TV Review: Master of None, Episode 2: “Parents”

By Tyler Hodg

Two episodes in, Master of None is becoming very clear to me. It’s not a show about getting the cheap laugh (almost every Chuck Lorre sitcom, I’m looking at you), it’s about offering a healthy dose of wit, charm, and intelligence. While it appears very accessible on the outside, those looking for added layers of sophistication won’t need to search hard.

Aside from Dev (Aziz Ansari), “Parents” features no returning characters or carried-over story lines. It’s as if the episode is a separate entity from “Plan B”, which I hope isn’t the case moving forward. What I want from Master of None is a concurrent narrative to flow through the episodes, rather than a singular experience each time.

Among the new characters were Ansari’s real parents, who were introduced into the show as Dev’s father and mother. Neither of them are actors, which is clear from their performances, so any expectations of them just seemed to melt away. Perhaps knowing that they are his actual family members allowed me to see their roles with a unique perspective.

Dev’s friend Brian (Kelvin Yu) and Brian’s dad Peter (Clem Cheung) are also new additions to the show. The characters play an important role in the episode, but I can’t see them making a major splash as the series rolls on. I imagine Brian will remain Dev’s most put-together friend, while it’s possible that this is the one and only appearance of Peter.

“Parents,” as a whole, is about reflecting on life as an immigrant compared to the life of an immigrant’s child. It incorporates not-so-humorous flashback scenes of both Dev and Brian’s fathers, which added a dramatic element to the episode, but wasn’t exactly what I had in mind; I want to see Dev “real talk” it out with someone.

While I understood the humour in “Parents”, I feel like children of immigrants will get a lot more from this episode. You know, that “that is so true,” moment. Regardless, episode two was still a satisfactory installment that left plenty material for the overall narrative to build off of.