Elle Woods is back. Elle, Amazon Prime’s Legally Blonde prequel series, follows the glamorous life of Elle before she became a Harvard-acclaimed lawyer.
Taking place before the first Legally Blonde movie, the series starts just as Elle is forced to move from glamorous Los Angeles to Seattle after a botched plastic surgery performed by Elle’s dad rocks the family’s finances and social status. This show takes on the struggles that Elle faces in adapting to a new lifestyle in Seattle, away from all the glitz and glamour that she is used to in LA.
Elle does a really good job of keeping the themes of Legally Blonde while returning us to the 90s, with subtle references to the original film for fans who love an Easter egg.
Moving to Seattle brings Elle an existential crisis, and things go further south the more she tries to be herself. From getting school staff fired to disrespecting her friend’s mom, this Seattle lifestyle is very different from what Elle used to. In a classic coming-of-age story, after several missteps, Elle faces her identity head-on, and a new friend, Liz, teaches Elle what it is to be carefree.
Elle tries to recreate the iconic symbol of Elle Woods that Legally Blonde brought to life, and while fans of the movies will be excited to see Elle again in a new setting, Elle goes through similar revelations that she does during the original film, and her battle for confidence and success might be too familiar.
These plot similarities make it hard to believe that Elle would have experienced the same struggles in Legally Blonde after facing down similar mismatched expectations in high school. This hole in the storyline makes us question if these two stories are really supposed to match up.
Elle also has some character plot holes that don’t make too much sense for Elle’s character. For example, Elle kisses her friend Shannon’s ex-boyfriend Miles. When we meet Elle in Legally Blonde, her dedication to “girl code” and sisterhood are major parts of her personality and motivation, and while her betrayal of Shannon pushes the plot forward, it may be too unlike the Elle fans know.
Overall, Elle is a great show to put on your list this summer. Elle is a relatable teenager going through the highs and lows of moving to a whole new state. Making mistakes and meeting the right and wrong people are a part of every teen’s life, including Elle. (She had to start somewhere before dominating Harvard Law, right?)
