Pretty Dudes is an American LGBTQdigitaldramedy created by Chance Calloway that tells the story of a group of friends in Southern California who navigate in and out of platonic and romantic relationships. Predominantly featuring an inclusive and intersectional cast and crew, the series stars an ensemble that includes Xavier Avila, Tiffany Commons, Bryan Michael Nuñez, Kyle Rezzarday, Manny Shih, Joshuah Noah Snel, Aria Song, Tae Song, Yoshi Sudarso, and Olivia Thai. Pretty Dudes aired initially on YouTube and streams on Amazon Prime Video and VOD serviceStoopid Ambitious as of 2019.
Premise
Set in the greater Los Angeles area, the series follows a group of millennial friends of varying races, genders, and backgrounds as they navigate platonic and romantic relationships. Photographer Zario, business law student Ellington, gamer Alexander, and doumi Jay live with model Sunji, where they are frequently visited by hard-drinking neighbor Eagle. After entering a bet to get Zario a new boyfriend, resentments and betrayals cause friction in the group. The second season expands the main group to include painter Kish, art gallery owner December, Ellington's younger brother Marshall, and December's younger brother Boaz.
Cast and characters
Main cast
Recurring
Marc Fajardo as Rock Diolosa
Stacy Snyder as Mandy
Cesar Cipriano as Shane Cortez
Chelsea Gray as Ty
Kelsey Toussant as Calligraphy "Callie" Reynolds
Stanley Wong as Erwin Lee
Leo Lam as Gregory
Carlin James as Elijah
Nicko Sabado as Lando
Courtney Grant as Tevin
Sammy Cantu as Ken Dahl
Charlit Dae as Ram Takada
Tatiana A. Lee as Geneva Fauntleroy
Anthony Ma as Michael Michigan
Brennan Mejia as Carver Gomez-Pacheco
Peter Adrian Sudarso as Quincy
Angelique Maurnae as Armoni Chantal
Henita Telo as Fable
Amira Gray as Nia
Dickie Hearts as Chance
Michael Bow as Genie
Clifford Cisneros as Zach Largaespada
Tony Garbanzos as Patrick
Beau Sia as Stranger
Guest
Dion Basco as Samuel
Osric Chau as Vincint
Giovannie Espiritu
Wilson Lai as Korey
Avalon Penrose as White Kish
Episodes
Season 1
Season 2
Soundtrack
Season 1
How We Break by Matt Almodiel, Chance Calloway and Peter Su
Caught Gay-Handed was the very first Pretty Dudes-related project, released April 30, 2017.
''How We Break ("Pretty Dudes" Anthem)''
Chance Calloway and Gerry Maravilla co-directed the Malibu-set music video for the series anthem. Featuring Nuñez in an unnamed role implied to be Zario, other cast members also appear in the video alongside the song's singers Matt Almodiel, Calloway and Peter Su.
Containing two episodes, "Bravo Double Delta" and "Brother's Keeper," this short was co-written by all of the season 2 writers, Chance Calloway, Christopher Edelen, and Andrea Lee. This short doesn't seem to be in canon with the actual plot of season 2. Among other things, The Dude House is a different location, singer Tanerélle plays Kish, and Sammy Cantu plays a character named Aza Keeper, where his season two character is named Ken Dahl.
''Pretty Dudes: The Novel''
A novelization of the first season was released on July 7, 2020.
Reception
Critical reception
The show's first season received a positive response from critics who mostly praised its diversity and inclusive storylines. Philip Hernandez of Black Talent TV called Pretty Dudes "a one a kind web series." Asyiqin Haron of Geeks of Color called the show "incredibly diverse," highlighting the "great storytelling." It was listed as one of "9 Dope, Black Web Series To Dive into for the Summer" by Shadow and Act, called "extraordinary" and "the rare series that showcases nuanced friendship between gay and straight men" by Jordan Simon who went on to add, "If you love Noah's Arc, you will enjoy this.". While noting that Pretty Dudes seemed "created for the gay male and female gaze," Devin Randall complimented the "truly fleshed out story" in a review for Instinct Magazine. RIZEup Magazine called the series "trendsetting." In a negative review, queerguru said the series has a "lightweight plot" "intended to be watched only by other millenials."
