John from Cincinnati: Season One
Last night, John from Cincinnati wrapped up its first (and last?) season on HBO. I’m still not entirely sure what to think of it – I often felt distanced from the show due to its artifice and its love/hate relationship with verisimilitude; on the other hand, I was constantly entertained by its oddness and engaged by its rich intratextuality. For instance, an insignificant line of dialogue from an earlier episode often would be repeated many episodes later, perhaps with a slight modification, to enhance a comic or mystifying moment. These connections are not meant to be a wink towards the viewer: they are essential to the major themes of the show.
What are those major themes? I’m not sure I’m equipped to discuss them here with sufficient eloquence, but these two essays about the last two episodes, respectively, get close to the heart of things, I think. A quote from the second essay:
I think the show is largely centered around an examination of what it would be like if Jesus came to Earth today, and using that framework, it would make sense John would use a major corporation to spread his message. He converts his disciples, and by putting his logo on everything, he will help to spread the message.
That is indeed the most obvious explanation, although there’s no reason to believe that there’s any connection to Jesus, or Christianity in general. The way that the car dealer in the final episode talks to John (“You’re off-line now, Country.”) conjures elements of science-fiction more than any traditional notion of religion. The entire text of the dealer’s scene can be found at HBO’s “Inside the Episode” website section, where it’s described by one of the show’s writers as “probably the most important puzzle-solving moment of the season.”
It’s clear that JFC has an intricate design, and recent hints of global implications (John talking about “towelheads” and 9/11/14) – in addition to David Milch’s unique brand of dialogue and character development – make me curious enough to want to look forward to the second season, if there is one. But while I know that Milch is a sort of genius, I can’t help thinking that there’s something off about this show – that perhaps in its struggle in being both profound and entertaining, it falls short on both accounts.
Comments (12)
*spoilers*
i think there's clearly a religious aspect, whether or not it's a simple jesus thing. if it is a simple jesus thing, john is NOT jesus. he's a messenger and we're left to wonder who/what everyone else is. did you hear the last line before the end credits? through another major wrinkle in there.
the car dealer scene was wacky. he clearly knew things about john and about other characters ("mom/son handjobs," "jesus christ jesus christ jesus christ").
a few certainties:
- ed o'neill is fanfuckingtastic.
- i will forever be grateful to this show for teaching me about its awesome theme song by joe strummer and mescaleros.
- it's a lot of fun to be frustrated by this show - in a similar but slightly different way from "lost."
That show sucks. The whole thing was like that Mr. Show episode where Bob Odenkirk is yelling, "Blah, blah, blah, I'm a big dumb actor on stage, I yell the loudest, look at me!"
Where's your ACLU post, punk? Your homegirl works for 'em. Help her get a raise.
I'll take this instead, thank you very much:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=wExt9nu3qW0
So if I think that Flight Of The Conchords clip was insipid crap, does that mean I would love John From Cincinnati?
Flight of the Conchords isn't as brilliant as some have made it, but it does have its moments. I definitely wouldn't go as far as to call it "insipid crap," which I think it rises above sufficiently often. Some of the songs are great, others are lazy, and sometimes 1973 David Bowie shows up to give advice. It's a mixed bag.
Does it mean you would love JFC? Well, I imagine you were asking rhetorically, fully aware that they are apples and oranges. Still, JJ, -- and I mean this in a non-condescending way -- since you have unconventional tastes in art, or at least I've gathered as such, JFC might be right up your alley.
I have yet to watch the finale, but I read this post anyway. It's not like anything can really be spoiled with this show. Anyway, I too find this show fascinating. There are times I hate it (Cissy is so shrill it hurts to watch) and there are times I love it (Ed O'Neill Ed O'Neill Ed O'Neill), but I really do enjoy watching and trying to decipher what it all means.
As for Flight of the Conchords, I loved the first episode, but since then I have been mixed. Yes, sometimes it is damn hilarious. But now that it has gone on and on (and on and on), I find there is no plot at all and it's kind of boring. it's always the same. When I saw this week that there are 3 episodes left I was surprised. What are they going to be about? Dating girls? Again?! It seems like they just pick some random dating joke as the theme of an episode and do every iteration of it. Like the one where the roles of men and women were reversed and Bret was "used" by a woman. Sure it was kind of funny (I loved the French song), but it was opposite of his character from every other episode and I got the joke pretty quickly.
It's the opposite problem with Entourage. I am intrigued by the plot and where the characters are going (albeit marginally so), but there ain't much funny going on. Wow, this got long.
Sometimes, I wish I had HBO. Or a television.
i'm up to ep. 3 of FotCCh, but the first one i saw was the one with "business time," and i fucking fell in love.
here's the thing: the songs and videos are hilarious and awesome, and jemaine and bret have great timing and chemistry. but you're right, NYA, each show is built around one thin plot-gag, which is why they should have stuck to just 6 episodes max.
like "stella," which really lost something when you took out the vulgarity. i think comedy central ran 13 episodes? sheesh. i'll just watch the videos on the web site.
ps who needs hbo or a tv when we have the internet and dvd burners?
C'mon ... John is Jesus. John from Cincinnati JfC -- Jesus from Christianity .... or ... Jesus f'ing Christ .... a thin veil or an amazing coincidence.
meh. it's not that simple, though the "jfc" is clearly intentional. his last name is "monad," which in Gnosticism is a term for a god that creates other gods. while john often referred to his "father," he also talked a lot about his "father's father." there's also the final line, "mother of god, kass-cai." i don't think the show was meant to be a basic christ-paradigm, but more of a collective "god is in all of us," etc. etc. kind of thing. john seemed a lot like a messenger-type of angel, relaying things that he didn't quite understand.
The series was amazing. To cancel this is stupid.
I loved the soundtrack - Buddy Guy, TV on the Radio, Muse, Kava Kava, Kasabian