My wife and I are finally watching Season 4 of Ted Lasso. Much has been written about the show's relentless positivity, and the degree to which it is or isn't an appropriate message for the present moment (even with Season 3's attempt to complicate the roots and results of Ted's positive affect, I still do think the fundamental message of the show is pro-positive).
It did feel to me like, as a show Ted Lasso was the apex of a particular type -- the response to the anti-hero era of Peak TV television that wanted to show the virtues of optimism and doing the right thing without being hokey about it. But now that I think about it, was that ever really a "trend"? What other shows fall into the category (one can't have an "apex" of category with only one member)?
The obvious answer, and what I'd deem the inaugurator of the style, is Parks & Rec. And another I'd argue for is The Good Place, whose underlying ethos did seem view trying to be good as a force which, if persistent and relentless enough, could conquer all things. But what else? Community? It's a sweet show at root, but I think its core is less human decency and more the joy of whimsy and absurdism. Brooklyn Nine Nine? Maybe -- one could argue that its positive core is what made the show "work" as a cop show in the middle of the Black Lives Matter era. But still, I feel like I must be missing something -- more than one something, in fact. But I'm drawing a blank.
2 comments:
What I vaguely remember of Parks and Recs is that there was one person the group picked on, or ignored the issue when he was being bullied. I could be wrong but that seems to be a theme as well. There's always an outsider, so maybe positivity isn't the word. I could be wrong about all of it, though. I'm a cynic.
If it is the character I'm thinking of, I actually didn't really like how they treated him either -- but one thing the show did is kind of turn it around on the viewer by showing that the character had a comically-amazing home life (supermodel wife, amazing daughters, everyone adores him, gets to live exactly how he wants, etc.). So they give him the "win" he deserves and make the main characters the butt of that joke because actually he's doing way better than anybody and doesn't care about what happens at work.
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