Impressions of the first 2 episodes



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Tracy Morgan as JC Wheeler and Kumail Nanjiani as Samir Wassan in "The Comedian"
Photo: Robert Falconer (CBS)

With We the fever seizes the nation, the moment is propitious for Jordan Peele to launch its new version The twilight zone. It is impossible to "revise" the series based on its first two episodes (now available on CBS All Access) – but there is some clue as to what to expect from this anthology and how it will deal with both modern and old style. horrors.

The first episode, "The Comedian", is the longest of the two. His story becomes more and more repetitive. This is the movie directed by Owen Harris Black mirror episode "San Junipero") and written by Alex Rubens, Emmy nominee for his work on Key & Peele and also worked on Community and Rick and Morty. That's what, in good faith, his realism behind the scenes of the standing comedy world, with increased credibility provided by the star of this episode, the famous comedian and comedian Kumail Nanjiani.

Of course, this being The twilight zone, "The comedian" is extremely light on laughter; part of his claim is that Samir (Nanjiani), an interpreter standing in trouble, is terribly funny. (How can Samir take his usual role in a high-end comedy club despite the usual shelling is, alas, a mystery The twilight zone never investigate, although it's more than happy to make you almost overdose when he's on stage.) One night, Samir meets a legendary comedian (Tracy Morgan, the best actor possible) who admits to the star, he idolizes that he would do anything to find success that he has been desperately pursuing for years.

Good deals struck The twilight zone his price is heavy, and while Samir is initially frightened by the painful compromises that suddenly began to alter his life, the laughter (even if his jokes did not improve at all) are worth it, especially when he foolishly begins to believe that he controls everything that happens to him. You will probably see the end of Samir's story long before his arrival. The narrator Peele then comes out of the shadows to offer his last thoughts on the episode.

More unexpected things are things like Nanjiani's ability to make even a fast-moving guy on Terrible Garbage Person's territory feel good, and DeWanda Wise's exceptional turn (Netflix She must have it) as a rival comic who is also tired of waiting for his big break and whose meager reproaches of Samir bring a welcome lightness to a very dark story.

Adam Scott as Justin Sanderson in "Nightmare at 30,000 Feet"
Photo: Robert Falconer (CBS)

"Nightmare at 30,000 feet", meanwhile, has a direct link to the original blurred area series and the feature film that followed, although the story, beyond the "panicked guy in a plane", was significantly changed. The right place Adam Scott plays a writer with a tight wound on a plane from New York to Tel Aviv. He then discovers a multimedia player hidden in the pocket of his seat and containing a podcast supposed to investigate the mysterious disappearance of the same flight he's on. Although he is supposed to be an experienced investigative journalist, he is immediately convinced that the danger is approaching and that he alone can prevent disasters.

This episode takes place at a faster pace (directed by Gregory Yaitanes, a veteran of television whose credits have just included some episodes of Lost), although its ultimate twist (it was written by Marco Ramirez, after a story by Peele, Ramirez and Simon Kinberg) is a bit sticky and rather disappointing. That said, "Nightmare at 30,000 feet" is incredibly tense.

The story raises strong fears that almost everyone who has ever traveled anywhere can fly. This is the obvious, of course, that is to crash, but also the fear that a person on board your flight begins to stir and disrupt the tenuous social contract that stems from the zoom in the air to proximity of more than 100 unknowns at random. Do not kill the seat, do not have a drunken fit and, for SkyMall's sake, do not endanger all passengers and crew with your bullshit.

Jordan Peele as narrator of Rod Serling-esque
Photo: Robert Falconer (CBS)

Peele's dazzling success means he has a lot to live on, and he has a lot of passion for O.G. blurred areaI did not think either of these first two episodes were classic material of all time. As a person who also usually eats Key & Peele In the sketches, it was a little shocking to see Peele appear as the omnipotent narrator who breaks the fourth wall instead of just being another character in the episode. He's having a little fun – a dramatic pause here, the suggestion of a raised eyebrow – although all of this is clearly meant to pay respectful tribute to Rod Serling.

We already know that the distribution will be incredible throughout the season and that there will be various talents in front of and behind the camera. And while the series has been around since 1958, there's still infinite potential to shake things up, while sneakily commenting on a world in which comedians measure the success of Twitter followers and podcasters delivers what seems like an irrefutable truth to our headphones.

I will definitely go back when The twilight zone returns (he will be back on April 11th, with new episodes later on Thursdays on CBS All Access) to see what Peele will propose later.


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