Jerrod Carmichael Reality Show

Raw, Real, Heartbreaking, Brave, Unique, Different, Loving, Hopeful. I want to see more. I was happy to see tape of Jerrod and family from years ago. It seemed to show a lot of love between Jerrod and his Mom. It appears his Mom was naive when she was young and found the help she needed by giving her life to Christ and believing all that is in or at least, interpreted by some, as to what the Bible says. This seemed to help her deal with the difficulties in her marriage. Jerrod realized, at some point, he was not living his truth. When he told his truth, that really put a strain on the relationship between he and his Mom. I think the only thing that is coming between the love that his Mom, Cynthia has for Jerrod is, what SHE BELIEVES is the interpretation of the Bible regarding homosexuality.

Six episodes in, Jerrod Carmichael's 2024 reality series has been often harshly cathartic and sometimes acutely funny. The reality aspect is no joke as he pulls no punches in making public the personal challenges of being a successful comedian who came out just two years ago. A charismatic personality, Carmichael shifts mercurially between introspective and cruel, but it's hard not to root for him. I got hooked when he painfully confessed his unrequited love for his best friend in the first episode. So far, it has cut deepest with the episodes focused on a road trip with his errant father and a frigid homecoming with his deeply religious mother. Some moments border on exploitative, yet it may be the best, bravest thing on TV now.

I have such mixed feelings about this show. On the one hand, I really appreciate Jarrod's transparency and openness. It's refreshing to see a gay person share their life so unabashedly. On the other hand, I really do not like how he seems to keep making such bad decisions and then simply laughs them off. Coming out later in life is hard, but it doesn't give one permission to treat others like crap. I hope as the show goes on that his outlook matures a bit. It seems like he's trying, but whatever he's doing isn't working. I want to just reach through the TV and say "get yourself together!" He seems very stuck in his own head so far, and I just keep cringing!

I like this guy's laid back humor but this show is really pulling back the curtain and probably not the way Jerrod anticipated. I think he is shown as a narcissist and displays jerk behavior towards his boyfriend and friends . I know he is on the rise but the diva attitude is not appealing. He sometimes comes off as downright mean. I hope he grows a bit through the experience and even watches himself in the episodes. I have watched the first few episodes and not sure I would recommend. I know comics have baggage and that's what makes them funny but I don't enjoy comics who don't seem to be tuned into others feelings when they're not performing.

But the brilliance of this show is not to necessarily hyper-fixate on Jerrod in any self-aggrandizing way. Carmichael uses this meta-styled documentary to address universal conflicts that come with being gay and colored in America.

Simply put - I don't even like Jerrod or care about his life - but to get this unique of a perspective into gay black culture has not been executed anywhere else on this level. Even if this was 100% fictional, it's still an incredible experience.

Other topics such as infidelity and religious intolerance are brought up as well, but it doesn't always resolve itself as Carmichael acknowledges that he doesn't have the solutions.

Carmichael knew that he could use his public image to therapeutically extend and relate to many viewers. I can certainly see this show helping people struggling with addiction, family issues, identity issues, etc. (Personally, having left the Pentecostal church due to its homophobia, the episodes of Jerrod with religion hit very close to home.)

And massive props to the editing and production team linking all of these episodes so richly. Even if scenes from this are staged, it's still incredibly impressive.

Highly recommend to watch if you're a minority or wanting to see something so original come out of the Black/LGBTQ+ community.