Drama
The Pitt
Max’s new hospital drama The Pitt strives to be medically accurate. But while that’s a noble goal, this show comes with a whole lot of content, too.
Have you ever avoided doing something—such as confessing to a fib or starting a family—because you’re afraid of what might happen?
Well, real-life comedian Nathan Fielder has found a way to predict the outcome of nearly any awkward encounter. And he’s offering ordinary people the chance to “rehearse” key moments in life in order to help them create the perfect scenario.
Using replicas of these people’s homes and workplaces, actors to portray their friends and family and an extensive flowchart system, Fielder runs multiple “if this, then that” simulations, allowing his test subjects to test every variable that might present itself.
But the ends don’t necessarily justify the means. …
Although Fielder genuinely tries to get the results people want, he uses a lot of deception to get there. (Not to mention the fact that he lies about who he really is in order to convince them to participate.) And it ranges from simple white lies to elaborate plots involving fake websites and disguises.
But Fielder got quite the lesson on the impact his lies could have in Season One.
His multistage plan to simulate motherhood for a woman debating whether or not she’s ready to have kids of her own ended in disaster. Frustrated by Fielder’s antics, the subject quit the show. Then, one of the child actors he had hired, a boy who’s unable to discern the difference between fiction and reality, latched onto Fielder, believing the comedian to be his real father.
The child’s mother questioned whether she should have let her young son audition in the first place, but ultimately reassured Fielder that her son would be OK.
However, that experience, at least in part, seems to have altered Fielder’s method for Season Two. Instead of approaching the show from a comedic standpoint, he takes a more sincere slant, focusing more on the success of the rehearsal itself rather than the show.
And this time around, Fielder’s goals are much loftier.
After conducting research, Fielder has discovered that the number one reason planes crash is due to a breakdown of communication in the cockpit—which is corroborated by former National Transportation Safety Board member John Goglia. So for Season Two, Fielder hopes that his rehearsals could train pilots to communicate better before they take flight.
Fielder’s part in this series, it seems, is at least partially scripted. And like most reality series, who’s to say what’s real and what’s fake? But scripted or not, foul language is present, including multiple uses of the f-word and abuses of God’s name.
Really, it’s a strange social experiment that Fielder is running. And perhaps Season Two will produce more wholesome results than its predecessor. But I think I prefer running these types of simulations in my head.
(Editor’s Note: Plugged In is rarely able to watch every episode of a given series for review. As such, there’s always a chance that you might see a problem that we didn’t. If you notice content that you feel should be included in our review, send us an email at [email protected], or contact us via Facebook or Instagram, and be sure to let us know the episode number, title and season so that we can check it out.)
Nathan Fielder runs his first rehearsal to see if he can train a young first officer, Moody, to be more assertive in the cockpit by first teaching Moody to be more assertive in his relationship with his girlfriend.
Recreations of real-world plane crashes are depicted onscreen, often ending in a fiery plane explosion and multiple deaths. The scripts used for these recreations are the transcripts of the planes’ black box recordings, making these scenes even more intense.
Sadly, many of the captains quoted in these recreations are dismissive of their first officers. Some are outright insulting. And the first officers themselves, fearful of the repercussions of speaking their minds (John Goglia tells Fielder that an airline captain could easily get a first officer fired), allow the captains to make mistakes that ultimately cost them their lives.
A clown cries out for help after getting trapped under a car. Bystanders laugh at the clown, believing it’s part of a joke. Finally, two men rush to help the clown, and we see a bloody wound on his leg. However, the entire scene is staged to make a point, including the chuckling bystanders. Elsewhere, Fielder essentially hires actors to stalk airport staff in order to train for an upcoming rehearsal.
Fielder narrates how he lied to John Goglia in order to elicit an onscreen interview. Goglia says he made an official recommendation to require additional communication training for pilots, even suggesting role-playing as an effective training method. However, it was denied, and he openly blames the U.S. government.
Despite his deceptive methods, Fielder’s desire to prevent plane crashes and develop an effective communication training model seems genuine.
We hear a few uses each of the f- and s-words. We also hear instances of “b–ch” and “h—.” God’s name is misused several times.
Nathan Fielder helps prepare a man to tell his friends that he lied about having a graduate degree.
People lie, manipulate and cheat. Two men joke about a sexual self-help book. They also discuss their divorces. We see a few men in swimsuits. There is a joke about bowel movements.
A cop describes a hostage situation, saying a gunman shot someone in the head before holding up four other people. (It turns out the cop is an actor and the story is fake.) While discussing the plot of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Nathan says Willy Wonka killed several of the children who entered the factory. A man lies that his grandmother recently died of brain cancer.
We hear a couple uses of the f-word and s-word, as well as some abuses of God’s name. A man says he “curses the Chinese” for inventing gunpowder. Someone offers prayers for a family in a bad situation.
Emily studied film and writing when she was in college. And when she isn’t being way too competitive while playing board games, she enjoys food, sleep, and geeking out with her husband indulging in their “nerdoms,” which is the collective fan cultures of everything they love, such as Star Wars, Star Trek, Stargate and Lord of the Rings.
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