For all those who loathe the vapid lives of self-obsessed 20-somethings… you are not in luck with TBS’s new dark comedy Search Party. While I admire the show for attempting to take a “satirical” turn on Millennials in a serious situation, Search Party seems to greatly overestimate our tolerance for these kinds of people.
In Search Party, a young woman named Dory (Alia Shawkat) becomes enwrapped in a mystery when a girl she met once in college goes missing. No matter how deep (or shallow) they get on proving millennial nonsense, some moments just can’t get past general awfulness. For example, in the second episode, which aired Monday night, “The Woman Who Knew Too Much,” Dory attempts to talk to a police officer regarding the missing person case. When she appears to reach a dead end, she leaves him to go back to “shooting black teens” because, echoing Black Lives Matter activists, “That’s obviously all they do.”
Dory: So I thought it would be, you know, pretty valuable information to let you know that she's still alive.
Officer: Mm-hmm. Okay. And when was the last time you saw her before last night?
Dory: Six years, which I know sounds like a long time, but, you know, it doesn't feel that way with social media now.
Officer: Okay. Well, thanks for coming in.
Dory: Okay. I mean, is that it? What happens now?
Officer: Oh, we wait and hope for the best.
Dory: Wait and hope?
Officer: We'll do the best we can. But she's an adult, and if what you say is true, I'm sure she's aware people are looking for her and she'll come home.
Dory: But she needs help.
Officer: And if she calls me, I'll be happy to help her.
Dory: Okay. Well, I guess, uh... I'll just let you get back to shooting black teens, 'cause that's obviously all you do.
Officer: Whoa! What the hell did you just say to me?!
Dory: I'm sorry. Sorry, I realize that that was a very big thing to say, and I-I didn't mean it. You obviously just work behind a desk.
Officer: You know what? Get the...out of my office.
Dory: Okay, sorry. Sorry.
I suppose the satirical part of this is actually having the police officer respond back. But then again, this show apparently thinks I need its insight to remind me that, shockingly, it’s wrong to accuse officers of just shooting black teens. I guess there’s something funny in that.
If the show wants to tell me how shallow these characters can be and how idiotic the world is for putting up with them, they don’t need ten episodes to prove that. Maybe some audiences will like the unfunny humor of ridiculously unlikeable people, but I don’t. And if they keep adding this kind of dialogue, I doubt Search Party will get any better.
