The cast: bit.ly/3U2srh4
You've got to watch "Edge of the Earth" on HBO. It's produced by Teton Gravity Research, which made its bones in the ski world, but that was a reason I was going to skip it, I mean I've seen so many of their productions.
But nothing like this.
There are four episodes. It's not a huge commitment. And to be honest, I haven't even seen the fourth one, about surfing, I keep up on the water sport, I read that Kai Lenny story in the "New Yorker":
"Kai Lenny Surfs the Unsurfable - The big wave surfer tackles some of the most fearsome swells on the planet. On the surface, it looks like he's just having fun": bit.ly/3BcdfoO
The article is written by William Finnegan, who wrote 2015's "Barbarian Days: A Surfing Life": amzn.to/3xhHUjz This is a cult book, albeit a large cult, the printed word equivalent of "Endless Summer," and if you've ever been in the water you'll dig it.
And the first story is a skiing one. Featuring Jeremy Jones and company in Alaska. This is very cool, primarily because I've been there, it's so forbidding. And snowboarder Jeremy Jones is doing god's work, he's had his own climate change lobbying group, Protect Our Winters, for years: protectourwinters.org
But it's the second episode that will have your eyes truly bugging out. Kayaking a never before navigated stretch of river in the Ecuadorian jungle. You truly start to get scared.
But not quite as scared as you will be watching that woman solo climb that peak in Kyrgyzstan. I mean the falling rock alone!
And wanting more of this, I decided to check out "Edge of the Unknown" on NatGeo, which I pay for via my Spectrum subscription.
Good luck getting my Roku to see it. I got in on my iPhone, but that screen's too small, and once you're in on your iPhone you can't keep setting up the Roku... I gave up, end of story.
But in an outdoor mood, I switched to Outside TV, which I get via my "Ski" subscription. Long story, you pay extra for more articles and then they dropped all the physical issues but one and it's a giant rip-off but you can watch Warren Miller movies, and I like the old ones, so I put in about a half hour, but then I was getting bummed, feeling so old, so I decided to go to Netflix, to check out what was going on.
I do this on a regular basis, on all the services, to check out their interfaces, to see what they're promoting, and I was scrolling down and I saw...
"Indian Matchmaking."
I knew there was a buzz on the first season, and having a second season means people watched it, and I doubted Felice wanted to view it, and since she was out of the house I dove in.
I was immediately hooked.
This is not the show you think it is. Arranged marriages. Rather, it's the story of single Indians whose parents think they're too old not to be married so they hire a matchmaker and...
What you've got to know is nobody is poor in this story. A small percentage are in India itself, most are in America, their parents have immigrated and...
There's an hilarious story of a guy in Nashik, a few hours from Mumbai. NOBODY WANTS TO LIVE THERE!
But who'd want to live with this guy anyway. He loves chickens, all he talks about is chickens. His family makes equipment for farms. He's got an American MBA, but no wife.
That's another thing about the cast, you get the impression they all did what their parents told them to do. They're not liberal arts majors, they're not artists, they're all professionals, in search of the big bucks. and other than the cardiologist, THEY'VE GOT NO SELF-KNOWLEDGE!
Let's start with Nadia. She's a babe. But emotionally stunted. An adolescent. The funny thing is they've all hired Auntie Seema, the matchmaker, who flies in from Mumbai, which everybody keeps calling "Bombay," which flummoxed me, to get them a partner. So they haven't figured out the relationship game and Nadia's hooked up with the perfect guy, but she blows him off because he wasn't physical enough with her. But then he says she told him from the start to go slow, to stay away!
Yes, the odds of any of these people hooking up...
And then Nadia goes for someone totally inappropriate, years younger, Auntie says no and...watch to see what happens.
And then there's Viral, an only child in North Carolina. Who keeps telling us how successful she is. Flies all over the country for work, owns her own home, has no debt, and wants someone...
Exactly like her.
Now anybody who has ever been in a relationship knows that you don't want someone exactly like yourself, it never works, but Viral is delusional. She lists so many criteria!
And then Auntie comes back with the matches' "biodata," a glorified Wikipedia page on each potential date. Viral's complaint? She googled the guy and he didn't look exactly like he did in his biodata photo. PICKY!
Oh, they're all so picky, except for the aforementioned cardiologist, Arshneel, in Cleveland. He's up for anything.
First date?
A woman in the Bay Area who works in finance. But she's never ever been on a date with an Indian before, and Arshneel wears a turban, how is that going to work out?
And then Auntie hooks him up with this dentist in Chi-town and... She's only been in America for a decade, so despite being cute and alive, will she blend in with his friends?
Shital is a babe. 38. With no prospects for marriage.
Like everybody else on this show, she wants it all. And, once again, no one could fit all her criteria.
And then there's Vinesh in Miami. He's a nice guy. His family is constantly cracking jokes, which bugs Auntie, but turns me on, I'd feel right at home, and...
He's set up with a nurse from L.A. and...
Sure, there's rejection and heartbreak, but there is some connection. And the most reasonable people are punted and...
The number one criterion is that the date get along with their intended's family. Usually, that's the first meeting, you're thrown directly into the fire. But...
The Indians have something right here, getting along with the family is very important. Siblings talk about in-laws who will take them to appointments and... It's much more than looks.
But everybody wants that too.
And then, interspersed throughout the series, you see people who've been married for a long time who got hitched via arranged marriages. Sometimes they only saw their spouse-to-be for five or fifteen minutes. AND THEY'RE ALL SO HAPPY! Maybe this is a selected group, but...
I forgot to mention Aparna!
Not a guy alive would want to be involved with this woman. Never mind no one being good enough for her.
Her friends are more broad-minded, especially Sophie...
Aparna grew up with Sophie in Houston. Sophie is Korean-American, but she moved to India and...she's uber-into astrology.
They all are, it's a key factor in determining compatibility!
And the face reader! I used to think I could judge a book by its cover, I found him fascinating.
And the one wedding was such a to-do, you've got to see it.
But really you've got to watch "Indian Matchmaking" to see the delusional yuppies who want to get married but really don't. Auntie keeps telling them they can't have 100%, that 60-70% is great, but they keep saying they're entitled to have it all!
And no one is backing down, they defy Auntie all the time.
This ain't a fake show, like the "Bachelorette," rather it's the story of America with an Indian twist. We work hard to lift ourselves up, and we emerge above and find out we're alone, and too many people think they can find a spouse just like they got an "A" in the course. Like relationships are school.
Then again, they have so much to learn.
God, you know if you're a candidate for this show, if you're into GOT and "Lord of the Rings"...chances are this won't be your cup of tea.
But when it comes down to the nitty-gritty, it's only about people. We're all the same, looking for the same stuff. And it's so interesting to watch other people fumble trying to figure it out.
I CAN'T WAIT FOR THE NEXT SEASON!
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