Pretty Smart’s Jayden and Claire are the new Jack and Karen from Will & Grace

Netflix’s new original comedy series Pretty Smart debuted on Oct. 8, and it’s already one of our new favorite sitcoms. In a year full of award-winning comedies like Ted Lasso and Hacks, it’s a delightful throwback to sitcoms of the past.

Emily Osment stars in Pretty Smart as Harvard alum and aspiring novelist Chelsea, whose life seems to fall apart all at once when her boyfriend dumps her. She’s stuck living with her bubbly sister, Claire (Olivia Macklin), but she soon discovers that life doesn’t have to be so serious.

The series also stars Gregg Sulkin as physical trailer Grant, Cinthya Carmona as spiritual healer Solana and Michael Hsu Rosen as online influencer Jayden. Pretty Smart’s cast has instant chemistry and nails the witty dialogue and wild moments with ease.

Beyond the budding relationships between Grant and the sisters, one friendship is the real star of the show. By far, Jayden and Claire steal the spotlight whenever they’re on screen together, but they also have the power to make a joke work separately. Who does that remind you of?

Pretty Smart will remind you of Will & Grace

While it’s a huge comparison and one we don’t use lightly, Jayden and Claire are a knockout duo just like Will & Grace’s Jack and Karen. Yes, they’re that good. Like Sean Hayes and Megan Mullally before them, Macklin and Rosen understand the assignment of these larger-than-life characters.

Jayden and Claire very much live in their own world but are two sides of the same coin. Where Jayden is very dramatic and theatrical, Claire is extremely happy-go-lucky and unflappable. They both have a childlike sense of whimsy (which is probably why they were prey for a cult) that’s otherwise foreign to Chelsea and a hallmark of their personas.

Although the entire Pretty Smart cast hits all the right notes, especially Young & Hungry vet Emily Osment in a new kind of comedy leading role, there’s something electric between Macklin and Rosen as Jayden and Claire. It’s the same surreal energy Jack and Karen brought to Will & Grace.

When the gang goes on a mail heist in the Cody Briggs episode, Chelsea and Claire embark on their own heist, while Grant, Jayden and Solana go on one, too. Claire and Jayden both use codewords, but no one knows what they’re talking about because, of course, they’d planned them together.

However, unlike Jack and Karen, Jayden and Claire don’t have a sinister streak. They’re much kinder to each other and their friends, which feels like an improvement on the tone of comedy that used to be popular. Still, they share the unmistakeable magic of Will & Grace’s fan-favorite duo that has so much potential in future seasons.

As a whole, Pretty Smart operates a lot like the popular and beloved NBC comedy as far as sitcoms go, with Chelsea acting as the stuffy Will learning to let his hair down a little thanks to some challenging but always fun best friends. If you walk away from your binge-watch without laughing out loud, you’re doing it wrong.

We hope to see much more of Jayden, Claire, Chelsea and the whole gang in Pretty Smart season 2. For now, check out the hilarious new series on Netflix right now!