As parents, you sometimes fall behind on... well lots of things. One of which is keeping up with the latest television shows. By the time our kids are in bed, my wife and I only have time to watch about one hour of TV per night. We do spend a lot of quality family time while the kids are awake, but both she and I love movies and TV so the lack of time causes some challenges. 

We often end up starting a show after its season has ended. 

<br><center>http://art-0.nflximg.net/b1e28/0ae96cd573539f98b969aadcabe96eeffeab1e28.jpg
*I love Aziz Ansar, but wouldn't he look better in a puffy shirt?*</center><br>

We have been meaning to watch Netflix's *Master of None* for quite some time. We finally were able to watch it over the last two weeks. 

We had heard good things about the show but until I sat down to write this, I didn't even know that it had won several awards including:

* A Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series
* AFI TV Program of the Year
* Critics' Choice Television Awards Best Comedy Series
* A Peabody Award for Entertainment and Children's Programming (this is *not* a children's show)

My wife and I were big *Parks and Recreation* fans and we really enjoyed the character Tom Haverford played by Aziz Ansari. I really enjoy Ansari's stand up routine as well. 

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Ansari not only plays the main character in *Master of None*, he also co-writes the show. 

Thanks to great word of mouth and my appreciation of Ansari's previous work, my expectations were very high. For eight episodes, these lofty expectations were met. Unfortunately, there are ten episodes total. 

*Master of None* currently has an 8.2 rating on IMDB and a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes (no easy task). I agree with both o these ratings. How is that possible? There is a big difference between 100% and 82% (check you high school GPA if you need proof).

The first 8 episodes of *Master of None* are all perfect 10s. The last two left me a bit frustrated. 

Within 5 minutes of watching the first episode, I turned to my wife and said, 

# "Oh I get it. This is a modern day 'R' rated *Seinfeld*."  

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*This is how you rock the puffy shirt!*</center><br>

I was just fine with that because I loved *Seinfeld*. My wife on the other hand, hated *Seinfeld*. She corrected me and said, "yeah but these characters are all nice". She had a good point. The characters on *Seinfeld* were all kind of bad people. If you don't recall it this way, perhaps viewing the finale would refresh your memory. I was fine with that. I saw them as caricatures of real people who did hilarious things. My wife saw them as unpleasant. 

*Master of None* does not pose this same problem. The characters are all very likable. You can root for every single one. As a result, the show has quite a bit of charm... when they aren't dropping "F-bombs". 

Like *Seinfeld*, the show centers around an entertainer and his close group of friends living in New York. However, in this case, the main character Dev  is a struggling actor instead of a successful comedian. 

Dev has a tall goofy friend named Arnold, a female friend named Denise, and a very close friend named Brian. Unlike *Seinfeld* this group very diverse. 

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*Through the  first eight episodes, it actually was.*</center><br>

For the first eight episodes, you could even argue that this is an excellent "show about nothing". The group of friends just do everyday things. They go on dates, hang out with their parents, deal with issues at work, and discuss each other's problems. This may sound a bit pedestrian, but due to excellent writing and acting, it is extremely funny and charming. The dialogue is fantastic. We loved it! I laughed out loud several times during each of the first eight episodes. 

# Then episode nine happened...

My wife and I love the characters. All of the stories were quite hilarious and entertaining. Then, for some unknown reason, the writers decided to fast forward nearly one year during the span of one 27 minute episode. They simply "yada yada yadad" over so many possible stories. When the episode ended, I was a bit taken aback. I felt cheated. 

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As soon as the ninth episode ended, I immediately suggested that we watch the season finale. I figured there had to be a reason for this abrupt time leap. Unfortunately, I was disappointed yet again. The show ends on a pretty serious and emotional note. I am completely fine with mixing emotion with humor. In fact, I enjoy it quite a bit. However, due to the odd time leap in the previous episode, this one seemed very rushed. 

I loved these characters. I wanted to accompany them on a long journey. Instead, it seemed like the writers took a 20 episode arc and crammed 10 of the episodes into one.

# In the end, it left me shaking my head saying "What? Did we accidentally skip a bunch of episodes?" 

Even though the last two episodes really disappointed me, I enjoyed the first eight so much that I would highly recommend *Master of None*. I am hoping that season two, which is set to air at some point this year, can regain the initial momentum of the first episodes. 

When the worst thing you can say about a show is that you wished there were more of it, I'd say that is a pretty good show. To me, *Master of None* is kind of like ordering an awesome dessert in a restaurant... and they bring a portion meant for an infant.  Although it is still amazing, it would have been far more satisfying if they brought you enough to take home. 

# Have any of you seen *Master of None*? What did you think? Am I being too harsh about the final episodes?

[1](http://art-0.nflximg.net/b1e28/0ae96cd573539f98b969aadcabe96eeffeab1e28.jpg), [2](https://68.media.tumblr.com/7fc864b4514c7f97d7ab6fc5338c7656/tumblr_nxczvmOQ661uelehno1_400.gif), [3](https://tribwdcw.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/seinfeld-puffy-shirt.png?w=1200), [4](https://media4.giphy.com/media/OgajgBsehWUla/200_s.gif), [5](https://imgflip.com/i/1id7ls)