Photos
Holy shit. HOLY SHIT. Let me first start off by saying that Himanshu Suri of Das Racist wrote an analysis of last night’s premiere episode of Outsourced for Stereogum. You should go read it. It’s really funny but also interesting, and provides a much more deeply engaged and thoughtful critique of the show than I ever could. But, if I may add my two cents? FUCK THIS SHOW IN THE FACE UNTIL IT DIES. Look, it is 2010. We’ve only got two years left. And when the highly advanced A.I.-mecha are sifting through the ice fields looking for buried digital repository droids filled with memories of human mothers, is this really the note we want to go out on? This horrifyingly backwards, Xenophobic nightmare note? No. That could not possibly be how we want to go out.
One of the more disappointing aspects of this show is how many talented people worked on it. Creator (or adapter, I guess) Ken Kwapis has created good (read: non-racist) television for decades. The writing staff is solid. The actors have decent comedic timing and nice faces and whatever else actors need to get hired on a show for NBC. Considering how much bureaucratic red-tape is involved in getting a network sitcom from treatment to pilot, much less pilot to actual show, it is that much more incredible that at no point during that long and frustrating and expensive process did anyone say “Hey, how about we DON’T fill a coveted Thursday night comedy slot with a show that feels like the start to some kind of race riot we didn’t even know was a possibility.” A rare miss, NBC.
But of course the MOST disappointing aspect of this show is how it is so terrible and racist.
Look, I know that this is a sensitive subject, especially around here. Everyone wants to think of themselves as a good person, and the fact is, most people are good people. That’s not really the issue. You can have benign racist impulses and be a good person. You can even make a brown-face minstrel show and be a good person. I am sure that everyone involved with Outsourced had nothing but the best intentions (or at least nothing but the decent enoughest intentions) and set out to make the funniest comedy series they could. Unfortunately, the funniest comedy series they could make is not funny, and is also offensive. And gross.
Let me put it this way: the final joke of the season premiere of Outsourced is a joke about how Indian food gives you diarrhea. REALLY? They sell Indian food in strip malls in Wisconsin now, guys. We all agree that Indian food is delicious. Of course, the final Indian food will give you diarrhea joke that ends the episode is actually a call back to an earlier scene that ALSO suggested that Indian food would give you diarrhea, but that suggestion wasn’t borne out until the end. IT’S CALLED SUSPENSE, LOOK IT UP. And that earlier scene began with our hero, Todd, in the Mumbai call center cafeteria staring at delicious steam trays of Indian food with horror on his face. HORROR! To quote from Suri’s essay: “what 20-something, college-educated American professional who would head to India before looking for a new job hasn’t ever had Indian food? At one point the main character identifies a dish as “yellow and green stuff”. You know that’s Saag Paneer dude.”
At another point in the show, an Indian man does a strip-teasy dance routine to the Pussycat Dolls “Don’t Cha.” Admittedly, it has been a little while since I have looked up the actual dictionary definition of “minstrel show,” but I do believe that some form of song/dance intended for the debasement of the performer in order to entertain the culturally superior audience is in there somewhere.
Of course, the counter-argument to all of this is that humor is humor and jokes are jokes, and nothing is off limits, and it’s the differences between us that bring us together. Sure. I get it. There is another scene in the premiere when Todd tries to explain to his new employees the humorous intricacies of American popular culture using a mistletoe belt buckle. The idea, of course, is that American culture is just as ridiculous if not more ridiculous than Indian culture if you start to think about it. Again: sure. I get it. But that reasonable and important point is drowned out, because it is two minutes of a 22 minute sitcom. “Holy shit, is that a cow in the street?” Todd says. “Cows are sacred here,” his Indian co-manager Rajiv says. “Haha, you fuckers are fucking crazy,” Todd says. And for the record: novelty cheesehead hats are not the same as turbans, and it is genuinely offensive to make that comparison! One guy’s name is Manmeet, so you can imagine how funny THAT IS. “Your name is Manmeet?” “Yes.” “Faggot.” There’s another “American” on the show, Charlie, who is supposed to represent our insufferable boorishness, and he does it very well. But even here, he points at a professional Indian man dressed in a sharp suit and says “HEY YOU, COME HERE!” and then proceeds to use him as a puppet to make his point before waving his hand and dismissing him. For every step this show takes to “humanize” Indian people (as if we weren’t already in agreement that they were human because of how it is fucking 2010) it takes two steps to reduce them to dehumanized comedic props. Gross!
Look, it’s the first episode. Maybe they’re just getting all the horrifyingly tone deaf racist kinks out now to clear the way for a modern, post-racial (LOL, not a thing) show that revolutionizes the very idea of what a comedy even is. Just kidding.
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“That is our show”
~ People who are honestly and sincerely inspired by Eat, Pray, Love
my dog really wanted to watch this, but my money was all “no way, dude. this is gunna suck. let’s get out of here.”
Your money? Your money looks like a monkey. Kudos for spending all your money on a monkey.
True story: I knew a guy who got a suit settlement and bought a monkey and a bus with a train horn. There’s no point to that story, I just thought you’d all like to know that you live in a world where that happened.
you’d make the same mistake if your monkey had the skills mine does.
good lookin’ out, Money!
“Fuck Bitches Get Monkey.” -Your pets
Dear Outsourced,
A mutual friend has a thought for you:
Thanks.
Truly. If NBC wants a show about awesome Indian people, just give Kelly her own fucking spinoff already.
The Office : Kelly
30 Rock : Jonathan
Community : Abed
Parks and Recreation : Tom
Hey NBC! You have 4 (count ‘em!) shows with great, non-stereotypical, Indian characters. And yet you chose to squander all that goodwill with one lousy racist piece of shit.
NBC: MAKIN’ IT HAPPEN!
Who is 30 Rock’s non-stereotypical Indian character? Or am I thinking of something else?
Lester from Chuck, you idiot.
Jonathan, Jack Donaghy’s assistant.
When’s the last time we saw Jonathan?
I haven’t posted in a few weeks (college! so much dancing and paper-writing) but I wanted to definitely come back for the return of 30 Rock and this shit right here. OH MY GOD. I have 2 Indian professors right now who are vying for the position of most intelligent person in my life, and this back asswards portrayal of Indians makes me want to vomit. I watched this show haphazardly making fun of it with some of my friends, until the Indian co-manager said that one of the employees was easily fireable because she was of a lower caste. I’m not embarrassed to be an American by this show, I’m embarrassed to be a human being.
it was on in the background when i heard this “joke” & i had to rewind it to make sure i didn’t imagine it.
I was actually about to come in here and make a post that looked like this:
“Outsourced? Das Racist.” and post a picture of the Das Racist guys because maybe a couple of people would have gotten it and it would have been HILARIOUS TO THOSE PEOPLE!
No, but seriously: Fuck Outsourced. Most racist shitbag show out there. I would rather have Brokencyde play a live show in my dorm room every day of my life 12 hours a day and the other 12 hours is “Two and a Half Men” repeats.
Why are there not more forums about how terrible Two and a Half Men is? That show is the worst thing ever and it’s been on for like, a ba-zillion seasons!
I went to high school with one of the actresses on this show. She’s actually very nice and extremely talented and I really hope this show gets canceled and is immediately forgotten so she can move forward with her career in a non-racist-nightmare-inducing manner.
VG Post Dec. 2010: Heaven just got a little more Outsourced.
Hopefully you meant Oct 2010.
Hopefully he also meant hell.
On a promo last night NBC showed that Outsourced and The Office share a joke (that “Man Meat” one). Of course they do.
It’s because their minstrel cycles are synced up.
I want a million upvotes on this by 5. A MILLION BY 5.
holy fuck that’s a good line.
This is the best thing I’ve read all week.
One day, years from now, I’ll bring my children to this comment and tell say, “this is it. This is where it all happened.”
I have to say, I don’t get this joke…and I feel really stupid. Where do the minstrels come in to play?
Uhhh. Hold on… Someone mentioned some aspect of minstrels being racist or something, and ‘minstrel’ also sounds like “menstrual,” hence the synching up. It was a play on words. A goof-around, if you will. Fucking genius, really. The mind reels…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minstrel_show
Ohhh, I was thinking of this kind of minstrel:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minstrel
And couldn’t make the connection. Got it now.
wan’t that the worst?! WASN’T THAT THE WORST?!
I had decided not to even give this show a chance, but accidentally caught the first five minutes and all I have to say is UGH. “Manmeet? Your name is weird!” Yuck.
2012: Ben Rappaport wins Emmy for Best male lead in a comedy series. 30 Rock is re-tooled as ‘turban rock’, a slapstick sitcom about 2 would-be terrorist living under a rock plotting the death of all mid-westerners. It is an instant ratings success.
This is the way the world ends: Not with a bang but a whimper
Obligatory gif:
I love this kid. But I think he’s saying “Dick Tracy.”
He’s saying, “Jai Ho.”
Which is racist.
Gabe, I think the problem is that you just don’t get this type of humor. You see, it’s funny because these people are behaving in a stereotypical manner, and also because Indian food frequently causes bowel movements.
RIGHT?
While Indian food in general may not give you diarrhea any more than anything else will, Indian food from a strip mall in Wisconsin sure as hell will.
I am from Wisconsin, and I am offended. But it’s ok, because I put a picture of this show in my wallet.
Western “Indian” food relates to Indian-Indian food as Easy Mac relates to an Italian Tagliatelle con ragu Bolognese. Bland, watered-down shit full of salt and fat instead of the original deliciousness. So good!
On the other hand, I went to India (College: anything but study!) and yeah, the food did give me diarrhea. But shitting orange water for a week is no laughing mater. On the real tip: nothing of what is said in Gabe’s editorial reminded me of when I was in Mumbai. So fuck this show, dude.
I have a friend who studied in India in college and she said that all Westerners who visit shit their pants when they go (she included herself in this. Future lawyers!). Apparently, she’s right, because another friend just went there, and when he initially left she told him he would shit his pants and he SCOFFED, yes SCOFFED, but in the end did in fact shit his pants.
Every time I have a (white) friend who goes to Mexico, I warn them about drinking the water. They insist that I’m perpetuating a terrible myth that Mexico is a dirty place and they ignore my advice. ONE HUNDRED PERCENT OF THEM GET SICK FROM DRINKING THE WATER. I do not get the anxiety that white people have about admitting that things are different in other places. Also the Miracle Whip thing, what’s up w/ that white people?
Just wanna put this out there: Generally, the reason westerners shit themselves/have diaherria/whatever when they go to India or Mexico or whatever, is not because of ‘dirty water’ but because your body needs time to get used to the unfamiliar enzymes that enter your digestive tract when you go to another part of the world. It definitely depends where you are (and some infrastructures are certainly lacking and a lot of people in these countries don’t have access to clean drinking water), but generally speaking, if you’ve been there awhile you can drink the tap water just fine.I’m probably not explaining this well but I have found it to be true and so have the people I have traveled with.
Have you guys considered that made the white dude is supposed to be the butt of the jokes? A few years ago I saw the movie this sitcom is based on, and it starts out the same way and you just sort of cringe through the first act because of how the guy is so embarrassing. He’s just the *sigh* “stereotypical ugly American.” The script is written so that he’s unlikable. The audience does NOT root for him at all. And then slowly….over the course of acts 2 & 3, he starts to realize that he’s is being a total motherfucker. He stops resisting Indian culture, starts experiencing more the place has to offer, and, big surprise, starts to actually like it. And your heart kind of softens to him. The movie is kinda rough and ham-handed, (not as much as the show) but you wouldn’t get the same effect if you liked the character right off the bat.
I’m kind of thinking that we’re not supposed to like that dude. That’s sorta the point.
My girlfriend is Asian and I’ve previously worked in a call centre… Let me tell you, there are far more enjoyable ways of combining these two things!
I didn’t watch the show, because duh, but the constant advertising for it made me want to find Ben Rappaport and punch him in the FUCKING FACE. Worst offense: juxtaposing The Office’s well-executed “man meat” joke with the painfully unfunny character gimmick from Outsourced. Two seconds of Office nostalgia then a brick to the teeth. Fuck you, NBC. FREE RON SWANSON!
every single person sold an add-on their first day thou, SUCCESS!!!
I liked this show the first time I saw it… when it was called The National Spelling Bee
Hiyo!
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Solid point. Gabe, I think a retraction is in order?
The creators of the show all have pictures of Kal Penn/Aziz Ansari/Mindy Kaling/Ghandi in their wallets.
You forgot Danny Pudi.
My black friend watched it and he wasn’t too offended. (am I doing this right?)
OH NO, I’M BEING DOWNVOTED. I’m just saying guys, relax. Sometimes white people getting offended on behalf of minorities is just as offensive.
(White) people can be offended by racism without being offended by racism on behalf of someone else.
Yeah, and sometimes NBC broadcasting stupid jokes about how “OMG, Indian people are weird and their names are gay!” on must-see TV is offensive to everyone
humans are often offended by things that are offensive to humans. it’s science.
I don’t understand that statement. I am not being offended on behalf of someone else, I am being offended because this shit is offensive. I think implying that one has to be a member of a certain community to find offensive shit offensive is in itself offensive shit.
Also, this sit-com fails at comedy.
Uggh, I’m sorry dude, but that’s the laziest argument in the book. By your logic, as a white person I shouldn’t be offended by someone throwing around the n-word because that would somehow be offensive to black people? What are you even talking about?
I think obryan is really David Brent.
As someone who has played the role of the “token black guy” for many years, I kind of agree with this. It’s annoying when a middle-class (white) college grad who took a few sociology courses acts like she understands racism as well as my Mom, whose stories of growing up pre-integration have always been my anchor-point on the issue. I find it offensive when anyone leverages our history to stoke a sense of moral superiority. Please, cool out with calling everything “racist”.
You have a point, but I really don’t think that seems to be the case here; I think when you have a show with base jokes that amount to condescending and tired stereotypes of the “You’re food/name/culture is so wacky and ridiculous!” variety, it’s not really a stretch for everyone to label it as “racist.”
I also think using “This show is offensive to X, but I have a friend who is X and likes it, so it can’t be offensive!” as your sole defense is trite, immature, and lazy. I know of girls out there who like Tucker Max, but that doesn’t mean he’s not a horrible, horrible misogynist.
Do you know how much laughing at white people weirdness gets done on tv? It’s actually what POWERS the cw’s mid-day programming.
As someone with a masters degree in sociology, I find your comment highly offensive.
But seriously, we all have our hippy dippy friends who go a little over the top with their liberal outrage, but are you really saying that it’s a bad thing than when a human being of one race stands up for someone in another race? Did you watch the show? I watch the first 4.5 minutes and couldn’t stand to watch anymore. It was completely unfunny and exploitative.
George Lopez had (maybe still has, i let my subscription to the his newsletter has lapse. I’m lazy–not because I’m Mexican but because I’m from Generation X) a sitcom. No duh, it was pretty dumb. Sometimes he’d make “jokes” about stuffmexicanpeoplelike. And invariably I’d read on some blog some white person getting ALL up in arms about it. “He shouldn’t be making jokes like that. It’s racist. Not all Mexican people sound like Speedy Gonzalez. This hurts the Hispanic community. They are good people, hard workers…..” Yuck. I’m sure on his end he seems he’s “culturally aware” and that he’s, and I actually read this once, “providing a voice for a group of people who live in silence.” But from my end, it looks like YOU think that I need you to protect me. From……George Lopez jokes? Are you kidding me? Why do people like that imagine that we’re all hypersensitive? Is it all those photos you guys see of the cowering, shivering, thin bodies of people who make long treks through deserts and choppy oceans? I get that it comes from a good place. And that’s nice that people want to be inclusive. But you know what makes me feel like a real outcast, you know what’s really hurtful? Finding out that guy assumes that I feel like an outsider. White ppl being *extra* sensitive, treating me w/ kid gloves are patronizing as hell. Not jokes about how my name is probably Juan and I’m the gardener who enjoys tacos.
This is true, but the other extreme is when white people constantly ask people of color to tell them if something is racist, and if so why, and please cite three example in your answer, which is so not better. People of color may laugh at me for getting too easily offended by mild racism but I think it’s better than making them be the racism referee all the time.
underweareyes, i can’t reply to you for some reason, but i just wanted to say – awesome comment. i totally agree with you.
I think that’s called a Native American roommate these days.
I’m with you, obryan. I don’t see any issue with you sharing the opinion of an Indian person you know since Gabe went ahead and shared an article written by an Indian person he knows. What’s the difference?
I’m Indian and the only thing that offended me about the show was how unfunny it was and the fact that it wasted the talent of a lot of seemingly good actors. It was just a lazy, poorly written show. Let’s not all freak out about it.
Thank you! That’s very nice of you. I’m afraid I just went on some spree with my OWN brand of self-righteous indignation. Cool!
Bring back Leslie Knope!
“Leslie Knope? More like Leslie NOPE, amirite?”
-NBC execs
I went to bed complaining to my wife about how terrible and racist this show was. When we woke up, I pretty much picked right back up. I just finished a rant to my co-workers about it. I am actually, sincerely angered that this is a thing that exists on TV right now.
Is t wrong that I pictured a bulldog just going off on everybody when I read your comment?
Hey, whatever floats your boat.
Gabe, this show can’t be racist because there are Indian actors in it. ~ Racist people everywhere
“I can make fun of it because I’m part Navajo.”
“Its not racist, its edgy.”
Patrick M you are on FIRE today.
I’m related to Pocahontas.
I know you’re joking, but that’s actually another major bummer about it- there’s finally a show that’s providing several acting roles for people of color, but the roles are totally offensive and stereotypical.
Dear NBC: For tips on how to feature Indian actors correctly, see Aziz Ansari in “Parks and Recreation.” Get it together!
Totally by all means we should only show a minority experience ONE way only. Okokok I KNOW that was not your point. I know. But that’s what’s really annoying about all the shaken heads over how A 30 MINUTE PILOT fails to capture the subtleties and nuances of the a minority experience. It never OCCURRED to me to fault Ugly Betty because it didn’t tell MY story. That one Mexican doctor on Grey’s Anatomy, I’m betting her storyline doesn’t capture MY EXPERIENCE. Yikes. Some shows paint w/ a broad brush because they want for as many people as possible to be able to relate. It’s lowest common denominator stuff and it happens CONSTANTLY. I’m confused about why this show is being singled out for not doing a better job at roughly sketching what amounts to archetypes.
Because we live in a hysterical xenophobic society that’s getting worse by the day without major television networks perpetuating these stereotypes ad infinitum.
(Wasn’t able to comment below, so HI! HERE I AM!) Um….so…..Society’s xenaphobia is getting worse by the day? From where I sit – and remember, i sit as a Hispanic who lives in a rough neighborhood of Phoenix, AZ – from where I sit, things are getting better, not worse. But you know what is getting worse? Our exposure to hysterics. Blah blah blah 24-hour news cycle, high speed Internet connection. It *seems* like things are getting worse because our media knows it’s good copy when they do stories on fanatics. And since we have more outlets to voice our opinions, we have have more opportunities to hear each others support/disapproval of those fanatics. Studies seem to indicate that society is becoming more, and not less, tolerant. Percentage increases of “mixed” marriages, minorities hold more positions of power and have more access to wealth. There’s more integration in school and neighborhoods. Diversity is up! But so are blog posts about #thecrazies.
OH, Pop Quiz Kid, you’ve nailed my one regret! I regret that I kind of want this show because there’s like, NO WHERE ELSE to see actors of this ethnicity on a major network (is there?) and that fact ANGERS ME!!!
*NBC’s Thursday line-up has been so good about it too, with so many ethnicities getting to inject aspects of their cultures or outlooks into Community and Parks & Rec.
To clarify, I was amazed to see so many Indian actors on television all at once (in the opening credits, there’s ONE MORE Indian person than there are WHITE PEOPLE in the cast! OMG), anyway, AMAZED to see so many, only to find that their personalities in this episode were PAPER-THIN! I’m a quiet shy woman! I’m a man who wants to date ladies! I’m a man with a blue turban who is off-putting! I’m an extremely attractive Indian woman!
Don’t worry, everybody, American White Male is here to save all of you.
yes, but how could it be called a sitcom if it didn’t have cliched characters with paper-thin personalities? I’m the kooky next door neighbor! I’m the long-lost cousin brought on the show to boost ratings! I’m the racist American who can’t eat Indian food but still chooses to live in India!
I wouldn’t even want to try to count how many television shows I’ve seen that featured a joke about white people being terrible dancers. Or blond women being ditzy. Or that fathers are constantly getting into jams because of how utterly stupid they are and would be hopelessly lost w/o his wife and kids. Relying on these conventions (and the tired ones in Outsourced) is lazy and boring. But the outrage is really just overreaction. It’s best when shows approach things from a fresh angle. But even 30 Rock a show that’s always lauded for it’s creativity features: 1) A 30ish single woman who is having man problems. ARG! 2) Handsome, successful, selfish/jerky, rich Republican guys that sleeps with pretty women a lot. 2) 2 dumb blonds 3) A backwoods hillbilly naif with a heart of gold who has a naive take on The Big City 5) A black actor who seems to be straight from Spike Lee’s great film, “Bamboozled” Tired tropes. All over the place. Lock up your valuables.
Hey, look at the bright side: Jeff Zucker is being kicked out of NBC!
So long Jeff. And thank you for giving us Outsourced, Fear Factor, Las Vegas, Deal or No Deal, Father of the Pride, Joey, The Marriage Ref, The Jay Leno Show, The Tonight Show With Jay Leno (and not with Conan), A Minute to Win It, America’s Got Talent, Thank God You’re Here, Quarterlife, Coupling, Emeril, Kath & Kim, Whoopi, and so many other wonderful, wonderful programs.
Never work in television again.
Shudder
I actually kind of liked Kath & Kim.
People with mediocre taste need something to watch too though. How else will they watch the ads for that drink w/ all the electrolytes?
THIS SHOW was not, IN ANY remote sense of THE WORD, good. SO MANY insane, bullshit LITTLE “details” MAKE THE SHOW unbearably offense. THE FACT that, when not TALKING ABOUT towns at all, THE Asst. Manager SAYS “Why would anyone want a bear in their village?” FUCKING. COME. ON. Am I supposed TO BE ALL “LOL THEY LIVE IN VILLAGES?” IT CAME out of nowhere! NOT TO mention that the entire SHOW HINGED AROUND them doing well only WHEN THEY could channel THEIR AMERICAN knowledge for GOOD. Or the fact THAT THE WHITE GUY felt uncomfortable SITTING WITH OTHER nonwhites. AND THEN FUCKING ASKED for permission TO SIT WITH them from the OTHER WHITE GUY. OR THAT he was treating EVERYONE LIKE they had some sort of disease UNTIL HE saw the fucking hot INDIAN GIRL.
THIS SHOW is just so fucking TERRIBLE. THEY COULDN’T even make the LEAD CHARACTER remotely likeable. I mean, I KNOW AMERICA is awesome, OKAY? I DON’T know if you KNOW, BUT I’M A FAN. However, this SHOW FAILS TO illuminate ANYTHING about either culture and ENDS UP JUST turning it ALL INTO A big fucking awful, offensive MESS. All of THE INDIAN actors exist just TO STAND AROUND and become punching bags FOR jokes.
MOSTLY I CAN’T believe we LOST PARKS AND Rec to this piece of SHIT.
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Welcome to Videogum?
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THIS is the way a relative newcomer should confront the quizzical phantasm that is AnAmPat and for that should not feel a downvoting shitstorm. Upvoted to even it out.
Also, many have tried and all have failed to crack his caps code. Just read and enjoy his (her?) brand of irreverent web-servations.
Bla bla sacred cows bla bla vampire emergency bla bla yawn
On the “LOL THEY LIVE IN VILLAGES” tip, here’s a fact: My grammar-school “social studies” books in the 1980s taught me that Dutch kids wear wooden shoes. Germans were depicted in lederhosen, and Russians were always bundled up, sad, and shown only in grainy black and white. I was out of college and had actual European friends before I realized that on some level I was still thinking of everyone not American as quaint and backward people not nearly as lucky as us. So yeah. I hate this show for furthering the “They live in villages” idea, and I won’t be shocked if there’s enough audience to keep it on the air a whole season.
wait russia is not black and white?
That frogger joke killed me. So funny/ “It’s like frogger, but with real people!”
That joke was also funny when it was on Seinfeld 10 years ago, right?
You mean actually real people and actually funny?
This was literally the point at which I stopped watching. I didn’t even get to any of the good(bad) stuff.
What was NBC thinking??? This show was awful. I felt so uncomfortable watching it. As my husband says to me, “You know it’s bad when you aren’t laughing.” (Because I am easily amused, and laugh at just about anything!) I don’t know how you guys feel about My Name is Earl, but I love that show and I want it back. Why would you cancel it, and give us this bullshit, NBC? WHY?
Upvoted for My Name is Earl love!
I think NBC knows their american xenophobic audience very well.
The only reason it’s not about Mexicans is because that would be too OBVIOUSLY racist.
I got the sense that the show was more “fish out of water” than “manifestation of the U.S.’s xenophobic tendencies.” Don’t get me wrong. This show sucks. The jokes are lazy. But people seem to be confusing the “Ha ha that’s funny because it’s strange and new to me” with “Ha ha that’s funny because other cultures are so backwards and we’re better than them.” Pointing out that something is better doesn’t necessarily imply that it’s inferior.
Yikes I meant *pointing out something is DIFFERENT doesn’t necessarily imply that it’s inferior.*
If I want to see something culturally insensitive on NBC on Thursdays, I’ll stick to the murals in Pawnee’s Town Hall:
Those murals rock my world. I love paintings AS comedy. The ones in Parks & Rec are my favs.
Another example that springs to mind is in The Royal Tenenbaums, where Eli Cash’s apartment has those paintings of shirtless, jean-clad men riding four-wheelers, flexing, and tormenting each other. And they just cut back and forth to Eli standing by one and Ritchie standing by the other, and they’re not talking about ANYTHING IMPORTANT, they’re just chattering so you can keep studying the bizarre paintings.
That painting in The Royal Tenenbaums was a work by (in)famous Mexican artist Miguel Calderón, from a series of canvasses that he didn’t actually paint himself, but instead instructed commercial artisans in Tijuana who normally specialize in tacky velvet paintings for tourists. here is a radio interview and slide show about him (the same one that is on the Criterion DVD). NOW YOU KNOW.
Thank you for the links, Grrg! I did know the origins of the paintings as I am that big of a Tenenbaums fan, but it’s nice to have that stuff available at the drop of a hat in case anyone wanted to read up on it some more!
i just want parks and rec back. i could be freeze framing all the parts with adam scott in it RIGHT NOW. but no. i have to wait until january.
I forgot he was coming! Oh man January is too long.
Let’s hope this shit gets canceled so we can get Parks and Rec back sooner.
Uhhhh. Can we also talk about the green screen used in the car scene? That was easily the most offensive thing of the night.
I sincerely hope that, like the Jeff Dunham show, Videogum can allegedly play a part in getting this program CANCELLED.
My guess is that NBC greenlit Outsourced to win over the coveted Jeff Dunham demographic.
(For what it’s worth, the guy was singing “Don’t Cha” by the The Pussycat Dolls because the Pussycat Dolls did an English-language version of “Jai Ho”.)
Initially when Gabe starting calling this show racist and the absolute worst, I thought it was just Gabe Gabing, but holy shit. This show is indeed terrible and actually kind of offensive. It treats India like some backwards shithole that sucks just because it hasn’t been exposed to enough of America’s awesomeness yet.
The worst part by far though is the douchebag playing lead. You know in Grand Theft Auto where you can sneak up behind someone with a knife and cut their throat all stealthy? That’s what I want to do. To the character and the actual man. Fuck his perpetually smug gob and his shitty show.
That Zach Gilifanokolus guy has really let himself go
It’s spelled ‘Zack Golfinacks’ now, Steve. Now it should be easier on all of us.
I just don’t understand why anyone would put themselves through the misery of watching this show that was so obviously going to be terrible and offensive. Life is already hard and miserable a lot of the time, from now on just read a Dilbert and go to sleep! :-/
Even Dilbert? EVEN DILBERT?! Good night.
“They sell Indian food in strip malls in Wisconsin now, guys.”
When I first read this I was indignant, but then I remembered that pretty much every Indian restaurant I’ve ever been to has in fact been in a strip mall.
One of my favorite Indian restaurants in NYC is the one in Grand Central Station!
punjabi dhaba in inman square, cambridge, ma is the best indian food i’ve ever had anywhere. ANYWHERE EVER OKAY?
vindaloo 4ever. can this thread make the shift over to a list of wonderful indian restaurants from our respective cities/states?
also i feel it’s important to mention: i’ve never been to india. indian food is pralllllllllllllllllllllllly better there, that i acknowledge.
You know what else is racist? Tyler Perry’s Meet The Browns.
Hey, if you guys liked this then you will LOVE the movie from 2006 that the show is based on.
I haven’t watched the show, but I like the movie. Todd eventually gets served for trying to force American values on his Indian co-workers.
Speaking of getting served, a lot of times when you buy Indian food in the states, it isn’t much compared to Indian food from India. Probably because all the ingredients aren’t as readily available or as fresh, and because a lot of Americans grew up with different tastes than Indians, thus the recipes are adapted and some authenticity is lost in “translation” (or “lost in translation”?)
Agreed, the movie was pretty good – it was actually funny. The show suuuuucks.
I thought the movie was pretty okay. And the way I imagined it, LIKE the movie, the main character gradually gets used to his new surroundings and actually learns something. Which I thought was neat since most of the people who the show is intended for will be getting exposure to that transformation. I’m not sure I agree w/ everyone who is begging for cancellation. But I would like to see the same story arc as the movie…..which….didn’t you guys just kind of guess that’s were this was going?
I bet dollars to donuts this show becomes as popular as 2.5 Men because we awful.
Maybe I’m a hopeless optimist, but I feel like if we just ignore Outsourced and tell anyone we know with a Nielsen box (which, by the way, do they even really exist? Because I have never in my life known someone who got one) to steer clear, this garbage show will disappear, Parks and Rec will come back sooner than planned, and we’ll be all:
I know someone who was offered to participate in Nielsen ratings, but he didn’t want to. I was like, “Send them to me!” Now I’m doing Arbitron, which makes you carry around a beeper-like device that picks up the signals of any television or radio stations you come in contact with. It’s strange, but apparently I can make up to a couple hundred dollars a month if I wear it enough.
My family did the Neilsen thing when I was younger. Maybe 10 or 11? But we didn’t get a box or anything, they gave us these fancy forms to fill out about exactly what tv shows we watched. Then we had to send them back in. I felt so special and important.
When I was about 13, my family was sent a Nielsen packet in the mail, and I got really pissed at my mom because she wouldn’t let our family participate. So what I am trying to say, Kateness, is that I am. SO. JEALOUS.
Yes they exist, my buddy has one and he watches 2.5 Men, and the syndicated reruns because as he puts it, “That kid is so funny.” he also won’t go to the theater unless Rob Schneider is in the film so Grown Ups was his fucking Citizen Kane. People really do watch this crap.
I did the Neilsen thing last year. They sent me a form for each TV we own and I think $2 in cash or something and told me to keep a log of everything we watched. Unfortunately we were out of town for most of the week, so I didn’t get to push my favorite shows the way I’d wanted to.
BEST. STORY. EVER. You’re welcome.
I think there are only like 25,000 nielsen boxes out there, and they typically tell the families who have them not to tell anyone that they do, for fear of people being influenced.
Wow. This is the perfect metaphor for everyone’s outrage. I’m doing the math and I’m going to generously guess that you have asked 2,500 people over the course of your lifetime if they are Neilsen families…..you have a .814% chance of hitting one. I am a big Charles Barkley fan because are you kidding me, that guy is nuts and in ’93 he led the Phoenix Suns to their visit to the finals since 1976. HE grappled with this same mystery and for 2 or 3 years he asked every single person he came into contact with if they had the box at home. Stewardess, fans, waiters, lawyers, guests on his talk-show, people in the elevator with him. He never happened upon one. When I heard that, I thought, wow, that is a pretty out of control ego. Does he know how MANY people 115 million households is? He clearly has difficulty fathoming a world outside of his own MVP self. The U.S. is HUGE and his and your and all the monsters, our worldview, is not as wide as we smugly believe. Yeah WE all grab a to-go bowl of saag paneer from Whole Foods while the bike mechanic installs brakes on our fixies, but there are a whole lot of people who will relate to this idiot show.
Outsourced is terrible. It is just the worst. But not because it’s racist. But because it’s not funny. I know everyone is making this point, but I’d like to add, and I love you Patrick M., you are too clever by half, but in the same post we are complaining about Outsoursed’s broad humor, dumb/easy/uncreative jokes, in that same breath everyone gave atta boys to Patrick for a pun. A delightful pun yes, but a PUN you guys. Puns are not funny. The only laughter puns get is the self-satisfied noise people make to signal to others that they are linguistically nimble enough to get it. ))>><<((. Yuck y'all!
I'm still figuring out where Outsourced is racist. It's stupid certainly. But racist? I am a Mexican American living in Phoenix, Arizona. I seriously think I forgot was racist means. Lately it seems to mean "anything that acknowledges race."
Also I want to point out that a few days ago on The Simpsons Post I saw many-to-several jokes about Apu and how zany it is that he came from India and had an arranged marriage, practices Hinduism, is the butt of every Karma Sutra refrence on that show, OWNS A FUCKING KWIK-E-MART FOR GANESH'S SAKE!!!
Dear Outsourced, you are terrible. You are boring. Please try harder at writing funny jokes so that your target audience raises it's standards.
Hi this is a really great comment. Monsters can you spare an upvote, please?
Yeah you know who else wrote puns? Well there’s WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE, the greatest writer who ever lived, he freaking LOVED puns, and so I gave him a call and and he’d like to add a few words to this discussion.
So, I think there’s your answer, underweareyes, IF INDEED THAT IS YOUR REAL NAME.
I dated this guy and he said the best movie was ‘Shakespeare In Love.’ And I was like, “it is scientifically impossible for anyone to think that Shakespeare In Love is the best movie.” He INSISTED that it was great and that he loved it. “Is it the story?” No. “Is it the love garbage?” Nope. “Do you think the writing is really awesome?” Well……Look at me, I hit a reply button and disagreed with someone about a tv show on the INTERNET. Do I look like someone who shies away from the hot button issues? I said, “be honest with me, do you like that it makes references to Shakespeare’s – - and others – - work and the whole thing is just a big inside joke for people who hang out at Renaissance Fairs and that it makes you feel slightly superior to people who don’t get the allusions?” A slow and embarrassed grin crept across the sexy face of that pretentious dickhead, and he admitted that yep, I was 100% right.
That’s what all this is, isn’t it? I’m NOT saying that self-satisfaction is THE driving force of all this anger people seem to be experiencing, but I would like to propose that a small part of everyone’s outrage might be motivated by that tiny little hit of power we get when our sensibilities have been violated (by the pilot episode of a sitcom?).
ANYWAY, Shakespeare mainly trucked in puns, gratuitous bawdy content, references to other works of art, not to illuminate a point, rather for the sole purpose of making a refrence. Audiences like to look up and say, “oh i get that…i know what he’s doing. I recognize the thing he’s riffing on here.” It makes us feel smart and with it and included and it makes us feel very NOW. Shakespeare tackled social commentary via satire in his work again, not to enlighten the crowd or even really to entertain… he just knew that manufacturing controversy sold tickets. Ha ha! Shakespeare’s life is Family Man.
Except for those love sonnets. Those are most dope!
(also, the real name is underwearOJOS….Mexican remember? But when I made my profile the wordpress said it sounded to ethnic and changed it. EllisIslandGum more like.)
You seriously rock. I’m loving all of your comments.
I also love puns. Puns are hilarious.
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Not to get all mathy up in here, but those 25,000 boxes are constantly rotating among households, not staying put, so I don’t think it’s SO egotistical of Charles Barkley (first time that’s ever been said??) or me to think they might run into someone who’d had one at one point. Unlikely one you crunch the numbers, yes, but probably most people assume (as I did) that they’re surveying more people than that. And, as Kateness mentioned, there’s the diary type of recording too, which I guess Nielsen does a lot more of than boxes.
I had just assumed that, if they’re actually taking a statistically significant sample, I would have run into someone who’d done it in my 87 years on this earth. Or maybe I have and they’ve been mum about it, as Holly mentioned. (Not me, I’d be Facebooking the crap out of that news — WHO WANTS THEIR SHOW SAVED, BITCHES??)
I think we can all agree it seems like an outdated system at this point, though.
It’s actually 5,000 boxes.
As for it being an outdated system, not really. I work for a company that does test screenings of movies before they are released. The audience members fill out surveys, I compile the results and hand a report over to someone at a studio. The report basically says “y’all need to make the following changes to your movie because the target demographic (and it’s always white people btw) liked this/didn’t like this/was unclear about so-and-so.”
The movies we screen are dumb. GI Joe, and stuff like that and they are the ones that make money for the studio.
Now they are not MY taste. My taste runs more toward the crappy little indie movies with “interesting character development” and “a Built To Spill song on the soundtrack.” And I get that most of America is going to flock to see the UnderwearEyes Pick Of The Week. And I get that the shows that I watch are mostly going to be the ones with lower ratings and the music I like will not sell millions of albums because who buys albums?
And I’m not even going to get into how the money GI Joe makes finances my movies about “poor blind mimes with a dream just trying to make it in this world” or how Ke$ha’s lip gloss profits make it possible for whatever dumb band whose name has punctuation in it I’M into that week..like, Sunn O))), ((sounder)) or !!!.
The MAJORITY likes dumb stuff. No duh. But are you kidding me? I live in a time where even though the stuff I like isn’t popular, it’s STILL all over the place which was not the case 10 years ago. I guess I could complain that The King Of Queens is on tv in the afternoons…but you know what’s on at the same time? EVERYTHING. I’m not saying, Outsourced sucks, change the channel. What I AM saying is that it is Idiocracy out there you guys. People like junk. MOST people. And that’s why the the Neilsen boxes *do* work and why I get a bi-weekly direct deposit.
“Their clothes are different than our clothes and they have dots on their heads, but they are people too so we should like them for what they are even though the sound funny when they talk” – People who like this show
“I fucking hate you” – Me to those people who like this show
Oh I get it–you grouped a LARGE number of people together, “People who like this show” and you made a sweeping generalization about them. From how I learned how jokes work from this tv show, that means YOUR comment is VERY funny. Nice work. Very clever.
You know what would save this show? A laugh track.
I haven’t seen the show, because I already hate life enough, but from what I’m reading about it, it seems like the retraction to those offended by this show from NBC, fans(??), and backward-ass morons will be the typical “Come on! Lighten up! It’s just jokes, lol.” Uggghhhh….
It reminds me of YEARS ago when I caught some stand-up special on Comedy Central by Carlos Mencia (long before his Chappelle Show-For-Lobotomy-Patients program), and he would follow EVERY joke with some self-righteous explanation of “Come on! Lighten up! We need to laugh at our differences,” not realizing, you know, it didn’t save his material from being both offensive and painfully unfunny.
You all are racist for assuming this show is racist. This show has a picture of an Indian call center team in it’s wallet!!! IN IT’S WALLET.
Oh… I am the third wallet joke maker. I guess I have a picture of a plagerist commentator in my wallet.
You should just put a picture of all of Videogum in your wallet. That way you don’t make mistakes. PERIOD. It’s carte blanche.
A big Videogum complaint about this show, a complaint I certainly have, is that it relied WAY too heavily on established things “we think are weird about India” for an easy laugh. It was as if the writers didn’t put much effort in the writing? Do you feel that way? I definitely feel that way. Like…if it were set in China we’d be treated to jokes about being hungry 2 hours after eating! Yuck. How boring. How…..overdone, let’s say. So I just have to imagine, that people in India wanting to research how the show was received, reading Videogum and rolling their eyes at one another, “boy, Monsters sure like that wallet joke don’t they. It’s pretty lazy blog commenting if you ask me. Shows no creativity.”
I usually don’t read stereogum comments, so this is probably not news, but: man, what a bunch of jerks. Stop defending this horrible show! Stop talking about reverse racism! Stop telling an actual Indian person that he doesn’t know what he’s talking about when he is talking about racism towards Indian people! Jeez!
I was surprised by the Stereogum comments as well. What a bunch of wangs.
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I agree wholeheartedly, to the extent that I just made the same comment like five seconds later. Who has two thumbs and can’t read? This guy.
I haven’t even seen this show yet, so please don’t mistake this comment for a defense.
… but regarding the whole Indian-food-leads-to-diarrhea issue… There’s one major difference between the Indian food you eat in Wisconsin and the food you eat in India. In India, it’s prepared with water from India, which commonly contains a number of bacteria that North American stomachs aren’t prepared for. And yes, this can lead to diarrhea… Lots of it, I’m told by people who travel more than I do.
So yes, Indian food is delicious, we all agree — but there’s more to this “joke” than just saying, “Hey, Indian food is weird, therefore also hilarious,” because we all know that’s bullshit, but it honestly truly does lead to stomach problems for a lot of travellers, even if its no fault of the cuisine or the people preparing it.
I haven’t seen this show either, but from what I’ve read here and elsewhere, I don’t think the writers put that much nuance into that joke.
Also, wouldn’t most of the bacteria be killed off once the food is cooked?
That depends, I think? When I was in India, the local guy we were with told us it was only OK to eat the outside of the samosas we got from a shop because in his words”they don’t always wash their hands and the filling doesn’t get hot enough” — he didn’t even eat the filling. But I ate in sit-down restaurants in Delhi and was just fine. And you should definitely definitely not drink the water as a visitor.
That said, this show is still the worst.
Let’s not be disingenuous here. This is a “fish out of water” show set in India. The joke was about Indian food.
Shhh! Everyone! Quiet about this, please! I need this show to be successful to stimulate sales of my new curry-flavored sandwich spread, “Slumdog Millionaisse.”
Such bad fake accents.
You guys! I just got back from Stereogum and holy shit, they mad. Those are some antagonistic commenters.
I never thought I’d say this but it’s good to be back at Videogum, the web’s premier showcase of thoughtful, respectful comments.
Yeah, it’s a whole different ball game over there.
Bitterball? Angerball? Inyourfaceball? Different, anyway!
Yeah, can I just say that Videogum is one of the only places on the web where people are respectful and thoughtful? No trolls either!
Seriously! What is going on with Stereogum? They need to chillax, amirite?
Perhaps it is just the monsters who have stuck with this blog. I was re-reading some of the early WMOAT reviews and holy smokes were some of those people mad.
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Because making generalizations about blog comments is basically the same thing as making generalizations about poor countries with mostly non-white populations.
I don’t think I will ever get why just because a country has less wealth than the US, it automatically means we need to be extra-sensitive and never make jokes about it. It’s very telling what someones priorities are when THATS what the factor they use to determine who to tease and who not to tease. Anyway most countries have mostly non-white populations, including the US, except for Canada and a few in Northern Europe. What’s the big deal?
If I see one more pudgy male dancing and lip syncing to Don’t Ya, I’m going to be mildly irritated again.
Com’on, guys! This show has the potential to really take off. I mean, look at how similar it’s brand of humor is to the much beloved and long-lived “Cavemen” series.
I was watching this show while my girlfriend and I were having a really unpleasant conversation about what would happen if one of us got in a coma, and how long the other person should wait before seeing someone else. So now I associate Outsourced with not only racism and bad jokes, but also with death and my girlfriend banging another guy.
i hear the creator set up a trust for the indian actors that they can access when they grow up.
I can’t think of anything better to say but this: RAGE RAGE 2012
I’ve been reading a lot about getting Outsourced canceled and that would be AMAZING…but I don’t think that would bring Parks and Rec back sooner. Amy said last night on Fallon that there are six episodes ready but they had to break for her baby and summer. I’m saying knowing NBC if they cancel Outsourced we might get 99 Questions back.
On the other hand a show like 99 Questions would allow one time to get shit done for 30 minuets. It’s still a win-win-win.
I saw the previews for this thing and just figured it would suck, so I didn’t bother to watch it. I sure hope the reviewer got some extra compensation in the form of cash or other goodies to mitigate the damage done by having to watch the entire show. Barf.
OTOH, Mindy Kaling was looking ESPECIALLY hot in the Office season premiere. That gal has it all – smart, funny and super hot. One day she’ll have her own show and will kick ass, be it on NBC or a network that doesn’t suck.
thank you nbc for giving indian actors series regular roles but then putting them in this painfully unfunny bullshit show…what a favor you have done for all of us. i was in a pilot years ago called The Papdits (clips on youtube) about a fictional indian family moving to america by the head writer of ali G/borat/bruno and it was the funniest thing i have ever worked on. we were fooling real people and using satire and even though it wasn’t picked up (went from fox to cbs then streamed online), it was brilliant writing and hilarious situations. i would say to the outsourced writers to invest in characters and FUNNY jokes but they are clearly incapable, which is why they got away with portraying this racist, backwards view of indians without a HINT of sarcasm or satire. how they got this shit on the air is truly beyond fathomable…
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NO MATT WALSH NOOOO
ALSO. okay i realize this post is a few days after the fact, and that no one will read this probably (post-week’s best comments), but if i don’t make this list i will lose my mind. i traveled through india this year, and can NEED to say the following (my roommates aren’t home):
1. there are regular, American/Japanese cars on the road. not just autorickshaws.
2. way to rip off your own joke about assistant managers, NBC.
3. indians speak almost perfect english. they are also aware of “things americans say”
4. not all indians abstain from eating cows. although a vast majority do, in my experience, many don’t. one family i stayed with made beef curry.
5. this guy seriously didn’t even do a lonely planet read-through on his long flight to the place he moved to? really? not even wikitravel? never tried indian food EVER?
6. you don’t need to ship smuckers in, dude. they have fucking grocery stores.
7. “aren’t all these workers kind of the same.”
8. i’m pretty sure indians are aware of the fact that americans date around…
9. jingle fucking jugs. jingle fucking jugs. oh god.
10. man, at least he ate his food with his right hand at the end.
PREFACE: This show is not funny. I don’t think this show is funny.
Okay given that…..Regarding your suggestions, ummmmm….what would be funny about that? What would be funny about a guy who is very well prepared to go live in a foreign country? Again, as it is this show is NOT funny, but within the confines of a “fish out of water” story, the comedy depends on people experiencing new things. This show is stupid, but I think a show about a guy who loved Indian food, knew a lot about India, was an Indian Studies major in college and then MOVING TO INDIA, i think a show about that dude would suck JUST as hard as this one.
You seem to understand a lot about television, and your comments would be such an interesting read if you understood anything about racism, or the very real, very troubling sociological aspects of some of the things you’re saying. And I really don’t mean this as an attack, but yeah.
Nobody understands racism.
I may not understand racism, but I TOTALLY understand when people fail to apply critical thinking skills.
Okay. I changed my mind. I DO know what racism is. Racism is believing that a race (or races) is inferior to another race. I am a Mexican and I’m pretty broke at the moment. Guess who seems more racist to me: the comedian who gets up on stage and makes jokes about low-riders? Or the guy who scolds the comedian because “you shouldn’t make fun of poor brown people.” RED FLAG ON THE GUY WHO THINKS THAT BEING BROWN AND HAVING LESS WEALTH IS SOMEHOW A BAD THING!!!!!!!!! Gross. No. Make fun of me. Please. Don’t leave us out. If you want to not be racist then treat everyone the same. And I hate myself for saying this but, “writers of Outsources, if that making tired jokes about the cuisine of the homeland, well then knock yourselves right on out.” Look omlette, I think it’s great that white people want to be sensitive to race issues. The US wouldn’t be as progressive as it is today (and you best believe it is plenty progressive) if it weren’t for white people making efforts to be more inclusive. But lately, what I’ve seen, is that in an effort to be more tolerant, white people over correct and end up being really fucking racist.
I thought the indian guy from Das Racist was saying that this show is trying too hard to be NOT racist.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mumbai_Calling
Indian Food is fucking delicious.
“More colorful.”
No one will read this because it’s at the end of an old post but I just realized that I know the guy who plays Todd! He’s dating a friend of mine from high school, has been for years. Glad to see that he’s already making great career choices with his Julliard education.
No one will read this because it below the guys who put his post at the end of an old post! I just wanted mine to be less read then his!
wow… most people that are leaving comments about how “terribly racist” it is aren’t even affected by it. lemme just tell you i’m an indian and my parents are indians; my mom tapes it because she thinks its so funny. i’m sure not all indians are oversensitive douchebags, so i think that it’s perfectly acceptable. i think its racist that people are getting persecuted and called out for supposed racism when they’re really just poking fun. and that’s all this show is; no indian in their right mind would really take offense to this blunt portrayal of indian culture.
that being said, this show is terrible. the jokes are washed up and stupid, and worst, in your face. “Hey, there’s a fat unpopular indian guy dancing to Don’t Cha. GET IT? Some woman is nervous speaking because she’s of a lower caste. GET IT? The guy wants to be careful eating Indian food because it will give him diarrhea. GET IT?” This show is utterly stupid, however funny of an original concept it may have.
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ding dong it’s dead