The last few months indoors has left me not only with the need for quality streaming content, but also a desire to be reminded of what it really means to be human. Lucky for me, Netflix is The Gospel Of Midnightcreated by comedian Duncan Trussell and Adventure Time‘s Pendleton Ward, takes place in an original, visually exciting way, which is a series that, in my opinion, absolutely everyone should see.
The animated series follows Clancy Gilroy (with the voice of the Trussell) travels to a series of dying worlds, by interviewing different creatures along the path to its “spacecast” (his universe’s version of a podcast), the use of your malfunction multiverse simulator. The show combines real conversations of Trussell’s podcast The Duncan Trussell Family Hour with trippy visual, which is both relatable and surreal at the same time.
This series serves as a much-needed reminder of the parts of life that connects us all, no matter where we are or what we are: the love, the pain, the loss, the hope, the loneliness, and much more.
While Clancy conducted interviews with foreign creatures, who move through the imaginative worlds that are experiencing their own end. The psychedelic-looking visual to Trussell in the Neighborhood, and collaboration that can certainly be confusing, and even disturbing at times, but are an important part of what makes this program so special. The animations allow each episode to almost tell two stories intertwined at the same time: one that is supernatural and magical, and another who is vulnerable and a family, each one in some way to the perfection, the balance of the other.
What I think is the most remarkable of the quality of The Gospel Of Midnight, however, is how incredibly honest it is. Each episode features interesting guests, such as author Anne Lamott and the mortician Caitlin Doughty, whose animated characters go on adventures unimaginable with Clancy, while discussing philosophical issues of love, death, meditation, and much more.
These conversations between Clancy and the various guests are so vulnerable and genuine that each episode feels like you are listening to an intimate conversation between friends, instead of two people talking. The way in which the characters openly discuss topics such as substance abuse, the meaning of life, and family relations without dancing around the inevitable discomfort and pain that can come with them is very therapeutic from a viewer perspective and even helps to normalize these difficult issues and emotions.
In a time defined by the isolation and change, this series serves as a much-needed reminder of the parts of life that connects us all, no matter where we are or what we are: the love, the pain, the loss, the hope, the loneliness, and much more. For an animated series that takes place in an alternate universe full of unknown, rare beings, The Gospel Of Midnight it is one of the most realistic human performances that I have seen in a long time, and perhaps even always, that is why I believe it is definitely something you should see.
