TOTAL FORGIVENESS

We can’t talk about Total Forgiveness unless we have a talk about Dropout TV. For those unaware, Dropout TV was once part of a website called College Humor (Not to be confused with Funny or Die) that gave birth to some great comedy shorts and skits. They also gave us the amazing Adam Ruins Everything. It also feels like they create a new table top role playing (RPG for short) reality show every ten minutes or so. Dropout employs some stellar comedy writers who are all over the writers rooms of other shows across many other platforms. I’ve written about Game Changer before as well. Dropout has some great stuff.

At some point Sam Reich, purchased College Humor and with it Dropout TV. You may think that name is familiar, because it is, he is the son of none other than Robert Reich.
In the time I’ve been writing this, I’m more than certain they launched another RPG show.

Sam Reich pivoted to focusing solely on creating content on a subscription based platform. Bringing his game show Game Changer, along with a gaggle of RPG reality shows under the Dropout moniker and they’ve ditched the College Humor brand almost completely. They have shifted the focus further away from scripted content and leaned hard towards reality or other unscripted type content. These days the site claims to offer bespoke comedy. And it really does offer some pretty good stuff. Game Changer is probably the best Improv Comedy show out there, Breaking News is pretty entertaining, Kingpin Katie: The Web Show was an excellent scripted show that ran for 8 episodes (I really wanted more), and –for fucks sake, they’ve launched another RPG show. Look, we’re running out of time, and if we wait too long, the only thing left on Dropout TV will be RPG shows. It really is that ridiculous. Over half of the 40 shows listed on their shows page are RPG shows all based off one original show. Somebody should tell them, I don’t think they know the horse died long ago.

There is some great content at Dropout TV, and if you are a fan of improv comedy, it’s worth at least a 1 year subscription. I do want to focus on one show in particular from Dropout. It is by far their most serious endeavor and I think it stands as an excellent (Whether they set out to make it that or not) work of art.

Total Forgiveness starts off innocently enough, kind of like a game of truth or dare. It then devolves into the hot mess not unlike an endgame of Truth or Dare where everyone is shitfaced and keeps picking truth, no matter how dark it gets.
The premise is simple, two of Dropouts better comedians, the subtly hilarious Ally Beardsley and the wonderfully talented Grant O’Brien compete to pay off their student loans by creating challenges for each other. Complete the challenge, win money. Fail or give up on the challenge, don’t win money. The person who completes the most challenges wins the series and a huge chunk of their students will be paid off.

While there is a lot about this show that draws attention to the hellscape that is the US’s unique brand of capitalism and the terrible system we’ve somehow defaulted into in regards to how we expect people to pay for their education. the best part of this is the picture of humanity through the eyes of two friends, and what cost is too much to put upon each other to get out from underneath their life crippling predatory debt. The challenges are funny and a little harsh at first. Then they devolve into a one-sided cruelty fest where one contestant seems driven to win, and the other is too focused on an entertaining show to notice the severity of things until it is too late. You know, like what might be happening to college kids in search of an education and better life. In the end the show recognizes and self corrects in a way we as country probably never will. It is a spectacular, if not cruel and all to accurate metaphor of the impossible proposition of financial freedom in a country hellbent on making sure none of us ever get it. It’s also a wonderful reminder that the only way we’ll get there is with the help of our community.