I'm a pretty heavy-duty film nerd. My fav directors include Eric Rohmer, WKW, and Martin McDonagh - I'm all-in on the films many would consider boring.
But I recognize that there's also a time and place for high-quality lowbrow television. Just like pop music: you can be a Pink Floyd and Led Zepp guy, whilst also appreciating Dua Lipa's talent.
Obliterated is just that: low-brow television, done extremely well.
It's not perfect - I'm no explosives expert, but I don't think that a "5 Kiloton" bomb could level all of Vegas (I think they meant "5 Megaton") - but the show definitely isn't as daft as everyone is making it out to be.
Beneath its (intentional) high-school humour, lies a faint, yet very real, thread of self-awareness. Obliterated doesn't even try to take itself seriously - it's a show for a modern world, in which we witness a return to West/East geopolitical dichotomy, and social media creating a normalisation of chaos and stupidity.
This became evident to me the very first time I heard the chant "USA! USA!": the show isn't succumbing to stereotypes of American exceptionalism, it's poking fun at them. That's why McKnight is a Chad, both in name and nature.
If pre-9/11 America was the America of Superman, and post 9/11 America became the vengeance-driven America of Batman, modern-day America very much is the America of Obliterated: a world on the brink is underpinned by an absurdist takedown of excess and partying, where Gen X and elder Milennials are obsessed with reliving their 20s, and where Gen Z are obsessed with TikTok. The show's insane characters and plot find their equilibrium in Vegas, the perfect microcosm for a late-stage capitalist hellscape (something which the "commie bastard" Russian characters are acutely aware of).
Does that last sentence sound problematic? It possibly is, and this very idea is explored in this show by its obvious refusal to succumb to modern norms. In this way, 'Obliterated' is less The A-Team, and more Team America: World Police. Hooray for the return of satire.
For those that claim the show is "sexist" and "homophobic" - the show's subtleties flew over their heads. McKnight isn't a homophobe; he's emotionally repressed, and he's definitely a manifestation of a culture of toxicity - but his friendship with Trunk is honest and pure. Obliterated doesn't make fun of Trunk's journey of coming out; it makes fun of McKnight's state of utter ignorance. The second that things click for McKnight, however, he displays a perfect example of what straight/gay friendships should be: best friends should support and celebrate each other, without needing to base their entire friendship dynamic on their sexualities. Trunk is gay, but he's also extremely masculine, as some gay guys are irl. The show doesn't reduce him into a banal stereotype of "The gay guy seeking validation and love", but instead fixates on making fun of his hunger for food. Obliterated doesn't perpetuate a military culture of "Don't ask, don't tell"; it acknowledges it, and moves paces beyond it.
In a similar vein, Winter's, Lerner's and Gomez's competencies are left no room to question, but are also not overemphasised, as we've come to expect from so many tacky "culture warrior" Netflix scripts these days. In my opinion, Obliterated does a better job than many shows of exhibiting true equality: it isn't afraid to make crass jokes, but it also doesn't need to rely on tokenism - it's already one step ahead of that. The power of the characters' diversity is in their normalisation - something which itself is also made fun of, when McKnight overtly calls Young an "American Hero".
Finally, on the criticisms of the show's overusage of nudity - images of boobs, butts and penises are juxtaposed with headshots, and extremely graphical violence. In doing so, the show-runners aren't just making a return to raunchy action-comedy; they're also questioning why we take offence to some things, whilst normalising others.
I guess all of this may be summed-up as a long-winded argument in support Obliterated's satirical form. As soon as I finished episode 1, I immediately googled the creators - and I wasn't at all surprised to find people behind Harold and Kumar, and Cobra Kai - themselves excellent examples of irreverent, yet self-aware, comedies.
To me, Obliterated is a breath of fresh air: it's hilarious, it's entertaining, and it's not nearly as dumb as people are trying to make it out to be. It doesn't ask much of the viewer, other than to go in with an open mind and without expectations.
To quote Abed, at the end of Community: "It's TV. It's comfort. It's a friend you've known so well and for so long, you just let it be with you."
Obliterated may not be your intellectual friend; but it is that hilarious, train-wreck of a friend that's always there for you, and always has something positive to say. And I know whom I'd rather call up on a Friday night.
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