My Favorite Character is Earl

Recently I rented Disc 1 of Season 1 of My Name is Earl from Blockbuster*. It's rekindled my love for that show. For the uninitiated, I'll give a quick overview. You start with a chronic theif and all-around ne'er-do-well named Earl. Suddenly he realizes that he has to start over and make everything right in his life to repair his karma, a concept introduced to him by Carson Daly. So obviously, he writes down all the bad things he has done and starts to set them right (including such feats as "Faked my own death to avoid breaking up with a girl").

What really makes the show great is even as they lampoon low-class America, they do it with love. Earl and his even more simple brother Randy live out of a seedy motel, where they make friends with the maid, Catalina (who, of course, has dubious immigration status). Earl's scheming ex-wife Joy lives in a trailer with Darnell (AKA "crabman" from the crabshack).

I had a friend from high school who, after graduation, started doing construction. For awhile he was living out of a motel and dressed strikingly similar to Earl. He drank at a bar like the crabshack. He drove around in an old car. He certainly didn't steal, but he definitely inhabited a world similar to Earl's.

I suppose that's one of the reasons why I like "My Name is Earl." It's a funny show, absolutely, but it also reminds me of my friend. He could have easily become a successful businessman or gone into almost any line of work. However, he was content with his life, he didn't want the stress of running his own business or a changing jobs. It's impressive that you can have a major network comedy based around a guy that lives out of a seedy motel without feeling like we're supposed to look down on people in that circustance. I would think that it'd be tough for someone in the position to create a TV show to understand someone in the position to drive an El Camino and eat vending machine donuts for breakfast. Bravo Greg Garcia (and, of course, the entire cast is excellent).

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* Quick aside: How did we survive before Blockbuster.com? Or Netflix, since they're essentially the same thing. My roommates and I pay $18 per month and in return, I have a reason to live another day (namely, a new DVD of The Wire might come in the mail).