TV Review - United States of Al

This is another sitcom from celebrity producer, Chuck Lorre, the creator of hit shows, such as The Big Bang Theory (2007) and Two and a Half Men (2003). This new series is about the friendship between an American soldier who served in Afghanistan and the Afghani who comes to the United States to live with him. Most shows from Lorre and indeed most shows on CBS have centered around white protagonists. It was only a few years ago that CBS was criticized heavily for it, which caused the Tiffany network to put more shows on the air that centered around people of color or featured diversity more prominently. Lorre himself answered that mandate with Bob Hearts Abishola (2019), a series about a white businessman who starts a relationship with his nurse who is a Nigerian immigrant. I was not a huge fan of how that series began, but it's since settled into an acceptable place. Unfortunately, a lot of the issues that I had with the 2019 series are exacerbated in this series.

First off, it's appreciated that Lorre is now doing yet another series about a white person involved or befriending an immigrant. Given the xenophobia that has been made worse due to President Trump's rhetoric, these shows about immigrants where they're portrayed in a positive light and often a helpful light are valuable, especially on network television. However, it is curious that Lorre has done two shows about immigrants where a lot of the comedy is about how they don't get American culture in various ways. Lorre is in some ways othering these immigrants, reinforcing the idea that they're not from this country and that these black and brown people are still removed from or not us. There are plenty of people who come from African or Middle Eastern heritages who are themselves very American and their cultures shouldn't be the butt of jokes where we laugh at how different they are or how weird their customs are, but right now that's not the trajectory of Lorre's shows.

Parker Young (Arrow and Suburgatory) stars as Riley, a marine who lives in Ohio. He's currently going through a divorce from his wife who has custody of their child. As such, he had to move back in with his sister and his father. His mother isn't in the picture. She's most likely deceased. The series feels like it's going to work toward Riley reconciling with his ex-wife and the two possibly getting back together. It's revealed though that he cheated on her. He also apparently had mood swings and a drinking problem. It could be that Riley is suffering from PTSD, as a result of things he experienced in combat.

Obviously, PTSD is a serious issue that faces a lot of service-members and this series addressing it is important and appreciated. However, like Bob Hearts Abishola, this series feels like it can't just be about the person of color, solely. It has to also be about a white person and indeed center a lot of the narrative thrust on the white person and his problems. Bob Hearts Abishola has gotten to a place now in its second season where it feels somewhat balanced and the Black character in that series isn't either a token or what's been described as a "Magical Negro." So far, that's not the case with this series, but the person of color here is running dangerous close to that stereotype or trope that he could instead be termed the "Magical Arab" or the "Magical Muslim."

Adhir Kalyan (Rules of Engagement and Aliens in America) co-stars as Awalmir or "Al," an immigrant from Afghanistan. He served with Riley's marine unit as an interpreter in the Helmand Province, which has been the most dangerous of all the provinces since 2001. He traveled with Riley and seen a lot of the same action as Riley. Riley calls him his "battle buddy," so clearly they're close. So much so, that when Al wanted to come to the United States to escape the Taliban and live a better life, Riley agrees to host him. Al is basically living with Riley at his family home.

This is all well and good, but the reason that Al is this Magical Muslim is because from the moment he arrives in Ohio, his only goal is to help Riley with any and all of his problems, particularly his marital problems. Of course, as a friend, it's not that Al shouldn't want to help Riley with his problems. Yet, this series has Al aggressively doing so and appears to be singularly focused on helping or serving Riley. This role or function where a person of color is really only there to help or serve a white character is the basis for the Magical Negro trope or now the Magical Muslim trope. Again, helping a white person isn't the issue. The issue is if that's the only thing the person of color does to the exclusion of the person of color not having a life separate from or that doesn't involve the white person.

Another expression of this idea is the "model minority" stereotype or trope. I wrote about this in my review of NBC's Transplant (2020). The model minority trope presents a person of color, particularly a person from or has heritage in some Asian country, as this perfect person in everything he says and does. It holds people up as paragons or flawless beings here to guide or serve white people. It puts them up on a pedestal, putting expectations that real-people could never meet. Thus, it makes the minority characters not seem like real people as a result. Thus, it makes the view of the minority one that isn't real or certainly not representative.

The third episode attempts to temper this model minority idea by presenting Al as being possibly a sexist hypocrite. The episode has him wear cargo shorts, but he freaks out when his driving instructor wears Bermuda shorts. He says in Afghanistan, men aren't allowed to see women's legs or women's skin with the exception of their faces and sometimes not even their faces. It's strange because he lives in the same house as Riley's sister, Lizzie, played by Elizabeth Alderfer (A.P. Bio and Disjointed). By the third episode, it's not clear how long Al has been living with her, but, in all that time, she must have worn shorts or attire that shows her skin. Al must have been outside the house and been to the mall or stores where he would've encountered women in shorts or attire for warm weather. If he were an introvert or more shy, then this episode premise might make sense, but Al is portrayed as more outgoing and not as sheltered as his reaction to a woman in shorts would suggest.

I'm sure eventually the series if it stays on the air will explore the idea of Al dating or pursuing relationships with women that could be romantic. However, that third episode literally slams the door on that possibility, as if it doesn't want to consider the fact that this young human male would have sexual desire and would want a romantic partner, instead of constantly worrying or interfering in Riley's romantic life, which again reinforces that the white guy's life is more of a concern. Hopefully, the series will also explore the idea of Al finding community with other Arab or Muslim immigrants, either from Afghanistan or other Middle Eastern countries, but these first few episodes don't inspire confidence.

Rated TV-PG-L.

Running Time: 30 mins.

Thursdays at 8:30 PM on CBS.