TV Review: That Damn Michael Che Show Is Damn Funny
I have had the genuine pleasure of seeing Michael Che live, and he is so particular in humor and presentation. Moreover, he is also aware of that. Seeing his journey as a “live comedian,” from SNL to stand-up, has been a journey of confidence as much as comedy. Sometimes, you give up caring that others will either care too much or too little about what you say, especially because you have no problem flaming everybody. For Che, humor finds its heartbeat in roasting every person that perceives they are moral. Thus, get ready, because That Damn Michael Che Show is going to get enemies.
From perceived allies to propped enemies, Michael Che tries to bring nuance to human dynamics through thoughtful conversations and wild sketches that convert topics of race, gender, and class into hyper-scenarios like, having your “FitBit Protest” watch telling you that you saved 4 black lives while counting your steps for the day. See! His humor is wildly out there while being completely based on things that are right here, in your face, like prejudice. Yet, it his recoil from “joining a side” or telling any party, beyond his perspective, that they are “good” that makes his show both refreshing and isolating. In a divided world, where people choose their shows to be told they are right, smart, and their sufferings should leave them in permanent anxiety, That Damn Michael Che Show arises to laugh at the foolishness of doing so. In essence, he is the kid in the schoolyard giggling at the idea that your “clique” can give you any form of self-validation or that people who think like you should be integral to making you grow. It is a really deep thought that might not land for those who watch to feel lighter.
At 6 twenty-minute episodes, I kept on thinking of Portlandia as I watched That Damn Michael Che Show; another comedic gem, brought on by SNL alums, that gained a cult following, which would push it for 8 seasons. It was an almost “meta” show that poked fun at the strange, progressive, and, at times, narrow-minded ways we approach ourselves and other people in hopes to simultaneously unite and live above them. If you think that such a possibility is a clashing, impossible idea… you are right! At the end of the day, history is the consistent struggle of one party to erase the other, only to realize it either couldn’t or it just pushed it to reshape itself into another form. Every episode opens up with Michael confronting someone and, in turn, himself based upon a societal fear or normalized, social dynamic that perplexes him such as, the role of social media in pressurizing couples to define and lock their relationships. For him, what is beyond you should be questioned in its role of measuring what is within you.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbtNbtWqrx4Frankly, I liked That Damn Michael Che Show. It had a low-key sitcom feel, of which Michael was a protagonist you were never sure you agreed with and, at times, didn’t exactly like. Yet, you were always fascinated by how he was either embraced or rejected by his surroundings, and how his commentary was, at the very least, different from what you hear. In an odd way, this HBO MAX comedy reminded me of Ted Lasso: minus the brimming positivity and avid hopefulness. Instead, Michael’s “character” is, oddly, more relatable. He tries to find peace amidst the bitterness and battles of every day life, while knowing that such serenity can be false and fleeting when you live in a world that can never let you “live.” Catch That Damn. Michael Show streaming on HBO MAX.
