I’ve been doing what any other reasonable undergrad student does when they are under the weather. I took this recovery time to binge watch online TV. This time around though, I didn’t choose my poison. My forever friend just sat me down in front of her laptop, opened up Netflix to the pilot episode of Aziz Ansari’s Master of None and said, “You’ll like this.” This is why she is a forever friend.
The series starts off with some NSFW content that might make you uncomfortable in new ways. The main character Dev, played by co-producer and comedian Aziz Ansari, is having a time with a character called Rachel A.K.A Zooey Deschannel’s dopple ganger played by Noël Wells. If you did not grow up in a city like Toronto or “Toronto” as defined by our friends hailing from Brampton, Mississauga, or Markham, this might seem like an unlikely pairing to you. However, the on-screen-interracialness is not what I think surprises people the most. When you’re watching the show, you already know who the lead is. The reason this initial scene is striking is because it’s so different from the Game of Thrones type lovin’ that we are used to having shown to us on TV. This scene feels especially unfamiliar because they aren’t trying to be beautiful or sexy or passionate at all. Sex, which is usually reserved for beautiful and love-struck people, is shown as a pretty average event. This scene could be a story you’d expect to hear from a housemate after a night at Stages on any given week. Once you come to terms with the fact that you aren’t going to witness your usual sitcom plotlines, characters and laugh track, you are ready to proceed.
The first Master of None scenes that had me really feeling invested in the rest of the series were in the second episode titled Parents. I’d be lying if I said this wasn’t because of some personal bias. 1. I am the kind of person who would befriend a chicken (you’ll understand when you watch it) and 2. My mother tongue is also Tamil. So if you are Aziz Ansari or another Tamilan reading this opinion piece, Vanakam! I mention Tamil because it is spoken in this episode about the underappreciated and untold stories of immigrant parents. You know, the one when they sacrifice so much to find better opportunities in North America. Does The Immigrant Story sound familiar yet? If you are Canadian, you may have to think back to your own immigration story or maybe your great grandmother’s to find your connection to it. Like Dev in the show, I am the first generation in my family to be born in North America. Seeing The Immigrant Story on TV is not new. It’s something we come across every time we see an oriental actor play the restaurant owner or doctor on screen. But The Immigrant Story looks and sounds a lot different the way it’s told in Master of None. This is because the story is actually told as a story worth telling by main characters with central roles that are directly impacted. In Master of None, The Immigrant Story is not used as a minimal effort character development ploy for bit players who create the backdrop to the main characters’ latest adventure. Acting-wise, It’s not my favourite episode. Writing-wise, it’s not the funniest episode, but it is when I realized this would be the start of a fulfilling TV watching relationship that would be unapologetically honest and relatable.
The next episode that deserves a shout out is episode 7, titled Ladies and Gentlemen. This one powerfully shows what sexual harassment can look like in a realistic way. Ladies, you will watch this episode and say, “Yes! That has happened to me too!” In this episode, the characters shed light on some of the subtler points of everyday sexism. For example, when you are in a large social setting and a male stranger only greets the other men in the circle. The conflicts are brought up in such a palatable and real way that I wonder why more shows don’t talk about the sexism their female characters would realistically experience. Sometimes when behaviour becomes expected, you stop recognizing it as noteworthy or problematic. I find that truth to be built into a lot of the decisions that are made by writers and producers so koodoos to Master of None for thinking out loud and paying attention to the ways in which its women move through the world they’ve created. I like this episode because a lot of the dialogue resembles conversations that can be overheard among college students frequently except that the characters model what we often fail to do in real life; call out sexism when you see it.
Lastly, Master of None delivers in the love department. Every show regardless of how unromantic the setting is (hello Walking Dead and House) gives their audience the feels because that is all anyone wants, right? The romance that unfolds in Master of None peaks in episode 9, titled, Mornings. If you have been in a relationship and had a moment when you realized how wonderfully weird you and your partner could be with each other, you will see yourself in this episode. The show does an almost perfect job of taking the natural coupley dynamic of every young new relationship in North America and recreating it for the camera. From the inside jokes to the obnoxious massages, it feels like you are watching something raw and real. You might even forget that this 20-minute episode actually covers months of story development. You’ll be too consumed in either their cuteness or the reminder of your loneliness.
I’ve now watched it all up to the very clever last scene (I fell for the trap and made the racist assumption but you won’t get me next time, Aziz). Unfortunately, I’m still under the weather but tt’s probably a good time nonetheless to stop streaming and get back to studying. Until they decide to create a next season, I’ll be listening to the super trendy soundtrack while I wait. Let me know what you thought of the series so far and what direction you see it going. Personally, I am keeping my fingers crossed for an M.I.A. cameo.