So this week, I had the pleasure of checking out The Grinder and Grandfathered, both fairly funny shows with awful titles. I expect a lot will be written about these shows and I'll probably even write about them sometime in the future. BUT, for now, at least, I want to inform you about the new show on Netflix called Master of None by Aziz Ansari. Just a disclosure, I'm only two episodes into it, BUT, I find it quite hilarious. Check out the trailer below
Now this show, according to IMDB, is about the personal and professional life of Dev, played by Aziz Ansari. Now I've only seen two episodes and they appear to be self contained and have a darker quality to them similar to that of Louie, which I think is a correct and fantastic comparison. This show has also been compared to Girls and hearing that makes me want to vomit. First off, for those who may not know this, I hate Girls, I've only been able to sit through one episode. There are no characters on that show that I cared about nor did I appreciate the whtie privilege view that Lena Dunham portrayed New York City through. It's just sooooooooo easy to get a job here and you don't even really need to work and you can just take taxis all you want. That being said, I think the comparison to Girls is incorrect because I've already become attached to Dev just from watching two episodes.
The first episode displays Dev's understanding of parenthood and the viewer gets to witness Dev's interaction with current parents, good and bad, while imagining hs own potential future. Something that, as a 27 year old, is completely relatable. This show doesn't beat you over the head with one view or the other, rather it shows parents who struggle and parents who don't.
In the second episode the viewer becomes privy to Dev's upbringing from his own parent's perspective. Which is fantastic because his parents play his parents and they are hilarious. The show also depicts Dev's friend Brian's, played by Kelvin Yu, an Asian American, relationship with his father as well. And through his father's eyes we witness how his own son, Brian, was raised in the United States. The episode is incredibly heartfelt and the viewer gets to access to a perspective that isn't necessarily one that is featured prominently within modern day society, that of an immigrant's upbringing.
Which brings me to my next and final point, this show features an incredible amount of people of color, allowing the viewer access to different stories, different cultures, and different people in general.
So in conclusion, I love this show. It's funny, it portrays, so far, the truer aspects of New York City, and it tells a different story then what I'm usually used to seeing. It's also hilarious. Have you checked this show out? If so, what did you think of it? Comment below.
Written by cwm on Nov 8, 2015
The Grinder and Grandfathered are funny, but Master of None is really great so far (I too have only seen the first 2 episodes, and found them to be awesome and very funny).
I agree with cwm's sentiments about Girls. Only watched the first episode, but I normally have a 3 episode rule for making a decision about a show. Girls, however, was so bad I couldn't watch any more.
I wasn't aware those were his real parents until you mentioned it.. I was wondering how they hired such poor actors. But truly it was a heartfelt episode and it is a really good show!!
I "binged" it in one seating on Saturday, and I loved it. It's such a refreshing and modern take on the now overplayed concept of the stand up comedian series vessel. It nails its subjects, from race to feminism, work and dating struggles, and it is very funny!