“Master of None” started out as a good TV show and became a great one. It went from being an autobiographical series based on star and co-creator Aziz Ansari’s life to one of the most inventive sitcoms of 2015.
“The Thief,” the first episode of season two, reminds us why this show is so exciting.
The show follows the life of Dev, played by co-creator Aziz Ansari. In season one, Dev pursued his acting career — most notably landing a role in a Go-Gurt commercial — and a romance with a woman named Rachel.
Set in the aftermath of their breakup, season two finds Dev apprenticing at a pasta shop in Italy. When Dev finds a new romance in the radiant Sara, a thief jeopardizes it.
One of my favorite things about sitcoms is the concept episode, which happens when an episode does something ambitious with its form or content. When done right, these episodes expand the possibilities of what a sitcom can achieve without compromising the essence of the show.
“The Thief” is a fantastic concept episode that honors postwar Italian films. This episode is shot in black and white like “8 ½” or “La Notte.” The second half of the episode is an homage to Vittorio De Sica’s “Bicycle Thieves.” One particular high angle long shot of a town square would feel right at home in a late 1950s Fellini film.
The best concept episodes are about more than style. They remain true to their characters even as they stretch the form. “Community” was able to do episodes that parodied action films and had alternate timelines because they always remained true to the voices of their characters.
Co-creators Ansari and Alan Yang understand this.
They are great at integrating this episode’s new visual style into the larger personality of “Master of None.” Ansari may shoot a conversation between Dev and Sara in black and white, but the dialogue has the rambling charm of a great earlier episode such as “Nashville.”
Ansari is hilarious as Dev. Claire-Hope Ashitey is engaging and funny as Sara. I missed Eric Wareheim and Shoukath Ansari, but their characters will appear in later episodes.
“The Thief” is an excellent concept episode. It brings back the perfect mixture of formal experimentation and humor that made “Master of None” such a delight.
