Over the weekend, I watched the Derek special that had just
hit Netflix. I had honestly been hoping for a full new series, but I was glad
to at least have this ending to a really touching and thoughtful show.
It’s not a series that is appropriate for all ages, and
sometimes it is inappropriate for all
ages, if you know what I mean. There’s
no violence or nudity, but the language often gets quite strong and the humor
is often vulgar. One character in
particular is a very crude man, and when he is in the scene, you can count on a
conversation that is at best very uncomfortable.
But it’s also a series that, if you can weather with the
language, that you should see. And I’d
ask you to read my review of the first series here for an overview of why that
is.
I have a lot to say about the special, but I also realize
that I never reviewed the second series, which I had originally intended to do,
so let’s touch on that first.
Personal Loss
The first series was primarily about the sanctity of
life. The second series is about how we
deal with profound personal loss. The
series takes place at a nursing home, and each of the characters, in one way or
another, is a social outcast. The
elderly are abandoned to the home to wait until death. The manager (Hannah) has been rejected by the
government, who no longer will give her money to take care of these people, so
she’s all alone in making this thing work.
Her boyfriend is unemployed.
Another man (Kev) who is unemployed, drunk, and a pervert. Vicky ended up working there to pay off her
debt to society. The title character is
simple. I’ll not try to diagnosis him,
because when one person tries to do that in the show, that character is mocked
for it. But suffice it to say, he is not
smart and not attractive, but he is kind.
He has no malice, no hatred. He
doesn’t understand much, but he is the heart of the place.
It is a show about people who have nowhere else to go, and a
show about people who are losing the very little that they have. They are a people who only have each other,
and that’s exactly where they ultimately find solace – in their community. That is ultimately the only place where they
can find comfort when they need it, and in this series, they each in turn need
it a lot.
Getting along with
the hardest to love
Ironically, the series starts with the departure of Dougie,
who was my favorite character in series 1.
Because of his departure, the series focuses a lot more on Kev. This is the main reason that series two is
not quite as good as the first, but we should not dismiss Kev just because he
makes us uncomfortable (very, very uncomfortable). To paraphrase Hannah from the special
(getting ahead of myself a little): he’s
not a complete jerk or anything, he’s just hurt.
It takes her a long time to see that, but starting here, the
rest of the series is really about people finding a place in the only place
that will have them – this home. They
are going to strive to belong more than ever, to not just be here now, but to
create a future. Together.
And that includes Kev, whether or not we want him there.
The push of this show is to tell us that we can’t afford to
box the people around us out. We need
them, and they need us. And it’s
uncomfortable, and it’s awkward, and it’s really hard, but it’s far harder
without them. It’s far, far worse
without them. And when we watch these
rejects foolishly reject each other, only to one day figure it out, and to
learn that thing that Derek knew all along – kindness is by far the better
path. Love is by far the smoother road.
The place of God
In all of this, Derek seems to be the only one who believes
in God, which is ironic, because Ricky Gervais, who writes the show and plays
Derek, is an atheist. But when faced
with his greatest loss, Derek asks about heaven in a wonderfully profound
moment. Don’t expect great theology
there, but do expect a simple man seeking for something beyond himself, even
when everyone else has rejected it.
But in the end, we do have a show about a bunch of seemingly
irreligious people trying to cope with loss together. Does God have anything to do with that?
Yes, of course He does.
Despite Gervais’ own thinking, this show is more Christian than most of
the Christian movies I’ve reviewed here.
Everything about it screams Christianity. The importance of life, the importance of
community, the importance of kindness and love – none of these make any sense
in a materialistic worldview. There is
nothing in atheism that inherently says that an old person’s life is worth
anything. Any answer the atheist gives
is going to be based on personal preference or societal norms, neither of which
can really be said to have any greater moral weight than an opposing view. If you think we should be nice to the
elderly, but someone else says we should kill them all to conserve resources,
why are you right and that other person is wrong?
Add this to the pot and stir it in a while – this show is
not appealing to societal norms.
Actually, it is fighting against them.
It is appealing to a higher moral absolute, calling people to a higher
standard and telling us that we should be doing better.
To which I would reply – why? Why should I?
If there is nothing except the material, if we are nothing but bags of
protoplasm, a cosmic accident of time and chance, then why does it matter how I
treat someone else? On what standard do
you say that I should act that way?
And when you answer, be sure and answer using material facts
– nothing immaterial and universal. “Immaterial
and universe” is my team, not yours.
Christianity can make sense of these things, but atheism
cannot. And that’s why Ricky Gervais’
worldview is so contradictory. It’s that
way because it’s not right, and therefore it could not actually work. He writes a show about the sanctity of life
that doesn’t come from his own worldview, but doesn’t even apply it
consistently, because he’s in favor of abortion. The contradiction is so clearly evident that
even Jerry Seinfeld recognized it in the Comedians
in Cars Getting Coffee episode “Mad Man in a Death Machine.” In that episode, the conversation went like
this:Ricky: I really think the death penalty is too depressing to even think about. I don't agree with it that the state can show that sort of form of violence.
Jerry: What about abortion? Do you agree with that?
Ricky: Yeah, but that's different, isn't it?
Jerry: I guess you can just arrange things the way you like them when you're rich and famous.
The reason that Gervais is conflicted over the topic of
human value and worth is because he’s trying to suppress the knowledge that he
has of God. The Bible tells us that he
has all the evidence he needs to know of God, but he is trying to push it away
(see Romans 1). The fact is – Gervais
understands that people are valuable because of they are image-bearers of God,
not mere bags of protoplasm. He sees
that, understands it, and writes quite well about it, all the while denying the
very thing he’s writing.
And I’m thankful he does write it, because Derek is a very good show. The difference is, it wouldn’t be a good show
if Christianity were not true, because it holds values that would be contrary to
a purely naturalistic world.
People like Derek are worth nothing if atheism is true. Thankfully, it’s not. Thankfully, there is a God, and He made
people like Derek in His own image, and those people have value and dignity. And we all know it.
Conclusion
I loved the second series of Derek. I miss Dougie, but his absence does not ruin
things. It’s not something to watch with
the kids around, and it’s not something to watch if you are sensitive to crude
humor and language. We all have our own
tolerance levels for these things, so you should be aware before going in to
this that your level should be pretty high if you’re going to enjoy this show.
