The dubious case of Selina Meyer
Before we get anywhere with the upcoming rant, let it be known that Veep (2012- ) is the funniest TV show out there. Nothing comes close from the current lot. Parks and Recreation (2009–2015), like several of its peers like The Office (2005–2013), is funny in bits with the build-up consuming too much time. The Big Bang Theory (2007- ) stopped being funny even before Obama got over his Nobel Peace Prize and started dropping bombs. The closest that comes to mind, in terms of consistent hilarity, has to be Coupling (2000–04). Sadly, it didn’t last long enough. Got to admit this British show of 6 characters borrowed its skeleton from Friends (1994–2004). The similarity ends then and there itself. Unlike Friends, Coupling depended on brilliant writing more than onscreen charm. People who say Friends was the funniest show ever forget that they were younger and much dumber back then. And when you look back, you’ve got to admit those canned laughs fooled us a lot. Today, if you were to put aside nostalgia, you’d be aghast by the long gaps between two good jokes in an episode. That said, the unprecedented success of Friends is one of the reasons why television received a much-needed CPR at the turn of the century.
Going back to Veep, you can almost touch the surrealism at work here. With a show about a woman desperate to become the first female president of the United States, the gods of irony must be enjoying Selina Meyer on the small screen. On one side, Hillary Clinton is nowhere else to be seen except Twitter and on another, we have a character portrayed inch-perfectly by Julia Louis-Dreyfus of the Seinfeld (1989–98) fame — a show that lent its skeleton to several shows including Friends — so much so it’s hard to imagine anybody else playing Selina. She sinks into the character the way Heath Ledger did with Joker. Just that Julia is still around to tell the tale. Every little gesture of hers adds to the joke about to drop in her vicinity. The preen, the frown, the fake smile, the forced chortle, the twitch, the pimple, you name it.
Enough about Julia. Let’s focus on Selina.
The entire series revolves around this diminutive lady — although calling her a lady is a genuine bit of a stretch — and she wouldn’t have it otherwise. She has to be at the center of attention although she suffers from a low attention span. You and i are bad at names. She is bad at everybody else. Her only concern is her own interests and ambitions. Her daughter, a character you’d be loathe to admire, is a moral compass nonetheless but perpetually stuck at south. Selina doesn’t care about anyone except her position. If you thought politics is the lowest of all lows, she’ll stoop further. Her pettiness has no limits. Even the demise of her mother didn’t distract her from her goal of getting elected as the POTUS. She treats people around her like Donald Trump treated Montenegro’s prime minister at NATO summit. Luckily, she knows what she wants. Her desire to become the first female leader of the free world is second to none. The problem is she doesn’t seem equipped for the job. Every passing episodes, it becomes more and more obvious that she’s a disastrous person to have in the White House.
Wait…
But there’s also where the twist thickens. Her utter disregard for everything makes her a non-violent Tyler Durden of sorts. She is worldly thanks to her ego as she doesn’t give two hoots about anybody else, be it love or family or religion or citizens she promises to serve. To her, the world exists so that she could have what she wants. She makes you believe that there is nothing worth fighting for other than you. The ethical codes and the cardinal rules don’t apply to humans. We are already in shit. There’s no point raising a stink. There are lessons to be noted, if not learned, from her personality. She’s capable of a lot of things but remorse isn’t one of them. A quality that sets her apart from any of the protagonists in any of the other LOL-inducing shows. Selina’s apathy toward those who hurdle her path could have been heinous if Veep were in the line of Sopranos (1999–2007). That’s where the jokes come in handy. Lots and lots and lots of jokes, actually. Mind you, not your dumbed-down-shrilled-up jokes but intelligently-scripted-coldly-delivered ones. You can’t afford to miss them, right into the end of the episode, even through the credits. Almost every dialogue, if not the second one, has the potential to rattle your comic sense.
I’ll stop here. I guess i’ve given out more than enough spoilers. I also guess Hillary secretly finds solace in the exploits of Selina. Besides, the crooked ones don’t always win in the real world. They somehow hand their trump card to the dumb ones.
