Greetings, reader!
It feels a bit weird to be writing about anything else than Russia and Ukraine on a morning like this*, but I suppose it's always a good move to let life go on and not get sucked into the all-consuming cycle of apocalyptic news as I may or may not have done myself between the years 2016 and 2021. So, as it still is Black History Month for a while, here are 10 television episodes that resonate with the month's themes.
*After confidently typing 'morning like this', I looked at the clock and realized that it's 13:43. I might want to look into getting my life together in the near future.
10. Episode X (The Last Dance, Episode 10)
Many of the movies and TV shows that are recommended viewing for Black History Month are ones that deal with the horrors of slavery, segregation and other forms of racism, and rightfully so - we need equality, and understanding the atrocities our country has committed and the suffering that the Black community has been subjected to is a big part of that. But, Black History Month is also about celebrating the incredible achievements of African-Americans, which is especially important because many of them have been historically overlooked and downplayed due to the aforementioned racist aspects of society.
So if you're feeling depressed over watching five documentaries about racism in a row and want to watch something positive and empowering instead, what better thing to watch than the incredible documentary series The Last Dance? The series is a brilliant account of the 1990's Chicago Bulls team that grabbed the attention of the world with their fantastic teamwork and incredible athleticism, and the sheer power of Michael Jordan and company is best described in the tenth and final episode. Thoroughly worth the watch.
9. A Very Special 9/11 Episode (Big Mouth, Season 4 Episode 5)
Sure, this bizarrely titled episode might be best remembered for the storyline its title refers to, as the show's central group of schoolkids go on a gripping field trip to the 9/11 memorial museum. But the subplot on this episode was honestly just as memorable, as the season 4 storyline of Missy (Jenny Slate) getting in touch with her racial identity really picks up.
After being confused for a few episodes about her middle-class parents "suppressing" her cultural heritage, Missy wants to find herself as a young Black woman, and this episode's side adventure with supporting character DeVon (Jak Knight) accomplishes just that. DeVon shares his own experiences with Missy, while teaching her all about 'code-switching' and its ups and downs. The conversations between the two throughout the episode are illuminating, proving that a series as silly as Big Mouth sure manages to have its deep moments.
8. Six Meetings Before Lunch (The West Wing, Season 1 Episode 18)
Well, I've recently become absolutely hooked on the political drama from 20 years ago that my parents have talked up to me for years upon years, and that I always imagined to be somewhat boring and outdated. Oh, how wrong I was - I now have yet another reason to be very grateful to my parents, as this TV recommendation has been the saving grace of my last several weeks. It's not just comfort TV, but more or less therapeutic, as the trauma of following four years of the Trump White House calls for some processing, and this heartfelt series about how politics should work seems to have a role in the process. On a day like today, with the whole situation in Ukraine, I think I'll resort to watching quite a few episodes of this escapist reality where disasters are often averted due to the people in charge being so capable.
Anyways, for the topic of the day. The West Wing has quite a few episodes that resonate with Black History Month, as the rights of Black people and other minorities are often front and center in Aaron Sorkin's powerful and forward-thinking writing. The episode I chose was Six Meeting Before Lunch, where Deputy Chief of Staff Josh Lyman (Brad Whitford) discusses the touchy issue of reparations with Assistant Attorney General Appointee Jeff Breckenridge (Carl Lumbly). The series tackles this delicate issue with grace, as the viewer can easily relate to Jeff's strong support of reparations, as well as Josh's practical approach to the difficulties involved. It's a nuanced take on the difficult question of how the U.S. should reckon with the atrocities committed against Black people in our history - a question that has no easy answer, but is very much worth pondering.
7. Those Were the Days (The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Season 2 Episode 20)
There are many episodes from Will Smith's breakout sitcom that I could've chosen for this list, as The Fresh Prince often found itself dealing with important issues concerning Black culture in the midst of its comedic shenanigans. The one I went with is Those Were the Days, where the Banks family is visited by and old friend of parents Philip (James Avery) and Vivian (Janet Hubert). She's a friend from their youthful days of activism, and whereas Philip and Vivian left that life behind in order to safely raise a family, Marge (Peggy Blow) has continued her activism to the point that she's in trouble with the FBI.
It is heartbreaking to follow Philip and Vivian struggling between their urge to help out a dear friend and their incentive to turn her in, as they have to weigh the importance of their core values and the safety of their family's newly built surroundings against one another. Things get more complicated when Will (Smith) gets all inspired by Marge's activism and starts to spread the word of Black empowerment at school, which ends up being a heartwarming storyline for his character. All in all, Those Were the Days is a powerful and ultimately heartfelt episode that makes one think.
6. Far Beyond the Stars (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Season 6 Episode 13)
The Star Trek franchise has always prided itself in being progressive and ahead of its time with its societal criticism - the original series from the 60's has episodes criticizing the Vietnam war, racial inequality in the U.S. and Nazism (remember when we could all agree that Nazis were bad? Simpler times). Diversity and anti-racism has always been at the core of the franchise, as proved by the absolutely amazing true story of the show's origin - creator&writer Gene Roddenberry specifically wanted a diverse cast to show that humanity would've moved past nationalism and racism in the future, and the studio executives of the time tried their best to insist that it should just be a group of white guys instead. Roddenberry put his foot down, demanding that the cast is diverse or else the series doesn't get made - and the rest is history.
Of the many spin-off shows in the Star Trek universe, Deep Space Nine has always been my favorite. While the franchise has many anti-racist episodes that fit well with the themes of Black History Month, my pick just had to be Far Beyond the Stars. In this tear-jerking masterpiece of an episode, we follow protagonist Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) as he finds himself envisioning a life very different from his own: suddenly he's a science fiction writer named Benny Russell in 1950's America. For most of the episode, we follow the life of this man as he deals with the racial inequalities of the time, while having dreams of being a space station captain in the future. Far Beyond the Stars is top notch science fiction, a gripping take on racism, a powerful tale of inspiration and empowerment, and Star Trek at its very best.
5. Confederacy (Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, Season 4 Episode 26)
What better way to celebrate Black History Month than watching an over-excited white guy rant for half an hour? Jokes aside, Last Week Tonight is a brilliant way of learning about important and serious topics in an entertaining way, as John Oliver and his hard-working research team make him into a figure who is closer to being a journalist than a typical late night host. His takes are comedic, but also very informative, and such is the case with the season 4 episode that should be mandatory viewing in the U.S. education system - Confederacy.
I haven't gone to school in the U.S. personally, but based on everything I've read about the state of education in my dear second homeland, I think I can confidently say that this half-hour television episode teaches more about the Confederacy and the Civil War than whatever Mickey Mouse stories certain states are currently passing on as "history class". The evils of the Confederacy have been downplayed in U.S. culture and media for so long, and the reasons behind the Civil War are so often blatantly lied about, that it's no wonder that people still romanticize the Confederacy while knowing very little of what it all really meant.
This episode does a great job explaining the more uncomfortable parts of our history, which is extremely important - I think most Germans would tell you that the parts from your history that aren't fun to talk about are the ones that are most important to understand, so that people don't repeat the mistakes of the past. Otherwise, you end up with alt-right assholes waving confederate flags while attacking our democracy over 150 years after the Civil War ended.
4. Moo Moo (Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Season 4 Episode 16)
Brooklyn Nine-Nine's respectable tradition of occasionally doing darker episodes that deal with serious social themes alongside the show's silly sitcom routine started with season 4's Moo Moo. This gripping episode begins in a typical Brooklyn Nine-Nine fashion, but the laughter comes to a very sudden stop when Sgt. Terry Jeffords (Terry Crews) is stopped and harassed by a police officer when walking outside his home.
The rest of the episode balances comedy and seriousness brilliantly, as Terry's storyline continues to deal with police racism as he and Captain Holt (Andre Braugher) debate on what should be done about the officer who profiled him, while Jake (Andy Samberg) and Amy's (Melissa Fumero) storylines of babysitting Terry's kids brings some much-needed levity to remind viewers that they're still watching a comedy series. Well, at least for the most part - even that storyline has its instances of heartbreak, such as Terry's daughters asking why their dad was in trouble and if they were going to be in trouble because of being Black. All in all, a sobering and massively important episode of television.
3. Rosa (Doctor Who, Season 11 Episode 3)
A series about a dude who can go anywhere in time and space opens up pretty much endless possibilities. And while Doctor Who most often uses its setting to either spend half of its time in modern-day London or to present classic time travel dilemmas like "Can we protect Earth from the crashing spaceship replica of the Titanic and save Christmas?" or "Is is too much if we call this episode Let's Kill Hitler even though Hitler only plays a very minor part?", it has also been known to use its time travel premise to recreate some powerful moments from history. We've seen The Doctor experiencing the Christmas Truce from World War One, the eruption of Pompeii and the border conflict in Pakistan, as well as meeting historical figures from Shakespeare and Dickens to Van Gogh and Christie (Agatha, not Chris).
And never is the series more powerful than it is in the episode Rosa. The Doctor (Jodie Whittaker) and her companions travel to 1950's Alabama, and Vinette Robinson provides an absolutely brilliant guest performance as Rosa Parks. The episode balances its science fiction with real-life history brilliantly, as the whole ordeal comes across as a tribute to Parks and the Civil Rights movement. It feels like the series going back to its roots, as the original idea of Doctor Who in the 60's was to teach kids about history in a fun way. Good timing, too - if the Republicans continue their anti-CRT book-burning campaign, American kids might soon have to be turning to Doctor Who to learn about their country.
2. Barack Obama: Navigating America's Racial Divide (The Daily Show)
Really, almost any episode of The Daily Show since Trevor Noah took over in 2015 will do (as well as many episodes from before then, as his predecessor Jon Stewart was way ahead of the curve on issues of social and racial justice). Noah is one of the most influential Black voices in American culture today, and his South African upbringing during the tail end of Apartheid has given him a powerful outlook on race (I can honestly say that his book Born a Crime is one of the most illuminating pieces of media concerning learning about race and racism that I have ever come across). And while his tenure as host of The Daily Show has featured a huge number of interviews that resonate with Black History Month, from Chadwick Boseman and Spike Lee to Kamala Harris and John Lewis, the one I decided to go with was one of his many interviews with President Barack Obama.
In an increasingly divided world, where much of our political discourse seems to be people screaming black-and-white rhetoric over each other, it is so damn refreshing to watch an interview like this one, where two smart, calm and open-minded individuals discuss important issues of race, culture and history in an elegant and ultimately beautiful manner. Also, as a fan of both individuals, it is heartwarming to see them having a conversation where it becomes clear how much respect both trailblazers have for each other.
1. B.A.N., Juneteenth, FUBU or pretty much any other episode of Atlanta (2016-Present)
In the last few years, the conversation around racism has put much more focus into nuance. While extreme movements like the KKK are still around, they appear to hold less and less power and popularity, which is obviously a very good thing - but the fact that we're getting rid of the most dire problems has also opened our eyes to a whole new layer of problems. It turns out that the narrative from American history education, where racism was an evil that was largely defeated in the 60's thanks to Martin Luther King Jr., and now everything is okay, couldn't be farther from the truth. Due to the fact that our society was built in a time when racism was widely accepted and white people held all the power, there's a multitude of flaws in pretty much all of our systems, from law enforcement and the justice system to education and our very democracy, that benefit white people. Hence all the talk about systemic racism and why we need bigger changes.
And this brings me to one of the most genius TV shows ever created - Donald Glover's Atlanta. Most of the well-known movies and TV shows about racism are stories where the racists are over-the-top extremist assholes that even real-life racists might look at and say "Damn, that dude is a jerk". Don't get me wrong, stories like this are important, but after some time, one starts to realize that they're not always enough - they don't challenge the viewer, they don't tackle the most common issues that minorities face today, and they present racism as a part of the black-and-white narrative where you're more or less okay if you're not burning a cross while wearing a white hood.
With the hard-hitting, artistic and absolutely unique comedy-drama hybrid Atlanta, Glover and company tackle issues of race with unforeseen nuance. We're exposed to white people who think they're doing the right thing but are actually making the problem worse, problems within and around the Black community that make the situation more complicated, and all sorts of double standards that you'd never think about until something like Atlanta opens your eyes to them. You realize just how pervasive racist attitudes are on multiple levels of society, and how we all need to educate ourselves and work to get rid of those attitudes instead of watching the same Oscar-winning movies and saying "Well, at least I'm not that bad :)" for a millionth time.
And I specifically chose any episode of Atlanta as the #1 pick for Black History Month, because among the many other points that the series makes while telling its story, it makes it painfully clear on multiple occasions that it all comes down to just that - history. Whether it's the episode Juneteenth where Earn (Donald Glover) enters a party where the ending of slavery is celebrated in a slightly fucked-up way, the episode North of the Border where the main characters end up in a frat party boldly flying the Confederate Flag, or the episode FUBU where we flash back to Earn's childhood struggles, clear lines are drawn on how American history has affected the racial injustices of today, and how the fact that my beloved second home country so stubbornly refuses to reflect on its history and learn from it is making everything worse (again, something we should and could learn from the Germans).
Black History Month may be coming towards its end, but its themes should carry with us across every month, and now would be a great time to start watching or re-watching the first two seasons of Atlanta before season 3 comes out!
Thank you for reading! Starting next Thursday, I'll be doing a music-related theme month, meaning that every post in March will be a top list about music instead of my usual movie/TV themes. It will begin next week with a ranking of my top 10 favorite rock songs of all time!