The Gritty and Mesmorizing Reality of Transparent

I just got done binge watching Transparent, a comedy-drama about a dysfunctional, Jewish L.A. family, in less than 24 hours on Amazon Prime.

I had been dying to finish this show since I watched the pilot a few short months ago, so when the time came to continue, I just let the video roll. And roll it did, I literally couldn’t stop and now I’m devastated that it’s over (thankfully, a second season has been announced).

Why? Because Transparent is one of the most honest, real, gritty, organic pieces of story-telling I have encountered in some time. If you think Orange is the New Black takes trans reality to new measures, you won’t believe the rawness here. Jill Soloway, the show’s creator, took parts of her own life – growing up with a transgender parent, having a lesbian sister, being Jewish (the religion plays a big part). As show runner, she used 16 trans actors in the first series, encompassing many types of trans experience, and over 50 trans people working on the production as a whole, making the transformation of Maura as real as possible. Hence his family’s reactions also feel spot on.

Jeffrey Tambor is spell-bounding  as Maura Pfefferman (he must be nominated for an Emmy), the family’s patriarch who comes out as trans at age 73. This portrayal is truly authentic and chillingly real, despite the actor not being really trans. Tambor has been acting for 50 years and this role is clearly the culmination of great skill and detail. Maura’s (formerly Mort) ex-wife is played by Judith Light, who we see in flashbacks discovering her husband’s true identity two decades ago. Their three children (played excellently by Gaby Hoffmann, Jay Duplass & Amy Landecker) have their own issues and each takes his announcement to transition to a woman differently.

Judaism runs through the core of the Pfeffermans’ existence. Despite their lack of religiosity, Shabbos meals take place on Friday nights. Clothing is cut while sitting shiva. Maura wears the Star of David around her neck proudly. They eat at Cantor’s Deli. Maura’s son dates a female Rabbi. They question each other’s religiosity as they struggle to figure out who they are.

What I like about the usage of Judaism is that it’s a lot like the way I live. It’s a crux, it’s something we all count on in my family, it provides hope and solace when none can be found anywhere else. These five family members keep coming back to each other for support, no matter how twisted the circumstances and to me, that’s real life. You never really leave the life you came from. It’s real. It’s gritty. It’s memorizing. It’s Transparent. Watch it.

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