Stephen Colbert’s Our Cartoon President resumed its first season on July 15. At this point in the age of Trump, there’s enough material to mock the administration on a daily basis. But unlike most administrations, there is of course an extra layer of surreal absurdity, where you’re not quite sure what’s going on, which lends itself well to an animated parody of our government.
The episode opens with the now-infamous summit between Trump and Putin. After demanding Putin sign a joint statement proclaiming the two to be “best friends,” it quickly devolves into Putin trying to get state secrets from an increasingly child-like Trump (at one point, he even moves Putin’s lips to form the words “Your father loves you”). Trump then has Putin accompany him to the bathroom because he “doesn’t want to waste a second” of their hang time, which drives Putin crazy. Regardless of how you feel about Trump and the investigation, that’s pretty solid comedy.
Moving on, the episode lampoons Trump’s NATO trip, as he feels insecure because of the “high-class” European leaders, as well as the approaching fictional hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, who is somehow less villainous in the cartoon, decides to teach Trump class, which involves situations such as eating beef tartare instead of a “bowl of chunky brown.”
Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi aren’t spared either; the scene where they try to come up with the new slogan for the Democrats going into the midterms is excruciating, hilarious, and saddening, as it actually sounds a bit more like a real platform than the Democrats have been able to come up with lately. Some of the best moments are the petty squabbling between Pelosi and Schumer, particularly their spat with Rachel Maddow. The interview lampoons how the Democratic leadership is stuck in the mindset of running to the right in order to get votes from moderate Republicans, at the expense of the people who actually comprise their base.
This show is particularly interesting in the era of Trump. While late-night pundits like Colbert are typically solidly opposed to him, it’s not like their party has been doing so hot by its purported base either. So it’s intriguing to see that people like Colbert are aware that the Democrats, with their calls for “bipartisanship” are basically Republican-lite, with no substantive issues they intend to run on in the midterms. Not that Colbert and his writers have any ideas about real reform; there’s literally a line cautioning against demonizing Wall Street.
In terms of the actual comedy here, the jokes themselves are funny, if somewhat low-hanging fruit. Politicians of all stripes are targets, and while some of the gags may be cheap shots, there is a certain truth in the core aspects of the characters being made fun of.
All that being said, there is still the underlying tone of smug “coastal elite” superiority that helped Trump win the office in the first place. So it’s an odd juxtaposition: on the one hand, it seems like Colbert is aware that the strategy isn’t working, but then continues to beat it over the head anyway. So if you’re looking for a few easy laughs to unwind at the end of the day, they’re here, but much of the jokes hit a little too close to home to be funny for long.
Overall rating: 7/10
