On May 1, the catalog of the streaming platform was supplemented with a new original project – "Uncle Lyosha," a comedy series that seems to have been made not for our time, which is its charm.

Night. A richly furnished mansion. A clever thief steals gold jewelry, leaving no traces in the house, but loses his inhaler while escaping. Soon we learn that this man is Alexey Alexeevich, aka Uncle Lyosha (Timofey Tribuntsev), a janitor at a local boarding school, for whose benefit he steals expensive items from the unscrupulous rich of Rybinsk.

The well-oiled system fails not only because of the lost inhaler, but also because the latest "loot" is discovered by three orphanage students. They don't turn in the janitor, but force him to take them into the "gang" and share the gold. This circumstance triggers a series of unexpected and comical situations from which Tribuntsev's character must somehow extricate himself.

The story of "Robin Hood from Rybinsk" wins you over from the first frames with its naivety and at the same time palpable sincerity of what is happening. In terms of atmosphere, imagery, and overall impressions, "Uncle Lyosha" looks like a relic from the 2000s. No trendy editing techniques, no Kazakh hype music, no attempts to make it look expensive, stylish, and with an eye on successful projects. Instead, there is a desire to tell a simple story of charming characters.

The series has the potential to be quoted widely. In just the first couple of episodes, the authors delivered such punchlines as "You're not Oleg, you're Judas" and "A husband is a husband, but sex is still needed." Thanks to this, the humor in the project is not only situational but also evident in the dialogues, which are full of witty remarks.

The series predictably becomes a benefit performance for the diligent actor Timofey Tribuntsev, who only needs a reason to play something comically touching. And here he is traditionally organic and wonderful. Watching his attempts to do good for everyone except himself is a separate pleasure.

The supporting cast in the series is a bit simpler, but it doesn't spoil the overall impression. Here, Anna Ukolova fills the screen with charisma in the role of the boarding school director, who, like the title character, is used to caring for others while forgetting about herself, and Sergey Lavygin adds a new profession to his filmography – an investigator. It's still hard to judge the children, but they look organic alongside their more seasoned colleagues.

Notably, "Uncle Lyosha" at the third festival of streaming platform content ORIGINAL+ this year took two awards – for "Original Directorial Vision" (Dmitry Nevzorov) and "Original Music." So the series has already received its share of respect from colleagues and experts. The only thing left is to win over the audience. The project has every chance of doing so.

Trailer: