The Importance of Doing and Turning Your Work in on Time

Browne 1 Patrick Browne 9-29-12 Mr. Slade Boondocks Driven Satire Sunday nights on Caras welln Network has become copious ground for several(prenominal) of the most side-spitting, razor-sharp wit on this side of a c fit box. The parade concepts that constitute the Adult Swim block of program on CN has d crankyn its fair sh ar of rant reviews and harsh blame from anybody willing to offer an opinion. For Afro-American viewers, no show represents that aforementioned razors edge sooner corresponding Aaron McGruders comic strip creation, The Boondocks.The first lenify of the weekly series found all(prenominal) way possible to poke humor at more(prenominal) of the counterbalancets, individuals, and situations we see around ourselves on a daily basis. In some cases, the biting satire thats become this shows trademark may have receptive up some wounds that some family line in and among glum America would prefer to have left stitched up. From the would-be Revolutionary Huey, to the saggy pants wearing, thugged bug emerge Riley, to the blatantly Uncle Tom-like Uncle Ruckus, the characters and situations are cleverly designed to beat back us to look at ourselves through a very revealing lens.No person, topic, or issue has been too taboo to examine within the show, which has drawn the ire of some of the more prominent faces within the African-American community. Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, Oprah Winfrey, and philippic Cosby have been among the more outspoken detractors of the show, harping Browne 2 on the use of the dreaded N interchange among other things. The second season of the show may prove to be just as uneven and potentially inflammatory as the previous one.The scrutiny has been pretty intense, drawing criticism from multiple sources in the black community, as well as some pretty severe rebukes from the aforementioned likes of Sharpton and Jackson. In fact, the pointed criticism that has come from these sources saying are we not suppose to t alk round such things? Are we supposed to ignore some of the more embarrassing fads and unhealthy stereotypes that have come with this generation among black folk? I mean, we can talk round the war, how the government is shafting the black earthly concern and woman out of our ightful function of the American Dream. We can talk about all these things, but theres a big stink about one person taking an assessment of our own house through his own prism. Maybe the unfeigned reason some folks are getting so uptight about what they see is because some of the material hits really close to home. As much as I respect the Cosbys and the Jacksons of the world, there system isnt the only means to get the message across. Sometimes the finesse and subtle nature of satire and humor can deliver the same powerful, heartfelt message.Sometimes, we as black folk need to be surprise and awed into seeing a particular reality. Thats what this show is A strong smack in the mouth A wake-up call Humor is a pretty revealing thing If we can take the time out to laugh at some of our own shortcomings, we can take the same type of time out to correct those issues and set about the task of strengthening our communities. Will we hear the occasional curse word, reliable We might even hear the foul Browne 3 and dreaded N word a few more times before the show leaves syndication.So what is more important? Listening and acting on the message delivered to correct said problems, or whining about a character that portrays something that practically all of us have seen at some point during our lifetime? I dont know about the next viewer, but this show represents solid with most Afro-Americans, which is why Ill be tuned in for season fourI may indeed get a good laugh out of the ungodly pimp behavior of A Pimp Named Slick Back, or the numerous references to some of the out-of-control aspects of strike culture.Through that laughter I and others tend to see a bit more of the reality that some of dreary America seems too apathetic or too afraid, to confront the satire that this particular show represents. I cant think of a better way to start that process than speaking on this issue through our own prism. Since 2005, Aaron McGruder has brought the previously unexposed taboos of Black American culture in its most raw and comedic form to the forefront of this countrys conscience through our TV screens.The tales of Huey, Riley, and Granddad Freemans migration from the Southside of Chicago to the lily lily-white suburb of Woodcrest has endured its share of controversy. From public condemnation by Rev. Al Sharpton to threats of legal sue by BET, The Boondocks, one of the most watched shows to be broadcast on Adult Swim, goes straight for the jugular of many of the most famous and infamous figures of our generation.As the main character on the show, Hueys neo-Black nationalist views have been the centerpiece of some of The Boondocks most memorable moments. From blasting MLK for Browne 4 repeatedly saying nigga on the Return of the King episode to calling Ronald Reagan a devil, Huey and his militant antics made way for more serious issues to be addressed. The way he schooled Granddad about the origins of Christmas and dropped knowledge about the negative and nostalgic images shown on cable giant Black Entertainment Television were classic and unprecedented.His less informed and gangster inclined little brother Riley barked Aint nothin wrong with BET, while he punctuated either sentence with an unapologetic nigga. Other episodes like The Hunger Strike and The Uncle Ruckus Reality memorialize ridiculed BET to the point where they pressured Sony to ban the shows. One of the funniest and ironically most criticized characters is Uncle Ruckus, a self-hating older black man and brother of Granddad Freeman creates a climate for one of the shows more controversial episodes, Jimmy grayback.In this particular instance, Ruckus wrote music for a racist country sing er, made mention to every know racial epithet to Black people, and called our president, that baboon Bama. Other creative minds were not spared by McGruders satire, like Tyler Perry who was highly roasted on the Pause episode, where they focused on Perrys overzealous religious POV and used his cross-dressing and transsexual(prenominal) innuendos as fuel for the fire.It was a point in the episode where Granddad, whose voice is that of actor John Witherspoon, was obligate by Perrys character to say, I renounce Ice Cube and all his workseven Friday Actor Kadeem Hardison was even clowned when his lack of persistent work in the film industry was mentioned as he auditioned for one of Perrys plays turned films. Whitney and Bobby, Lil Browne 5 Wayne, and even fictional musical artists like Thugnificent are used to manifest negative, yet accurate portrayals of Black performers.Theres always talk about white television shows that ought to have black faces, but many of these same critics te nd to overlook the reality that programming in general could stand to diversify, too. Diversity comes in many shades most of which go beyond color. To that end, while its lovely to see so many shows strive to show the more dogmatic aspects of black life, more often than not it appears to come at the expense of offering our perspective as it relates to race, class, and pop culture on the airwaves.There are plenty who confirm the satire found in the accessible and political commentary on the show, and other instances of the kind of acute humor found in shows like The Boondocks and Chappelles Show. That kind of humor, for the most part, can only be found in shows mostly scripted and conceived by whites like The Daily Show, or even Family Guy and The Cleveland Show. Those shows are great, but let off come from a separate point of view.The Boondocks has been known to be brought up in conversations as a point of reference to show how much driven satire entertainment that is enjoyed b y Black people is a step backwards toward the days of the minstrel shows, but you have to be able to keep laughing, even if its at your own shortcomings. Browne 6 Works Cited Allah, Shabe. The Boondocks. The outflank of Boondocks. Source Magazine 24 June 2010. Seward III, Herbert. The Boondocks. The Boondocks Offensive show or stinging reality. chawbacon article 16 November 2007. Arceneaux, Michael. The Boondocks. Black Satire. Thegrio 18 May 2012