Review: Human Discoveries “And Then They Defined the Relationship”

Hand spears for everyone!

Overview:

The elk have a new leader, and as her first order of business, she declares radical nonengagement with the humans.  But, not before one accidentally knocks the village elder off a cliff.  Jane acts quickly and invents the Heimlich manoeuvre, which is misinterpreted by Gary as something more intimate.

Meanwhile, the remainder of the village begins to demand spears so that they can protect themselves.  Though, Ugg does not think that they can handle it.  In place, Minerva starts to make “hand spears” for everyone.  It doesn’t take long for the tribe to realize that it may not be safer for everyone to be armed.

Our Take:

The theme of this show has been social commentary.  There are defined narratives that focus on problems that are generally considered current issues.  Human Discoveries adds the context of humans first coming across these issues and how us at our most naïve would handle things.  This episode in specific takes on gun control and defining what a monogamous relationship means.  Major concepts for a twenty-minute show.  Somehow they manage to squeeze a lot in and get ready for the next thing by the end of the episode.

Jane manages to articulate an issue that is relatable when it comes to a majority of relationships.  One of the partners always seems to be worried so much about maintaining the status that they can end up squeezing too hard.  Gary is the definition of someone loving too hard.  For the lover, this can be an embarrassing thing to watch and recognize about yourself while the lovee can find this discouraging.  Wouldn’t it be better if everyone could just relax?  But, that just isn’t human nature, which makes this an excellent topic for the series.

Meanwhile, using the spears as a replacement for guns managed to work seamlessly.  The craze that develops around the new weaponry is a good example of what happened in America when the Right to Arms was written.  There are a lot of expectations that having a weapon to protect is a necessity.  But some people shouldn’t have weapons.  They can take training and mental health to wield safely.  The show did a great job of showing some of the risks and squeezing such a significant argument over a short period of time.

Though, the best discovery of the episode was easily gifting flowers to a girl you like.  Gary goes extra when he fills Jane’s cave full of her favourite flowers.  This being an unheard-of concept, it breaks the poor girl’s heart to know that all of her beloved plants are all dead now.  The interaction was one of the best in the series yet.  I guess the Heimlich manoeuvre was also discovered in this episode to hilarious results, but the flower thing had me in stitches.

Another strong episode from the Facebook Watch original series.  I have seen mixed reviews since last weeks three-episode premiere.  Some of the arguments are legitimate, yet their expectations of the show were quite high.  There is a lot of star power and experienced showrunners behind the series, but Human Discoveries is also facing a lot of unique challenges.  Provided that it is released on a social media website compared to a network as established as Fox, I would say that this show has gone beyond expectations.  I feel like it could easily hold its own on Sunday night cable.  Especially when episodes take on as much as this one, and still manage to be witty, original, and entertaining.