--- This article contains a slight spoiler for events in the first episode. ---
Food delivery is nobody’s idea of a dream job. But for struggling international student Tessa (Shirong Wu), working for delivery app Appetite quickly becomes a nightmare.
She never would have taken the job if things were going well. Failing grades and a mother who can’t help but make her feel guilty were bad enough. Then she lost her bubble tea job just when housemate Zal (Raj Labade) was on her back about rent. Raj (Kabir Singh) – technically another housemate, though he lives in the garage – seemed to be doing okay riding for Appetite, and they’re always looking for new employees. Problem solved? Not quite.
Refreshingly, Appetite isn’t a workplace comedy, and the delivery team – fellow housemate Bastian (Gabriel Alvarado) also rides for Appetite – don’t have to deal with a stream of wacky customers. In fact, we never see any of the customers at all. It’s the chemistry between Raj and Tessa that’s the real focus as he shows her the ropes, and it’s hotter than the food they’re delivering. When their planned date ends with her stood up at the pancake truck, it seems like just another speed bump on the road of life. Then Zal gets a call: there’s been an accident.
Right from the start, Appetite is a mystery that’ll keep you guessing. There’s a body in the morgue, and it has Raj’s phone… but it isn’t him. And while Raj isn’t in the morgue, he didn’t come home last night, and they have no idea where he could be. That’s a problem, because he needs to get in touch with the police to explain what connection, if any, he has to the dead man.
With Raj’s application for Permanent Residency on the line – people have had their applications denied for traffic offences, let alone vanishing after a fatal accident – his housemates can’t tell the police he’s missing. Tessa already has a lot on her plate, and looking for clues as to where Raj might have gone only deepens the mystery. What exactly was he doing at Appetite, and who’s paying the real price for convenience?
Tessa (Shirong Wu) and Bastian (Gabriel Alvarado) looking for answers. Source: Appetite Show / Felipe Neves
There’s a lot going on during Appetite’s compact run-time (it airs as a one-hour marathon on SBS VICELAND, Saturday 22 April at 9.30pm, with all six episodes available at SBS On Demand after that). As the mystery twists and turns, it touches on issues around the gig economy, the demands of student life, and just who’s looking after the people who help keep our society running.
Any hints that the job itself might be fun or cool go in the bin early on. Tessa’s first day sees her making $56 for two hours’ work riding 20 kilometres. As the story progresses, it starts to look like she was one of the lucky ones, as Appetite’s business model isn’t all that forgiving of those who fall behind.
Things are about to get complicated for housemates Bastian, Tessa, Zal and Raj. Source: Appetite Show / Felipe Neves
One of Raj’s rules is “Appetite is all-seeing, she follows your every move”. The voice of the Appetite app backs that up with her oh-so-slightly sinister tone as she constantly urges Tessa to speed up if she’s going to make her delivery on time. There’s something chillingly remorseless in her commands, even when they’re merely directions to the next gig.
Facing off against a faceless corporation, our trio have the odds stacked against them. Students on the margins of society (even getting hold of a car is a struggle), they’re a deftly sketched and authentically diverse trio of would-be detectives: Tessa is Chinese, Bastian comes from Chile, Raj is Indian, and Zal… likes to keep his background to himself.
Which is understandable, as he’s something of an antagonist at first, a hustler who lets Tessa know she can pay her rent in crypto and seems to have a side gig in market research which for some reason involves a cupboard full of mystery meals. The others are driven by their friendship with Raj and a need to figure out exactly what’s going on. Zal’s heart might be somewhere near the right place, but he’s going to have to get his head in the game (and stop destroying evidence) to do anything more than get in the way.
Whether the body on the road at the start of Appetite is there because of an accident or something more sinister doesn’t really matter. It’s clear that it’s the system that had him racing down the road at dangerous speeds that’s the real culprit. Was Raj just a cog in the machine, or does he have blood on his hands? Tessa, Bastian and Zal need to deliver answers, and time is running out.
Is there more than meets the eye going on with Appetite? Source: Appetite Show / Felipe Neves
Appetite premiered on SBS Viceland as a 60-minute compilation on Saturday, 22 April. All six episodes are now streaming at . Start here:
