High Fidelity arrives on Hulu as a TV adaptation of Nick Hornby’s 1995 novel about a record store owner who organizes his life around Top Five lists and the records he sells. The show follows Robyn “Rob” Brooks, played by Zoë Kravitz, as she tries to get over her one true love by revisiting the music that defined her past relationships. It is a premise built for nostalgia, and the series leans into it fully.
Trailer, via FilmSelect.
Rob Brooks and the Records She Keeps
Kravitz plays Rob as a Brooklyn record store owner who runs her shop in the gentrifying neighborhood of Crown Heights. Her life is organized around music: she makes playlists, writes Top Five lists, and judges her exes by the albums they loved. The show’s central trick is simple — every conversation about a relationship also becomes a conversation about the record that captured it.
Simon, played by David H. Holmes, is Rob’s partner at the store and her closest friend. Da’Vine Joy Randolph plays Cherise, a customer who becomes a recurring presence in Rob’s life. Together they form the core of a world that feels lived-in rather than staged.
The Music Does the Work
The show’s strength is its use of music. Each episode pairs a key moment with a song that captures the feeling of it. The record store itself functions as a character, full of shelves and vinyl that hold the memories of the people who bought them. The show trusts the audience to understand that a record can say what words sometimes cannot.
The comedy comes from Rob’s obsessive nature — she is the ultimate music fan, a record store owner who is obsessed with pop culture and Top Five lists. That obsession is both the engine of the plot and the source of its humor. When she argues with Simon over a playlist, the argument is about the music, but it is also about everything else.
The Cast Holds It Together
Kravitz carries the show. She plays Rob with a mix of self-awareness and genuine pain that makes her monologues feel less like narration and more like confession. Her chemistry with Holmes is the show’s best pairing — he plays Simon as the calm, steady force who keeps Rob from spiraling too far. Randolph brings warmth and wit as Cherise, giving the show a fresh perspective beyond Rob’s usual circle.
Jake Lacy was cast as a series regular alongside the series order announcement. Kingsley Ben-Adir joined as a guest star. The show benefits from a cast that knows when to let Rob’s music do the talking and when to step back.
One Season, One Ending
High Fidelity premiered on February 14, 2020, and was canceled in August 2020 after one season. That short run means the show ends before it fully resolves the story it started telling. The final episode closes the book on Rob’s current crisis but leaves open the question of what happens next.
The cancellation is a fact of the show’s history, not a flaw in the execution. The show earned positive reviews from critics and finished with a score of 7.0 out of 10. That number reflects a show that knows exactly what it wants to be — a warm, funny, music-obsessed portrait of grief and recovery — and delivers it with confidence.
A Record Store Worth Visiting
High Fidelity is a show about the people we choose and the ones we lose, told through the records that marked those moments. It is a small, specific world, and it trusts the audience to care about it. The show’s biggest risk is also its biggest reward — it commits fully to its premise and never explains away the parts that might not make sense to a stranger.
| Element | Strength | Weakness |
|---|---|---|
| Lead performance | Zoë Kravitz anchors the show | One-season run limits character development |
| Music integration | Songs carry emotional weight | Some episodes lean on nostalgia alone |
| Ensemble cast | Strong supporting players | Short run prevents deeper arcs |
| Setting | Crown Heights record store feels lived-in | Limited scope within one season |
The Verdict
High Fidelity is a show that understands its own rules and plays by them. It is funny, sad, and full of great records. It is not a show that aims for grandeur — it aims for truth, and mostly finds it. The ending feels abrupt, but it is honest. This is a show about the records we keep, and it keeps the ones that matter.
Key facts
– Creator: Veronica West, Sarah Kucserka
– Network: Hulu
– Seasons: 1, 10 episodes
– First aired: February 14, 2020
– Last aired: February 14, 2020
– Starring: Zoë Kravitz, David H. Holmes, Da’Vine Joy Randolph
– Score: 7.0 out of 10
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