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Master of None starring Aziz Ansari - Netflix Series - S1 out now; S2 coming in 2017

xxracerxx

Don't worry, I'll vouch for them.
I thought it was really weird that in Episode 1, Dev is fooled by the false facade of a happy couple and worries that he may be missing out on marriage/children, but is worried about sacrificing his life over to predictable routine.

Episode 10 - Dev is fooled by the false facade of a happy couple yet again, and worries that he may be missing out on marriage/children, but is worried about sacrificing his life over to predictable routine..

Doesn't seem like he's learned much of anything, especially given that wedding vows are some of the most polished, trumped up performances we ever give in our lives.

This just reads like what happens in real life.
 

border

Member
This just reads like what happens in real life.

I don't see how you can be an American male in your 30's and be so naive as to think that every other couple is just as perfect as they seem.....that they have no doubts or fears and are 100% certain they will always be together. Not to say that that doesn't happen to a lucky few, but go out to the bar with any of your married/committed friends and they'll almost instantly start harping about what's wrong with their spouse.

In Master of None there's just this weird symmetry to having the first and the last episode revolve around exactly the same sort of scenario.....leaves you feeling like Dez hasn't learned much.
 
Finished season 1 tonight, really loved it. Wife and I watched the first 3 episodes over like 3 weeks and she didn't like it and I wasn't into it at all, but episode 4 & 5 really turned it around for us and after Nashville we just marathoned through the rest like we were hooked.

So yeah, definitely recommend anyone iffy on the show just skip the first 3 episodes, they are kinda bad, and jump on 4 and up. It definitely gets better. I never liked Tom on P&R either, except when he was with Jean Ralphio, and even on here he hits my annoy-meter sometimes super fast, but the show as a whole works really great. The "life as a girl vs. guy walking around at night" bit especially was fantastic.

Best thing I like about the show is how enticing it makes living in New York. I lived there in my 20s and sometimes regret moving to suburbia, but shows like Louie and Gaffigan's make the city seem a nightmare to 40-something me. This show finally paints a "damn... that is dope" vibe.
 

NeoROCK

Member
I watched the episode where he asks a girl to go to a concert with him. I think it's episode 3 or something.

It wasn't funny at all IMO. Waste of time.
 

Future

Member
Show is good but it's definitely catered to people in their 30s and up. Everything he's joking about is old people shit and mid life crisis shit. All you young whippersnappers that hate it will like it once you are his age.

I wasn't a big fan of the giant white dude friend. Just a little too comical for me and not believable. Black lesbian friend was awesome though. And aziz and the girlfriend had awesome chemistry
 

Mikeside

Member
Show is good but it's definitely catered to people in their 30s and up. Everything he's joking about is old people shit and mid life crisis shit. All you young whippersnappers that hate it will like it once you are his age.

I wasn't a big fan of the giant white dude friend. Just a little too comical for me and not believable. Black lesbian friend was awesome though. And aziz and the girlfriend had awesome chemistry

Totally agree with this. I'm not 30 yet, but the show definitely hit me in the "you're not a very young man anymore" funny-bone.

I don't agree about Denise (the lesbian friend), though. She's funnier than Arnold but she still didn't really click with me. H Jon Benjamin was great in it, though.
 

Fury451

Banned
Just finished this up- enjoyed it a lot more than I ever expected, and I'm not a fan of Ansari's humor (stand-up especially) usually but I don't think this was supposed to be laugh out loud funny either. I think it portrayed a pretty realistic relationship towards the end with all the questions that hit young adults and those in their early 30s. The actors had good chemistry too. I look forward to more.

I don't really see the comparisons to Louie past like the first episode or so though. That's a good thing, as it was a lot better and stronger when it came into it's own in the next several episodes. Nobody can do Louie like Louis C.K. anyways.

Yeah not getting the high praise this is receiving. Guess I am missing something. His parents were terrible, mistakes were made. Guess it's too hipster for me.

His parents being terrible kinda made it charming to me.

I watched the episode where he asks a girl to go to a concert with him. I think it's episode 3 or something.

It wasn't funny at all IMO. Waste of time.

As someone who's been in that situation, it was pretty well portrayed. The "wacky random hot girl" is awesome until you try to go out with them and they do stuff like that.
 

guek

Banned
As comedies go, it's very light. It's not a sitcom. But as a slice of life, this show excells. The wife and I marathoned it and love the hell out of every episode except for the one with Claire Danes.
 

Fury451

Banned
As comedies go, it's very light. It's not a sitcom. But as a slice of life, this show excells. The wife and I marathoned it and love the hell out of every episode except for the one with Claire Danes.

Yeah, this is a good descriptor.

It was ok, not the the comedy version of the wheel the reviewers try to make it. I also think it went downhill with every episode. I wish it was darker.

That's what threw me off at first too- again, Louie was a popular comparison, but they're nothing alike. Louie had a dark undercurrent of humorous surrealism. I'm glad this show didn't go very dark personally, it wouldn't have fit well at all with the balance of light humor and realism they were going for. It kinda did it's own thing.
 

OnPoint

Member
I'm a few episodes into this, just finished "Nashville" last night. And I really like it so far. It's really fun and kind of whimsical. Hopefully it keeps going this way.
 

TheSloth

Member
Like 7/10 overall, but maybe 6/10 as a comedy. I liked the earlier episodes better, which were more comedy oriented. Episodes 9 and 10 I just wanted to end as I watched as they worked the show into more of a romantic drama. Drama just isn't my thing.

One thing that I wish Aziz would stop doing is explaining the jokes after the punchline. Guy does awkward thing, Aziz and company look awkwardly back at him, then Dev has to briefly explain why it was awkward. Please just stop at the awkward look back.
 

Toothless

Member
Won Best Comedy Series at the Critic's Choice Awards! Very good pick, this show was definitely my favorite of the noms I've seen.
 

Creamium

shut uuuuuuuuuuuuuuup
With every new episode, I got more into this show. To the point that I was really disappointed it ended as soon as it did. Dev's parents were incredible in every one of their eps. Gets even better once you know they're Aziz's real parents. His mother's deadpan delivery on every line was great too:

Dev: Ma, what about your first day in America? That must have been pretty exciting.

Nisha: No, I just got dropped off from the airport, and your father went to work. I didn't know nobody, and I barely knew your father. We had an arranged marriage. And I knew him only for a week or so.

Dev: What about that first day, though? Did you go out and explore the city?

Nisha: No, I sat on the couch and cried.

Some of the episodes hit home, as I'm 30 as well and ask the same questions about getting married, having kids, etc. Might even be something I rewatch at some point, really loved it.
 

Metroxed

Member
I've watched a few episodes now and I cannot really say I like it. It has its funny moments and I like Aziz but... I don't know, the characters seem so self-centered and shallow sometimes.

Also for some reason absolutely everything on this show screams American to me. I have watched countless American films and series, but this one has an I-don't-know-what that makes everything look and feel too American, and I as a non-American can't identify with absolutely nothing of it. It's never happened to me before and I've watched many American shows. I think it might be the way they speak, I don't know.
 

EthanC

Banned
Made me sad seeing Harris' name as the writer of one of the episodes. And it was the funniest episode of the season. A great show on its own, I'm sure his presence would have made it even better/funnier.
 

TVexperto

Member
I really love the cinematography on this show, looks more like a indie movie which is great, wish more shows would look like this instead of the bloomy perfect lights they use on network shows.
 

Zubz

Banned
I'm 8 out of 10 episodes in, and I'm liking it so far! It's kind of muted, but some of these episodes are very well done (Particularly "Parents" and "Indians on TV"). Honestly, though, I think the thing that interests me the most is Arnold (Eric Wareheim's character). I mean, he literally feels like a transplant of Eric's character from Tim & Eric Awesome Show Great Job!, but in a realistic setting. And somehow... It works? However, I've liked all the characters so far.

I'm a little disappointed to hear that the next 2 episodes are moreso dramas than comedy, though. I mean, it could work well in the genre, but I think the show works better as a down-to-earth comedy. Either way, though, I'm hoping we see a Season 2! The show definitely got the acclaim to earn it (NPR seemed to love it), but every other Netflix show I've watched has gotten confirmation of a new season literally within weeks (If not a week) after airing. I'm holding out hope, but I feel like we would've heard something by now if it was in the cards.
 
last episode and one with the old lady and one about fathers were the best. second best was episode about visit to Nashville. everything else was okay.
 
Four episodes in and it feels like hard work. I'm only watching because of the high praise but I'm just not seeing it. It's just like a really dull and uninteresting version of Louie - a show which I absolutely love despite its varying consistency. And his squeaky voice drives me nuts. Just not getting it at all but I wish I was because this type of stuff is normally right up my street.
 

Mr. F

Banned
Four episodes in and it feels like hard work. I'm only watching because of the high praise but I'm just not seeing it. It's just like a really dull and uninteresting version of Louie - a show which I absolutely love despite its varying consistency. And his squeaky voice drives me nuts. Just not getting it at all but I wish I was because this type of stuff is normally right up my street.

Came to post the exact same thing. I was blown away by the disparity between the near universal praise I've been hearing and my own experience. A few episodes in and I just found it to be plodding, mundane, and not all that funny. Didn't really help that the performances across the board are horribly wooden - literally high school play-caliber in some places.

Glad to see some echoed sentiments in this thread, I was scratching my head at what it was I was supposed to be getting from it.
 

Shagwell

Member
Came to post the exact same thing. I was blown away by the disparity between the near universal praise I've been hearing and my own experience. A few episodes in and I just found it to be plodding, mundane, and not all that funny. Didn't really help that the performances across the board are horribly wooden - literally high school play-caliber in some places.

Glad to see some echoed sentiments in this thread, I was scratching my head at what it was I was supposed to be getting from it.

I think, and I could be wrong, that one of the show's main strengths for the majority is its sheer relatability. It is a little microcosm of the lives of its watchers and their stage in life. Whether a show is relatable or not will go a long way towards people overlooking its flaws. Of which, I would agree, the show has many.
 

Firestorm

Member
Relatability is a huge part of it. I'm not sure if a middle america white dude who's never had to deal with cultural clashes in his life will get the same out of it as someone who does need to balance their parents' values with their new country's values every day or even someone who just has enough friends who deal with that sort of thing all the time.

Same with age. Early college vs say hitting around 30ish in cities where delayed adulthood is very much a thing and sort of sneaks up on you.
 

Zubz

Banned
Cool! I liked the first season, but I was also aware it was flawed and started thinking that it wouldn't get a second season because of it. Hopefully they can build on S1's strengths, work around its weaknesses, and make a solid S2!
 
Just finished watching this yesterday, and overall I enjoyed it. However, the last 2 episodes didn't work for me, but the first 8 were great.

I wouldn't really describe it as a comedy though, cause there was barely anything funny about it.
 

RedAssedApe

Banned
I was fine with it ending as it did and thought that would have been a great way to let the series end but I'll definitely be watching season 2. The comment about it being "a slice of life" is dead on. In that respect, I thought it was something special.

i've never actually heard that term used outside of anime heh
 
I watched this because of the Hollywood Reporter video talking about diversity with Yang on there and I thought it was just okay overall. That sense of humor was too mainstream middle America for me. I only watched three episodes all the way through and the only one that had me legit laughing was the "Indians on TV" episode.

I liked the second episode that focused on the parents and was disappointed that, that was going to be the most I'd ever see of Brian.
 

Walpurgis

Banned
I watched this because of the Hollywood Reporter video talking about diversity with Yang on there and I thought it was just okay overall. That sense of humor was too mainstream middle America for me. I only watched three episodes all the way through and the only one that had me legit laughing was the "Indians on TV" episode.

I liked the second episode that focused on the parents and was disappointed that, that was going to be the most I'd ever see of Brian.

You should finish it. The show gets more serious towards the end and has some good drama.

There's really nothing else like it so it's worth a watch.
 
I think you misunderstood me, when I said that I could only finish three episodes, I meant I could only finish those three, because all the rest were saltine as fuck for me.
 
it's passed 12am..i've never been up on the night a new web show premiered but since it's prime time, when exactly will these episodes go live?

edit: answer is 3am.
 
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