“A depressing comedy”

One Mississippi: Season Two

Network Amazon Video

Release Date 8 September 2017

Episodes S02E01 ”I Want to Hold Your Hand”

Welcome to the potentially most depressing comedy you’ll come across: One Mississippi is a semi-autobiographical series created by Tig Notaro and Diablo Cody.

Notaro, best known for her stand-up stars in the show as Tig Bavaro, a radio host who has recently undergone a double mastectomy, is recovering from a Clostridium Difficile Infection (CDI), and whose mother is taken off life support. Sounds like a barrel of laughs, right?

This show is so good. To call it a comedy is a huge stretch; the subject matter is consistently dark, depressing and disturbing, and what humour there is, is delivered so dryly that if you aren’t paying attention you’ll miss it. But it works seamlessly. The bad stuff, the really really bad stuff that Tig goes through is only bearable and consumable by her constant acknowledgement of how bad it is, and somehow through her cynicism, the bad stuff can be funny: nose- snortingly, shaking-your-head-in-disbelief funny.

While the first season follows Tig’s move back to Mississippi to be with her step-father Bill and brother Remy and dealing with the aftermath of her mother’s death, Season 2 looks to focus more on romantic relationships, not just Tig’s but for Remy and Bill as well.

Over the course of the last season we saw Tig become steadily more attracted to her evidently straight producer, Kate, and in this episode we watch her struggle with her feelings and fret over whether those feelings might be reciprocated.

Of course, there’s all the dark stuff too, including an incredible series of conversations about molestation and how unknowing the victims can be. It’s pretty heavy, but again, it’s expressed so digestibly, and in such an entertaining way that there’s no need to feel daunted. I’m really excited to see where this season takes Tig and her family, especially after the sense of resolution and closure after her mother’s death last season.

There’s so much to love and learn from this show, and I highly recommend One Mississippi for something a little bit different in the best way.