Nathan For You (Season 2)

[Henry Gale]

Genius entrepreneur and personal hero Nathan Fielder's second season of his hit televisual program "Nathan For You" begins July 1st. It is pretty much destined to take over the world.

I was lucky enough to see Nathan at Comedy Bar in Toronto last Friday night, where right off the bat he introduced himself with a stirring rendition of Lana Del Rey's "Born to Die" opus ("I just wanted to set the mood for the night we're about to have together"), an array of technical difficulties he still managed to make as entertaining as anything he does, an extended one-on-one Q&A with members of the audience brought on stage to have personal conversations before their questions, and most importantly, a screening of the premiere (or as he clarified, the episode currently intended to be).

Needless to say it's hilarious, and I guess the less I say the better, but in case the episode changes last minute, the main endeavors involve an auto-repair shop with a lie detector guarantee, and the other an L.A. realtor with the niche of being able to assure her clients that her houses are 100% ghost free, bringing in the assistance of mediums and exorcists when necessary. The second of those definitely becomes much more insane than the average episode, and he also gave us a glimpse of another self-contained segment from a later episode that dealt with boosting sales of a location-challenged Hollywood souvenir shop, which was equally great.

So I can't wait for the rest of the season, and obviously you should feel the same because, I mean, c'mon.

[Milky Joe]

Yessssssssssss. Been waiting for this.

[Neclord]

I'm so excited!

[Sycophant]

As someone who usually can't abide hidden camera and prank shows (not that this is a hidden camera show), I watched the first season in almost one sitting and was utterly floored by how amazing it is. He's doing something special, sympathetically awkward, thoroughly human, and intensely funny.

Also, http://www.ghostfreehome.com/

[Milky Joe]

The Ghost Realtor segment was one of the best and funniest things I've ever seen. She should have her own show.

[Henry Gale]

The Ghost Realtor segment was one of the best and funniest things I've ever seen. She should have her own show.

Absolutely. And I'm not sure if it's going to be a bit coming up in the show, but that night of the preview of the season I went to, Nathan showed us a commercial for a show the "I don't a fuck about Yelp?" / "Wizard of Loneliness" private investigator Brian Wolfe from the Season 1 finale got on the ID Discovery Channel called...



Nathan concluded that he must've gotten the series as a result of his appearance on Nathan For You, so to try and get one step ahead of this in the future, developed (and screened for us) a short reality show pilot starring Simon, the breast-obsessed security guard from the shoplifting episode. It follows the intense day to day him doing jobs at different stores, often confronted by his kryptonite: Large C-cup or bigger boobs. It went over very well.

Simon Sees - Hopefully coming soon to television.

[ThePlashyBubbler]

That guy actually appears in next week's episode, but not in the pilot gag you mention.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Nathan's face during the scene in which the realtor was having her back pain remedied was phenomenal. When he got out his phone, I lost it.

[Henry Gale]

New episode was amazing. For every awkwardly heightened gesture Nathan might've internalized or put forward with his business ideas, there was a companion nugget of just pure naked truths coming from the other end. The focus group and the dog trainer just had these completely transparent and stunning moments that seemed to almost forced Nathan out of character, but made his rebuttals no less fantastic.

The ending credit promos of the episodes keep on mentioning that the Comedy Central app in the States has the new episodes a week early. Anyone here taken advantage of that?

[EvilShoe]

So Dumb Starbucks proved to be one hell of an episode. Not only because the business idea is hilarious, but also because of Nathan's arc. Nathan wrapping up with a life lesson at the end of the episode, despite his detached appearance throughout the same episode never gets old to me.

Did he add addendum's to contracts in the first season? One of my favourite recurring gags.

[number8]

Nathan's face during the scene in which the realtor was having her back pain remedied was phenomenal. When he got out his phone, I lost it.

This and the face he made when he asked the mechanic if he wants to hang out. Felder is so fucking good. I can't wait to watch the rest of the new episodes.

[Henry Gale]

So Dumb Starbucks proved to be one hell of an episode. Not only because the business idea is hilarious, but also because of Nathan's arc. Nathan wrapping up with a life lesson at the end of the episode, despite his detached appearance throughout the same episode never gets old to me.

They could've easily made an hour-long episode from the material they shot. Towards the end it felt like it was culminating in a recap or "Next Week on Nathan For You..." with the quick wrapping up of each thread and tons of voice-over. But they still managed to make a pretty perfect ending with the necessary and weirdly moving effect in the time they had.

[Henry Gale]

So the rest of the season has found its way online (not sure if it's CC's own doing through their app or whatever), and watching three new episodes of this within a day was a new delight for me with this series considering I watched the premiere when it first aired and have had to wait for every new episode since.

This year's finale definitely feels like less of an ending than Season 1's, but it's already been renewed and it's still awesome to have had this season in the first place, and most of all there's still so many surreal, "How is this really happening?!" moments packed into these last few episodes that only this show seems to mine quite this way that I will continue to find hysterically bewildering, even on re-watches.

[Milky Joe]

Daddy Dating was one of the best eps of the series. Freaking hilarious.

[Henry Gale]

Daddy Dating was one of the best eps of the series. Freaking hilarious.

Even the illustrated pitch for it up front had me in hysterics. Then everything after that was kinda miraculous.

The vetting of the date, the girl and her conspiracy theory obsessions, Nathan's disguise (and the reoccurrences of it in the handbook and wanted ads), the replacement Daddy he went with; All beyond belief.

And then came the Weight Loss stuff.

[EyesWideOpen]

I watch this on Hulu Plus and they are a couple of episodes behind so I just watched the Pet Shop/Maid Service one. Nathan is so awkward that my stomach hurts after watching each episode. I can't think of a more awkward character on a television show.

[Milky Joe]

And then came the Weight Loss stuff.

This is what the show does best, I think. It reminded me of the Discount Gas episode from S1. Totally normal, endearing people accepting completely absurd situations as a hedge against the struggles of normality. I loved it.

[Gittes]

While this has clearly garnered a very enthusiastic response, is anyone ever perturbed or troubled by the sense that some of this smacks of mean-spiritedness and condescension? Given the encomiums found in this thread, I suspect a counterargument will be readily offered, and I am certainly interested in reading any alternate perspectives. The show can be funny, sure, but I'm not receptive to the idea of turning people into gauche spectacles, making a mockery of their gullibility, vanity, vocations, etc. I can see how some of what is showcased here is profoundly human, but such qualities are also placed within a teasing and derisive framework, and that makes me uneasy.

I have only watched the first two episodes of the second season, by the way, as that is the season currently available for viewing on the network's website. So, I made an exception to my usual viewing habits and started there; I figured this would be OK given the standalone format of the episodes. Also, I was quite curious after noticing such ample praise here and elsewhere. Of course, it's possible that my judgments will have to be qualified after I watch more, but they certainly apply to what I've seen thus far.

[Kurosawa Fan]

I think at times it crosses the line into mean-spiritedness, but much of the time I think Nathan is the butt of the joke. His ideas are generally awful and completely unsustainable as business models, and he's essentially taking advantage of the fact that these business owners have agreed to be on television and feel compelled to accept his ideas against their better judgment. Still, there are certainly occasions where his antics are too cruel for me to laugh along. I'm thinking of the LA gift shop, and the bystanders he duped into spending their own money and thinking they were meeting Johnny Depp. The show is far better in instances like the auto repair store, where the laughs come from Nathan refusing to admit he looks at internet pornography, or his ridiculous idea that being a ghost realtor would be an advantage over regular realtors. In that scenario, it could be argued that the realtor is the butt of the joke, or the exorcist, but I think the funniest moments happened so organically it's hard to blame Nathan for airing that footage. I also think it's sort of a mutually beneficial joke, in that Nathan has found success with his show, and those who choose to participate are given a level of exposure that has the potential to bring them heightened success.

I don't know, that's sort of a rambling response, but in short I can see where you're coming from and at times I agree with you, but I think the show balances the butt of the joke well enough, and the culpability of those choosing to be participants can't be brushed aside.

[Gittes]

Thanks for the reply -- it's not rambling at all, but rather quite cogent. I'm glad we're in agreement on certain points. Sorry for the length of my response; I took this as an opportunity to work out my thoughts, so don't feel obligated to read it all and respond (unless you're so inclined).

I think at times it crosses the line into mean-spiritedness, but much of the time I think Nathan is the butt of the joke.

I see. The show would certainly strike me as less problematic if all of the humour was at Nathan's expense. As you mentioned, the ideas he proposes are, in and of themselves, very funny, and I don't see any harm in his explanation of these ideas and the mild discomfort, bewilderment, and tact that he inspires in others. However, like I mentioned above, I was dismayed to find the humour devolve into condescension as the segments continued (i.e., everything involving Crayton Smith, The Wild Bunch script supervisor, whose achievements are presented as a laughable obscurity. He's also the target of a really condescending bit of calculated irony, when a disingenuous Nathan refers to him as a "legend").

Your comment also speaks to the tacit power structure and a pretty obvious but important distinction. Nathan is playing a version of himself and he's well aware of the image that he is projecting. Evidently, his social clumsiness is admired as an authentically performed comedic gambit. Since he's the principal organizing agent behind the show, and contrives his own awkwardness, when we laugh at Nathan, we're also applauding his apparent ingenuity or skill as a comedian. The people he "helps" do not necessarily possess the same degree of self-awareness, nor are they carefully practicing a shtick that is garnering the audience's admiration. Instead, they're presented as curiosities. They're coaxed into behaviour and scenarios and then (inadvertently or otherwise) represented as objects of ridicule and condescension.

I think the funniest moments happened so organically it's hard to blame Nathan for airing that footage

I would have a very hard time absolving Nathan in the same way based on the episodes I have seen. He selects amenable people and places them in scenarios that will compound their alleged strangeness. He then either stands back and observes in the capacity of a humorous Greek chorus (offering a knowing glance at the camera, for instance), or stokes any apparent eccentricities and amplifies the circumstances as he sees fit (i.e., having the man kiss the hand of the Depp impersonator). He then collects the "serendipitous" results and seizes on whatever is liable to generate the most laughs, irrespective of how any of this might come at the expense of the dignity of the individuals involved.

As for the issue of culpability, I agree that this is something that should not be brushed aside. The complicated notion of "informed consent" is clearly relevant here, but I'm inclined to question the efficacy of that idea as applied to scenarios such as these. How does one reconcile the principle of informed consent with the kind of shenanigans that play out here, as well as with the specific way in which the footage is arranged and presented? It's far too easy to contest the idea that these people were ever truly cognizant of what might become of the footage, and then there's the tricky question of what actually qualifies as acceptable consent in each case, and whether or not these people truly have their best interests in mind. This is why a lot of the content in these two episodes struck me as disconcerting and unpleasant (especially the realtor and the people who bought into the production of "The Web").

I also think it's sort of a mutually beneficial joke, in that Nathan has found success with his show, and those who choose to participate are given a level of exposure that has the potential to bring them heightened success.

While this is technically true, I think it's also problematic. These people are the possible beneficiaries of increased exposure and success, yes, but this is not a result of their industriousness or ambition, but rather the fact that they happened to be lampooned on television. They're turned into credulous spectacles, and Nathan has them react to false information and cues so as to exacerbate the appearance of foolishness. The show therefore arranges an association between these people and a suggestion of unsophistication and/or silliness. There's something debasing and unpleasant about the idea of having to endure this sort of thing in order to gain any potential exposure or financial gain. That seems like a very meretricious form of "compensation."