The widely popular Netflix show “Inside Job” has been accumulating many fans over the course of its initial release on Oct. 22, 2021. The animated show is derived from the minds of Alex Hirsh and Shion Takeuchi, the creator and producer of the show “Gravity Falls.” However, unlike “Gravity Falls,” which holds itself back when it comes to vulgarity and humor, “Inside Job” is completely unfiltered, not shying away from covering topics that could be otherwise seen as unacceptable if the show was for kids. 

The story follows the protagonist, Reagan (Lizzy Caplan), a scientist who works for a shadow government of elites. As of Season One, we do not know the exact identities of these elites, however, we do know that they wear black robes with a triangle-shaped mask. In this world, most known conspiracies are true and Reagan and her coworkers, carry out the will of essentially the Illuminati in this universe. Due to the confirmations of certain conspiracies in this universe, it leads to interesting humor that references different conspiracies that people actually believe, as well as making fun of some of the conspiracies that are outlandish in nature. For example, in this universe, even things such as the earth being hollow are true, but the show also makes fun of Flat-Earthers by making a whole episode’s plot about a gang of Flat-Earthers hijacking Reagan’s boat to take them to the “edge” of the Earth.

Although the plot is interesting in its own right, what really makes this show come alive is the characters and how they interact. The other main characters include ample variety among personality traits as well as physical aspects. For example, Magic Myc (Brett Gelman), one of Reagan’s coworkers, is a literal alien with tentacles that can sense how people are feeling or thinking. Even though he does not contribute to the story as much as others, he acts as a comedic relief character meant to make people laugh. Brett (Clark Duke), another main character, acts as a sort of pseudo-protagonist, as he gets a considerable amount of screen time compared to others and even has a plot of an episode dedicated to him. ‘Rand’ Ridley (Christian Slater), Reagan’s father, is seen trying to tell the public of the conspiracies that are occurring unbeknownst to them during the beginning of the season, in which he is believed to be obviously crazy. However, despite his antics, he is a very intelligent scientist who is significantly skeptical of the government. By the end of the season, he becomes the villain by taking over the shadow government, his character arc is to be completed in the next season set to release in the coming months. 

Through the characters, the show expresses many realities about friendships among coworkers and interpersonal relationships among people as a whole. The synergy that Reagan’s group has is very intriguing. Another thing that could be relatable to some people is Reagan’s relationship with her father, it is very cold and awkward between them, to a point to where it was revealed that Rand never hugged Reagan even as a child and hugged her for the first time a few episodes into the season. This type of relationship has affected Reagan’s mental state to the point where she has no idea how to socialize and date, so she manufactures a robot to be identical to the guy she likes because she is too timid to socialize with the real person. 

Inside Job is another compelling animated comedy added onto Netflix’s catalogue. It is absurdly entertaining as well as an elaborate example that storytelling could be acceptable without sacrificing humor.