Disclaimer: Spoilers for this episode of Jerrod Carmichael and NBC's "The Carmichael Show" after the jump! If you haven't seen it, do not click any further (until you've seen it, then definitely read)!
"Your anger has to match your melanin."
This week the Carmichael's debate the N word in a puzzling episode. Although I've been looking forward to this episode ever since it was announced the show was going to have a show where they used the N word uncensored, I did wonder how exactly they were going to pull it off but then I realized they didn't have to pull it off. Just like gun control, religion, abortion, assisted suicide, (all topics this show has already tackled) there's never going to be a universal consensus. What the show does well is use it's platform to inform in a way that's uncomfortable, but just uncomfortable enough for the audience to still be able to digest all of the content. A perfect example of this is when Drew says what he says to Jerrod and the studio audience is obviously BAFFLED. A few of them chuckle, while some gasp, but it's clear about half of the crowd is dead silent and not sure what to think. More on that later, though.
Like most episodes, this week starts out fairly simple, impressively using Cynthia's birthday as a plot device for their issue of the week. When Jerrod and Maxine give her a book, just about everyone is in agreement that black people "don't read like that." After they begin to compile a list of what black people don't do, Jerrod is appalled at their need for "black approval," leading him to squeeze out "unpopular black opinions" from the rest of his family. Finally, after learning why his family eats at Niecy's every year for his mother's birthday, he decided to go against the grain and convinces them to eat at a fancier (code for whiter) restaurant named Florentines. Everyone is excited until Jerrod's white friend, who got them the reservation, says proudly "Anything for you, my nigga." Nekeisha proudly dips as soon as she hears this. The second half of the episode is dedicated to the question of whether or not it was okay for white people to say the word. After some valid points are thrown back and forth and the friend comes back, Maxine uncontrollably shouts out "WE ARE NOT NIGGERS" to a room full of, we're to assume, wealthy white people. You can guess how that turned out. They end up eating at Niecy's, like every other year.
There's no real proper way to review this episode. The thoughts discussed during are subjective to each viewer. What the show successfully did was lay out the problem, establish points for each side and discuss it impressively light heartedly while cracking a few jokes. I love the fact that Jerrod is allowed to be the odd man out and have the unpopular opinion while being the leader of the cast. There aren't many shows out there having the main character make excuses for using that word. It shows just how much confidence he has in the audience. He makes a few solid points, telling the family the word shouldn't have a power over the community to hurt us. Maxine and Cynthia also make some powerful points, Maxine reminding him that it was the last word many slaves heard before they were hung and Cynthia using a story from when she was a little girl to back up her notion of the word being used as a sign to tell her that she wasn't welcome. But this being the Carmichael Show, with the heavy came the humor, such as Joe telling Jerrod that his anger has to match his melanin so he should be pissed. One of my favorite lines came from Bobby, pointing out Maxine's anger as a biracial person making him wonder if they needed to be twice as mad as her. Like I said before, this episode isn't going to please everybody and it doesn't have to. Taking it for what it is should be the norm when it comes to watching this terrific show.
EPISODE GRADE: B+
Stray notes:
-My favorite moment was probably the family ridiculing Maxine's story about being called the N word, taking away that she didn't end up rising to the occasion or telling an inspiring enough story was absolutely hilarious.
-The Cosby Show was Cynthia's Star Wars because black people reading books is a mystical and fantastical place.
-"We are crossing racial barriers. I know how Sidney Poitier felt when he won that Oscar. Now that's an actor with RANGE!"
-Any place where the employees look happy make Nekeisha suspicious.
Laugh out loud moment of the night: "That [sparkling water] makes the oppression go down a lot easier!"
Toughest night of the line to sell: "It's an embarrassment that black people would rather sweep under the rug like Stacey Dash." The few laughs in the audience, confirming that Stacey Dash still isn't relevant enough for people to know or care who she is made this joke 20 times better.
Black people rules, per the Carmichael family:
-We don't ski
-We don't let dogs like us.
-We never, ever, ever under any circumstances drive a suburu
-We have to say all black movies are good
-We always have to be suspicious of cops, even the good ones
Unpopular black thoughts:
-Denzel Washington isn't a great actor. "Show me some RANGE."
-Bobby running back into Starbucks when he saw a bunch of black guys by his car (or that's just racist).
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