Nobody Wants This on Netflix

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Jewish person here.

I thought the show was cute and like/rooted for Joanne and Noah. I also thought it was completely ridiculous.
First off Joanne didn’t go to college and her only income is as a local podcast host (how can she even afford to live?). Jews tend to value education - she has a high school diploma and seemingly little worldly knowledge (has never heard the word shalom?). Though it seems she DOES know what it means to keep kosher, just doesn’t know that the meats were pork, which makes no sense.
If he were a reform rabbi a lot of this wouldn’t matter. His temple is clearly more religious. And that makes it all the more unbelievable.
All of which would be fine- this is entertainment. But I think it’s awful that the jewish creator of a TV show portrays Jewish people in such stereotypical and not great ways during a time in history when anti-semitism is on the rise.

All of this plus more. And I'm Catholic. The lead actor is adorable, the brother and sister are hilarious, but I found it super cringey to joke about people's cluelessness around Judaism and lean into crude stereotypes for a show that was supposed to be thoughtful (e.g., not a satire.) So much hype and such a letdown.

Obviously it’s dumbing things down to appeal to a wider audience. Jewish people are 2.4% of the population. It’s quite likely your average Netflix viewer isn’t very well informed about Jewish ways, terms, and customs. So there’s a lot of basic education going on assuming a lot of the audience is ignorant.

I thought this was filmed in New York. The % of Jewish people in NY is higher, especially if you look at it as a % of the white urban UMC population
Agree that the women were nasty, but they tend to be territorial in real life too.
Potential shiksas who have not yet converted and are just dating are treated like that

It’s set in Southern California.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Jewish person here.

I thought the show was cute and like/rooted for Joanne and Noah. I also thought it was completely ridiculous.
First off Joanne didn’t go to college and her only income is as a local podcast host (how can she even afford to live?). Jews tend to value education - she has a high school diploma and seemingly little worldly knowledge (has never heard the word shalom?). Though it seems she DOES know what it means to keep kosher, just doesn’t know that the meats were pork, which makes no sense.
If he were a reform rabbi a lot of this wouldn’t matter. His temple is clearly more religious. And that makes it all the more unbelievable.
All of which would be fine- this is entertainment. But I think it’s awful that the jewish creator of a TV show portrays Jewish people in such stereotypical and not great ways during a time in history when anti-semitism is on the rise.

All of this plus more. And I'm Catholic. The lead actor is adorable, the brother and sister are hilarious, but I found it super cringey to joke about people's cluelessness around Judaism and lean into crude stereotypes for a show that was supposed to be thoughtful (e.g., not a satire.) So much hype and such a letdown.

Obviously it’s dumbing things down to appeal to a wider audience. Jewish people are 2.4% of the population. It’s quite likely your average Netflix viewer isn’t very well informed about Jewish ways, terms, and customs. So there’s a lot of basic education going on assuming a lot of the audience is ignorant.

I thought this was filmed in New York. The % of Jewish people in NY is higher, especially if you look at it as a % of the white urban UMC population
Agree that the women were nasty, but they tend to be territorial in real life too.
Potential shiksas who have not yet converted and are just dating are treated like that

It’s set in Southern California.

Honestly, someone must be brain dead not to have picked up on that!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Jewish person here.

I thought the show was cute and like/rooted for Joanne and Noah. I also thought it was completely ridiculous.
First off Joanne didn’t go to college and her only income is as a local podcast host (how can she even afford to live?). Jews tend to value education - she has a high school diploma and seemingly little worldly knowledge (has never heard the word shalom?). Though it seems she DOES know what it means to keep kosher, just doesn’t know that the meats were pork, which makes no sense.
If he were a reform rabbi a lot of this wouldn’t matter. His temple is clearly more religious. And that makes it all the more unbelievable.
All of which would be fine- this is entertainment. But I think it’s awful that the jewish creator of a TV show portrays Jewish people in such stereotypical and not great ways during a time in history when anti-semitism is on the rise.

All of this plus more. And I'm Catholic. The lead actor is adorable, the brother and sister are hilarious, but I found it super cringey to joke about people's cluelessness around Judaism and lean into crude stereotypes for a show that was supposed to be thoughtful (e.g., not a satire.) So much hype and such a letdown.

Obviously it’s dumbing things down to appeal to a wider audience. Jewish people are 2.4% of the population. It’s quite likely your average Netflix viewer isn’t very well informed about Jewish ways, terms, and customs. So there’s a lot of basic education going on assuming a lot of the audience is ignorant.

I thought this was filmed in New York. The % of Jewish people in NY is higher, especially if you look at it as a % of the white urban UMC population
Agree that the women were nasty, but they tend to be territorial in real life too.
Potential shiksas who have not yet converted and are just dating are treated like that

It’s set in Southern California.

Honestly, someone must be brain dead not to have picked up on that!

LOL I have never been to SoCal but was amazed at all the bungalow houses, the easy parking, no traffic. Ah Hollywood.

[Anonymous]

I loved it. I at first was critical of many of the things other PPs point out were unbelievable, but then it occurred to me that maybe it is meant to be ridiculously over the top. Most of the characters and plot are built on stereotypes - the modern rabbi, catty and controlling jewish women, vapid LA women, the abrasive Jewish mom, the out of the closet dad..etc. I thought it was fun once I let go of any expectation that I was watching realistic portrayals of Jews or Los Angelens, or 30s/40s women.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Jewish person here.

I thought the show was cute and like/rooted for Joanne and Noah. I also thought it was completely ridiculous.
First off Joanne didn’t go to college and her only income is as a local podcast host (how can she even afford to live?). Jews tend to value education - she has a high school diploma and seemingly little worldly knowledge (has never heard the word shalom?). Though it seems she DOES know what it means to keep kosher, just doesn’t know that the meats were pork, which makes no sense.
If he were a reform rabbi a lot of this wouldn’t matter. His temple is clearly more religious. And that makes it all the more unbelievable.
All of which would be fine- this is entertainment. But I think it’s awful that the jewish creator of a TV show portrays Jewish people in such stereotypical and not great ways during a time in history when anti-semitism is on the rise.

+1 from a non-Jewish person.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Jewish person here.

I thought the show was cute and like/rooted for Joanne and Noah. I also thought it was completely ridiculous.
First off Joanne didn’t go to college and her only income is as a local podcast host (how can she even afford to live?). Jews tend to value education - she has a high school diploma and seemingly little worldly knowledge (has never heard the word shalom?). Though it seems she DOES know what it means to keep kosher, just doesn’t know that the meats were pork, which makes no sense.
If he were a reform rabbi a lot of this wouldn’t matter. His temple is clearly more religious. And that makes it all the more unbelievable.
All of which would be fine- this is entertainment. But I think it’s awful that the jewish creator of a TV show portrays Jewish people in such stereotypical and not great ways during a time in history when anti-semitism is on the rise.

Jewish NP here - I started the thread about this show in the religion forum. Do you think that his synagogue is conservative or orthodox? I thought conservative at first - just based on how people reacted to her being not Jewish - but he doesn't keep Shabbat, doesn't seem to keep kosher, etc. So I just assume he's a reform rabbi. It seems really weird to me that a reform congregation would get SO worked up by an interfaith couple - the temple is probably full of them!

I can't stop watching this show but also it really bothers me. I don't understand how Joanne, who grew up in LA, knows so very little about Judaism either.

Sasha is my favorite character so far, and I really enjoy his wife Esther, too. I think we're supposed to hate her but I don't, not at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I read all the comments and no one has mentioned how Noah's parents are supposedly former Soviet Jews, yet seem more like L.A. Persians or Armenians. We don't call "banya" the shvitz (that's a Yiddish term used by Eastern Europeans), moms aren't as overbearing as Middle Eastern/Far Eastern Jewish (or otherwise) moms, and the accents are way wrong. Former Soviets don't tend to go into real estate, don't tend to be religious, etc. If you're going to stereotype, do it right, the parents should have been scientists or computer programmers.

Yes this bugged me too because there was no reason for it. Obviously their financial situation and the personality of the mom was important to the plot so why not have a backstory that made this make sense? It's incongruous the way it's written.

Also incongruous is the family actually doesn't come off as particularly religious so I had a hard time understanding why Noah became a rabbi. You don't get the sense his parents pressured him into it and his brother obviously doesn't care. So you'd think it had to do with Noah's own faith and interest. But then he's kind of blithely dating a you knowing it's problematic and seems generally annoyed by the realities if his job. When the board member sees him in the sex shop he only cares about his own career and is happy when it turns out the guy is cheating on his wife. It's just weird.

My take is Noah is a bad person and it would be great if he didn't stay a rabbi. He comes across as this sweet and cute caring guy, but it is all superficial: He misleads Rebecca, a woman of substance who actually IS a good person and wants to be a rabbi's wife (which is a very specific job in itself, not many are up for it!), dumps her after being such a coward she had to push the issue to finally get an answer. Then he falls for a total airhead actual BAD person. He says lashon hara is wrong but actually engages in gossip right away the minute he meets her friends. There is the gross incident you mention about the board member cheating and covert blackmail. He plays basketball on Shabbat, lights candles after sundown, is totally fine flaunting a brand new relationship at a religious camp, it takes him 10 minutes to throw away his career because the idiot he somehow loves says she probably can't convert...None of it aligned with him being a good person or a good rabbi at ALL.

Oh brother. Have you been dumped after a long relationship. I would have dumped someone who tried to force me into a proposal too. He didn’t owe her that just because she is a good person and up for a job. Also, if the two characters, Rebecca is the one who lies to get Noah back and continues to disrespect his boundaries. Joann is prettt consistently honest about everything.

I know several rabbis and their wives. It is not a normal relationship. It's a marriage but it's also very much a business partnership and a personal sacrifice for the woman if they are not absolutely into the job itself. You are on 100% of the time, constantly entertaining, helping. The rabbi's wife has a crucial role. He did owe her not wasting years in her 30s leading her on. Had she not done the ring thing, he would have kept misleading her so it's a good thing she did. Joanne is a shitty person and yes, she is honest about being shitty. Rebecca is more mature and realizes the scope of being Rabbi Noah's wife. Her mistake is thinking Noah is a good person and a good rabbi who wants to stay a rabbi, so everything devolves from that.

1) how do you know he would have kept misleading her? He bought the right and by all accounts was planning on giving it to her at some point. As far as I could tell he had an a-ha moment when she forced the issue and said there is essentially nothing special about a relationship, that this was it. He wanted passion and love and not just a transaction. Her lying and manipulation does not make her a good person in my book. Other than being Jewish, of course.

2) Why is Joanne a shitty person? Give me some examples. She has a raunchy podcast, sure. But she is an awesome sister, close with her family, has a ton of really good friends. She is pretty honest and doesn't try to manipulate anyone.

+1. Rebecca didn't just spring the engagement on him. She broke into his locked cabinet to find the ring. She started planning the wedding with his mom before he even knew he was "engaged." Rebecca has no boundaries.

That said, I get that being a rabbi's wife is a full-time job, and anybody in a relationship with a rabbi needs to understand that, which Joanne does not. The same is true of a relationship with any religious leader, and it's why I'm religious but didn't see my future in dating an episcopalian priest.

I think he did treat Rebecca very poorly and took her for granted. She did seem like a good match. I think it's good she knew what she wanted and wasn't neurotically sitting around hoping for it, but plowed ahead. And yeah, if he was going to dump her for that then better to get it over with - but the guy is in his 40s, right? If he's still hemming and hawing about settling down, and falling for the rush of s** with someone who can't mesh with his real life, I think he needs therapy and a cold hard look about whether he's living the life he actually wants to live. Maybe he doesn't want to be a rabbi - maybe that's what all of this is telling him. But I have to say, I'm team Rebecca.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't understand how the characters are all so filthy rich.

The sisters don’t come off that rich. It was explained that Noah’s parents are super successful, own a business, huge mansion etc. and that Sasha works for the parents. Noah as a jr rabbi at a large urban synagogue probably makes 200k, probably had his parents give him money for his townhouse so has a small mortgage and is a single guy with a trust fund coming in.

They absolutely come off as rich. Look where they live! Also look how casually they take this whole thing of selling their podcast - they are not treating it like it's a life changing opportunity. Only people with f u money already would behave like that when presented with this sort of business opportunity.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't understand how the characters are all so filthy rich.

The sisters don’t come off that rich. It was explained that Noah’s parents are super successful, own a business, huge mansion etc. and that Sasha works for the parents. Noah as a jr rabbi at a large urban synagogue probably makes 200k, probably had his parents give him money for his townhouse so has a small mortgage and is a single guy with a trust fund coming in.

They absolutely come off as rich. Look where they live! Also look how casually they take this whole thing of selling their podcast - they are not treating it like it's a life changing opportunity. Only people with f u money already would behave like that when presented with this sort of business opportunity.

^ Me again - and I guess the one time they don't come across as rich to me is when they're thrifting and they say something about how they love rich people's trash. That's the one moment they seem to posit rich people as other.

[Anonymous]

I finished watching last night and started liking it a lot more in the last two episodes. I think I figured out what the show is actually about - and what I'd like to see in a season 2:

- Hot Rabbi doesn't actually want to be a rabbi more but he doesn't know how NOT to keep doing this thing he's wanted since he was 13. So he picks a woman who gives him a pathway to change.

- She is also the vehicle that lets him finally start standing up to his mom (who was one of my favorite characters)

- Meanwhile Joann learns emotional maturity and putting someone else first

- Esther is also learning to break some of the rules (she's another of my favorite characters)

- I think Rebecca, who wanted so badly to become a rabbi's wife, should become a rabbi herself

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I finished watching last night and started liking it a lot more in the last two episodes. I think I figured out what the show is actually about - and what I'd like to see in a season 2:

- Hot Rabbi doesn't actually want to be a rabbi more but he doesn't know how NOT to keep doing this thing he's wanted since he was 13. So he picks a woman who gives him a pathway to change.

- She is also the vehicle that lets him finally start standing up to his mom (who was one of my favorite characters)

- Meanwhile Joann learns emotional maturity and putting someone else first

- Esther is also learning to break some of the rules (she's another of my favorite characters)

- I think Rebecca, who wanted so badly to become a rabbi's wife, should become a rabbi herself

Nice. Standing Ovation. Please get on the writing team.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I finished watching last night and started liking it a lot more in the last two episodes. I think I figured out what the show is actually about - and what I'd like to see in a season 2:

- Hot Rabbi doesn't actually want to be a rabbi more but he doesn't know how NOT to keep doing this thing he's wanted since he was 13. So he picks a woman who gives him a pathway to change.

- She is also the vehicle that lets him finally start standing up to his mom (who was one of my favorite characters)

- Meanwhile Joann learns emotional maturity and putting someone else first

- Esther is also learning to break some of the rules (she's another of my favorite characters)

- I think Rebecca, who wanted so badly to become a rabbi's wife, should become a rabbi herself

One of the things the show is missing is actually delving into spiritual life at all. Joann’s decision to convert appears to be based purely on wanting to get married and literally zero consideration or learning about faith. And her reconsideration like wise is all about qualms about being “the rabbi’s wife” and zero consideration for belief, service, etc. While I appreciate the accurate depiction of some aspects of Jewish tradition, it’s extremely shallow. The closest it gets to anything deep is the ridiculous self-help advice by Joanne that “you need to open up and talk about things.” Hmm yeah, I’m sure a podcaster somehow provided this important take to a Rabbi about how to counsel his congregants. I don’t know that many rabbis but acting like they are clueless about how to communicate until some Christian self-help advice is just a little … yeah.

I much prefer the depiction of LA Jewish life in Transparent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I finished watching last night and started liking it a lot more in the last two episodes. I think I figured out what the show is actually about - and what I'd like to see in a season 2:

- Hot Rabbi doesn't actually want to be a rabbi more but he doesn't know how NOT to keep doing this thing he's wanted since he was 13. So he picks a woman who gives him a pathway to change.

- She is also the vehicle that lets him finally start standing up to his mom (who was one of my favorite characters)

- Meanwhile Joann learns emotional maturity and putting someone else first

- Esther is also learning to break some of the rules (she's another of my favorite characters)

- I think Rebecca, who wanted so badly to become a rabbi's wife, should become a rabbi herself

One of the things the show is missing is actually delving into spiritual life at all. Joann’s decision to convert appears to be based purely on wanting to get married and literally zero consideration or learning about faith. And her reconsideration like wise is all about qualms about being “the rabbi’s wife” and zero consideration for belief, service, etc. While I appreciate the accurate depiction of some aspects of Jewish tradition, it’s extremely shallow. The closest it gets to anything deep is the ridiculous self-help advice by Joanne that “you need to open up and talk about things.” Hmm yeah, I’m sure a podcaster somehow provided this important take to a Rabbi about how to counsel his congregants. I don’t know that many rabbis but acting like they are clueless about how to communicate until some Christian self-help advice is just a little … yeah.

I much prefer the depiction of LA Jewish life in Transparent.

I should add - It’s perfectly OK to be shallow! most people of any religion are fairly shallow about it. But by making the entire premise of the show that he is a Rabbi and that the family wants her to convert, the writers introduced religion on a deeper level. If they did delve in, then the aspects that people have been criticizing (the mom and sister’s stereotypical hostility to the “shiksa”) could be deal with with a lot more nuance instead of looking like a cheap trope.

Tl;Dr - don’t write a show about religion without actually including any religion.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I finished watching last night and started liking it a lot more in the last two episodes. I think I figured out what the show is actually about - and what I'd like to see in a season 2:

- Hot Rabbi doesn't actually want to be a rabbi more but he doesn't know how NOT to keep doing this thing he's wanted since he was 13. So he picks a woman who gives him a pathway to change.

- She is also the vehicle that lets him finally start standing up to his mom (who was one of my favorite characters)

- Meanwhile Joann learns emotional maturity and putting someone else first

- Esther is also learning to break some of the rules (she's another of my favorite characters)

- I think Rebecca, who wanted so badly to become a rabbi's wife, should become a rabbi herself

One of the things the show is missing is actually delving into spiritual life at all. Joann’s decision to convert appears to be based purely on wanting to get married and literally zero consideration or learning about faith. And her reconsideration like wise is all about qualms about being “the rabbi’s wife” and zero consideration for belief, service, etc. While I appreciate the accurate depiction of some aspects of Jewish tradition, it’s extremely shallow. The closest it gets to anything deep is the ridiculous self-help advice by Joanne that “you need to open up and talk about things.” Hmm yeah, I’m sure a podcaster somehow provided this important take to a Rabbi about how to counsel his congregants. I don’t know that many rabbis but acting like they are clueless about how to communicate until some Christian self-help advice is just a little … yeah.

I much prefer the depiction of LA Jewish life in Transparent.

One of Joann's moments of personal growth is when she realizes that she's only converting - or becoming open to converting - because of him. And then tells him she isn't going to do it. She gives up this thing she's been desperately trying to get because of this insight.

[Anonymous]

I just watched the first episode. Love it so far!