The Carmichael Show - General Discussion

[wonderwoman]

Last night's episode was all about diffuesing the power of the N word. So what this local NC station did when it aired the show is beyond ironic:

 

http://www.newsobserver.com/entertainment/tv/warm-tv-blog/article157514084.html

[ItCouldBeWorse]

On 6/10/2017 at 10:27 AM, msrachelj said:

Is assisted suicide legal in the state they were in with grandma? I don't think so. Seemed a little too blasé  for the story of a son and 2 grandsons offing grandma so quickly. Not even talking to her doctor etc. It gave me a bad feeling. 

It's one thing to watch grandma commit suicide, but no one should be handing her pills, and the idea of her asking a grandson to smother her with a pillow (and any of them agreeing) is ridiculous.  Does she want her family to go to jail?

[msrachelj]

1 hour ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

It's one thing to watch grandma commit suicide, but no one should be handing her pills, and the idea of her asking a grandson to smother her with a pillow (and any of them agreeing) is ridiculous.  Does she want her family to go to jail?

yes, that was just not believable in any way. and they  did not speak to her doctor, did not do any research. yeah, right. just off grandma. 

[possibilities]

The show is so uneven in this exact way. Sometimes they take on topics they don't know anything about, and it really shows. Other times, they do a great job, but you never know what you're going to get until it's too late.

[wonderwoman]

A very long, fascinating piece by Todd vanderWoff @ Vox on The Carmichael Show and the return of the multi-camera sitcom.

 

https://www.vox.com/culture/2017/6/29/15705706/best-sitcoms-the-carmichael-show-one-day-at-a-time

[Jaded]

Jerrod Carmichael Exits ‘The Carmichael Show’ at NBC

[Jaded]

I put some news about the show in the media thread. From the news being released so far Jerrod announced he's leaving so the show will end.

[imjagain]

I thought this might happen. I saw him on Chelsea Handler's show on Netflix. At the time he wasn't sure if the network was going to replace the scheduled show,  but was very against it. He was beyond serious.   He thought replacing the show because of the shooting was a terrible idea. I didn't think the network would be happy with him. 

I liked the Carmichael show. It was an interesting show. I'm sorry it's over. I can see him doing a show on Netflix. Chelsea was very impressed with him.   I was too. 

Edited July 2, 2017 by imjagain

[Skyfall]

On 6/30/2017 at 4:40 PM, Jaded said:

I put some news about the show in the media thread. From the news being released so far Jerrod announced he's leaving so the show will end.

It was cancelled and he leaked it a bit early.

[possibilities]

Jerrod was on The Daily Show last week (maybe 2 weeks ago?) and he and Trevor talked about being black men and worrying about being shot by the police. I had seen him (Jerrod) do interviews before, where he annoyed me, but he was very different in this one, and just talked from the heart about how scary it is. He didn't even seem to want to promote his projects, even when Trevor kept trying to steer him back to the PR part of the interview, which I'm sure he's contractually obligated to do.

Now I'm wondering if he knew the show was cancelled and that's why he was allowing himself to just do whatever and talk about whatever he wanted.

[Skyfall]

5 hours ago, possibilities said:

Jerrod was on The Daily Show last week (maybe 2 weeks ago?) and he and Trevor talked about being black men and worrying about being shot by the police. I had seen him (Jerrod) do interviews before, where he annoyed me, but he was very different in this one, and just talked from the heart about how scary it is. He didn't even seem to want to promote his projects, even when Trevor kept trying to steer him back to the PR part of the interview, which I'm sure he's contractually obligated to do.

Now I'm wondering if he knew the show was cancelled and that's why he was allowing himself to just do whatever and talk about whatever he wanted.

They had a feeling and silently sent feelers out to other networks.

[Happytobehere]

After watching this episode, I know that I for one will really miss seeing Loretta Devine, David Alan Grier and the actress who plays Nakisha.

[msrachelj]

this show was very strange. i still can't get over them killing grandma and just going on with life. did no one investigate this, did they not have guilt about it? i was on the fence about this show previous but after that, well i am glad it was cancelled. i guess i am in the minority but i hated loretta devines character. 

[ItCouldBeWorse]

On 7/10/2017 at 4:21 PM, msrachelj said:

this show was very strange. i still can't get over them killing grandma and just going on with life. did no one investigate this, did they not have guilt about it? i was on the fence about this show previous but after that, well i am glad it was cancelled. i guess i am in the minority but i hated loretta devines character. 

Thank goodness they didn't actually kill her, but there would have been an investigation, and I wouldn't have wanted my fingerprints on the medicine container.

If this were real life, I would wonder if they told Loretta Devine the actual circumstances of Grandma's death, or if that's another secret they were keeping from her.

Speaking of secrets, I fully expected the episode to end with the mom wanting to meet Maurice. I also would expect the two younger brothers to want to meet their older brother.

Finally, Maxine making up a Crohn's diagnosis is ridiculous. Does she also fake going for colonoscopies and fake taking extremely expensive medications? It would be like someone faking having diabetes, not like someone falsely claiming gluten intolerance (which the writers seem to be conflating with Crohn's, based on the gluten-free pie, although some Crohn's sufferers are gluten free.)

Better to have had her claim IBS , which has no specific treatment (and is diagnosed when everything else is excluded) and which certainly flares up unexpectedly.  It would certainly be insulting to IBS sufferers for her to do so, but it would have been a bit more plausible. 

[possibilities]

I was astounded by that "use drugs for fun and creativity and know your limits" bit at the end of the "Intervention" episode. Never would have thought NBC would sign off on that!

[Irlandesa]

7 hours ago, possibilities said:

I was astounded by that "use drugs for fun and creativity and know your limits" bit at the end of the "Intervention" episode. Never would have thought NBC would sign off on that!

The 80s me was totally shocked that he lit up a joint right before we got the NBC "the more you know" thing.  I know we've come a long way but I still can't believe it happened.

[msrachelj]

just watched the latest episode. he told his father to just take both prescriptions because something like "what does it matter at this point" he is such an unlikeable person. that was very stupid, his father could have a reaction or maybe die. but this guy does not seem to care about anyone. what a strange show. they really hate people over 50 too.

[Jaded]

I haven't watched the latest episode. Last week made me mad when they compared drinking irresponsibly to someone taking medication properly. There was no mention that Maxine had been abusing Xanax. I get that some people drink to unwind but the way Nekeisha's drinking was characterized it sounded like she drank more then that.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

On 7/22/2017 at 11:00 AM, msrachelj said:

just watched the latest episode. he told his father to just take both prescriptions because something like "what does it matter at this point" he is such an unlikeable person. that was very stupid, his father could have a reaction or maybe die. but this guy does not seem to care about anyone. what a strange show. they really hate people over 50 too.

So many problems with the "Evelyn and Vernon" episode.

1) If Evelyn stops taking care of Vernon, isn't Cynthia just going to have to pick up the slack? True, she is pretty busy caring for that man-baby Joe, but still, you would think her mother would consider that.

2) Wouldn't the high and low blood pressure medications both have the patient's names on the bottles?  Does Cynthia remove the labels or combine the pills?  Does she carry extra of her own medication with her in her purse or did she just skip it when sleeping over at her parents?

3) Are we ever going to meet Morris (the secret son)?  I kind of feel sorry for him.  Maybe he and Cynthia could bond over this.

4) If Evelyn and Vernon do divorce, it would be a huge mistake to live together, as she will still be just as annoyed by him as if they were still married.

If they are going to continue to live together, they should not divorce for the following reason:  if Vernon becomes so disabled as to require nursing home care and applies for Medicaid, and the two are still married, Evelyn can keep the house for her lifetime. If they are divorced, Vernon will be required to pay the value of his half of the house to the nursing home before qualifying for Medicaid (I am assuming they have no great savings or other assets) so the house will have to be sold and Evelyn will have to find a new place to live using her half of any equity in the house.  (Also, if he has any life insurance, she will likely cease to be the beneficiary.)

Now, if Evelyn were planning to seek a new relationship, or was planning to sell the house and move out, I could see getting the divorce despite the above,  If she is going to stay in the house anyway, stay married, get earplugs and try to ignore Vernon as much as possible.

Also, you would think there would have been some mention of Joe's mother's recent death.

Edited July 24, 2017 by ItCouldBeWorse

[msrachelj]

19 minutes ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

So many problems with the "Evelyn and Vernon" episode.

1) If Evelyn stops taking care of Vernon, isn't Cynthia just going to have to pick up the slack? True, she is pretty busy caring for that man-baby Joe, but still, you would think her mother would consider that.

2) Wouldn't the high and low blood pressure medications both have the patient's names on the bottles?  Does Cynthia remove the labels or combine the pills?  Does she carry extra of her own medication with her in her purse or did she just skip it when sleeping over at her parents?

3) Are we ever going to meet Morris (the secret son)?  I kind of feel sorry for him.  Maybe he and Cynthia could bond over this.

4) If Evelyn and Vernon do divorce, it would be a huge mistake to live together, as she will still be just as annoyed by him as if they were still married.

If they are going to continue to live together, they should not divorce for the following reason:  if Vernon becomes so disabled as to require nursing home care and applies for Medicaid,  and the two are still married, Evelyn can keep the house for her lifetime. If they are divorced, Vernon will be required to pay the value of his half of the house to the nursing home before qualifying for Medicaid (I am assuming they have no great savings or other assets) so the house will have to be sold and Evelyn will have to find a new place to live using her half of any equity in the house.  (Also, if he has any life insurance, she will likely cease to be the beneficiary.)

Now, if Evelyn were planning to seek a new relationship, or was planning to sell the house and move out, I could see getting the divorce despite the above,  If she is going to say in the house anyway, stay married, get earplugs and try to ignore Vernon as much as possible.

Also, you would think there would have been some mention of Joe's mother's recent death.

it will all be over soon. i am watching till the end because i need closure! this show was awful. 

[ItCouldBeWorse]

So, Bobby should be either a barber or a bartender, I suppose.

[wonderwoman]

For anyone's who's interested: the final 2 episodes will air on Wednesday, 9 August @ 9 and 9:30.

[Irlandesa]

I liked the two episodes, although I do want to nitpick the "post-nuptial" agreement. I believe inheritances and trust funds aren't considered community property.  I am sad that the show is over but I'm glad it existed. 

[msrachelj]

good bye to a cast of unlikeable characters. 

[ItCouldBeWorse]

On 8/11/2017 at 0:10 AM, Irlandesa said:

I liked the two episodes, although I do want to nitpick the "post-nuptial" agreement. I believe inheritances and trust funds aren't considered community property.  I am sad that the show is over but I'm glad it existed. 

Plus, it's not Maxine's signature that would be important; it would be Jerrod who would be agreeing not to go after any funds.

I actually thought that Maxine was making up the trust fund to see how everyone would react.

Unless Jerrod took out loans, if he was able to purchase a $35,000 Rolex as well as his other stuff, he shouldn't have had to save 6 months to buy Maxine that ring, even if it is a ruby.  Or, he has a high credit limit on his cards.

Finally, if Jerrod is so successful, how come he never seems to be working? Has he ever discussed it on the show? People should be recognizing him all over.

Edited August 15, 2017 by ItCouldBeWorse

[xander874]

11 hours ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

Finally, if Jerrod is so successful, how come he never seems to be working

Yeah, he makes more money than Maxine, so he must be a pretty good comedian. It is odd it was never really mentioned on the show. Especially since most comedians tend to travel a lot. And if he is successful, then why was he so changed by Maxine's money? That was a weird episode.

I did like the threesome episode, because it tackled a topic you don't see much. Although Jerrod was awful to that poor girl. Just tell her you have plans for lunch with a friend and off she goes!

I'm not surprised the show is done. Jerrod felt mostly checked out this season and I feel he was a supporting character in most of the episodes.

[possibilities]

The writing was hit or miss. When they hit, it was a great show. But they missed a lot. I think that's ultimately why it couldn't continue. TV writers don't get as famous as actors, but they really are what makes or breaks most shows, in my opinion. I think this show bit off more than it could chew and didn't have the smarts to correct course and fortify the writing staff.

[msani19]

4 hours ago, possibilities said:

The writing was hit or miss. When they hit, it was a great show. But they missed a lot. I think that's ultimately why it couldn't continue. TV writers don't get as famous as actors, but they really are what makes or breaks most shows, in my opinion. I think this show bit off more than it could chew and didn't have the smarts to correct course and fortify the writing staff.

Very much agree with this. The writing could be great and sometimes they tackled important relevant subjects so well in 30 minutes! Other times, it felt like they were borrowing scripts from some low-rate, hacky sitcom writing school. I also agree with the comment about Jerrod being checked out from the show. I think that there were some issues behind the scenes (based on nothing more than speculation). NBC choosing not to air the gun violence episode was the final straw for Jerrod. He said he was done with the show soon after that. 

On a side note: I did see him in the Jay-z video for Jay's new song "Moonlight" where he plays Ross, Tiffany is Phoebe, Issa Rae from Insecure is Rachel, the comedian who plays Jerrod's brother (Lil Rey?), and 2 other actors who I should know but don't play the other Friends characters. It was interesting, I caught it on YouTube. 

Hope he goes on to do some things he's proud of. Tiffany is on the upswing with the success from Girls trip, so good for her! 

[AyeshaTheGreat]

On 8/15/2017 at 4:41 PM, msani19 said:

Very much agree with this. The writing could be great and sometimes they tackled important relevant subjects so well in 30 minutes! Other times, it felt like they were borrowing scripts from some low-rate, hacky sitcom writing school. I also agree with the comment about Jerrod being checked out from the show. I think that there were some issues behind the scenes (based on nothing more than speculation). NBC choosing not to air the gun violence episode was the final straw for Jerrod. He said he was done with the show soon after that. 

On a side note: I did see him in the Jay-z video for Jay's new song "Moonlight" where he plays Ross, Tiffany is Phoebe, Issa Rae from Insecure is Rachel, the comedian who plays Jerrod's brother (Lil Rey?), and 2 other actors who I should know but don't play the other Friends characters. It was interesting, I caught it on YouTube. 

Hope he goes on to do some things he's proud of. Tiffany is on the upswing with the success from Girls trip, so good for her! 

It seems Lil Rel plays Joey, Tessa Thompson (from movies Creed and Dear White People) plays Monica and Lakeith Stanfield (from Get Out and Atlanta) plays Chandler.

 As for this show, I watched to the end. It does seem like Jerrod has checked out this season. I am not sure what was going on behind the scenes but I can see him moving towards a Netflix or HBO for his next projects.  Overall, I enjoyed the show when it started, thought season 2 was a bit wonky and felt season 3 had some gems.  I still enjoyed the work of Loretta Devine and David Alan Grier.  I look forward to seeing the cast in future roles.

[CurlyATX]

I've been suffering through this show as my husband really likes the themes that the show covers and we've kept hoping the writing and acting will change.  Ugh, I am now done!  We just watched the episode with the Morning After Pill and Jerrod's mom just crossed so many lines- it was so gross.  First off, the brother who was trying to use his "Sherlock" skillz to figure out why a couple want to go to CVS.  It's obviously personal. I wish the girlfriend just said she needed tampons as that would have shut them all up.

Then, when the mom flushed the pill I just couldn't even have words.  It's not her right to say anything.  Regardless of how you felt about Plan B in the terms of when life begins, this is the same as her poking holes in their condoms.  This woman has had two kids- she should remember it's more than just walking a baby and smelling their heads!  And then how the fight degraded into a future with kids... this may not be the time/place for such a discussion.  And sometimes people aren't quite sure especially when they feel financially insecure.  A show 20 years ago like Friends had a more mature depiction of two people who loved each other but had the kids' dispute break up (Richard and Monica) vs. these clowns.  

I know the "too close for comfort" family is a comedy trope but this is too much! Was the mom going to help them conceive too? Maybe keep an app of fertile days? ewww...