Nathan Fielder's Unpleasantness Made "Nathan for You" A Great Show
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I've been on a kick lately of re watching some old comedy shows that I used to love. And when I saw old, I mean like 4 or 5 years they have been off air. Not classics, just stuff I used to wait weekly to watch. I recently did this with "Workaholics", my wife and I always re watch shows like "The Office", "Parks and Rec" and "Happy Endings" as well. Recently, after finishing "Workaholics", I decided I was going to watch "Nathan For You" again.
Now, you all know how I feel about this show. It is one of the funniest things that has ever been put on TV. I mean "Finding Frances" is a god damn masterpiece, and I cannot wait to watch it again. But, after closing the show with "Finding Frances", I kind of forgot about all the other great stuff "Nathan For You" did. This show is one of a kind, and the stuff Fielder did was simply amazing.
For example, when the pig rescued the goat from the lake, that became a worldwide story, that was Nathan Fielder. Dumb Starbucks, that was Fielder. Fielder got a ghost writer to write a self help book, which I read, and started a whole weight loss movement. That book is insane by the way. Fielder and crew did a ton of memorable things. In the first episode, he got a frozen yogurt place to add a poo flavored yogurt.
The one thing I have kept going back too since I started my re watch was a segment of one of his earlier episodes where he convinced a car mechanic to get himself hooked up to a lie detector when giving people estimates on their cars, and telling them what was needed. Seems like a simple enough idea, and actually, it is one of his better, and more solid, ideas. But, as he does with every segment, he had to make sure it worked out properly before heading back to the mechanic's. He also had to put his humor in to the performance as well. So, while checking out the lie detector, he had the person administering the test ask him about his search history on his computer. More to the point, he had the tester ask him if he has every watched pornography on his computer, and further more, had he pleasured himself to said pornography. Of course Fielder said no, and of course he did not pass the test. But, to see his reactions to every question was hilarious. He was so stand offish and bullish that he never used his computer for this activity. He went as far as trashing the tester to everyone involved. During voice-overs he even said stuff about how poor the tester, and the lie detector, truly was. If you know Fielder's humor, this speaks to you on so many levels. If not, he is dry and monotone and seems like he could care less. It is an acquired taste, and he pull sit off to perfection. He is also a but dorky, so to see him so offended by the lie detector, it makes it that much more funny. I have been relaying this to my wife constantly, and every time I bring it up, I find myself laughing so hard that I have tears in my eyes. The fact that he even tells customers at the mechanic shop that the lie detector wrongly said that he was using his computer for pornography makes it that much more hilarious.
Look, I love this show. As I said, it is one of the greatest things to ever be on TV. But, if you decide to watch because you know of Dumb Starbucks, or the pig and goat thing, you will be greatly surprised by how great the rest of the show was. And, if you want to watch, think about my blog today when you watch the lie detector segment in an early episode. It is one of the best.
Ty
Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He had an uncomfortable experience with a lie detector test. It was quite uncomfortable, know what I mean?
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