Why Brooklyn 99 is Meaningful

If Aristotle defines a comedy as any entertainment form that has a happy ending, I think that many, if not all, comedies have the ability to contribute meaningful insights on human existence.

Brooklyn 99 is a comedic television show about a group of detectives in New York who solve cases together. It's very lighthearted, and constantly makes silly jokes within the group of detective friends. It follows their friendships as they go through new changes in their lives, like when they have children, get married, and go through heartbreaks.

Although Brooklyn 99 makes hilarious lighthearted content, it also makes serious points about racism and homophobia. For example, one detective named Terry Jeffords gets stopped by a white police officer for being black. He tried to explain to the officer that he was a detective himself, and he wasn't doing anything wrong, but the officer wouldn't listen to him. Terry tried to have a sit down conversation with the unapologetic white officer about how it's wrong to stop black people if they are not clearly doing something against the law.

This brought up the issue about how racism sadly plays a major role in who gets arrested or not. Even though the episode was able to make you laugh, it made you more aware of the realities of racism today's society.

Captain Holt is the detective's boss and is a African American, openly gay man. Although, his sexuality and race doesn't define his character. He is a highly intelligent, no-nonsense man who is respected and loved at his job. But, Holt explains in episode how he wasn't always respected at work. He talks about how he constantly faced professional roadblocks because of the homophobia and racism in the 70's and 80's. Despite the fact that he had lots of experience in his field of work, he was often disrespected by, and excluded from the other white, straight males at work.

This makes the audience more aware of how homophobia plays a role in our society, and how someone's sexuality doesn't define their characteristics. The show still makes you laugh at the silly jokes the characters often make, but it brings your attention to serious issues that still play a role in American society today.

Brooklyn 99 has a happy ending in each of its shows, but that doesn't mean that it can't enforce and analyze important, meaningful issues within the show and its characters. A happy ending doesn't necessary hide the depth of each character and their struggles, but it merely reveals meaningful insights to its audience while still making them laugh and keeping their attention. I think a comedy can be even more meaningful than a tragedy sometimes, because it doesn't dwell on depression, but rather presents both the joy and sadness of life in a hilarious, captivating way.