“Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens” Has All the Millennial Feels

Created by Awkwafina and Teresa Hsiao who produced Fresh Off the Boat Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens follows 27 yearold Nora Lin played by Awkwafina obviously who still lives at home with her grandmother and father Lori Tan Chinn and BD Wong respectively in my birthplace Queens New York where I was known as AJ amp160The blueprint of this series is very Broad Cityesqueamp160 A midtolate twentysomething who smokes bud and is all around pretty chill has to tackle the harsh and evermounting realities of adult life amp160I hate when that happensamp160 All of this sits directly on top of that same vibe of universal acceptance in terms of genders and sexual preferences that also ran through the previously named New Yorkbased comedyamp160 Chris Gethard who played Ilanaamp8217s boss at Sales Sales Sales on Broad even makes a guest appearance at one pointIn Awkwafina instead of watching Abbi Abrams played by Abbi Jacobsonamp160and Ilana Wexler Ilana Glazer try to figure out life we watch Nora and her grandma with a dash of her cousin played by Saturday Night Liveamp8217s firstever Asian cast member Bowen Yang taking it on amp160Yes Nora does the heavy lifting as far as the uberwatchable amp8220overthetopnessamp8221 of it all goes but just like on Fresh Off the Boat a coolerthanhumanlypossible grandma Lori Tan Chinn goes a long way on this one tooDonamp8217t get it twisted thoughamp160 Even with all the similarities to its sister series Nora is an animal all its own amp160This show captures a debatably identical but technically different subset of Millennial culture amp160Nora other people in their midtolate twenties and people like myself in their very early thirtiesamp160exist in an age where the standard beaten paths of life have faded beyond recognition amp160There are new lanes out here brody and the people in the aforementioned groups have had to grapple with the possibility of being left behind so to speak in a pretty different way than their predecessors amp160Sure it wasnamp8217t always possible to just be a coder and most people from my parentsamp8217 generation are still wrapping their heads around whatever the hell an amp8220influenceramp8221 is but taking the standard fouryearsofcollege route or obligatorily following in the footsteps of a parentamp8217s occupation of choice is not only way less of a guarantee than it once was it can also be unfulfilling as fkNora hits that nail directly on its antiquated head and while it doesnamp8217t necessarily provide any direct solutions to the problem one thing always shines through Nora loves her family amp160Their support is paramount as is being kind to oneamp8217s self in these situations and that sentiment comes across loud and clearAwkwafina is hilarious as hell by the way amp160I mean really amp160Like that shouldamp8217ve been the headline on this one but to be honest thereamp8217s so much more to this show than just how dope its lead is amp160BD Wong for example delivers yet another performance that adds to the ultraversatile body of work under his belt amp160His iconic role in the Jurassic Park franchise not to mention his roles on Law and Order and Mr Robot secured him a place on my radar and his ability to be one of those amp8220serious actorsamp8221 who can dabble in the fine art of comedy is what makes his reserved yet consistently funny performance that much betterGrandma is that true shining star of this thing when all is said and done though Not only is she an occasionally foulmouthed badass itamp8217s also her relationship with Nora that provides 75 of the emotional anchor in this show amp160As the series progresses that relationship becomes more and more invaluable and unlike Fresh Off the Boat it wonamp8217t start to run out of material when the kids grow up because Nora is already there amp160The TriState area is rife with possibilities and the reallife comedy landscape is teeming with suitable future guest stars amp160Some already on the roster are Saturday Night Liveamp8217s Melissa Villaseamp241or Orange Is the New Blackamp8217s Laverne Cox Russian Dollamp8217s Natasha Leone and the Daily Showamp8217s Jaboukie YoungWhite among so many others that I donamp8217t have the space to name themamp160 Alright I do have the space but I donamp8217t want to take all the fun out of watching this show so I wonamp8217tHave I made clear that Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens which may have the most tothepoint title ever conceived is as funny as anything else on televisionamp160 Maybe it should have been titled Awkwafina Is Hilarious as Hell which would have been just as accurateamp160 If I had a show amp8211 call it Ainsley Is AJ from Queensamp160 Iamp8217d bring Nora Abbie and Ilana together sit back light up and wait for the magic to happenAwkwafina Is Nora from Queens is telecast Wednesday at 1030 pm on Comedy CentralClick on the social media tiles above or below to share this content with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this commentary are exclusively those of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated bloggersamp160amp160amp160

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“Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens” Has All the Millennial Feels

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Ainsley Andrade

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“Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens” Has All the Millennial Feels

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