So here’s the thing, I only planned to watch the first two episodes of Master of None but that proved impossible. Aziz Ansari’s new Netflix Original series is a home run. Well acted, well written, just an all around great show to binge watch; watched the whole season in one day.
The show follows Ansari’s character, Dev, around New York City, he is just a normal guy who acts in commercials and crappy movies, but it becomes so much more than that. Each and every episode is filled with dry humor that conveys a new message to its audience. This sort of reminds me of The Office back when they first started, just a very intelligent and dry humor. The topics that Ansari covers in this series range from interracial casting in television and movies, to how real relationships play out over a long period of time.
In the episode “Indians on TV” Dev comes to terms with reality in stereotypes when it comes to casting racial roles. Where the only roles that he and other Indian actors can land are ones that include some sort of fake Indian accent, even though Dev grew up in South Carolina. It is only when Dev gets forwarded a racial email by accident where he sees the inherent racism by the studio head and gains the upper hand. But even with this information, Dev still can't seem to convince the studio to cast two Indian actors to star in a new series because then it will be seen as an “Indian show” by the public.
Another episode highlights sexism, but in a different way than others have tackled before. Master of None captures what it is truly like to be a woman in today’s day and age in “Ladies and Gentlemen.” The opening sequence of this episode follows two paths. One path is Dev and his friend, Arnold, walking home from a bar on a typical night in NYC, and the other shows a woman walking home from the same bar, these two trips are vastly different. The walk home in Dev and Arnold’s shoes showcases careless ‘chit chat’ and upbeat music in the background. They have a meaningless conversation about the weather and don’t have a care in the world. But on the other end, the woman walking home alone is shown as something from a horror movie; ominous music in the background, a show of constant fear. At one point she pulls out her phone and has “911” ready to dial just in case she needs help. I have never seen a portrayal done like this, it completely got its message across. They even go a step further and show the “worst” part of Dev’s night, where he ruins his favorite “sneakies” by stepping in dog poop. Whereas the woman is followed home by some maniac from the bar and she is forced to call the police while he is banging on her apartment door.
Then, the show brings you to another part of reality and life: love. It shows that it is not just a show that proves the injustices or obscure realities of everyday life, it also has a soft side. By including this love story, it portrays what an actual “love story” is really like. Ansari shows the different stages of a relationship, which starts out with the “honeymoon” phase. Where Dev and his girlfriend Rachel start dating and can’t get enough of each other; making love and constantly enjoying each other’s time. But then you see the phase start to fade and Dev and Rachel decide to move in together. He finds out that she is somewhat of a slob and leaves her clothes on the floor and Dev can't stand that. Fast forward a year, Dev and Rachel have officially worked out the kinks of their relationship and have become “comfortable” with one another, and you can see it. Although they are still in love, they are not “madly” in love 24/7, like they were in the beginning, and that is reality. Love stories in films showcase the love story as something that will last their entire lives like they will be jumping into the sheets every five minutes. Just because someone has passed the honeymoon phase of their relationship doesn’t mean that they don’t love each other. This is the same for Dev and Rachel, they still love each other, but now they are considering long term if they’re ready for a bigger commitment. I’m not going to spoil the ending just going to leave it there. This episode, “finale,” where they explore that topic is one that blew my mind.
This revolutionary show is both real and hilarious; I honestly don’t have a single gripe about this show. The only thing I can say, though, is that if you’re not someone who enjoys dry humor then this show may not be for you Rating: 10/10
