives chronologically that they find out that on the 1st night that both of them died, they could have helped each other but they didn’t. So, they figure out that the universe is trying to punish them for being bad people who did not notice how other people were hurt. In the final episode of the season, they try to break out of their loop and they succeed.
Learn more about Russian Doll here, Russian Doll Netflix Season 2 Release Date, Trailer; Everything We Know So Far!
Russian Doll Season 1 Ending Explained
Russian Doll Season 1 Ending Explained
In the end, the pair realize that to break out of the loop, they both have to face their past issues. Nadia has to forgive herself and understand that her mother’s death was not her fault. She also has to see her daughter, whom she refuses to meet because she was afraid of repeating the same mistakes her mother did. She goes on to meet her daughter and makes amends with her ex-boyfriend.
After Alan and Nadia resolve their issues, they both die one more time and meet at the deli as they promised before. However, the one doesn’t recognize the other. Yet, they both have to help each other to prevent their deaths (they are in 2 different timelines). Alan gains Nadia’s trust and prevents her from getting hit by the cab in 1 timeline and Nadia prevents Alan from committing suicide in the other timeline.
The end scene shows both of the timelines converging as 2 Alans and 2 Nadias go into the same costumed parade. It seems they both managed to get out of the loop by helping each other.
Russian Doll Cast
Russian Doll Cast
The main Russian Doll cast members are as follows: Natasha Lyonne as Nadia, Charlie Barnett as Alan, Greta Lee as Maxine, Rebecca Henderson as Lizzy, Elizabeth Ashley as Ruth, Jeremy Bobb as Mike, Dascha Polanco as Beatrice, and Brendan Sexton III as Horse.
Also, read this article to learn more about the Russian Doll cast Russian Doll Season 2 Cast; Ages, Partners, Characters
