Drama
The Diplomat
The Diplomat is not the dread of a malfunctioning roller coaster; it’s the slow burn of being forced to wait in the broken coaster’s line, unable to leave and knowing that the danger is only one turnstile away.
“For ages, the Black man has been seen as many things,” Grand Crew’s narrator tells us. “As sketchy, as wild, as arrogant and insensitive, but I’m going to let you in on a little secret about Black men. We have a softer, more sensitive side.”
NBC’s latest comedy aims to debunk the stereotypes listed above by showing off the sensitive sides in best friends Noah, Wyatt, Anthony and Sherm.
Romantic Noah dreams of finding his one true love. Family man Wyatt is celebrating eight blissful years with his wife. Even Anthony and Sherm, while not interested in marrying just yet, still show they can be vulnerable by admitting their own insecurities.
Unfortunately, while this show wonderfully shows how these men “love,” “laugh,” “care” and even “cry,” it also comes with a litany of problematic content.
The guys (along with Noah’s sister, Nicky) spend most of their evenings hanging out at bars and talking about their sex lives. And while we don’t see the nitty gritty details (other than people snuggling post-coital in their underwear), we hear about them.
Language is another problem with frequent uses of “a–,” “d–n” and “h—.” The f-word is also bleeped out on occasion.
And while the show succeeds in giving a voice to this emotionally diverse group of men, it also marginalizes women, reducing them to sexual objects that the men must woo. This insensitivity seems to at least partly undercut the whole “sensitive” premise of the show.
Indeed, Nicky, the one female voice who could change this opinion on women, is actually crudest character of all. She loves objectifying men and collecting as many sexual partners as she can. And when she’s given a moment to examine why she’s more interested in hookups than something meaningful, she chooses to avoid the subject by making a joke instead.
Sadly, the show’s focus on sex undermines the show itself, making it something that most families will want to avoid.
Noah and his friends have to find a new bar to drink at after his waitress girlfriend breaks up with him.
A couple lies in bed just after sex. Later, a woman gathers her clothing after a sexual encounter, and we see her undergarments. Couples kiss. People grind on the dance floor. There is lots of talk about sex. A woman repeatedly objectifies men.
A woman pepper sprays her boyfriend and threatens him with a knife when she mistakes him for a home invader. Two men have a slap fight.
People drink throughout. We learn a man’s father was miserable after his mother died and never loved again. Nicky is appalled to learn she is dating a Republican. There are some sarcastic references to God’s blessings. We hear uses of “a–,” “d–n” and “h—.” The f-word is also bleeped out once.
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.
The Diplomat is not the dread of a malfunctioning roller coaster; it’s the slow burn of being forced to wait in the broken coaster’s line, unable to leave and knowing that the danger is only one turnstile away.
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