Miracle Workers
Premise - Heaven Inc., the corporation that runs Earth, is mismanaged, underfunded, and drastically dysfunctional. The CEO, God, is convinced that he screwed up his creation and wants to blow up Earth for good. Two low-ranking angels in the Department of Answered Prayers make a deal with God that if they can get two people on Earth to kiss in two weeks, and show him that love is real, then he will spare Earth.
Review - I FREAKIN' LOVED EVERY MOMENT OF THIS SHOW. The humor lines up with mine almost perfectly and I was so satisfied that something like this existed. My main problem with it is that it was too short. I understand that it has to be a limited series, with a one-season arc, because the stakes are so high that to stretch it out would lessen the drama but... 7 episodes was too short considering they are each only 20 minutes. I could have done with, say, 10 or 12. This is easily watchable in one sitting and honestly just could have been a movie.
I loved watching all of the behind-the-scenes interviews for this show as well, because they break down its purpose better than I ever could. The point they always tried to get across is that we have this nice balance between nihilism and optimism. The show can be quite dark for claiming that God is an illiterate moron, who has NO idea what he's doing. Heaven Inc. was designed to accommodate for a much smaller Earth, which now has billions more people than the angels can handle. Nothing happens for a reason, and terrible events happen because the people in Heaven Inc. are just as flawed as us (hey, the angels used to be human too). Sometimes, God is not only an inadequate leader, but a vindictive one who punishes those who try to defy him, much like the God in the Old Testament. The show spends its time highlighting everything that's wrong with the world, from climate change to violent deaths, and quite frankly it is depressing. However, this is contrasted with the lighthearted love story that drives our plot. We have two socially awkward young people who really like each other, and we get to watch them grow closer. It is perhaps true, that nothing happens for a reason, and there's no such thing as fate, but you know what that does leave? Free will, for better or for worse. In the end, Heaven Inc. can't force these two people to kiss. They kiss because they want to.
I loved Daniel Radcliffe's take on the religious message in this show. His thinking is that it's not dark at all to suggest that there's no God, or that God is flawed. What that shows is just how much of a miracle life is, considering it has persisted all this time WITHOUT some divine being at the wheel. The good people in the world are good by their own volition. Life persists because humanity is, at its heart, a good thing.
Speaking of Daniel Radcliffe (of course that's why I watched the show to begin with), I loved seeing him as Craig. One critic referred him to a scared "meerkat" and that is wonderfully accurate. He's cowardly, sheepish, awkward, and ultimately pathetic. But we see beautiful character growth that mimics that of our earthly couple, who are also too cowardly to admit their feelings for each other. Craig is very much at the heart of the show, along with Eliza, who is the driver of the plot. It was her idea to save Earth and set up a bet with God, and Earth being saved comes down to her initiative. However, neither of those two characters were my favorite. Karan Soni as Sanjay was one of the FUNNIEST characters on television I have EVER seen. That character is all about keeping up an image - that he's prestigious, accomplished, and loves God. But God is an idiot and his work is meaningless. The way he kisses up to God is just so funny. And the way he awkwardly says, "Okay" with a smile every time God says, "I love you" really sums up their relationship. Also, Steve Buscemi as God was a nice choice. They were clearly going for someone meme-worthy. Originally it was Owen Wilson, who also would have been a good choice.
I mentioned how the humor of the show matched mine immensely. I think it's again because of that contrast between smart and stupid, that I love in many of my favorite comedies. There's a greater philosophical message to the show, but the circumstances are ridiculously stupid, like God supposedly turning his enemies into jelly beans. Everything is exaggerated for humor's sake, but often delivered in a deadpan (like through the news reporter, who has to deliver the most outrageous stories in the same newscast voice). I also just find it clever, the way Heaven was adapted to an Office-Space-like environment, with the Department of Clouds guy getting all existential about how people rarely look up at the shapes he makes, or the budget cuts to the Department of Animals forces them to make another one go extinct. Everything about this show was great satire for why the world is the way it is. (95/100)
Quote - Some Craig being adorable:
"Mr. Mop and Mrs. Bucket you live on a shelf. One is wet and one is dry and you are both my friends."
"How much bog would a bog frog hog if a bog frog could hog bog? Could he hog the whole bog, would he snog another frog on a log in the fog of a bog?"
What to watch for - DANIEL RADCLIFFE IS BAE so I like to see him, especially in his past human life where he lived on a bog and ate mud. People were comparing his look to Hagrid.
If you liked this movie, I'd recommend reading the original book What in God's Name, though I haven't read it myself, to be honest! It's on the list. I will say, though, that the plot of this oddly reminded me of Aquamarine ahahahaha.
Based on the book What in God's Name by Simon Rich
Created by Simon Rich
Distributed by TBS
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