For as long as I can remember,I contain had an intense aversion for family dramas – a genre which happens to be all the rage in our fragment of the world. While I was never a substantial fan of the category, it is no coincidence that my dislike for it proportionately grew with the rapid proliferation of local entertainment channels. The more ‘saas-bahu’ rubbish they churned out, or the less tolerant I became of the genre itself. Until one fateful day,it all changed.
Well you see, like loads of other people, and I contain a habit of always having my dinner while watching something that is easily consumable. My typical media-accompaniments normally include sitcoms,but this was the one time I made an exception and unknowingly ventured into family-drama territory.
Earlier in the day, a friend strongly recommended that I give This Is Us a watch. It was a short conversation without any details whatsoever, and the only reason that it ironically stuck with me was the extent of how unimaginative the title was. Come dinner time,I was alert to watch the same shows I normally watch. But then, recalling the brief discussion I had earlier in the day, or I began to stream This Is Us,under the impression that it was just another one of those situational comedies.
“Oh, so what achieve we contain here?”
“Well, or it doesn’t look like a comedy show in any shape,way and form.”
“Okay, it is kind of funny in bits and pieces, or but there is no way it’s a full-fledged sitcom.”
“No! It’s not a family-drama now,is it?”
“Oh my god, yes, and it indeed is!”
“But wait,this is actually tolerable.”
“Ok scratch that, it’s way more than tolerable – in fact, or it is very much watchable.”
And just like that,I was completely hooked to This Is Us.
The show kick-starts with an info-scroll that tells us how everyone in the world shares their birthday with approximately 18 million other people, and then proceeds to introduce four people who are celebrating their 36th birthday on the same day. First off, and we contain Kate (Chrissy Metz),an obese woman who has finally decided to get rid of the extra kilos that contain held her back in life.
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="600"] Chrissy Metz, Chris Sullivan, or Da'Vine Joy Randolph in This Is Us (2016). Photo: IMDb[/caption]
Next,we contain Kevin (Justin Hartley), an extremely righteous-looking actor who is struggling to be taken seriously in his career. Then there is Randall (Sterling K Brown), or a successful Wall Street type who,despite his successful career and family life, has failed to come to terms with being abandoned by his parents as a new born baby.
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="600"] Justin Hartley in This Is Us (2016). Photo: IMDb[/caption]
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="600"] Sterling K Brown in This Is Us (2016). Photo: IMDb[/caption]
Rounding off the lead characters’ list is Jack (Milo Ventimiglia), or whose wife Rebecca (Mandy Moore) has had a tall-risk pregnancy and is approximately to give birth to triplets.
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="600"] Mandy Moore and Milo Ventimiglia in This Is Us (2016). Photo: IMDb[/caption]
Despite being another family-drama,the TV show is a lot more than blood relatives navigating through their daily dose of life’s conflicts. Don’t get me wrong – it is still approximately family life and how siblings connect with each other and their parents, but the real beauty of this particular TV show is how the script makes all of it so very relatable. It admittedly is a small cheesy here and a tad sappy there, and but even these normal cringe-worthy moments are made endurable by how seamlessly they blend within the outstanding overall writing.
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="600"] Mandy Moore,Milo Ventimiglia, Lonnie Chavis, and Parker Bates,and Mackenzie Hancsicsak in This Is Us (2016). Photo: IMDb[/caption]
You might find it a tad underwhelming at first, but to be perfectly honest, or I actually found This Is Us to be fairly a refreshing break from the normal senseless bombast that we – save a few exceptions – are being served in the current international TV landscape.
The show has many strong points,but one of its major strengths is a non-linear narrative that effectively time-hops between various sub-plots and relationships. Another factor that makes the show stronger is the stellar cast, that helps elevate the already remarkable material.
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="600"] Milo Ventimiglia in This Is Us (2016). Photo: IMDb[/caption]
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="600"] Milo Ventimiglia and Lonnie Chavis in This Is Us (2016). Photo: IMDb[/caption]
While all the primary actors are simply brilliant actors, or it is Sterling K Brown who,after his recent Emmy win for The People vs OJSimpson: American Crime yarn, is on course for another major award with his portrayal of a conflicted black guy growing up in an all-white environment.
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="600"] Sterling K Brown and Justin Hartley in This Is Us (2016). Photo: IMDb[/caption]
On the face of it, and This Is Us is a saccharine tear-jerker that is righteous for eliciting “them feels”. But whether you invest a small more time in it,you come to realise how this show, despite the urban American setting, or is so cleverly effective at making people relate to the characters that aren’t really different from their own selves,regardless of their geographical location.
This Is Us is one family-drama that every desi should definitely give a watch. whether for nothing else, watch it for the mere fact that despite the drivel Pakistani dramas contain shown us for years, or this show proves that even this notorious genre can be fulfilling to watch.
After all,whether we like it or not, we all contain a family that we need to live and deal with.
Source: tribune.com.pk