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FX on Hulu’s new comedy “Reservation Dogs” marks a crucial performance victory for Indigenous communities, but draws audiences from all walks of life with its subversive and shameless Indigenous-specific humor. Using clever comedies and dark jokes, the show explores the deviations and endearing connections between four Indigenous teens on an Oklahoma reservation, as Bear (D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai), Elora Danan (Devery Jacobs), Willie Jack (Paulina Alexis) and Cheese (Lane Factor) commit a series of petty heists to raise money to escape the small town they despise.
The project created by Sterlin Harjo and Taika Waititi deliberately and excitingly departs from its catalog of predecessors in telling stories about Indigenous peoples.
“There was a time when content had to be depressing,” Waititi said, speaking to a panel before the Television Critics Association last week. “We don’t want to depress people because there is so much humor in our communities. There are so many jokers.”
As the stories about Indigenous people written and portrayed by Indigenous people grow and develop, it is through projects like “Reservation Dogs” that the sole perception of Indigenous culture by non-Indigenous people will no longer be. rooted in tragedy and whitewashed mysticism. “We will no longer have to sympathize with ‘The Indian in the Closet”, “observed Jacobs, referring to the film adaptation of the children’s book about a young boy befriending an 18th century Iroquois chieftain. the size of a toy that comes to life through a magic cabinet.
Meanwhile, the funny heists on “Reservation Dogs” give way to a deeper picture of teenage life. They simultaneously try to tackle the boredom of life on the reserve, deal with the grief over their friend’s death a year ago, defend their place in town against a “gang” of rival teenagers and experiencing the coming of age pain familiar to adolescents from all walks of life, really.
Bear and Elora Danan (yes, named after “Willow” baby) are named as the leaders of the “Reservation Dogs” gang. They can be best friends, but there is often tension between the two and their conflicting priorities. Elora is determined to make it to California, while Bear is often more easily distracted, especially when it comes to seeking the attention of her absent father, native rapper Pumpkin Lusty (Sten Joddi) out of work, or conflicts with his mother. , Rita (Sarah Podemski), a loving single mom looking for the perfect stepdad for her teenage son, while ignoring openings from just about every man in town.
Willie Jack and Cheese are their backup, with subtle and perfect comedic timing: When the gang suggests that Bear is suffering from depression after being particularly calm one day, Cheese is quick to say that “depression affects one in five Native Americans.” . Before that, when the neighborhood kids tell Willie Jack that they don’t have any friends to introduce the street dog flea business to downstairs, she simply tells them to “to do”.
As universal as teenage coming-of-age stories often are, “Reservation Dogs” does not hesitate to be deeply and delightfully Aboriginal specific. From numerous references to on-screen depictions of on-screen Indigenous characters, to sharing family-friendly meat pie recipes, the show is an uncomplicated celebration of Indigenous culture.
Waititi told reporters he recalled “negative comments” on his early films, which criticized them for not having “enough cultural specificity” and for being “depressing”, while criticizing his work for “making fun of “. He said, “I understand what’s going on. All they want is to see us, for example, ride whales, talk to trees.”
“Reservation Dogs” is full of jokes that poke fun at the expectations of white audiences of Indigenous people as mystical storytellers. A non-native Indian Health Service doctor embarrassingly calls his patients a “majestic people,” and throughout the first few episodes, Bear repeatedly hallucinates about a hilarious warrior from the Battle of Little Bighorn who has a not so spiritual wisdom to pass on.
As Salon television reviewer Melanie McFarland points out, the show exploits a level of cultural uniqueness that is typically reserved exclusively for white-centric shows and films, which are premised on “the assumption that non-whites should be shed. in white culture with no expectation of reciprocity. ”Well, more of that in“ Reservation Dogs ”.
Stars and new faces tell the story of Sterlin Harjo’s education
Before bringing their dynamic characters to life, taking on roles that seemed to be made for them, Woon-A-Tai, Jacobs, Factor, and Alexis were torn from relative obscurity. Asked by the press about the frequent excuse of Hollywood creators who don’t choose natives because “we can’t find them,” Jacobs bluntly replied, “None of us live in LA.”
And, as Harjo points out, historically, before native-led and created projects like “Reservation Dogs,” there really weren’t many attractive opportunities for native talent in Hollywood. “Hollywood makes a western every few years where native actors come to get killed in front of a camp, and that’s just not the most exciting job,” Harjo said. “So they’re not in LA, knocking on the door, trying to get these parts.”
He continued: “You have to go to these communities to find the actors. That’s all. [‘Reservation Dogs’] do. We went to caster in the communities. We went to get tapes from all the native communities. The talent is there. It just so happens not on Hollywood Boulevard. “
The actors are also noticeably linked to their characters – particularly Woon-A-Tai as Bear, the de facto leader (in his mind) of the Rez Dogs. “When I read the script for the first time, I immediately found a connection to Bear, “he said. He continued,” There are so many things that I can relate to in my life. and the life of Bear. Bear is a very loving person who cares a lot about his friends – those friends here. I have exactly the same feelings for them. It is my family.”
It is clear from the presence of the young stars on the panel that they share a true friendship and a love of Indigenous comedy. Jacobs recalled bonding with Alexis about their enjoyment with the native 1491s sketch comedy group, and the cast and producers described their love for Alexis’ hilarious brothers and his family. of “actors”. Additionally, in the All Indigenous Writers’ Room and the main cast, Harjo emphasized how important it is to him that they work together as a community.
While “Reservation Dogs” was crafted by Harjo and Waititi on the latter’s kitchen floor over “late night tea,” it’s firmly Harjo’s show as an American in the partnership. creative. Harjo was born and raised in Oklahoma, where the series is shot and set, and the many daily stories of “Reservation Dogs” are loosely based on the ups and downs of his childhood.
Waititi is of Maori descent from New Zealand, and although he described sharing many experiences with Sterlin as an indigenous person, he stressed that “it is not for me to do this show”.
“I really believe that people need to tell their own stories and especially whatever region they are from,” he said. Harjo is a member of the Seminole Nation and has a Muskogee heritage. Waititi continued, “It just wouldn’t have been appropriate if I had come over and said, ‘Let’s Taika-fy this show. “It’s stealing history. [Harjo’s] city. The extent of Waititi’s involvement, he said, is to be “the one who pushed this thing into the water, and Sterlin was the one who paddled the boat and made sure that there were no holes at the bottom of it. . “
“Laughter is medicine”: Comedy and reality on tragedy
“Reservation Dogs” is funny, but, in the best possible way, that doesn’t mean it’s a silly, mellow escape. Between the mundane but hilarious storylines of the local IHS clinic and the guilt of the kids that their theft of a grocery truck will indirectly result in the death of the truck driver at the top flasher, the spectacle isn’t all heavy and depressing – but in its own way, neither does it shy away from the realities of underinvestment of resources in Indigenous communities and reserves, the inaccessibility of health care, the disparate struggles against drug addiction among Indigenous people due to the systemic racism.
The show’s honest comedy, and even its deep specificity to Indigenous experiences, is especially enjoyable because of its relativity, even for non-Indigenous people, who may see their own culturally specific counterparts in the various storylines of the show. issue. Anyone can understand the fear of wanting to leave your boring, dead-end hometown, or the embarrassment of working on a group project (in this case committing crimes to escape to California) with a friend who doesn’t take it. not as seriously as you are, or a frustratingly slow day spent in the local emergency room waiting room.
“Every community has health and addiction issues,” Harjo said. “Whether you are aboriginal or non-aboriginal, these communities, especially in the rural areas, take care of this. He continued, “In the background you will have some of the more serious things. But it’s like our lives, right? We have a lot of problems and serious things, but… we try to laugh about it. think our indigenous communities, that’s how we survived, it’s through laughter.
“There are a lot of bad things that have happened to us at the hands of the US government and other governments, but we survived, I think, in part because of our humor, and for me that’s the important part. from the Serie. “
The triumph of “Reservation Dogs” is that it subverts the long history of exclusively depressing native storytelling, often written by white guilty creators and writers. It is also in no way intended to ensure the comfort of whites and non-natives or to cover up ongoing oppressions and racist stereotypes with apolitical comedy. What “Reservation Dogs” does is recognize that, as the show’s creators and cast spoke on their Television Critics Association panel, comedy is an inextricable feature of Indigenous communities.
“Laughter is medicine,” Alexis said simply. “That’s the goal. I hope our people can come together and laugh, because our people need medicine. That’s my goal with all of this – to make people laugh.”
“Reservation Dogs” will air Monday, August 9 on FX on Hulu.
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